Travelers who come to see the great towns and capitals of the continent sometimes overlook Luxembourg, as it is one of the smallest countries in Europe. With a geographical size of about 998 square miles, roughly the same as Rhode Island, Luxembourg is among the smallest nations in Europe. Even yet, Luxembourg is a small country that packs a punch when it comes to cool events that highlight local wine, food, culture, sports, and more.
Apart from the yearly celebrations and marketplaces that grace the festivities every year, the following is a summary of several much-anticipated, unique extravaganzas taking place around Luxembourg in the next months:
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Luxembourg City Film Festival, March 2024
Fans of movies, rejoice! From March 2–12, the Luxembourg City Film Festival presents around 70 highly regarded international films across all genres. Not only does this highly attended event contain professional presentations, workshops, displays, and, of course, opening and closing night parties, but it also attracts the biggest personalities in the industry for special guest appearances.
A favorite among cinema enthusiasts from all across Europe, the festival launches comedies, dramas, documentaries, animated pictures, and more at theaters around the country’s capital. The People’s Choice Award, Best Picture, Best Director, and Best Screenplay are among the various categories in which there are prizes. If you are unable to visit Luxembourg City in the early months of April, fear not—the film festival takes place there every summer and winter.
125 Years of Cycling Race, May 2024
Luxembourg has a rich history of bike racing, having hosted its first cycling race back in 1899. In fact, Schleck Frères is Luxembourg’s oldest cycling racing team, founded in 1908 by François Faber, who won the Tour de France in 1909. To commemorate the 125th anniversary of that inaugural race, the annual Tour of Luxembourg stage race will hold special celebratory races in Luxembourg City on May 7th to honor the occasion.
Additional anniversary celebration races will be held across the country from May 28th to June 1st. Pro races featuring teams like Deceuninck–Quick-Step Pro Cycling Team, food markets with delicacies like gromperekichelcher (fried potato pancake), and family-friendly cycling activities will all aim to honor Luxembourg’s long and decorated cycling legacy.
Claude Jaeger’s Art Fair, June 2024
From June 14th to 16th, Luxembourg Art Week returns to showcase Luxembourg’s contemporary art scene through special exhibitions scattered throughout museums and galleries across the country. The highlight is the prestigious Claude Jaeger Art Fair in Luxembourg City held at the Grand Palais exhibition center. Here, over 7,500 avid art collectors, dealers, curators, and art fans can browse and purchase one-of-a-kind paintings, photographs, sculptures, and mixed media works from 200 international artists and galleries carefully selected by a committee.
Paintings sell for several thousand euros a piece, so deep pockets are recommended. Beyond purchasing investment-grade works, fair attendees can also enjoy gourmet food, art lectures, meet-and-greet opportunities with featured artists, and gallery tours.
Luxembourg Food Fair, September 2024
The annual Luxembourg Food Fair brings droves of foodies and families to the Luxexpo convention center from September 15th–17th to celebrate Luxembourgish cuisine and the nation’s best chefs. For three days straight, attendees can indulge in cooking demonstrations, tastings, and workshops featuring local specialties like Judd mat gaardebounen (smoked pork collar with broad beans), kuddelfleck (tripe stuffed with carrots, leeks, and herbs), and tarte au riz (sweet rice flan). Elsewhere a farmers market boasts organic beef, cheese, wine, and vegetable producers from across the Luxembourg countryside allowing visitors to fill shopping bags full of tasty souvenirs. No food festival would be complete without food trucks, craft beer tents, and multi-course gourmet meals from Luxembourg’s Michelin-star chefs.
Vianden Medieval Festival, September 2024
Step back in time to the Middle Ages by attending Vianden’s Medieval Festival in the medieval city center from September 8th to 10th. For three days, jovial jousting competitions, sword fighting demonstrations, large banquets fit for a king, open-air markets with medieval goods, lute music, troubadour dancing, parades of townspeople in historical costumes, along with falconry displays recapture Vianden’s medieval heritage when it was an important European city in the Dark Ages. To completely immerse themselves in medieval experiences, festival attendees don archery gear, enjoy meat pies and goblets of mead, and even ride horses. Constructed throughout the 11th and 14th centuries, Vianden’s magnificent castle offers an ideal setting for this captivating historical portrayal.
As you can see, it’s unnecessary to travel far to experience one-of-a-kind celebrations when visiting tiny Luxembourg. From cinema to cycling, art fairs to historical reenactments, the Grand Duchy may be small, but it thinks big when planning events year-round that shine a spotlight on local culture, cuisine, history, and talents. Its central location, bordering Germany, France, and Belgium, also makes it easy to tack these cool events onto a greater European holiday. Read more about the wide array of events held annually in Luxembourg here.
