The rural area in the east of Luxembourg covers 256 km2, nestled in the Trier-Luxembourg basin. The sandstone blocks, some of which are up to 100 metres thick, date back to the early jurassic period that scientists say began 201.3 million years ago.

“It forms one of the most spectacular sandstone landscapes in Western Europe and has been a tourist attraction since the late 19th century,” states Unesco on .

Müllerthal can be explored along a dense network of hiking trails such as the 112km Müllerthal trail which has won the “Leading Quality Trails--Best of Europe” award.

Out of 18 applications, seven other geoparks were included in Unesco’s list. Those include Seridó and South Canyons Paths in Brazil, Salpausselkä in Finland, Ries in Germany, Kefalonia-Ithaca in Grece, Buzău Country in Romania and Platåbergens in Sweden. Luxembourg and Sweden through this mark their first entry into the UN agency‘s list.

In 2020 a group of making it part of a programme that looks at how communities can live more sustainably. The programme aims to draw from experiences across a network of more than 700 biosphere reserves around the globe. The reserves are described as sites where nature and people can thrive together. Participants collect and share data on sustainable job creation, resource management, clean energy and biodiversity.