Admittedly, more people are currently sporting umbrellas and mackintoshes than sunglasses in Luxembourg, but the country’s tourism operators are not discouraged: July and August are but two months on the calendar, and the forecast is improving.

A Luxembourg for Tourism’s survey of hoteliers shows that the occupancy rate estimate for July is 71%, four percentage points higher than in 2022, though six points below the 2019 level. For August, 66% occupancy is foreseen, compared with 61% in 2022 and 68% in 2019.

However, these figures are based on surveys carried out between 6 and 20 July, when the weather was less capricious than at present. For campsites, the first half of July saw exceptionally high booking rates, and for the month as a whole, they should exceed those of 2022 by one percentage point, at 79%.

Luxembourg, a destination to escape the heatwave?

Luxembourg for Tourism also reports a 7% increase in hotel searches for future stays in Luxembourg compared to last year. There has even been a rebound among Spanish and Italian web users, who are probably looking for a cool escape from the extreme temperatures currently baking southern Europe.

According to the European Travel Commission’s latest survey of Europeans’ travel intentions, autumn is also a popular time of year for visitors from Germany, Switzerland, the Netherlands and Spain.

At the Luxembourg City Tourist Office (LCTO), visitors from Germany were the most numerous to pass through the doors of the Place Guillaume reception office. They accounted for 23% of admissions, ahead of the Dutch (18%), French (16%) and Luxembourgers (7%), according to public relations officer Dany Schneider.

Over the first seven months of 2023, the increase at the LCTO was 66.5% compared with 2022, with 83,949 visitors, a level identical to 2019. “Given the good indicators at the start of the year, we’re very confident of a fine season. Let’s hope that the weather improves again to attract spontaneous visitors,” says Schneider.

In terms of tourist attractions, the Bock Casemates, which opened in mid-June, has already attracted more than 30,000 visitors, with 83% occupancy. Next in line are the Pétrusse Casemates, with an 87% occupancy rate and 5,831 visitors. Visits to the  hit 100% occupancy during the first two weeks of activity, and forecasts are for 84% up to 3 September, the last day of this highly popular activity.

Alongside these indoor visits, the tourist offer also includes outdoor activities. This year, the tourism ministry is promoting active tourism with new maps for walkers and cyclists. Cyclists can also take part in the , which runs until 27 August. By then, there is no question that sunglasses will have made a long-awaited comeback…

This article in Paperjam. It has been translated and edited for Delano.