Kopstal, the witches' valley on the capital's doorstep

Kopstal has a reputation for witches, and it’s all the fault of a song. Den Hexemeeschter, the sorcerer, is a tune most Luxembourgers know, in which a husband suspects his wife of slipping off to the witches’ midnight gathering in Kopstal. Visit Guttland tells the story with a wink and assures you there’s no sorcery left. What there is, is a wooded valley about ten kilometres from the capital.

Two very different villages

The commune has just two villages and, by STATEC’s count, 4,740 residents at the start of 2026. Kopstal itself is tucked into the deep valley of the Mamer, surrounded by woodland. The river shares its name with Mamer, the country’s tenth commune by population, upstream. Bridel, by contrast, spreads across high ground towards the capital, separated from it only by Bambësch forest, which in the city starts at Mühlenbach, and is a sought-after residential area for its green setting. It has a huge oak, listed among Luxembourg’s remarkable trees, which gives its name to the small square it shades.

The Mamer on foot

What Kopstal offers a visitor is walking. Visit Guttland suggests exploring the surrounding woods and following the Mamer stream past its many mills on a 22 km national footpath. If that’s too much, there are shorter circuits of various lengths over the hills around the village. For me it’s the nearest proper green escape from Luxembourg City for a free morning, all the more so because the bus is free throughout the country.

My practical advice is simple. Wear walking shoes rather than city trainers, since these are forest and stream-side paths, and check the return bus on mobiliteit.lu before you set off so you’re not left waiting at the end.

If you are staying the night, see the best hotel deals in Luxembourg for your dates: the well-placed rooms go fast.

Anything else?

Not much in the way of monuments, and I won’t pretend otherwise. There’s a cultural centre with a varied programme, and restaurants and bars for all budgets in both Bridel and Kopstal village, including an inn-restaurant that also lets rooms, according to Visit Guttland. For 2025, STATEC recorded a couple of hotels and not a single campsite here.

Who is Kopstal for?

Two kinds of traveller, I’d say. Someone staying several nights in the capital who wants a slice of countryside without hiring a car, and someone travelling with a dog or children who’d rather have a stream and some trees than another museum queue. If you’re over for a long weekend and want the essentials, I’d skip it; the same kind of scenery comes bigger and wilder in the Mullerthal or the Eisch valley.

If you are staying the night, see the best hotel deals in Luxembourg for your dates: the well-placed rooms go fast.

Fitting it in

I’d do it as an outing from Luxembourg City, bus out and walk back the way you came, or pair it by car with the valley of the seven castles, in the same region. Everything the area offers is summed up under Guttland. Not a destination in itself, but a welcome break from stone and traffic.

So you do not lose the morning at the ticket office, browse tickets and tours in Luxembourg on GetYourGuide.

If you would rather go at your own pace, see the car hire deals in Luxembourg: the earlier you book, the more cars are left to choose from.

Before you fix your dates, compare tickets to Luxembourg: the same journey can cost very different amounts from one day to the next.