The Guttland, Luxembourg's good land west of the capital

Most British visitors to Luxembourg split their time between the capital, the Mullerthal rocks and Vianden, and never give the Guttland a thought. That’s a pity, because the region that wraps round the west of Luxembourg City is where you find the country at its most rural and least hurried. The government’s own portal pitches it as slow travel, with hundreds of kilometres of footpaths and cycle tracks through farmland.

The good land, and where it starts and stops

Guttland means the good land, a reference to the fertile soil that feeds fields of cereals around villages such as Kleinbettingen. Its tourist office, Visit Guttland, is based in Mersch and lists 27 member communes, stretching from Steinfort in the far west to Niederanven next to the airport. Among them are Groussbus-Wal, home to Rindschleiden, the smallest village in the country, and Mertzig, with its fairy-tale Turelbaach Castle. Adding up STATEC’s population for each, you get 120,759 residents on 1 January 2026, spread over roughly 588 km².

Geographers use Gutland for something bigger, the whole southern part of the country, 1,758 km² against the 828 km² of the Éislek uplands in the north. The tourist region is only a slice of that. If you’re choosing between regions, my comparison is under regions of Luxembourg.

The Valley of the Seven Castles

This is what brings most people out here. Along the river Eisch, between Mersch and Koerich, sit seven castles, with Schoenfels, Hollenfels, the old and new castles of Ansembourg and Septfontaines, in Habscht, in between. Visit Guttland describes a 25 km driving route and the government portal a 37 km national footpath. What neither shouts about is that most of the seven are private or closed for works, so you see them from the road. I go through each stop in valley of the seven castles.

With an hour to spare, I’d head straight for Koerich Castle, a state-owned lowland castle, restored and open every day of the year with no ticket office. With a couple of hours, I’d add the Baroque gardens of the new castle at Ansembourg and their avenue of mythological statues.

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

Romans and Celts in the fields

There’s more archaeology here than the guidebooks suggest. Near Goeblange, the remains of the Miecher Roman villa span its whole life, from first-century farm to late third-century fortification, abandoned towards the end of the fourth. Close by, the Celtic mounds of Goeblange-Nospelt held the graves of four knights and a princess from the first century BC. In Helmsange forest, between Walferdange and Steinsel, a Roman qanat, an underground aqueduct, once supplied the settlements around it.

Easy walking and cycling

The official portal singles out four short trails. The Siwe Brécke-Wee, about 5 km from Reimberg in Préizerdaul, crosses little wooden bridges along a stream. The Fuussepad, 11.61 km near Steinsel, passes the ruins of a first-century Roman temple. The Mamerleeën, about 7.5 km, threads through sandstone caves near Mersch. In the same Mamer valley, Kopstal has woods, mills and a 22 km national footpath. The Randscheleider Pad is a 1.5 km meditation path at Rindschleiden, which the portal calls the smallest village in Luxembourg.

Cyclists get twelve gentle loops starting from Useldange Castle, one of them out to the country’s oldest oak at Saeul.

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

Crafts, drinks and one Michelin star

One of Luxembourg’s best-loved crafts comes from here, the Péckvillercher, clay bird whistles sold at Nospelt during the Éimaischen fair on Easter Monday. I cover it under Kehlen, the commune Nospelt belongs to. The portal also recommends local beer and cooking at Kleinbettingen and the fruit brandies known as Drëppen. For a proper blowout, Steinfort has a Michelin-starred restaurant, Apdikt, which I list in Michelin star restaurants in Luxembourg.

Getting there from the UK

Luxembourg Airport at Findel sits on the eastern edge of the capital, so the Guttland, west and north-west of the city, is a short hop from your hotel rather than from the terminal. Trains run to Mersch on the northern line and to Kleinbettingen, in Steinfort, on the line towards Arlon, and buses fan out into the villages. As a British visitor you ride all of it free in second class, the same as residents, as long as you stay inside Luxembourg. The details are in free public transport in Luxembourg.

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

My plan for the Guttland

I’d base myself in Luxembourg City. STATEC counted about two hotels in each of the western communes it publishes for 2025, against 57 in the capital, and the buses out are free. With a hire car, I’d drive the valley from Mersch to Koerich in a morning and finish at the Roman villa. Without one, I’d pick two stops, Ansembourg and Koerich, and save the rest for another trip.

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.