Luxembourg - First trip (Sept 2022)

How long will you be there?

What are your interests?

Have you traveled much elsewhere in Europe? If yes, where have you been, and what did you enjoy?

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@David
We will be in Luxembourg for a week, leaving 4 of them open for free time.

Interests are a few not to be missed points of interest (not heavy on the stairs) as we have someone in the group not keen on those scenarios (my mother).

A few local restaurant / cafe stops and any other recommendations.

We will have a rental car for the points outside of the city area and will focus on using the local - internal transportation as I hear it is reliable and easy to use.

This will be my wife's first trip to Europe (finally retired and able to relax on holidays) and a new experience, I myself traveled extensively and open to any and all points of interest (history - culture - food, so on) but she has a more relaxed approach to travel.

Thanks!
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I haven’t been yet, but here’s what I have in my notes for a futreu trip:

You can walk from the main train station to the center proper, with the casemates, fortress, Ville Haute (Upper City), and Ville Basse (Lower City).

-- Grand Ducal Palace

--Notre-Dame Cathedral

--Adolphe Bridge

--Gelle Fra or the Monument of Remembrance is a war memorial

--Pétrusse Casemates – Medieval ruins

-- Vianden (30 min train to Ettelbruck, 30 min bus)

Luxembourg is a good base for visiting nearby places like Bastogne, Trier, Verdun, Metz or even Nancy.

Visit the village of Vianden. It is a bit north of Lux city.
Also, can visit General Patton's grave at the American Cemetery

The American Cemetery is quite moving.

You may want to know that public transportation in Luxembourg, the entire country, is free. Not just in the Luxembourg city. The entire country.

My suggestion for Luxembourg City is to park the car and use public transit. Or walk.

The walk from the train station to the casements is a long walk. Take the bus.

@Carrie
Thank you - will look at the recommend points of interest (and update after visiting!) Decent sized list of things to see and do. Seems like a number of sites are accessible via local free transport and others are not too far of a ride (train / bus). Very much appreciated!

@geovagriffith
Definitely adding the American Cemetery and Patton's grave. Thank you!

@Carol now retired
Will add this to our plan - thank you.

@Frank II
Good to know. The rental car was an option but not a necessity if transportation is free throughout the country. We have the time and are fine with trains / buses and so on.
"The walk from the train station to the casements is a long walk. Take the bus." - Good to know - thank you.

How about dining / favorite "local" restaurants?

We appreciate the tips shared so far. Thank you to everyone for contributing. Looking forward to our visit.

casements

looks like spellcheck stepped in. When you are looking at maps and websites, the correct spelling is casemates.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Casemate

I found it a strange choice that you thought that Luxembourg, the beating heart of the European Union, and surrounded by Belgium, Netherlands, Germany and France, would be best in the "Beyond Europe" Forum.

If I had been looking for information about Luxembourg - and it is sad that it doesn't get a Forum of its own given how attractive the city and country are - I would have posted in the "General Europe" Forum.

@Nigel
True. In haste I put it here and have not figured out how to move the topic to another forum. By all means, if someone can assist (admins?) please do move it to the correct category.

(Hate it when spellcheck steps in.)

Any recommendations pertinent to the topic? All are welcome (points of interest, dining and related.)

Many thanks!

only the Webmaster has the power to move a thread from one Forum to another.

You might try clicking on Webmaster and sending a Private Message to them, asking if they would mind helping...

As far as restaurants, I eat very cheap and very very simple so don't have any suggestions for restaurant dining despite many trips to Luxembourg. sorry.

Since you're on a business trip I'm sure you will base in Lux City, but if you have a some extra time, I'd recommend a few nights in Ettelbruck.

Ettelbruck is a lovely little town which is also a transportation hub for all trains & buses, which are free now. We stayed in Diekirch (another lovely little town) but every train or bus we took changed in Ettelbruck so we spent lots of time wandering here. There's a great little piazza near a cathedral, with outdoor tables. And a farmer's market on Friday. And a Patton museum.

If you have any interest in WWII, the WWII museum in Diekirch was fascinating. After the Battle of the Bulge, local farmers cleared their fields of military equipment & artifacts left behind — tanks, uniforms, guns, whatever. Initially stored in barns, they aggregated it all in Diekirch, in a sprawling building. You can rent an audio guide or just wander.

The castle at Vianden is worth seeing. Also there’s a chateau in Clervaux where the famous Family of Man photo exhibit (which toured the world) is now on permanent exhibit.

My wife and I spent 3 nights in Luxembourg City, but we spent 2 of the days on side trips to Trier Germany and Strasbourg France. We enjoyed both side trips during the day and then spending the evening in the man square in Luxembourg.

@ Nigel
Thanks for the direction. I have reached out to the Travel Forum - Webmaster. :-)
We tend to dine economically as well - when possible. In this case I am looking for decent price point for local (not tourist) dining recommendations / suggestions. Thank you for the help with moving the thread.

@Charlene
Correct - we will be "based" in Luxembourg.
Ettelbruck & Diekirch sound amazing. (Ettelbruck change point for the buses does make it easier to enjoy both). The WWII museum is now on our trip plan (big fan of history). Looks like we will stop by the American Cemetery and visit Patton's grave first and follow up with visiting the WWII museum when we visit Diekirch.

Clervaux sounds lovely and an opportunity to see the Family of Man photo exhibit. (Didn't know it is permanently there.)
Thank you for the info :-)

@PaulB
We did think about day trips to Germany and France as well - and evenings in Luxembourg. Depending on time - will try to add this to our list - great idea - thank you.

Thank you again to everyone for the contributions. Any recommendations of local dining to not be missed?

I'd agree that if you have the time a short hop over to Trier would be well worth it. Easy without a car, German and CfL (Société Nationale des Chemins de Fer Luxembourgeois (Luxembourg National Railway Company, abbreviated CFL)) trains run back and forth frequently.

Roman buildings including the amphitheatre, Basilica, Porta Nigra (the largest Roman city gate north of the Alps). A nice town centre. The river and the hills with vineyards.

@Nigel
Wonderful tip - thank you. If time permits, we will make our way to Trier (day trip) and take in the Roman structures and history. Briefly had a look - amazing. Definitely will stick with the trains - no car. Good to know CfL trains are available.
Thank you again for the insight.

just be aware that whilst travel on CfL which is completely within Luxembourg is free, normal (but low priced) fares apply for travel into Germany.

The 9€ German transport (everything from buses and trams to local trains for the entire month of August) ticket would work for the German portion, but only until the end of August when everything goes back to normal (well what passes for normal these days).

Just a note for your planning — the Family of Man exhibit in Clervaux is only open 1200 to 1800, Wednesday through Sunday.

@Nigel
Understood. Low fares are still a benefit - vs - driving. Much appreciated.

@Charlene
Thank you for the update - will keep this in mind when finalizing our plans.

Thank you again to everyone for the contributions. Any recommendations of local dining to not be missed?