Alexander JE Bradley
Majestically set across the deep gorges of the Alzette and Pétrusse rivers, Luxembourg City is one of Europe’s most scenic capitals. Its Unesco-listed Old Town is a warren of tunnels, nooks and crannies sheltering some outstanding museums, as well as lively drinking and dining scenes. The city is famed for its financial and EU centres, making weekends an ideal time to visit, as hotel prices drop dramatically.
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These are our favorite local haunts, touristy spots, and hidden gems throughout Luxembourg City.
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Hidden within a series of 17th- to 19th-century houses, including a former ‘holiday home’ of the Bishop of Orval, the city's history museum is engrossing. Permanent collections on its lower levels cover the city's industrial, handicraft and commercial heritage, with models, plans and engravings, textiles, ceramics, posters, photographs and household items. Upper floors host temporary exhibitions. Its enormous glass elevator provides views of the rock foundations, the Grund valley and Rham plateau; there's also a lovely garden and panoramic terrace.
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Beneath the Montée de Clausen, the clifftop site of Count Sigefroi’s once-mighty fort, the Bock Casemates are an atmospheric honeycomb of rock galleries and passages initially carved by the Spaniards from 1644 onwards. They were extended by French engineer Vauban in the 1680s, and again by the Austrians in the mid-18th century. Over the years the casemates have housed everything from garrisons to bakeries to slaughterhouses; during WWI and WWII they sheltered 35,000 locals. Kids will adore exploring the passageways.
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Groundbreaking exhibitions of modern, installation and experiential art take place in this airy architectural icon designed by Pritzker-winning architect IM Pei (best known for his glass pyramid entrance to Paris' Louvre museum). The collection includes everything from photography to fashion, design and multimedia. Regional products are used in local specialities at its glass-roofed cafe, which hosts free concerts on Wednesday evenings.
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Hailed as 'Europe's most beautiful balcony', this pedestrian promenade winds along the course of the 17th-century city ramparts with views across the river canyon towards the hefty fortifications of the Wenzelsmauer (Wenceslas Wall). The rampart-top walk continues along Blvd Victor Thorn to the Dräi Tier (Triple Gate) tower, stretching 600m in total.
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Luxembourg's turreted palace was built in 1572 and has been greatly extended over the years. It now houses the Grand Duke’s office, with parliament using its 1860 Chamber of Deputies. In summer the palace opens for 50-minute guided tours (English available), mostly concentrating on family history. From the medieval-Gothic dining room, the palace’s interior style morphs into sumptuous gilded romanticism upstairs. Tours must be prebooked online or via Luxembourg City Tourist Office, where you're required to pick up your ticket.
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Dominating the Grund riverbank, this 17th-century Benedictine abbey has been transformed into a cultural centre. Around the cloister are bronze sculptures by local artist Lucien Wercollier, who in 1942 refused to create Aryan artworks and was imprisoned by the Nazis in this building. Several other exhibition spaces surround a central atrium and a large river-facing courtyard, a venue for outdoor performances. Prices vary depending on the exhibition or event. The brasserie opens to a table-lined terrace.
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In a beautifully maintained graveyard 6km east of the city near the airport, lie 5075 US WWII war dead, including the general of the US Third Army George Patton, who played a key role in Luxembourg's 1944 liberation. It's a humbling sight, with long rows of white crosses and Stars of David. At the entrance, a white-stone chapel has a stained-glass window with the insignia of US commands that operated in Luxembourg. You'll need your own wheels or a taxi.
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Startlingly modern for its Old Town setting, the national art and history museum starts deep in an excavated rocky basement with exhibits of Neolithic flints, then sweeps you through Gallic tomb chambers, Roman mosaics and Napoleonic medals to an excellent if small art gallery. Cézanne and Picasso get a look-in while Luxembourg's Expressionist artist Joseph Kutter (1894–1941) gets a whole floor.
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Prior to WWII, Luxembourg had a Jewish community of approximately 3500 people. Of them, some 2500 fled, most to France, before emigration was halted in 1941. During the Nazi Occupation, some 800 Jews were deported to concentration camps in Poland and then-Czechoslovakia. The train station where their harrowing journey began is now a small museum. Take bus 18 or the RB train from Gare Centrale.
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