Luxembourg

This new, thoroughly updated fifth edition of Bradt’s Luxembourg remains the only comprehensive, English-language guidebook to focus exclusively on this small but fascinating European country, where public transport is now entirely free. Reviews of the best places to stay and eat in all price categories, from luxury to budget, sit alongside information about every museum and significant place of interest, plus in-depth guides to local food, drink, language and culture, and advice on the best cycling and hiking trails, many of the latter having been personally explored by the author.
This diminutive European state punches above its weight and is celebrated for everything from its early pioneering of commercial broadcasting with Radio Luxembourg to the fact that it has won the Eurovision Song Contest five times, while Luxembourg riders have won the Tour de France five times too. A foodie paradise, the country offers its own unique cuisine (a fusion of French and German influences) and perhaps the densest collection of Michelin-starred restaurants in the world.
Short distances and easy travelling (whether by public transport or driving) mean a lot can be covered in a relatively brief visit, from sixty medieval castles to plentiful opportunities for outdoors enthusiasts, including long-distance international walking trails linking with the Belgian Ardennes and German Eifel. Military history is also covered, notably the sites of the Battle of the Ardennes and Hamm American Military Cemetery (the burial place of General Patton), as are details of the most popular sites such as Vianden and Luxembourg City’s Museum of Modern Art.

New for this edition are: the Royal Hamilius complex in Luxembourg City (designed by architect Sir Norman Foster); the post-renovation, UNESCO-listed Pétrusse casemates; infrastructure upgrades such as extensions to the City’s tram line and ever-easier train and aeroplane access; details on the new cultural and art spaces in Esch-sur-Alzette (a European City of Culture in 2022); new wine-related events in the Moselle; a new Slate Museum in Haut-Martelange; and the Mëllerdall Nature and Geopark’s inclusion in UNESCO’s network of global geoparks.

Tim Skelton (skeltonink.eu) travelled extensively throughout Europe, Asia, the Americas and Australia before finally settling in the Netherlands in the mid-1990s. Skelton soon realised that the region’s three member nations (Belgium, Netherlands and Luxembourg) were markedly different from one another; indeed, the only thing they shared was that they were all ’quite small’. As he got to know Luxembourg, he kept finding more and more things to do, and began to wonder what it was the country had done to deserve being deemed no more than an afterthought to Belgium in most travel guides. Bradt’s Luxembourg represents Skelton’s ongoing endeavour to rectify the situation: after 35 years’ of visits, he is still discovering new places. He is also the author of Around Amsterdam in 80 Beers and Beer in the Netherlands 2, has contributed to travel guides about the Netherlands and Belgium, and writes for expat, energy and travel publications.