Luxembourg is a landlocked country in Western Europe in between Belgium, France and Germany. It is the only Grand Duchy in the world and is the second-smallest of the European Union member states.
Regions
Cities
Understand
Climate
Modified continental with mild winters, although January and February do get very cold. The summer can be very hot in Luxembourg, with temperatures around July and August reaching around 35 degrees celsius.
It might rain a LOT in Luxembourg, so bring an umbrella.
Terrain
Mostly gently rolling uplands with broad, shallow valleys; uplands to slightly mountainous in the north; steep slope down to Moselle flood plain in the south.
History
Founded in 963, Luxembourg became a grand duchy in 1815 and an independent state under the Netherlands. It lost more than half of its territory to Belgium in 1839, but gained a larger measure of autonomy.
; Independence : 1839 (from the Netherlands)
Full independence was attained in 1867.
; Constitution : 17 October 1868, occasional revisions
Overrun by Germany in both World Wars, it ended its neutrality in 1948 when it entered into the Benelux Customs Union and when it joined NATO the following year. In 1957, Luxembourg became one of the six founding countries of the European Economic Community (later the European Union) and in 1999 it joined the euro currency area.
; National holiday : National Day (Birthday of Grand Duchess Charlotte shifted by 6 months) 23 June
Get in
By plane
Luxembourg International Airport is located 6 kilometres outside Luxembourg-City. It is served by Luxair, the national airline, which flies to many EU countries (including London Heathrow and City), and Air France (Paris; actually a Luxair codeshare), KLM (Amsterdam), Swiss (Zurich), Lufthansa (Frankfurt; actually a Luxair codeshare) and British Airways (London Gatwick). Another airline to consider is VLM, often a cheaper option than Luxair. The airport is currently undergoing expansion and renovation; some short-haul intra-Schengen flights now operate out of Terminal B, and a new Terminal A is being built.
By train
Luxembourg train station can be reached directly from Paris, Metz, Brussels and Trier. Both international and national timetables can be found on the website of the national railways company CFL
By car
Motorways from Metz (A3), Brussels (A6) and Trier (A1) connect to the ring-road around Luxembourg City, from which most other parts of the country can be reached.
If you want to enjoy a nice view to the city, "Grund" and Kasematten, leave the motorway coming from the East (Germany) at exit "Cents".
Enter Cents and drive down the hill.
Don't let yourself being stopped by signs that the route is blocked via "Grund".
By bus
There is a bus connection from Luxembourg City to the Hahn airport in Germany, operated by low cost airlines. Sometimes there are commuter buses to Trier and Bitburg. The train is a far preferable option for entering the country from nearby.
By boat
Luxembourg being a landlocked country, it's extremely hard to get in by boat. But if you really want to there are boat links form the German side of the Moselle river to the...
