‘Once a year, go someplace you’ve never been before.’-Dalai Lama

I knew when I was planning my holiday trip that I wanted to do a fun day trip from Paris. As I’ve said, I have been really fortunate to have traveled across Paris and throughout France. So I googled good day trips from Paris. While several said Brussels or even Amsterdam, and while I do want to visit those places, Luxembourg was the best option. For one, it was the closest. The train ride was about 3ish hours so worked well to go to Luxembourg City, wander for a bit, and return back to experience Paris at night. While Amsterdam is a dream place to visit, I want to do it right.

Luxembourg is not big, not frequently visited, and easy to get around for the most part. The train drops you off near the city center and I just walked. There is a tram but I did utilize it. Most things were within walking distance. The only thing I didn’t visit was the American Cemetery from World War II, notable for being the burial site of George Patton. It is a few miles outside of the city center and I just didn’t have the time and the weather was not the best.

While I had wonderful weather for my trip, it rained the entire time I was in Luxembourg City. I shifted from pouring rain to a light drizzle. I had an umbrella and dealt with it-perk of traveling in the off seasons, you learn to deal with all kinds of weather. There are lots of shops both stores you are familiar with and others that are independently owned. A lot of luxury brands, which tracks as Luxembourg is quite wealthy-similar vibe of Monaco. I do not live a luxury life so I spent the most time window shopping and stopped in Mango and Lush Beauty. I then ate lunch at Pret a Manger, my favorite sandwich place from my New York City days.

Down from the shopping core is the royal family’s residence. I have no idea if they were there and more tucked away then, say, Buckingham Palace but still cool. Further down is the remnants of medieval Luxembourg. You can explore-note there are a lot of stairs as the city is on a hill and when you leave the center, you are quite high looking down on the bridge- and check out the sights. Added bonus, they were doing some work on the walls so I saw maintenance crews repelling down the side.

Across the way is a large park with a beautiful fountain but this is not where the famed Winston Churchill statue is. That is technically in a park but really just a small green space nearby.

Overall, I had a lovely afternoon. I probably would not go out of my way to return but I am glad I used some free time to go off the beaten path a bit!