A guide to Luxembourg’s museums

Lying at the heart of Western Europe, Luxembourg has played a pivotal role in the continent’s history. Dominated by the rulers of the expansive Holy Roman Empire for centuries before gaining independence in 1815, the Grand Duchy has a complex and rich past, shaping the culturally and linguistically diverse capital we know today.

Luxembourg City, its old centre spilling out along the bottom of a dramatic gorge and teetering along its top, is a favourite city break with visitors. They come to enjoy the city’s theatrical setting, the quaint cobbled streets and alleyways of the old quarters, the green spaces at the base of the gorge, the fortification remains and the labyrinth of underground tunnels in the Bock Casemates.

But did you know this compact city is also renowned for its astonishing diversity of museums and art galleries, many of them telling Luxembourg’s unique story? The MuseumSmile takes in seven museums within a mile, creating the shape of a smile when plotted on a map. Up on Kirchberg, among the high-rises of the tech industries, finance and EU institutions, you’ll find a different world. The plateau is home to the contemporary art museum of Mudam, plus quirky art installations and sculptures.

What’s impressive about the museums is how they blend old and new, both in the architecture and in the telling of the city’s story. The Nationalmusée um Fëschmaart and Lëtzebuerg City Museum are fine examples of this, taking the visitor both physically and chronologically through the layers of the city. By exploring the sandstone foundations with their archaeological remains and by observing the old quarters, visitors can learn how the city developed from a single medieval fortress to a prosperous trading town, and then to a cutting-edge modern city.

The fairy-tale Vianden Castle and the Family of Man photographic collection at Clervaux Castle, both around an hour’s drive from the capital, are also worth a visit.

Slotted into the old town, the contemporary extension of the National Museum of Art and History at the Fish Market hits you with its bold scale, cubed walls of smooth stone and slices of glass. Inside it’s light and airy, its spaces connected by ramps, bridges, stairs and a lift.

The new extension blends seamlessly with the older original museum at the back. What’s even more impressive is the three subterranean floors that have been carved out of solid rock – rough-hewn sandstone, visible behind glass. Explore the museum from the lowest to the highest floor and take a walk through prehistoric times into the Middle Ages and on into the 21st Century. Feast on the city’s historic and cultural treasures: archaeological remains, coins, medals, arts and crafts and fine art.

Luxembourg City History Museum links stately buildings with great walls of glass, blending old and new. Its pièce de résistance is the room-sized glass lift that rises slowly through five floors, providing visitors with views of the city’s sandstone foundations, the Grund District and Rham Plateau. The lift takes you through the evolution of the city over a millennium in just a few minutes, while the surrounding museum spaces offer hours’ worth of absorbing exhibits.

Discover the story of Luxembourg City’s evolution from small fortress to elegant city created by its Spanish, French, Austrian, Prussian and Dutch rulers. From the development of the old quarters through to its modern-day centre of banking, finance and EU policymaking at Kirchberg, the museum tells the engaging story of a fascinating city.

The first sight of this Romanesque-Gothic castle with roots in Roman times will set your heart soaring. The stronghold rises out of a wooded hillside high above the riverside medieval town of the same name. A 50-minute drive from the capital, the fairy-tale castle – one of the most beautiful in Europe – is a jumble of buildings and rooms. You can explore the Byzantine Hall, atmospheric chapels, palaces, kitchen, banqueting room, gallery and cellars.

You can also learn about the story of the castle at the interactive visitor centre, discovering its origins and expansion, its demise and its reconstruction, as you move through the rooms of exhibits. At the summer medieval festival in late July and early August, you can relive the castle’s heyday through battle demonstrations, falconry displays, fire artists, jugglers, music and minstrels.

There’s only one way to approach Mudam; take the Pfaffenthal Panoramic Elevator from the old town down to the Alzette valley floor, then the funicular up to Kirchberg before hopping on a tram to Mudam – all of it free!

The contemporary building sits comfortably side-by-side with the futuristic Philharmonie concert hall and high-rise EU institutions of the European District. At the same time, the museum’s arrow-shaped roof echoes the architecture of the historic Fort Thüngen behind it. Inside, admire over 800 works of art by esteemed international artists, including British Gilbert & George and Grayson Perry. Finish under the museum’s glass dome at the vegan cafe Glow, to sample its health drinks and light bites.

Best of the rest

Dräi Eechelen Museum

Housed in the 18th-century Fort Thüngen behind Mudam, the low-lying fortress with its stumpy three towers looks incongruous backed by the shiny skyscrapers of the European District. Admire the views of the old town across the valley before going inside. Follow the labyrinth of corridors and rooms with exhibits documenting the history of the fort, capital and Grand Duchy.

National Museum of Natural History

Next to Neumünster Abbey on the banks of the Alzette River, the museum is a must for the young, the young at heart, or anyone who loves natural history. It’s packed with domestic and exotic plant and animal specimens as well as minerals and fossils (including meteorites), plus areas devoted to Earth and Space.

Clervaux Castle – The Family of Man

An hour from the capital, this reconstructed medieval castle houses the work of 273 of the world’s photographers in The Family of Man Collection, a laudable manifesto for peace in post-war Europe and the most-visited international

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