LUXEMBOURG CITIES

Echternach The Moselle Valley, just east of Luxembourg City, is one of Europe's most idyllic wine producing regions. The Moselle was canalised in 1964 and links the Grand Duchy to larger European waterways.

The nation's motto is inscribed everywhere throughout the capital : "Mir wëlle bleiwe wat mir sin - We want to remain what we are".

Only 82 km long and 58 km wide, Luxembourg is slightly smaller than the US state of Rhode Island and not much longer than metropolitan London.

Still, its borders encompass 2586 km² of varied landscapes, from forested highlands in the north to rolling farmland and vineyards in the south.

The capital, Luxembourg City, is 294 km east of Paris, 190 km southeast of Brussels and 176 km west of Frankfurt. Northeast of the capital, the Müllerthal region is Luxembourg's 'Little Switzerland', an area of predictable charm.

Müllerthal (Little Switzerland)

Centered around the old Christian town of Echternach, in a pocket of woodland northeast of the capital, the area's hiking, cycling and rock climbing also make it one of the most touristed areas in the country. If you're in Echternach on Whitsunday (the 7th Sunday after Easter), wave your hankies with the locals celebrating the pageant of St. Willibrord, Luxembourg's only saint, who lived in town in the 8th century. His mortal remains now lie in a white marble sarcophagus in the town's basilica.

Moselle Valley

Princesse Marie-Astrid Kasteel van Schengen Wine tasting is the obvious attraction of the Moselle Valley, and if you like sweet, fruity whites, then the trip is well worthwhile. The valley's Route du Vin, or Wine Road, begins at Wasserbillig and follows the Moselle River south through the wine region's capital at Grevenmacher and beyond to the picturesque villages of Wormeldange, Remich and Schengen (42 km). Each village celebrates nearly all stages of the wine-making process during the festival season from August through November.

The beautiful Moselle River, which marks southern Luxembourg's border with Germany, is known to locals as the 'Wine River'. April through September, its waters are plied daily by the MV Princesse Marie-Astrid, a tourist boat that hits all the major sipping-spots from Schengen (Pact from 14th June 1985), at the southernmost tip of Luxembourg, to Bernkastel, Germany.

The French writer, Victor Hugo, made a design with pencil from the castle of Schengen in 1871. The design is nowadays on a wine label.