Though digitalisation is something we’ve been talking about for a long time, it’s becoming more important. Covid has showed us that people are digital--and they will stay digital.

So we have to adapt not only our offer, but also how we use our different channels. There are still some technical issues to address, but I think the most important is to change our mindset.

Travel preparation has been done mostly online for years now. We do a survey every year where we ask our guests questions such as, ‘How did you book?’ In 2022, over 90% of the people visiting Luxembourg booked their travel online.

So we have to put more effort into connecting our destination, as well as providing high-quality and reliable data. This goes down to minor but basic information, like accurate opening hours.

All these digital things are important, but I think the final, on-site experience should be a really good one. And that’s another challenge, which brings me to my next point.

Tourism across all seasons and all regions

In 2023, it will be important to think about the challenge of equalising visitor flows. We want to promote not just the summer season, but to find good experiences and offers throughout the whole year. Luxembourg is not only a summer destination--we have to look further and see what’s on during the winter and the so-called ‘low season.’

We must think differently: we need to create offers for which guests would like to travel to Luxembourg, instead of waiting for people to come and then building up offers.

However, it’s not only about promoting tourism across the different seasons, but also across different regions in the country. Between 60% and 70% of people go to the capital, but Luxembourg is more than just the capital.

There are five unique and attractive regions around Luxembourg City. We should emphasise connections between the city and one or two regions, depending on the length of stay, to promote an attractive package.

And these approaches can now be supported by our new tools. We have the Visit Luxembourg app, and we launched a new website last year--there will be strong connections with the regions on our site next year.

Quality over quantity

It’s good to bring people here, but then how can they travel within Luxembourg? This brings us back to the links between the city and the regions. There are still some issues to solve, but it’s very important for everyone working in tourism to pay attention to the visitor experience.

This summer, across Europe, we saw problems with airports and the heat and fewer staff in hotels and restaurants. Some people left negative reviews--but that was something that we could learn from. We see that people are quite sensitive towards the quality of their travel, so we need to focus on a high-quality experience in Luxembourg.

Even if it’s a bit of a buzzword, quality should be prioritised over quantity. And I would say that’s a main trend for 2023.

Authentic and sustainable tourism

With the support of the Luxembourg population, we can create authentic travel experiences and encourage sustainable tourism. Rural tourism is a field where we can develop a lot, not only in terms of mobility but also in terms of offer. The demand from the market is there--this came up quite strongly during covid.

Everybody is talking about sustainability. It’s part of the quality promise, but for now, there’s still a gap between attitude and behaviour. It’s important to talk about it, and how to establish the Luxembourg way of doing sustainable tourism.

It’s not about travelling less, but travelling differently. Our research shows that people who are interested in visiting Luxembourg show a higher interest in ecological and social sustainability while on vacation than other people. There’s a huge potential to discuss, but there are still some efforts needed from our side. We must do our best to integrate sustainability into the visitor experience.

Tourism as part of Luxembourg’s national brand

We have to bear in mind that tourism and tourism promotion is a strong part of Luxembourg’s national brand. Tourism makes a large contribution to promoting Luxembourg’s image and positive attitudes towards the country. It’s important to emphasise our country’s values during the visitor experience, but also to focus on human aspects.

There will be no return to 2019, to pre-covid times. The next years will be challenging. Crisis resilience and agility need to be strengthened in tourism and communication, but also in related fields, such as urban planning, regional management and business development.