Our final day in beautiful Luxembourg had come around all too quickly but with a late afternoon flight back to the UK we still had ample time to explore. Our plan for the day was to drive to Luxembourg’s wine growing region in the Moselle Valley just 40 minutes from the city centre.
We made our first stop at a viewpoint above Remich, which offered splendid views across the vineyards. Despite it being an overcast morning we still enjoyed our stroll along the pathways beside the vines which were loaded with grapes nearing their time for harvesting.
From there we drove into the town of Remich managing to find a parking place by the riverside. This picturesque small town lies on the banks of the Moselle with the river providing a natural border with Germany.
The town is characterised by its picturesque narrow alleyways and small squares lined with attractive little shops and cafes. We enjoyed our morning cups of coffee along the pedestrianised high street and then returned to the car along the riverside promenade that stretches for 3 km and is shaded by cherry and birch trees.
The promenade seemed a popular place for a walk or cycle ride as there were lots of people out enjoying the fresh air and views of the Moselle.
Moored along the river bank we spotted several tourist boats that offer pleasure trips of varying lengths. If we’d had more time I would have loved to have taken one of these. Numerous cafes and bars are dotted along the riverside close to the large Remich visitor centre which was designed to resemble a white cruise liner moored on the banks of the Moselle.
Also of interest along the riverside promenade is the Bacchus Fountain which depicts the Roman god sitting on top of a cask of wine. A Bacchus festival takes place in the town every August when a Riesling queen is chosen.
Back in the car, it was just a short 1.5 km journey along the riverfront to the Caves St. Martin, where we’d reserved places on one of their guided tours of the caves €7.50 (£6.60) and included in the Luxembourg Card. After meeting our guide Liliana, she supplied us with fleece capes to keep us warm in the caves as the temperature below ground is a constant 12 degrees.
After popping on the capes, we were taken down into the underground tunnels which extend for almost a kilometre. These caves have been carved out of the solid limestone rock and are the ideal temperature for storing wines.
We saw thousands of bottles stored in racks and it was explained that these needed to be turned daily, a very labour intensive procedure as it is carried out by hand. On our tour Liliana pointed out numerous features and it was very interesting to learn about the wine making process. Caves St. Martin is an independent vintner producing both still and sparking wines.
We learnt that the winery is noted for its Crémant de Luxembourg sparkling wine which is very similar to Champagne and made using only the best local grape varieties of the Moselle valley. Crémant adheres to the traditional Champagne method of production which includes a second fermentation in the bottle followed by nine months of maturation. The wine takes the Crémant name as it is not produced in the Champagne region.
After completing our tour we sampled three of the wines in the tasting room starting with the Crémant which tasted just like Champagne and of a similar quality but less expensive. We really wanted to buy some bottles to take home but although we had checked luggage the bottles would have been too heavy to transport. As I wasn’t the one driving, I was also able to also sample glasses of the St. Martin Rosé and Riesling which were both light and refreshing.
After enjoying our tour of the caves and samples in the tasting room we made our way to the Pavilion restaurant for some lunch. Unlike the other days of our trip, the sun didn’t shine but it was still warm enough to dine out on the terrace overlooking the Moselle.
Noticing that slow cooked lamb was on the menu I couldn’t resist ordering it, as cooked well, it is one of my favourite dishes. It definitely lived up to expectations as did the roast beef across the table, setting us up for our journey back home. Service was efficient and lunch at Caves St. Martin had been the perfect end to our stay in Luxembourg.
It was then just a 35 minute drive back to the airport and close by we filled up the car with petrol. Interestingly, all petrol stations in the country sell fuel at the same price so there was no need to be on the lookout for cheaper options. We had picked the car up from the city centre which was very easy but returning it to the airport turned out to be more problematic due to lack of rental car drop off signs. After driving around the airport for about ten minutes we were none the wiser so I got out of the car and asked a taxi driver for directions. Eventually we found the correct location in the basement of the multi storey car park and were glad that we had allowed plenty of time as returning the car took much longer than expected.
Both check-in and security at Luxembourg airport were trouble free and we had time to enjoy cups of coffee before boarding our flight back to the UK.
Luxembourg may only be a small country but with so many interesting things to see and do we could have easily stayed longer than five nights. From the historic World Heritage city centre to its industrial heartland, castles and wine country we had enjoyed it all and received the warmest of welcomes wherever we went.
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During our stay we were guests of Visit Luxembourg and as always all views and opinions are entirely my own.
Love Travelling Blog 
its a surprisingly interesting country and you did well to cram in what u did in five days!
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Luxembourg is beautiful and, yes we did so many nice things.
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The sparkling wine at the winery looks so good! That is really neat to learn that they produce it in Luxembourg. Also Remich looks like such a beautiful town to visit.
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The visit to the winery with tastings and lunch was a perfect end to our stay in Luxembourg Allie. Thanks so much for taking the time to comment.
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Thanks Marion, your series very much expanded my knowledge of Luxembourg. Obviously it has plenty packed into a small space.
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Luxembourg seems to have it all and we enjoyed both the city centre and each of the other parts of the country we visited.
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Marion This brings back memories of time in Luxembourg. You really had alot of fun there. So amazing many sites to see.
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Thanks for your kind words Anita. We enjoyed our visit to Luxembourg very much.
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😊
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The Caves St. Martin looks like such an interesting place to explore with all the underground tunnels stored with wine. What better way to end your tour than by sampling some of the wines.
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Exactly Linda, it was the perfect finale to our enjoyable stay in Luxembourg. Thanks so much for reading and commenting, it’s always appreciated.
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What a wonderful trip you had…the wine looks great and always good to support local businesses! Did you find it easy to drive there?
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The Crémant was extremely good. The road network throughout the entire country is excellent and it wasn’t congested even in the city centre. The only issue was returning the car to the airport as we’d collected it in town and the signage was practically non-existent!
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Loved the view across the vineyards. Reminded me of my visits to Napa Valley CA where my daughters lived for a while
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Thanks for your interest, the Moselle Valley vineyards are so attractive. I visited the Napa Valley once but it was a very long time ago.
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The vineyards would definitely be up near the top of my Luxembourg list. Love those shades of green across the Remich vineyards and that charming, empty street in the centre. You’ve certainly covered a chunk of Luxembourg Marion and I guess the boats give you some incentive to return one day.
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For such a small country Luxembourg offers so much. The vineyards and lunch and tour of Caves St. Martin was the perfect end to our trip. Thanks so much for taking the time to comment Leighton.
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That winery looks so lovely! Taking some wine and a picnic along that river walk sounds delightful. And by far one of the most interesting buildings for a visitor center that I’ve seen 🙂
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Reimich is a delightful, small riverside town Meg and enjoying the winery tour and a delicious lunch before heading back to the airport was the perfect way to conclude our trip. Thanks so much for your welcome thoughts.
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Very much enjoyed your Luxembourg posts Marion and was surprised about the vineyards although shouldn’t have been! Loved that little town with the quaint alleyways.. isn’t it a pain dropping off cars at airport rental, it seems to be the same everywhere no proper signage
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Thanks Alison for your interest in this series of posts featuring Luxembourg. As it’s such a short hop from London perhaps you can fit in a trip on one of your return visits to the UK. Have a good week. Marion x
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Yes would love to
We have some plans for next year but I think it’s going to be Turkey and UK
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Sounds good!
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Glad to see you had a lovely time in Luxembourg! I had no idea that the small country also had its own vineyards and winemaking industry…a Crémant sounds really good right now! That lamb looks so good, and I hope you had safe travels home– can’t wait to see where you go next!
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Thank you for your kind words Rebecca. Visiting the vineyards was a perfect way to end our trip and sipping the Crémant delightful. A small country with so much to offer in all parts of the country. The best part is that you can be based in the capital the entire time as distances are similar to all the other regions.
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I have thoroughly enjoyed your trip to Luxembourg, and the tour of the Moselle Valley certainly did not disappoint. I will be looking forward to wherever you are taking us next!
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Thank you so much for your kind words and interest in this series of posts featuring Luxembourg.
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Most everything I know about Luxembourg I know from reading your blog, thanks.
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Thank you for your interest in this series of posts on Luxembourg Terry. It’s a lovely country.
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Beautiful. Luxembourg is truly a beautiful country. You really had fun. Do you feel sad about leaving?
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Yes, a little bit but always new adventures await. Thank you so much for taking an interest in my blog.
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Of course, you cannot skip the wine growing region 😀. Haha, we saw a statue of Bacchus in Portugal as well – it seems like he was a popular guy! It’s always interesting to go on a wine tour – and to see the underground tunnels must have been a great experience. To conclude your visit with wine tasting and that delicious looking food, was probably the perfect way of saying goodbye to Luxembourg. Thanks for another great tour Marion (if we ever get there, I will remember your lovely photos … but also about the rental car drop off at the airport)!
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Thanks for your lovely comments Corna. Yes, the Moselle wine growing valley was a perfect way to end our stay in Luxembourg. It was just a pity that the Crémant bottles were too heavy for us to bring some back home with us. It was crazy that we had navigated our way around the entire country without issues but then struggled to locate the car rental drop off point back at the airport It’s best to always factor in extra time for these unexpected things! Hope you’re having a nice weekend. Marion
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A great finale to your time in Luxembourg! I’d love to wander the streets of Remich with a coffee in hand.
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Thanks so much for your interest in this series of posts Lyssy. Hopefully you’ll get to visit Luxembourg on one of your trips across the pond!
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For such a small country, Luxembourg has much to see. You covered your visit to Luxembourg well.
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Thanks so much for your interest in this series of posts on Luxembourg Linda, I’d definitely return, we enjoyed our visit so much.
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What a great way to fill your last day in Luxembourg, Marion. Too bad about the tour boats, but a reason to return again? The rental car return on departure day always stresses me. I have missed a couple of flights, by not getting back in time. Thanks for sharing your visit. Allan
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Visiting the winery for a tour and lunch was indeed a great way to spend our final day in Luxembourg. I’d definitely go back sometime.
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