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Writer's pictureMiniWurm

Getting around in Luxembourg

Updated: Dec 20, 2023

Getting around the 'Ländchen' can be more challenging than you think for a country as small as Luxembourg. Good news is, that most public transportation in Luxembourg is free and you can, with some planning, eventually, get to any corner of the country you like.


Read on for Mini's guide to traveling Luxembourg, in style!


TRAIN

Luxembourg City is located centrally in the country and its regional train lines link directly to relatively large cities in neighbouring countries. For Germany, this is Trier and Koblenz. For France: Metz and Nancy. For Belgium: Arlon. Each train is free of

Train to Luxembourg waits at the platform in Diekirch, Luxembourg

charge up until the bordering towns (DE: Wasserbillig, FR: Bettenbourg, BE: Klein Bettingen) after which, you'll need a ticket. Non-regional (and thus, not free at any point-of-use) trains also connect Luxembourg to France and Belgium, with high-speed trains to both Paris and Brussels are available.

Regional trains are free of charge and connect Luxembourg city with the country's other population centres. While trains exist to the north (Wiltz, Troisvierges, Diekirch) they generally run only once an hour, and frequently do not run the whole distance. To the south is another story, with trains connecting the capital to the second largest city, Esch-sur-Alzette running every 15-30 minutes, with an expansion of this line currently under construction to accommodate more capacity.


FLY

Luxembourg's only International Airport is located in Findel, a small town on the outskirts of the capital city. The national carrier, LuxAir offers direct flights from Luxembourg to several major European destinations, as well as a few further afield in Africa and the Middle East. Several large European airlines (e.g. KLM, British Airways or Lufthansa) fly to Luxembourg several times a day, making connections to other parts of Europe, as well as North America or parts of Asia, relatively easy. It takes around 20 minutes in a bus from Findel to Luxembourg Central Train Station (Gare de Luxembourg) on the number 29. Buses 6 and 16 also connect the airport to other parts of Luxembourg city or Kirchberg, but not to the central station. Like all public transportation in the country, they are entirely free of charge.

Other nearby airports include Saarbrücken in Germany, which does only charter flights, or Metz-Nancy-Lorraine in France, which offers only a few destinations. Both lack a direct connection to Luxembourg City, requiring at least one changeover to reach your final destination: Trier for Saarbrücken, and Metz for Metz-Nancy-Lorraine.

DRIVE

Luxembourg City is served by buses that more-or-less follow the same paths as their train counterparts. One can catch buses from different parts of Luxembourg City to Thionville (FR), Metz (FR), Nancy (FR), Trier (DE), Saarbrücken (DE) and Arlon (BE). Like the trains, these are free of charge up until the border, then you must buy a ticket for the rest of the way. Private companies, such as Flixbus, also operate in Luxembourg and offer connections to all over Europe.

Within cities (i.e. Luxembourg City or Esch-sur-Alzette), buses are generally one of the best ways of getting around as they are frequent, cover most areas, clean, safe and best-of-all, completely free to use! Journeys can be planned either via the government's mobiliteit app (https://www.mobiliteit.lu/en/), or via the national train service's (CFL) app (https://www.cfl.lu/en-gb/app/national), which should have listed every bus, train and tram in the country.


Speaking of the tram, Luxembourg city has a system which connects the main train station (Gare de Luxembourg) with the Luxembourg convention centre (Luxexpo) in the Kirchberg quarter, leaving either location every 10-or-so minutes and passing through the heart of the city. There are also plans to expand the tram to Findel (airport) to the North and East, and to the South of Luxembourg City, due to be completed in 2023.

Driving your own car (or renting) is also an option and is, in fact, probably the most time-efficient way of making a journey between any two points in Luxembourg, despite its free public transportation. This is because many towns are not linked by railways requiring the public-transport user to navigate the country's system of regional buses - many of which run once per hour and are plagued by short times for changes from one bus or train to the next. Additionally, one will often need to go via Luxembourg city itself, which can be particularly irritating when making journey's up-and-down the Moselle region.

The countries main highways are the A1 (Luxembourg City - German Border), A4 (Luxembourg City - French Border, via Esch-sur-Alzette), A6 (Luxembourg City - Belgium border) and A7, which bisects the country along a north-south axis and leads to the relatively large towns of Wiltz, Ettelbruck and Mersch.

Like most of Europe, Luxembourgers drive on the right side. The speed limits are 130 km/h for highways and, unless otherwise stated, 90 km/h for country roads and 50 km/h inside built-up areas.

RIDE

The Luxembourgers are avid cyclists and if you have a little bit of time and a lot of energy, its a great way to get around and see this country. While cycling in some parts of Luxembourg City or Esch-sur-Alzette can be precarious at times, most of the country has clearly delineated cycle paths. Sometimes, they follow an entirely different route than the roads, taking shortcuts through areas that roads don't go.


Cycling paths, such as those along the Moselle and Sure rivers are a great way of getting around in Luxembourg

Much like many of it's roads, Luxembourg's main cycle routes radiate out of Luxembourg cities heading in the direction of population centres in neighbouring countries, as well as along the the rivers Sûre and Moselle. The most famous of these is the Wäistrooss, a bike path that closely follows the Moselle from Wasserbillig to through quaint Luxembourger villages and the vineyards of the Moselle, all the way to the town of Schengen, where the borders of Luxembourg, France and Germany all meet. Cycle Paths continue after the borders, following the Moselle to Trier (DE) and Metz (FR).

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