Luxembourg City from the old town. All photography is ours.
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Luxembourg with Kids
If you’re planning Luxembourg with kids, do it as a day from Brussels and spend it in the capital. Luxembourg City sits on a cliff above two river gorges, with old fortress walls and a UNESCO-listed old town you can walk in an afternoon. We did it on a full-day bus tour from Brussels in May 2025, with a few hours on our own in the city and dinner in Dinant on the way back, and it was enough to see why people stay longer.
Luxembourg is one of the smallest countries in Europe and one of the easiest to add to a Belgium or France trip.
Destination guide · Updated November 2026 · Last visited May 2025
Best months
May–September
Fly into
LUX, or the train from Brussels or Paris
How long
A day for the city, 3 for the castles and the Moselle
Getting around
Public transit is free nationwide, including trains
Book ahead
Day tours from Brussels · the Bock Casemates in summer
The drive down from Brussels went through the Ardennes, and once we reached Luxembourg City we were on our own. We had a good lunch, grabbed crepes from the food stalls, and toured the old city walls. From the walls you look straight down on the Grund neighborhood along the river. The whole city was exceptionally clean, which all of us noticed. Dinner in Dinant on the way back is in our Belgium guide.
An afternoon gave us a good taste of Luxembourg and a new country. The castles in the north and the Moselle wine villages are the reasons to come back with a car. Keep reading for the Luxembourg essentials.
Your Luxembourg guide
Enjoy exploring Luxembourg with kids!
Keep scrolling for the essentials, three ways to do Luxembourg, and where to base.
Essential Luxembourg
Why we love Luxembourg
We think you’ll love it too.
Luxembourg is where we’d send a family that wants to collect a country in a day without it feeling like a checkbox. The capital is built on cliffs and bridges, which makes a walking tour feel like exploring a castle, and the whole old town is a World Heritage Site. The castles in the Ardennes and the Moselle are still on our list. Scroll down for the Luxembourg essentials.
Luxembourg City old town AftT Visit
This is the UNESCO World Heritage Site, the old quarters and fortifications on the rock above the rivers. Place d’Armes and Place Guillaume II are the squares, the cathedral is a block away, and every edge of the plateau is a viewpoint. We had a few hours here on our own, enough for lunch, crepes from the food stalls, and the walls. It’s walkable in an afternoon.
The Chemin de la Corniche AftT Visit
This walkway along the old fortified walls is called the most beautiful balcony in Europe. We toured the walls and looked down on the Grund and the Alzette valley from here. It’s free, flat, and the best photo stop in the city.
The Grund
The Grund is the neighborhood at the bottom of the gorge along the river, with cafes, a brewery, and an elevator up to the old town. Kids like the elevator and the bridges. We only saw it from the walls above, so it’s first on the list for a return.
The Pétrusse valley
The Pétrusse valley is the green gorge on the other side of the old town, crossed by the Adolphe Bridge. The park paths at the bottom run under the arches.
And the rest we’d cross the gorge for
The Bock Casemates
The casemates are tunnels carved into the rock under the old fortress, and there were 17 kilometers of them at one point. They’re open spring through fall, with narrow stairs and great views out the openings. This is the must-do we didn’t have time for on a bus-tour schedule.
Vianden Castle
The storybook castle an hour north on a hill above the Our river, restored top to bottom. A chairlift goes up the hill across the valley.
Mullerthal
Mullerthal is Luxembourg’s Little Switzerland, with sandstone gorges, caves, and family-friendly trails around Echternach.
The Moselle
The Moselle has vineyards and wine villages along the river on the German border, with boat trips from Remich. There are grapes for the grown-ups and the river for the kids.
The American Cemetery
The American Cemetery holds General Patton’s grave and 5,000 soldiers from the Battle of the Bulge, just outside the city near the airport. It’s quiet and moving for older kids.
Clervaux
Clervaux has a castle in the Ardennes holding The Family of Man, Edward Steichen’s photo exhibition, and the Battle of the Bulge museum.
Esch-sur-Alzette
The second city, with the Belval blast furnaces turned into a university campus and science center.
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Routes
Three ways to do Luxembourg
A day trip from Brussels is the easy version, and it’s what we did. The other two need a car or the free trains. See all the best stops on a map.
Start
The bus from Brussels
Day tours leave around 8 am. Ours drove down through the Ardennes and dropped us in Luxembourg City with a few hours to ourselves. We booked it through Expedia.
Then head to
The old town on your own
Plan on a good lunch, crepes from the food stalls, and the old fortified walls with the views over the Grund. The squares and the cathedral are all within a few blocks.
Finish
Dinant for dinner, then Brussels
The bus stopped in Dinant on the Meuse for dinner and a walk around town, and we were back in Brussels by 8. It was a long day, but it added a new country to the kids’ list.
Home base
Luxembourg City
Public transit is free in the whole country. Stay two nights in the city.
Then head to
The Casemates and the Grund
Spend a full day in the capital with the Bock Casemates, the elevator to the Grund, and the city museum.
Add on
Vianden
Take the train and bus north for the castle and the chairlift, and come back for dinner.
Start
Luxembourg City
A night in the capital, then pick up the car.
Then head to
Vianden and Clervaux
See two castles in the Ardennes and the Battle of the Bulge history around Bastogne across the border.
Finish
Mullerthal and the Moselle
Hike the gorges, then follow the river to Remich for a boat ride.
When to go
Time your visits with the weather and the region
We went in late May, which was mild with a little rain. Summer is the best weather and the only time the Casemates are reliably open. December brings the Christmas market to Place d’Armes.
Swipe the chart sideways to see the full year.
May – June
When we went. Mild, green, and the terraces are open. Pack a light rain jacket.
July – August
These are the warmest months, and the Casemates and castles are fully open. It’s busy, but nothing like Paris or Bruges.
September – October
You’ll find harvest on the Moselle and fall color in the Ardennes. It’s cool and quiet.
November – April
It’s gray and cold. The Casemates close for the bats. The Christmas market in December is the bright spot.
Where to stay
Pick a good base to start your Luxembourg adventure
We didn’t sleep here, since it was a day trip from Brussels. If we did, this is where we’d look.
Luxembourg City
The old town
Hotels on the plateau put you steps from the squares and the Corniche. It’s the obvious base, and the free buses and trains fan out from the station below.
- The old town for walking
- Points hotels near the station and in Kirchberg
- Everything in the country is under two hours away
The Ardennes
Vianden
Vianden is a small town under the castle with inns and guesthouses. A night here means the castle at opening before the day trippers arrive.
- Inns in the old town
- The chairlift across the valley
- An hour from the capital by bus and train
The Moselle
Remich
Remich is a riverside town with hotels on the promenade, boat trips, and wine cellars in the cliffs. It’s the relaxed end of the country.
- Riverfront hotels
- Boat trips from the promenade
- Germany is across the bridge
Good to know
Questions families ask us about Luxembourg
Luxembourg at a glance
The practical stuff families ask us before they book.
Language: Luxembourgish, French, and German, with English widely spoken
Population: About 680,000
Capital: Luxembourg City
Currency: Euro (EUR)
Power outlet: Types C and F, 230 V
Time difference: 7 hours ahead of Central
Entry for US passports: Visa-free up to 90 days, ETIAS expected late 2026
Driving: On the right, and public transit is free nationwide
Emergency number: 112
Tipping: Round up, 5 to 10 percent for good service
Yes, it is. We did it as a full-day bus tour from Brussels, with a few hours on our own in the old town and dinner in Dinant on the way back. That was enough to tour the fortress walls, take in the views over the Grund, eat well, and add a country to the kids’ list. If you have more time, two nights lets you do the Casemates and a castle.
Yes, it has been since 2020. Buses, trams, and trains are free for everyone, residents and visitors alike, except first class on trains. That makes Vianden, the Moselle, and the rest of the country easy day trips from the capital without a car.
It’s a city of cliffs and bridges, which kids find more interesting than most capitals. The elevator down to the Grund, the walkway along the ramparts, and the tunnels of the Casemates are the stops to build the day around. The old town is compact and the squares have room to run.
The site is the old quarters and fortifications of Luxembourg City, inscribed in 1994. That’s the old town on the plateau, the walls, and the casemates carved into the rock. Our afternoon on our own covered the old quarters and the walls, and it’s one of the World Heritage Sites on our UNESCO page.
Luxembourgish, French, and German are the three official languages. Menus and signs are usually in French, and English is widely spoken in the capital. We had no trouble on an afternoon visit.
No. Luxembourg is in the Schengen area, so a passport gets you 90 days. Europe’s ETIAS authorization is expected to start in late 2026, so check the current rules before you fly.
Map
Essential Luxembourg, mapped
Keep exploring
Where to go next
Belgium with Kids
Belgium is where our day trip started. Try chocolate in Ghent and a food tour in Brussels.
