Luxembourg: The Country Where All Public Transport Is Free

Since March 2020, every bus, tram, and train in Luxembourg costs nothing to ride. Not discounted, not for residents only: free, for everyone, including tourists, including day visitors, including people who drove in from Trier for the afternoon. Luxembourg became the first country in the world to do this, and it materially changes how you move through a place that most visitors have spent their lives ignoring.

The country is small (roughly the size of Rhode Island), wealthy (among the highest per-capita incomes in Europe), and under-touristed relative to its neighbours. It packs an extraordinary amount into compact geography: a UNESCO-listed capital with dramatic cliff-edge fortifications, a castle that is one of the best-preserved medieval complexes in Europe, two genuinely distinct wine regions, and walking terrain that the flat Netherlands and Belgium cannot offer.

Luxembourg City

The capital sits on sandstone cliffs above the Alzette and Petrusse rivers. The old town, UNESCO-listed since 1994, is a compressed history of European fortification built around the 1994-era cliff system. The Chemin de la Corniche, a cliff-edge walkway tracing the old city walls, looks directly down onto the lower-town districts of Grund and Clausen below. The views from this path are among the most dramatic of any European capital and the admission is, again, free.

The Bock Casemates are 17 kilometres of defensive tunnels carved 40 metres deep into the sandstone, open to visitors and genuinely atmospheric in the cool, dark, underground sense. The system was begun by Vauban in the 17th century and expanded over subsequent centuries. Walking through the lower sections and emerging at cliff-face windows with views over the Alzette gorge is the best hour in Luxembourg City.

MUDAM (Musée d’Art Moderne Grand-Duc Jean), designed by I.M. Pei on the Kirchberg plateau, holds contemporary international art with views back toward the old town. The architectural contrast between Pei’s glass structures and the remains of the Fort Thüngen on the same site is sharp and intentional.

The Luxembourg Card (13 euros per day, 20 euros for two days, 28 euros for three days) covers free entry to over 60 museums and attractions plus free public transport. If you are visiting more than two sites per day, it pays for itself quickly.

Vianden

An hour north by bus and train (free), Vianden Castle dominates an Ardennes valley village with one of the most complete medieval castle complexes in Europe. Victor Hugo spent several summers in the village and his house is a small but well-kept museum. The castle was substantially restored in the 20th century, but its hill-top setting above the Our River is the genuine article. If you see only one thing outside the capital, see Vianden. The restored interior includes furniture, tapestries, and a Knights Hall that gives a clear picture of medieval aristocratic life.

The Mullerthal

The Mullerthal region in eastern Luxembourg, marketed as “Little Switzerland,” is a landscape of Triassic sandstone gorges, rock formations, and small waterfalls. The 112-kilometre Mullerthal Trail runs in three loops; day walks of 8 to 12 kilometres from Echternach or Berdorf are manageable and produce walking terrain that the surrounding flatlands cannot match. The gorge sections with their narrow rocky passages and overhanging stone are the best of it.

Moselle Wine Country

Luxembourg’s wine country runs along the Moselle River forming the German border. The wines are primarily white: Riesling, Pinot Gris, Pinot Blanc, and Cremant (sparkling wine by the champagne method, at a fraction of the Champagne price). Cooperative cellars at Remich and Wormeldange and independent producers including Domaine Alice Hartmann offer tastings. The riverside cycling route is flat and well-surfaced. Luxembourg Cremant is the best value discovery of a trip here and worth bringing home.

Eating

Judd mat Gaardebounen is the national dish: smoked pork collar with broad beans in cream sauce. Substantial and warming in cold weather. Gromperekichelcher are fried potato fritters sold at markets and fairs. The Portuguese community, substantial in Luxembourg given historical migration for construction and service industries, has introduced pasteis de nata into bakeries across the country.

Mosconi (two Michelin stars, Italian) is the prestige option. Um Dierfgen in the old town does traditional Luxembourgish cooking at honest prices. The Grund neighbourhood restaurants generally offer better value and more local atmosphere than tourist-facing options on the plateau.

Practical Notes

Luxembourg is officially trilingual (Luxembourgish, French, German); English is widely spoken in the capital. The country rewards two and a half to three days: enough for the capital thoroughly, Vianden, the Mullerthal, and a wine country visit. May, June, and September are the best months.