Best Trips for Comic Fans

Three unique styles of comic, three completely different cities… What do the following comic book experiences have in common? For a start they are all in must see destinations, and furthermore visiting them can be made easier with the travel money services of Caxton FX.

As capital of the European Union and headquarters of NATO, Brussels could strike one as a rather serious place. But the Belgian capital is really a rather friendly city and this will have been helped in no small part by a historic and successful place on the comic book scene, with some of the country’s best loved creations continuing to provide fun and escapism in a city of treaties and summits.

By far the best known Belgian comic character is Tintin, the youthful adventurer and reporter created in 1929 by Hergé. The character is much loved in the city and the building near the Grand Place that houses a gift shop devoted to him bears a massive wall mural on its gable end. In Brussels itself you can visit some of the landmarks that inspired locations in The Adventures of Tintin, and a half hour journey out to the town of Louvain-la-Neuve and its Hergé Museum is a must.

Where to soak up the world of American comic books? You might struggle to find a flight to Gotham or Metropolis, and in New York while you might be able to envisage Spider-Man swinging from building to building the closest you’ll come to web slinging action is seeing a guy in a costume on Times Square.

If you want to experience real action then head to Universal’s Islands of Adventure theme park in Orlando, Florida. Spidey is represented there with the dizzying 3-D simulation experience The Amazing Adventures of Spider-Man. You’ll also find Doctor Doom’s Fearfall, The Incredible Hulk Coaster – which is incredibly exhilarating – and a slice of the X-Men with Storm Force Accelatron. Besides the rides you can pick up merchandise and have your picture taken characters in costumes that are somewhat more convincing than those on Times Square – and with no obligation to tip them.

If manga is more your thing meanwhile then head to the land of its birth, Japan. The Kyoto International Manga Museum houses around 300,000 items of manga related items, including modern works and historic materials from the Meiji period of the late 19^th and early 20^th century.

Being a fan of something can result in frequent expenditure – whether you’re picking up that last minute cuddly Snowy at Brussels Airport or upgrading your theme park ticket to join the express queues, make things easier with a travel money card.