On the Place d’Armes, visitors this weekend can explore a pavilion showcasing the best of Luxembourg’s local produce, from Berdorf cheese to tea from the Upper Sûre lake region. The stands have been drawing large crowds, with tourists frequently surprised by the breadth and variety of what the Grand Duchy has to offer.
To help visitors discover these products more easily, the Ministry of Tourism is looking to expand opportunities such as local markets, bringing producers and the public closer together. For Michel Freichel from the Our Valley region, the event offers a valuable chance to reach an entirely new and keenly interested audience. His full range is ordinarily only available online or through the regional shop, making the exposure in the heart of the capital particularly welcome.
Local food products, Luxembourg’s wines and sparkling wines all play a role in preserving tradition and encouraging sustainable tourism, a point underlined by Minister Delegate for Tourism Eric Thill at the press conference marking the launch of the 2026 tourist season. The minister also noted a shift that has become increasingly clear in recent years: the tourist season, as it was once understood, no longer really exists. Visitor numbers continue to grow even in winter, particularly around Christmas, and autumn hiking has become especially popular.
Despite the plethora of crises unsettling the world and the rise in fuel prices, Minister Thill struck a broadly optimistic tone for the summer ahead. Luxembourg is a safe destination, he noted, and remains particularly popular with visitors from neighbouring Germany, France and Belgium. For those who prefer not to travel far given the current global situation, the Grand Duchy offers an attractive alternative, and the early figures appear to bear this out. Campsite bookings are already up 11% compared to the same period last year, online searches for hotels have risen by 15% and flight searches by 9% compared to 2025.
For hotel operators, the picture is more nuanced. Operating costs remain the main concern, with margins continuing to shrink. That said, the sector has undergone a structural shift: the number of hotels may have halved since 1990, the roughly 200 establishments currently operating offer twice as many beds as before. Accommodation capacity is therefore growing, and with an average occupancy rate of 75%, the average remains equally high.
Day-trippers are also increasingly choosing Luxembourg as a destination, with last year recording an 11% rise compared to 2024. The Ministry of Tourism believes that figure could be surpassed again this year.
