Brussels Card is the official visitor pass of Brussels, sold through visit.brussels and run by Brussels Museums, giving holders free entry to more than 40 museums for one to three days plus discounts at attractions, guided tours, shops, bars and restaurants. Optional add-ons cover STIB public transport, the Tootbus hop-on hop-off bus and the Atomium. For attractions, it brings short-stay city-break visitors who have prepaid for culture and turn pass discounts into paid visits and add-on bookings during their stay.
Connecting Brussels Card to Ventrata lets you scan, validate and redeem Brussels Card passes at your entrance, on Ventrata-powered turnstiles, kiosks, point-of-sale terminals, the mobile app or the Ventrata Dashboard, without a separate Brussels Card app.
To learn more about Brussels Card, visit visit.brussels.
Primary website | |
Tags | Destination Organization (DMO) · Multi-Attraction Pass |
Connection type | Pass redemption: you scan Brussels Card passes at your entrance |
Connection features | Product Mapping · Redemption Sync · Pass Walkup Scanning Sync |
Developed by | Ventrata (using Brussels Card API) |
This connection lets you:
Scan a Brussels Card QR code in Ventrata and check the card with Brussels Card in real time.
Create a booking in Ventrata automatically for every valid card, with the visitor's name and email copied from the Brussels Card order.
Record the scan with Brussels Card at the moment you scan.
How It Works
Staff scan the Brussels Card QR code.
If the card already has an active booking for this reseller, Ventrata returns it.
Otherwise Ventrata looks up the card with Brussels Card. The card status must be new or valid.
Ventrata finds the Brussels Card product on the card and the Ventrata product, option and unit you mapped to it.
Ventrata records the scan with Brussels Card (with the current time).
If Brussels Card accepts the scan, Ventrata saves an open-dated booking for 1 unit, with the visitor's first name, last name and email from the Brussels Card order.
📒 NOTE
Brussels Card QR codes in the format 1#[#...]. The version must be 1 and the card ID must be present; any other code is ignored by this connection.
Creating the Brussels Card Connection
🔐 Required Role Permissions: See Connections, Modify Connections
Before you begin:
Have your Brussels Card Public Key and Private Key ready.
Create Brussels Card as a reseller in Ventrata and select it on the connection. The form marks Reseller as optional, but lookups need it.
Create the connection
Select your Brussels Card reseller.
Enter the Brussels Card Public Key and Private Key.
Save. Ventrata loads your Brussels Card partner products and creates one mapping row per product.
The connection form has these options:
Reseller | The reseller that Brussels Card bookings are recorded under. Optional in the form, but needed in practice for lookups. |
Brussels Card Public Key / Private Key | Required. Ventrata uses them to sign requests and checks them on every save by loading your partner product list. If that fails, the Brussels Card error is shown and both fields are flagged invalid. |
Mapping Products
On every save, Ventrata loads your Brussels Card partner product list and creates one row per product. Products that no longer exist are removed.
Open the connection and select each product row.
Choose the Ventrata product, option and unit to book. Option and unit are required.
Re-save the connection to pick up new Brussels Card products.
📒 NOTE
A card whose product has no row is ignored by this connection.
📒 NOTE
A card whose product row exists but isn't mapped fails with " is not mapped in <connection>".
Redemption
Immediately: Always. Ventrata records the scan with Brussels Card at the moment you scan; the booking is saved only if Brussels Card accepts it.
On redemption or no-show: Not supported.
What's sent to Brussels Card: A RecordScan request with the card ID and the scan time.
Connection Features Detailed
This section is for anyone who wants the detail. Click a row to see how each feature works.
Product Mapping | ✅ |
You map each Brussels Card pass listing to a Ventrata product in the Ventrata Dashboard. On every save, Ventrata loads your Brussels Card partner product list and creates one row per product. Products that no longer exist are removed. A card whose product has no row is ignored by this connection. A card whose product row exists but isn't mapped fails with " is not mapped in <connection>". |
Content Sync | ❌ |
Product content isn't synced. Brussels Card sells its own pass. Your products and their content stay in Ventrata. |
Availability Sync | ❌ |
Your availability isn't shared with Brussels Card. There is no availability or capacity exchange with Brussels Card. |
Pricing Sync | ❌ |
Prices aren't synced with Brussels Card. The booking uses your Ventrata unit price and is settled by voucher. No price is sent to Brussels Card. |
Promotions Sync | ❌ |
Promotions don't apply to Brussels Card passes. Your Ventrata promotions don't apply to bookings made by scanning a pass. |
Bookings Sync | ✅ / ❌ |
Limited: bookings are created only when a pass is scanned. One open-dated booking per card, with quantity 1 of the mapped unit, created at scan time. The visitor's first name, last name and email are copied from the Brussels Card order. There is no cancel or un-scan call to Brussels Card. |
Pickups/Dropoff Sync | ❌ |
Not part of this connection. Pass redemptions don't carry pickups. |
Custom Questions Sync | ❌ |
Not part of this connection. Booking questions aren't asked or sent for pass redemptions. |
Extras Sync | ❌ |
Not part of this connection. Extras can't be added to a pass redemption. |
Redemption Sync | ✅ |
Redemptions are sent to Brussels Card. Always. Ventrata records the scan with Brussels Card at the moment you scan; the booking is saved only if Brussels Card accepts it. Not supported. A RecordScan request with the card ID and the scan time. |
Pass Walkup Scanning Sync | ✅ |
You scan Brussels Card passes at your entrance. Staff scan the Brussels Card QR code. If the card already has an active booking for this reseller, Ventrata returns it. Otherwise Ventrata looks up the card with Brussels Card. The card status must be new or valid. |
Gift Card Sync | ❌ |
Not part of this connection. Brussels Card passes aren't Ventrata gift cards. |
✅ supported · ✅ / ❌ limited · ❌ not supported
Good to know: limits of this connection
Good to know: limits of this connection
Each card can be scanned once per Ventrata supplier. Rescanning returns the existing booking and doesn't record a new scan.
Redemption can't be deferred to admission or no-show.
No pickups, extras, custom questions or resources.
Lookup results are cached for 5 minutes, and a timeout is treated as not found.
Troubleshooting
"%{title} is not mapped in %{connection}"
"%{title} is not mapped in %{connection}"
The card's Brussels Card product has no Ventrata product, option and unit mapped. Map the product row on the connection, then scan again.
"Invalid card status: %{status}"
"Invalid card status: %{status}"
The card status at Brussels Card is not new or valid.
"Redemption not allowed"
"Redemption not allowed"
FAQs
What happens if I scan the same Brussels Card twice?
What happens if I scan the same Brussels Card twice?
Ventrata returns the booking it already created for that card and doesn't record a second scan with Brussels Card.
Useful Resources
📚 More about Ventrata connections
Partner Information
visit.brussels ASBL
Rue Royale 2-4, 1000 Bruxelles
Belgium
Ventrata Partner ID: 7f83d715-2e18-45a1-a871-0c5598905836