2 Days in Luxembourg: The Perfect Family Itinerary

Two days in Luxembourg is a good amount of time for a first visit. Luxembourg City is fairly compact, so you can see many of the main sights without rushing, while still having time to wander through the Old Town and explore the Grund.

We spent two full days in Luxembourg, with three nights in the city, and found that was enough time to explore at a slower pace with the kids. We walked part of the Wenzel Walk, wandered through both the Upper City and the Grund, stopped at playgrounds along the way and still had time for some of Luxembourg’s main attractions.

I recommend spending your first day seeing the main sights in Luxembourg City, including the Upper City and the Grund. Day two is more flexible, with the Bock Casemates in the morning and your choice of another attraction in the afternoon. I’ve also included an alternative itinerary if you’d rather spend the day visiting Vianden Castle.

If you’re arriving in Luxembourg later in the afternoon, like we did, I wouldn’t count that as one of your two days. Use that time to check into your hotel, get your bearings and take a first wander through the city, then start this itinerary the following morning.

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Day 1: Explore Luxembourg City

Spend your first day getting to know Luxembourg City, from the historic Upper City down to the Grund. There’s quite a bit of walking today, but you can break it up with a stop at the Natural History Museum or one of the playgrounds along the way.

One thing to know before you start is that Luxembourg City is built on different levels. The Upper City sits above the valleys of the Alzette and Pétrusse rivers, while neighbourhoods like the Grund sit below. You’ll head downhill this morning and make your way back up later in the day.

Walk Along the Chemin de la Corniche

Start your morning at the Chemin de la Corniche, a walkway along Luxembourg’s old fortifications overlooking the Grund and Alzette Valley below.

It’s often called “the most beautiful balcony in Europe,” thanks to the views over the Grund and Alzette Valley below. Whether or not you’d give it that title, the views are impressive, and this was one of my favourite spots in Luxembourg.

Take your time walking along the Corniche and enjoying the views. From here, you’ll pick up part of the Wenzel Walk, which will take you down towards the Grund.

Follow Part of the Wenzel Walk

From the Chemin de la Corniche, follow the signs for the Wenzel Walk as it makes its way down towards the Grund. The full route takes around three hours, but you don’t need to complete the entire walk to enjoy it.

The Wenzel Walk passes through some of Luxembourg’s oldest areas, with views of the fortifications and lower city along the way. We only followed part of the route, using it as a guide to make our way down to the Grund rather than trying to complete the entire walk.

Take your time and stop when something catches your attention along the way. There’s plenty to see, and there’s no need to stick to the full route.

Explore the Grund

Once you reach the Grund, take some time to wander through the lower part of the city. This was one of my favourite areas of Luxembourg to explore, with the Alzette River running through the neighbourhood, old buildings lining the streets and plenty of great views back up towards the Upper City.

There’s also a small waterfall along the river and a playground where you can stop for a while before continuing your walk. We didn’t have a strict route through the Grund and simply wandered around, following the river and stopping at places that caught our attention.

The National Museum of Natural History, or Naturmusée, is also in the Grund and makes an easy addition while you’re already here. I like adding a museum at this point in the day because it changes things up after a morning of walking and sightseeing before heading back outside to continue exploring.

If you don’t want to spend the time at the museum, simply continue through the Grund and along the Wenzel Walk. You can always save the Naturmusée for another day, but if it’s on your Luxembourg itinerary, this is a great time to visit.

Take the Glass Elevator

Another free attraction worth adding while you’re exploring the lower part of the city is the Pfaffenthal Panoramic Elevator. You’ll need to walk from the Grund into Pfaffenthal to reach it, but we found it easy to include while we were already exploring this part of the city, an it was easily one of my kids favourite things to do in Luxembourg. The glass elevator takes you up to the Upper City and has fantastic views over the Alzette Valley along the way.

Head Back to the Upper City

When you’re ready to head back to the Upper City, you have a couple of options. The public elevator connecting the Grund with the Plateau du Saint-Esprit is the most direct and saves you the climb back uphill. If you’ve wandered farther towards Pfaffenthal, you can take the Pfaffenthal Panoramic Elevator instead. It’s a bit farther from the Grund, but the views on the way up are worth the extra walk. Both elevators are free to use.

Explore the Upper City

Once you’re back in the Upper City, spend the rest of the afternoon exploring the historic centre. If you haven’t already stopped for something to eat in the Grund, this is a good time to grab lunch before continuing.

Unlike the morning, you don’t really need a route to follow here. Wander through Place d’Armes and Place Guillaume II, see the Grand Ducal Palace and make your way towards Notre-Dame Cathedral and Place de la Constitution. You’ll pass historic buildings, shops and pedestrian streets along the way, so take your time rather than rushing between specific sights.

This was one of my favourite ways to experience Luxembourg. We didn’t have a long list of places we needed to see and simply wandered through the streets, stopping when something caught our attention.

Take a Break at the Municipal Park

Finish the afternoon at Municipal Park, just outside the historic centre. The park has a large pirate ship playground, and after a day of walking and sightseeing, it’s a great spot to let the kids run around for a while.

The playground has a huge wooden ship to climb on, along with slides, climbing structures and plenty of space to play. My kids loved it, and it’s an easy stop to add without going out of your way.

If you still have some energy afterwards, wander back through the Upper City for dinner and enjoy the city in the evening.

Visiting Luxembourg in December? We visited during the Christmas season, and this was actually how we finished our first day. After some time at the pirate ship playground, we walked through the park to Wanterpark at Kinnekswiss, where there’s an ice trail, food and drink stalls and covered seating. We spent some time here before following the light installations back towards the Old Town and finishing the evening at the Luxembourg Christmas markets.

Day 2: A Few Options for Your Second Day

For your second day in Luxembourg, you have a few options. I’d recommend spending the morning at the Bock Casemates and choosing another attraction for the afternoon. Or, if you’d like to see more of the country, skip the city attractions and spend the day visiting Vianden Castle.

Option 1: Stay in Luxembourg City

Explore the Bock Casemates

The Bock Casemates are a network of underground tunnels carved into the rock beneath Luxembourg’s old fortress. At one point, the tunnels stretched for more than 20 kilometres and were used to shelter soldiers, horses and equipment.

Today, you can walk through part of the remaining tunnels, climb narrow staircases and look through openings in the rock for views over the Grund and surrounding fortifications.

My kids really enjoyed exploring the tunnels, especially the narrow passages and staircases. Give yourself time to wander through rather than rushing through — there are different passages to explore and plenty of spots where you’ll want to stop for the views.

Afternoon Options

After visiting the Bock Casemates, grab some lunch and choose one more attraction for the afternoon. There are a few good options depending on whether you want to stay in the city centre or head a little farther out.

Visit the Lëtzebuerg City Museum

After spending yesterday walking through Luxembourg’s historic streets and neighbourhoods, the Lëtzebuerg City Museum is a chance to learn a little more about the city you’ve been exploring. The museum covers more than 1,000 years of Luxembourg City’s history, from its beginnings as a fortified settlement to the city you see today.

And it’s not just the exhibits that make it worth visiting. The museum is built into the hillside over several levels, combining historic buildings with modern additions, including a large glass elevator with views over the Grund, which I think is worth the admission alone.

Visit the Luxembourg Science Center

Another option is to spend the afternoon at the Luxembourg Science Center. It’s outside the city centre in Differdange, so plan on this taking up most of your afternoon. It’s easy enough to reach by Luxembourg’s free public transportation, but allow around an hour each way from the city centre.

This was high on our list, but we didn’t manage to fit it into our visit. With more than 100 interactive exhibits and regular science shows, I’d set aside most of the afternoon rather than trying to squeeze it in between other sights.

Option 2: Visit Vianden Castle

If you’d rather see more of Luxembourg beyond the capital, spend your second day visiting Vianden Castle. The castle sits above the small town of Vianden in northern Luxembourg and is one of the country’s most impressive castles.

You can reach Vianden from Luxembourg City using public transportation, so you don’t need to rent a car for the day. Give yourself plenty of time to explore the castle and wander through the town before heading back to Luxembourg City later in the afternoon.

The trade-off is that you’ll need to skip the Bock Casemates and other Day 2 attractions in Luxembourg City. With only two days, I’d choose one or the other rather than trying to squeeze Vianden into the same day.

We didn’t make it to Vianden on our trip, but it’s high on my list for the next time we’re in Luxembourg.

Getting Around Luxembourg

Luxembourg City is easy to explore without a car. We walked for most of our time in the historic centre, which is also one of the best ways to explore areas like the Upper City and the Grund.

The biggest thing to keep in mind is that the city is built on different levels, so even when two places look close on a map, there can be a pretty big hill between them. Fortunately, there are free public elevators connecting different parts of the city, including the elevator between the Grund and Plateau du Saint-Esprit and the Pfaffenthal Panoramic Elevator.

Public transportation is also free throughout Luxembourg, including buses, trams and trains. We used it to get around the city, as well as to the airport, and it also makes it easy to reach places outside the centre without renting a car.

Is 2 Days in Luxembourg Enough?

Yes, two days is enough time for a first visit to Luxembourg. You’ll have time to explore both the Upper City and the Grund, visit the Bock Casemates and add another attraction without trying to fit too much into each day.

We had two full days in Luxembourg City and found it was a good amount of time. I didn’t feel like we were rushing from place to place, and we had plenty of time to stop at playgrounds, wander without a plan and take breaks when we needed them.

That said, I’d add a third day if you want to visit Vianden Castle without giving up a full day in Luxembourg City. An extra day would also give you time for the Luxembourg Science Center or another day trip while still following most of this itinerary.

Only have one day in Luxembourg? You can still see quite a bit of the city. I’d focus on the Upper City, walk part of the Wenzel Walk down into the Grund and visit the Bock Casemates. I’ve put together a one-day Luxembourg itinerary that shows you how to fit the highlights into a single day without rushing.

Our Take on Spending 2 Days in Luxembourg

Two days in Luxembourg gave us enough time to see the places we really wanted to see without feeling like we were rushing through the city. Luxembourg City is compact, but there’s more to it than I expected, especially once you start exploring the different levels of the city and wandering down into the Grund.

Luxembourg also isn’t a city where you need to spend your whole visit going from one attraction to the next. Part of the experience is simply wandering through the Old Town, walking along the Chemin de la Corniche and exploring the Grund. With two days, you have time to do that while still visiting places like the Bock Casemates and one or two other attractions.

If you’re visiting Luxembourg for the first time, I’d recommend giving yourself two full days if you can. It’s enough time to see the highlights, slow down a little and actually enjoy the city rather than treating Luxembourg as a quick stop on the way somewhere else.

More Luxembourg Trip Planning

Planning the rest of your trip? You can find more ideas for visiting Luxembourg with kids, including some of the places we didn’t have room to include in this two-day itinerary. If you’re still deciding where to base yourself, these places to stay in Luxembourg include the area we stayed in and other convenient options around the city.

And if you’re planning a winter trip, Luxembourg’s Christmas markets are well worth adding to your itinerary. We visited during the Christmas season, so you’ll find plenty of our firsthand tips for the different markets, what to expect and which ones we enjoyed most.