Leuven is built around KU Leuven, the oldest university in the Low Countries, so the whole compact city runs on student rhythms and empties in summer. You get a beautiful, walkable centre, a huge international community, and Brussels plus its airport just a short train ride away. It is small enough that you will keep bumping into friends, and English is spoken everywhere on campus.

• KU Leuven, founded in 1425, is consistently among Europe's top universities and dominates city life.
• Brussels is 25 minutes by train and Brussels Airport just 13 minutes, ideal for weekend flights.

The Oude Markt, a single square ringed entirely by bars, calls itself the longest bar in the world and is the beating heart of student nightlife. Faculty bars ('fakbars') serve absurdly cheap beer, the Belgian cantus singing ritual is a rite of passage, and ESN Leuven runs trips and parties non-stop. Because nearly everyone is a student, the whole city feels like a campus.

• Start a night on the Oude Markt, then move to a fakbar like Politika or Pavlov for cheap pints.
• Say yes to a cantus at least once, a raucous, structured student singing evening.
• Follow ESN Leuven and Pangaea (the international meeting house) for events and trips.

Leuven sits at the friendlier end of the Belgian range, roughly 900 to 1,100 euros a month. A kot costs about 400 to 600 euros, often with a shared kitchen, and because the city is walkable you can skip transport costs entirely. Student mensas run by Alma serve hot meals for a few euros, which keeps food bills low.

• A kot runs 400-600 euros; use KU Leuven's Kotwijs housing platform for vetted rooms.
• Eat at an Alma student restaurant for a full hot meal at a fraction of café prices.
• You can live pass-free, almost everything is a ten-minute walk or cycle.

Almost all students live in a kot, and KU Leuven's own housing service plus the Kotwijs platform are the safest way to find one. Rooms near the centre and the Arenberg campus in Heverlee go fastest, so apply as soon as your exchange is confirmed. Check whether the price is all-in with utilities and whether you can register your address there.

• Book through KU Leuven Housing Service or Kotwijs first, they vet landlords and contracts.
• Heverlee (Arenberg campus) suits engineering and science students; the centre suits everyone else.
• The Leuven Studcasa group is handy for mid-year rooms when someone leaves after one semester.

Leuven is made for walking and cycling, the centre is tiny, flat and largely car-restricted, so a second-hand bike is all you need. De Lijn buses fan out to the campuses and suburbs, and the train station links you to Brussels in 25 minutes and the airport in about 13. A good lock will cover the rest.

• Buy a cheap second-hand bike (check the student Facebook groups) and a solid lock.
• De Lijn buses connect the centre to Heverlee and the Gasthuisberg hospital campus.
• Frequent trains reach Brussels, the airport, and Antwerp without changing.

KU Leuven is a research powerhouse spread across faculty buildings in the centre and the Arenberg science campus in Heverlee, with a vast catalogue of English-taught courses that make it a top Erasmus destination. Teaching is rigorous, exams are demanding, and the January and June exam periods dominate the calendar. The university college UCLL covers applied bachelor programmes.

• KU Leuven offers one of Europe's widest English-taught catalogues, plan your module list early.
• Brace for intense January and June exam blocks (the 'blok'); the libraries fill up weeks ahead.

It depends entirely on your passport. If you're an EU/EEA or Swiss citizen there's no visa: you just rock up, then register at your local commune (town hall) within about three months to get a residence document. Bring your enrolment letter, passport, proof of health insurance and proof you can support yourself.

If you're a non-EU student (UK, US, most of the world) you need a type D long-stay student visa before you travel. You'll need your official admission/enrolment letter, proof of sufficient funds (roughly €770–800 a month, often via a blocked account or scholarship), health insurance and sometimes a medical certificate and police clearance. Once in Belgium you must register at the commune within 8 working days to get your residence card. Start early, because appointments and document legalisation eat weeks.

• EU/EEA/Swiss, no visa, just register at the commune
• Non-EU, apply for a type D long-stay visa before arriving
• Proof of funds, ~€770–800/month
• Register at your commune within 8 working days of arrival
• Post-Brexit: UK students now need the type D visa

Leuven is the home of Stella Artois, and beer is woven into daily life, from tasting cafés to the AB InBev brewery on the edge of town. The Fonske statue, the grand Town Hall and the university library anchor a photogenic centre, and the Friday market fills the squares with food stalls. Everyday life is Dutch-speaking but relentlessly international.

• Tour the AB InBev and Stella Artois brewery, then compare it with a craft beer at Domus, a brew-pub.
• Hit the Friday morning market on the Herbert Hooverplein for cheap produce.
• Try a Gouden Carolus or a local Domus brew with a bowl of bitterballen.

The medieval centre around the Grote Markt and Oude Markt is where you want to be for social life, while Heverlee to the south holds the science campus and quieter, greener kots. Kessel-Lo behind the station is residential and a little cheaper, and the streets around the Ladeuzeplein library are prime student territory. Nothing is far.

• Centre and Ladeuzeplein: closest to the fakbars, library and lectures, the classic first base.
• Heverlee: leafy, calmer and near the Arenberg campus and sports halls.
• Kessel-Lo: slightly cheaper rooms with a quick walk to the station.

With Brussels Airport 13 minutes away, Leuven is a springboard for cheap flights across Europe, and the whole of Belgium is on your doorstep by train. Mechelen is 15 minutes, Brussels 25, and Ghent and Antwerp under an hour. A Go Pass 10 makes hopping between Flemish cities almost free.

• Brussels Airport is 13 minutes by direct train, book cheap weekends away with ease.
• Mechelen (15 minutes) is an underrated, pretty half-day trip.
• Use a Go Pass 10 (under 26) for cheap trains to Ghent, Antwerp or the coast.

Buy a bike on day one but lock it like your life depends on it, and learn 'dank u wel' even though everyone answers in English. The city genuinely empties over summer and during exam blocks, so plan your social life around the term rhythm. Register at the city quickly to unlock your bank account and resident perks.

• Get a second-hand bike and a heavy lock immediately, theft near the station is common.
• Don't plan big nights out during the January and June blok; the city goes into study lockdown.
• Register at the Leuven stadskantoor early to speed up your Belgian bank account.