World Country Guide

Beyond the Capital

Luxembourg is an attractive country with a green and picturesque landscape and many historical sites within easy reach of one another. The country is divided into five tourist regions. The central and southern part of the country that surrounds the capital, known as ‘the Good Land’, consists mainly of rolling farmland and woods. To the northeast is the Mllerthal, characterised by sandstone rock formations and forests (website: www.mullerthal.lu), while the northern third of the country is the Ardennes, set in beautiful forested hills and valleys. South of the capital is the Land of the Red Rocks, so named from its ‘red earth’, rich in iron. The southeast frontier is marked by the Moselle Valley, famous for its wines.
Approximately 30km (19 miles) north of the capital, the Mllerthal region is frequently referred to as Luxembourg’s ‘Little Switzerland’. Hundreds of footpaths through densely wooded forests (many of which have vast expanses of needle trees), crystal-clear brooks and spectacular rock formations combine to make this one of the country’s most popular areas for walking and hiking. Coach tours to the Mllerthal, also known as the Germano-Luxembourg Natural Park, leave daily from the main bus station in Luxembourg-Ville. The main resorts are Beaufort and Larochette, both of which also have castles located on a hilltop offering good views. Another well-known resort in the area is Berdorf.
Further east, the town of Echternach is particularly well known for its religious dancing procession, which takes place annually on Whit Tuesday and attracts pilgrims from all over the world. The town’s Benedectine Abbey (which was founded in the seventh century by St Willibrord and now also houses a museum) and, in particular, the St Willibrord Basilica (with its crypt as a centrepiece) are well worth visiting. Echternach also has a distinctive 15th-century Town Hall overlooking the market square.
Almost one-third of Luxembourg’s total land area consists of forest and it is particularly the north (a region known as the Luxembourg Ardennes referred to locally as Eislck) which offers the best natural attractions. The scenic beauty and quiet of this region, which consists of forested plateaux, wooded hills and lush valleys, attracts many nature and outdoor enthusiasts. The towns of Diekirch and Wiltz, where two of the country’s breweries are located, are the gateways into the Luxembourg Ardennes. The small town of Esch-sur-Sre is a well-known regional resort which is entirely surrounded by the natural moat of the River Sre (Sauer). A few miles further upstream is the country’s drinking water reservoir, where a barrage dam (the Staudamm) makes a beautiful lake, used extensively for many types of watersports, and located within the Upper Sre National Park, an area of outstanding natural beauty.
The town of Vianden, crossed by the River Our and located close to the eastern border with Germany, is well known for its magnificent castle, built between the 11th and 14th centuries and one of Luxembourg’s major tourist attractions. The castle overlooks the town from a 450m- (1476ft-) elevation that can be reached by the country’s only chairlift. Vianden also has a wild boar sanctuary. Another castle can be visited at Bourscheid nearby.
Further north, Clervaux is a medieval market town, sunk into a narrow and tortuous valley, surrounded by rugged hills covered with woods. The town’s main attraction is the 12th-century Clervaux Castle, which now houses the offices of the local government, the reception of the local tourist office (syndicat d’initiative), a small war museum exhibiting weapons and souvenirs from the 1944-1945 Ardennes offensive (the famous ‘Battle of the Bulge’), and the renowned collection of documentary art photography, the Family of Man, by Edward Steichen.
In the extreme south, a number of industrial towns and largely redundant steelworks testify to Luxembourg’s once booming steel industry. The south’s main city, Esch, is also the country’s second largest. A number of cultural establishments, notably the Kulturfabrk, testify to the city’s lively cultural life.
In the southeast, the River Moselle (a tributary to the Rhine) flows through the lush valleys of Luxembourg’s main wine-producing region (referred to as ‘the Moselle’ or d’Musel in Luxembourgish) and forms a 42km- (27 mile-) border between Luxembourg and Germany. Grevenmacher, from where a bridge crosses the river into Germany, is the main administrative and commercial centre of the region. The small village of Schengen nearby, where the Moselle marks the meeting of three countries (Luxembourg, France and Germany) has become internationally known after the ‘Schengen Agreement’ was signed there in 1995. It has a picturesque castle which was painted by the French writer Victor Hugo while he was in exile in Luxembourg. Many wine cellars in Grevenmacher and in the nearby towns of Remerschen, Remich and Wormeldange offer excellent wine tasting. Boat-cruises on the Moselle are also available. The spa town of Mondorf-les-Bains offers extensive thermal health treatments as well as sports and leisure facilities and a casino.