I will be going on the GAS tour next April and will have some extra time (about 2 weeks) after the tour is over to do some additional traveling. The tour ends in Vienna and my daughter lives in Berlin, so we are going to meet in Prague, spend a couple of days there, and then go to Berlin for a few days. After that, we will go to Luxembourg and spend about 8 days. I know there are many things to see and do in Luxembourg, but can anyone recommend any day trips or short trips from Luxembourg? We have never been to Europe and want to see as much as possible and we need some recommendations on what not to miss. Thanks!
Posted by
Centennial, CO, US
2181 posts
By "Luxembourg," do you mean Luxembourg City? Because if that's where you're planning to stay, I would encourage you to consider staying in Ettelbruck instead. You'll be seeing a lot of large cities and you might enjoy the contrast of this lovely little place.
Ettelbruck is the transportation hub for Luxembourg, with many trains and buses. The public transportation system in Luxembourg is amazing. When we visited a few years ago, we got all-day passes (for as many buses &/or trains as we wanted) for just 4 euros each (the price may have gone up). We had accidentally left our International Driver's Permit (IDP) at home, so having that wonderful public transportation option was a stroke of luck.
Ettelbruck is a charming little town, totally walkable. Great restaurants. Even a good gelato shop. There's a market on Friday morning if you enjoy those. We stayed in nearby Diekirch on our trip a few years ago, doing some geneaology research. But every trip we took brought us through Ettelbruck and the more we saw of it, the more we wished we had stayed there.
Day trips within Luxembourg could include the WWII museum in Diekirch, one of the most amazing museums we've seen. After WWII ended, farmers around Diekirch gathered up what the troops had left behind ... jeeps, tanks, trucks, parachutes, uniforms, first aid supplies, weapons ... and stored it in their barns. At some point they decided to consolidate in this museum. You could easily spend hours here. One of our favorite parts were the letters written by servicemen who fought in Luxembourg, with their memories of the war, and photos.
I'd also recommend the "Family of Man" photographic exhibit, which once toured the world but now is on permanent exhibition at a chateau in Clervaux. We enjoyed the little town of Vichten, with a castle you can walk to. And, of course, if you're not staying in Lux City, you could make that a day trip as well.
All of this would probably take about 4 days. You can easily stretch it out with hiking, maybe a little river cruise. But if there are places nearby you haven't seen (Belgium? Paris?) you might consider picking one more base for the remainder of your trip. There are so many options. And of course, where you go depends on where you're flying home from.
Have fun planning!
Posted by
OP
Wilmington, NC, USA
10 posts
Charlene-thanks so much for the info! We will definitely go to the places you suggested. Also, we have not been to Paris but we are thinking we should probably include that in our plans. We did book an apartment in Luxembourg City but we can change our reservation without penalty if we need to do that. Again, thanks!!
Posted by
Freedonia
16203 posts
I was in Luxembourg a few months ago. Fascinating mixture of old and new. (I preferred the old.) Eight days seems like a lot. If you haven't been to Paris I would suggest splitting the time between Lux and Paris. The train between them is easy and fast.