Announcing the 2018-2022 strategy at a press conference on Wednesday 10 January, economy ministry secretary of state Francine Closener said the new budget represented a 30% increase on the previous one.

Luxembourg’s tourism sector is in a positive place: it accounts for 6.5% of the country’s GDP and employs around 20,000 people, directly and indirectly. What is more, in 2016 the sector recorded almost 3 million overnight stays, with visitor numbers rising in the Moselle and Mullerthal regions.

On Wendesday Closener credited some of this success to the fact that the tourism office had been integrated into the economy ministry in 2013. She outlined a strategy which promotes Luxembourg as a “quality and diversified tourist destination”.

The strategic framework focuses on sustainable development to “develop a quality and diversified tourism that preserves the natural and architectural heritage and values regional development, while adapting to the expectations and behaviour of tourists which are constantly changing.”

Eight pillars for all actors in the sector have meanwhile been agreed. These include: working together, placing the visitor at the heart of the process, focusing on human capital, building on the country’s assets, setting up and promoting infrastructure, placing tourism in a qualitative and sustainable perspective, strengthening the economic weight of the sector and providing a legal framework conducive to the development of the sector.