Seven days in Luxembourg, from the capital to the red south

A week is when Luxembourg stops being a capital with day trips and becomes a country. Seven days take you through all five tourist regions the government itself recognises, from the castles and valleys of the Éislek to the red earth of the Minett, and back to the capital without rushing. What separates this from the four-day plan isn’t just more places, it’s changing base and sleeping outside the city.

Building on four days

The first four days are the ones I suggest in the Luxembourg 4 day itinerary. Two in the capital, one in Echternach and the Mullerthal rocks, one up north with Vianden and Clervaux. The change is where you sleep on night four, which I’d already spend in the north. From there, the week adds three more days. If you only have half that, my short version is the Luxembourg 3 day itinerary.

Day 5, the Upper Sûre and Bourscheid

This is my favourite day and the only one where a car really earns its keep. I’d start at Bourscheid, which the government’s portal names Luxembourg’s biggest castle, a spread of eleven towers above the river, for €7. In the afternoon I’d drop down to Esch-sur-Sûre, the village wrapped in a river loop, with its castle ruins free to explore, and walk up to the Belvédère Burfelt, a 2016 platform standing 70 m above the lake. It’s a 380-hectare reservoir that much of the country drinks from, so swimming is limited to marked areas and to the May to September season. More on the castle at Bourscheid Castle.

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

Day 6, the Moselle

For the wine valley I’d move base again and sleep in Remich, which has a 3 km riverside promenade lined with lime and cherry trees. In the morning I’d climb Wormeldange’s Koeppchen, a vineyard on a slope of more than 70 degrees with the 1925 chapel of St Donatus at the top. In the afternoon, Schengen and its museum, with the agreement’s boat moored outside and one €5 ticket for both. If you’d rather have woods than vines, swap the morning for the ravine forest at Manternach. The whole valley is laid out in my guide to the Luxembourg Moselle valley.

Day 7, the red south

I’d give the last day to the Minett, the old iron-ore basin, which to my mind is the region visitors most unfairly skip. At Belval, blast furnace A is the only one open to visitors in the country, and you climb to 40 m. It costs €5, a single cent for under-21s and students, and it’s closed on Tuesdays. Until 31 October it opens 10:00 to 19:00; from November, until 16:00. Details are on the Belval blast furnaces page. From there the train takes you back to the capital for free, and the T1 tram has run to the airport since March 2025, which suits a flight home.

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

If your week falls in autumn

A few dates change the plan. The Vianden chairlift ends its season on 19 October 2026 and the castle opens 10:00 to 17:00 from 1 October. The Schengen museum closes on 18 October and 1 November 2026. Belval’s blast furnace shortens its hours from 1 November, to 10:00 to 16:00. And The Family of Man doesn’t close its season until 1 January 2027. With that in mind, in November I’d do the village days in the mornings and keep the evenings for the capital.

Car or public transport?

Both. The capital, Echternach, Clervaux, Remich and Belval all work by bus or train, free since 1 March 2020. For the Upper Sûre and Bourscheid I’d hire a car for a day or two and return it on reaching the Moselle, bearing in mind you’ll be driving on the right. What to know before booking is in car hire in Luxembourg.

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

Where to sleep over seven nights

My split would be three or four nights in the capital, two in the north, in Vianden or Clervaux, and the last two in Remich. Sleeping out of the city has one clear advantage, the evenings and early mornings in the north and on the Moselle are yours, without depending on the last train back or the first one out. That, more than any single sight, is what a week buys you here.

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.