Lux pretty good to me (Luxembourg City)

Member Name: pookie_rabbit

Product:	Luxembourg City
Date:	18/12/02 (509 review reads)
Rating:

Advantages: Scenic Capital City

Disadvantages: Not loads to do

OK I admit that when deciding where to go for my latest weekend jaunt into Europe Luxembourg wasn’t at the top of my list. Most of us know little or nothing about the place – I just knew it was small, stuck in the middle of Western Europe and not that great at football.
Because of a work contact in Europe however I ended up doing just this. Anyway seen as I am in my second paragraph I should quickly say that Luxembourg is most certainly worth a trip and that I will explain why. The following information actually refers to Luxembourg City the capital of the country and where we actually stayed rather than the environs which I am sure deserve a review in there own right. I should also point when not walking around the City within a drunken stupor I was at least nursing a shocking hangover.

Before you go

My second admission is that when I intend to travel to a new place I end up buying books, maps and trawling the Internet to create a holiday plan based on military precision. Luxembourg is not supplied that well on these fronts. For instance the nearest you will get with a Lonely Planet is Belgium (& Luxembourg – small letters!). Possibly the first port of call is the web site www.luxembourg.co.uk which although lacking a visually appealing front end is a good source of information where you can order free brochures and maps. Your next best stop is something like www.virtualtourist.com to find out tips on the place.

Getting there

I have to be honest and say I am no great expert on this as I got a lift from Brussels airport, a 2-hour drive from Luxembourg City via cheap carrier Baby BMI (very good by the way). Currently no low cost airlines serve Luxembourg City itself somewhat surprisingly. The City does have an International Airport served by most European Countries. If you were on a budget it would be worth looking on the map for the nearest city served by a budget airline and getting a train where possi
ble to Luxembourg I suspect.

Facts!

I will keep this very brief
Population of the city itself is just under 80,000
The currency is the Euro
The people speak Luxembourgish (I wouldn’t bother going to night class!), French and German. Having said that they are well up there with say the Swedes and Dutch in there understanding of English and didn’t have any problems with a language barrier at all.

Things to see and do

As much as anything Luxembourg City is just a great place to walk around. Sitting on a rocky promontory it is one of the most visually pleasing European Cities. Part of this rock contains the casemates, a UNESCO listed labyrinth of chambers used in the Second World War as emergency bomb shelters for over 30,000 people.
At the base of this massive rocky outcrop is an area known as the ‘Grund’ an old cobble stoned area. This can be reached via a fairly nice (but long) walk or a free lift.
Another worthwhile visit is the museum of history. Make sure you ask for an English guidebook at the entrance however if you want understand the exhibits. Needless to say the museum isn’t quite as full as something you might find in London although is does boast the best lift I have ever been in!
If you visit in the run to Christmas you will also find a Christmas Market in the Place d'Armes. The main point of this however just seems to be an excuse to walk around drinking the mulled wine ‘vin chaud’ available from numerous vendors.
For more information your best bet and first stop should be the tourist information in the Place d’Armes.

Nightlife

Nightlife is a strange beast in Luxembourg City and it should be remembered this is a reasonably small city. I would make a couple of points however – bar nightlife seems to start fairly late (around 10:30) and finish around 1 in the morning. From there clubs are open until around 3 but are no
t that near to the bar areas and a taxi is needed really. Problem is that finding a taxi is not that easy so I would recommend asking around and getting a taxi booked if possible for last orders.
As far as drinking goes its worth heading down to the Grund to places like ‘Scottys’ (an English style pub) and ‘Liquid’ and then heading back up to somewhere like ‘Prime Time’ which seemed to the most banging of bars. The area around ‘Prime Time’ is worth exploring as it has a network of caves under it also with drink and dancing.
Clubs include ‘Blow Up’ (not bad) and the Didgeridoo.
Local brews are Mousel and Bofferding, both pretty good, although I was assured by locals the latter was the best.

Overall

A pretty good spot really. As I said I walked around most of the time in a semi state of conciseness so I hope if nothing else I have encouraged you to take a deeper look into this place. If you have any comments or extra information I would be more than happy to add it to this review.

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