Paris to Luxembourg by TGV or by car

If there’s one route to Luxembourg that feels just right, it’s this one. You leave central Paris, sit down for two hours and ten minutes and step off in central Luxembourg, with no airports, no security queues and your bag beside you. If your trip already takes in Paris, adding Luxembourg costs you very little time.

The TGV Est, Gare de l’Est to Gare Centrale

visitluxembourg sums it up in a line. The TGV Est gets you from Paris to Luxembourg in 2 hours 10 minutes, with several direct return trips a day between the Gare de l’Est and the Luxembourg capital. It doesn’t publish exact times or fares, which belong to SNCF and change with the date, so the French operator’s journey planner or CFL’s is where to look.

Coming from London, the TGV makes a neat second leg after Eurostar. You’ll need to cross Paris to the Gare de l’Est, so leave yourself a comfortable margin rather than booking the tightest connection the planner offers. If you’d rather avoid the change of station, Eurostar to Brussels and the direct train is the alternative, covered in Brussels to Luxembourg.

The train pulls into the Gare Centrale, and from the forecourt a free tram or bus climbs to the old town. The station’s services and how to get your bearings outside are in Luxembourg railway station.

What you pay for and what you don’t

There’s a common misunderstanding here. Luxembourg’s free transport doesn’t turn a TGV ticket into a free one, because it only covers domestic second-class journeys and stops at the border. An international TGV is paid in full. What is free is everything you do afterwards, from the tram outside the station to a domestic train to the north of the country. First class on domestic trains costs extra, €3 for two hours or €6 until 04:00 the next day, from a machine or the CFL go app.

One practical touch I like. If you bought the TGV from SNCF online and want the return printed, CFL points to a pair of French railway machines inside Luxembourg station. The rest on tickets, classes and surcharges is in train to Luxembourg.

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

Driving instead?

The city of Luxembourg gives 370 km by road from Paris to the capital. On Luxembourg’s motorways you’re limited to 130, or 110 on wet roads, and enforcement is strict.

A car is worth it if the plan includes the Moselle, the Guttland castles or the north, but for the capital on its own the tram does everything. Metz is 60 km from Luxembourg and works as a stop if you’re coming through France. The rules of the road are in driving in Luxembourg, and a visit to the Lorraine city in Metz day trip.

Other French cities with a direct train

These direct links are worth knowing if Luxembourg is one stop on a longer French trip rather than the main event.

visitluxembourg lists more direct links with France. Strasbourg is 1 hour 33 minutes away, Lyon 5 hours 30 and Marseille 7 hours 42. If you’re touring Alsace or coming up from the south of France, these save you going back through Paris. Strasbourg is also 222 km from Luxembourg City by road.

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

Is flying from Paris ever worth it?

Not in my view. Getting to the airport, going through security, flying and getting back into town takes longer than two hours ten from centre to centre. Flying only makes sense from much further away, and for that see flights to Luxembourg.

A British traveller does have one extra thing to plan for on this route. Because Luxembourg is in Schengen, check that your passport meets the age and validity rules set out by the UK government. The UK government says the Entry/Exit System may register your fingerprints and photo at your port of entry on your first visit to a Schengen country, so on this route expect it on the way into France rather than at Luxembourg station, and allow extra time for it on the day you travel out. Details are in Luxembourg entry requirements.

Whichever way you come, book the TGV early, pick a hotel near the station or the tram, and spend the first day in the old town.

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.