Healthcare in Luxembourg for British visitors

Nobody plans to fall ill on holiday, but knowing where to go saves hours of worry. Luxembourg’s system is good and well organised, with one feature worth knowing about, the maisons médicales, which handle the kind of thing you’d take to an NHS walk-in centre or out-of-hours GP at home. Your GHIC and the rest of the essentials are listed in what to pack for Luxembourg.

Before you go, GHIC and insurance

The UK government is clear. To get medically necessary state healthcare in Luxembourg, you need a Global Health Insurance Card (GHIC) or a European Health Insurance Card (EHIC). The NHS website explains how to apply, how to get temporary cover if your card doesn’t arrive in time and what counts as medically necessary.

The card isn’t an alternative to travel insurance, though. The FCDO lists costs it may not cover, including changes to travel and accommodation bookings, additional standard costs for treatment, medical repatriation to the UK, non-urgent treatment and private clinics. Spain’s foreign ministry adds a useful detail about how the system works for EU visitors, treatment is paid up front and the cost reclaimed from Luxembourg’s national health fund, the CNS. Whatever happens, keep every invoice, receipt and prescription.

No vaccinations are compulsory for Luxembourg, though the FCDO suggests checking the latest recommendations at least eight weeks before any trip, particularly if you have a health condition or are pregnant. Tap water is fine to drink, since it’s treated, so there’s no need to buy bottled water for the sake of your stomach.

Where do I go for a doctor out of hours?

To a maison médicale de garde, Luxembourg’s name for the GP clinics that open when surgeries are closed. There are three in the country, in Luxembourg City (23, Val Fleuri), Esch-Belval (3-5, avenue du Swing, Belvaux) and Ettelbruck (110, avenue Lucien Salentiny). No appointment needed.

All three keep the same hours. On weekdays, 20:00 to midnight. On Saturdays, Sundays and public holidays, 08:00 to midnight. During those hours the switchboard answers on (+352) 20 333 111. After midnight you must ring 112, which passes the call to the duty doctor, who’ll call you back and can visit if needed. The health ministry runs campaigns urging people to use these clinics before going to A&E, and for anything that isn’t serious I’d do exactly that. The FCDO also keeps a list of medical providers in Luxembourg with some English-speaking staff.

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

Hospital A&E, by region

For serious problems, hospital emergency departments. In the south, the Centre Hospitalier Emile Mayrisch in Esch-sur-Alzette, open 24 hours. In the north, the Centre Hospitalier du Nord in Ettelbruck, also 24 hours. In the centre, including the capital, the Hôpital Kirchberg and the Centre Hospitalier de Luxembourg (CHL) alternate the adult rota according to a six-monthly schedule. Children from anywhere in the country go to the national paediatric emergency service at the CHL, 4 rue Ernest Barblé.

Calling 112

112 is the number for an ambulance or fire service, 113 for the police. The FCDO adds a useful point, if you ask for the SAMU, the emergency medical service, a doctor comes out with the ambulance. When you call, give your name, where you are, what’s happened, the exact address and how many people are hurt. Other useful numbers, including the British Embassy’s address, are in is Luxembourg safe. On a UK SIM, check your roaming deal before relying on the phone, as explained in Luxembourg roaming.

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

Pharmacies and duty pharmacies

Pharmacies in Luxembourg display a green cross. At night and on holidays a duty rota applies. Each duty pharmacy covers a 24-hour shift, from 08:00 to 08:00 the next day, and the current list is published by the Luxembourg pharmacists’ union on pharmacie.lu. The FCDO also reminds travellers that some medicines legal in the UK are regulated differently abroad, so check before packing prescriptions.

My plan if something goes wrong

I’d save the three maisons médicales addresses and the switchboard number on my phone. For a fever or a sprain on a Saturday I’d head straight to the nearest one rather than A&E. For anything serious, 112 at once. I’d carry the GHIC and the insurance documents together. And to get to any of them, public transport is free, as I explain in getting around Luxembourg.

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.