Free public transport in Luxembourg, small print included

Luxembourg was, by its own Ministry of Mobility’s account, the first country in the world to make all public transport free. It’s one of the facts about Luxembourg that surprise people most. For a visitor it’s a gift, but a gift with conditions, and those conditions are exactly what can cost you money if nobody tells you.

What you don’t pay for

Since 1 March 2020 you’ve been able to ride buses, the tram and second-class trains across the whole country without a ticket. The scheme doesn’t distinguish between locals and visitors, the official wording names residents, cross-border workers and tourists. The funicular from the Pfaffenthal-Kirchberg halt up to the tram is included too, as CFL spells out in its FAQ.

Before that date a ticket for the whole country cost €4 a day or €50 a month. For a whole country, that already sounded cheap to British ears. Scrapping fares altogether changes how you travel, though, because you stop thinking about zones, readers and machines. To see how tram, bus and rail fit together, start with getting around Luxembourg.

First class still has a price

On CFL trains the free ride stops at second class. First class has two domestic fares. A short ticket covers two hours on the whole network for €3, and a long one runs until 04:00 the following day for €6. Frequent travellers can buy books of ten short tickets or five long ones for €24 each.

You buy them from station machines or the CFL go app. You can buy on board too, but with a €1 to €9 surcharge, and only in cash. It’s one of the extra costs I cover in Luxembourg scams. On journeys under an hour, which is most of them here, I wouldn’t bother with first unless I had heavy bags at rush hour.

Once your dates are set, check which hotels are still free in Luxemburgo before prices climb.

Where does the free bit end?

At the border, and this is the classic mistake. CFL is precise about it. By train, free travel runs to or from a border point; on RGTR cross-border buses, to the last stop before the frontier. A ticket from Luxembourg to Trier, Arlon or Metz isn’t free, only its Luxembourg section is.

If you come in via Brussels or Paris, your international ticket has to cover you as far as the border, after which you pay nothing. I go through the international routes in train to Luxembourg. Season tickets on cross-border lines are discounted for regular commuters, which won’t matter much on a short break.

For a one-off cross-border ticket, the station machines are the easy option. CFL says they work around the clock, offer English among four languages, and take Visa, Mastercard, Maestro and V Pay as well as coins, though not the smallest 1, 2 and 5 cent ones. A ticket counts as valid the moment it’s printed and there are no exchanges or refunds, so buy it just before you travel.

Keep ID on you

No ticket doesn’t mean no checks. A law of 19 June 2009 on order and safety in public transport lets CFL staff, the police and customs ask passengers for identification, and in first class with a named ticket you must show it if asked. My advice is to keep your passport on you throughout. The FCDO gives drivers the same advice, since in a country this small you can slip across a border without noticing.

Once your dates are set, check which hotels are still free in Luxemburgo before prices climb.

Making the most of it on a short trip

Free travel changes where I’d stay. Since getting around costs nothing, Kirchberg, the Gare or even a town outside the capital with a railway station all work, with no fares to add to the budget. It also makes day trips painless, since Esch-sur-Alzette, Ettelbruck or Clervaux are free and quick by train.

There are smaller wins too. The Pfaffenthal lift and the funicular spare you the climbs at no cost. The tram has reached the airport since 2 March 2025, so arriving and leaving are free as well. For the rest of what costs nothing, see free things to do in Luxembourg.

What I’d do

I’d stick to second class, keep my passport handy and, if I were heading to Trier or Arlon, buy the foreign leg before boarding to avoid the on-board surcharge. Do that and transport simply drops off the budget, which in a country with high prices is very welcome.

If you would rather have a local show you round, book a guided tour in Luxemburgo and choose by the reviews.

A car frees you from timetables: search car hire in Luxembourg on DiscoverCars and compare companies.

So you do not pay over the odds, look at trains, coaches and flights to Luxembourg on Omio and pick the one that suits you.