Chemin de la Corniche

This was my second visit to Luxembourg City so I was determined to visit the Chemin de la Corniche this time. Translating as the path on the cliff, this is a small urban walk that packs some incredible views into it and is known as the most beautiful balcony in Europe. The main path curves above a part of the old town called the Grund which looks like pre-war Europe created by AI. Depending on how many cobbled streets you explore here you could probably knock 5km out of it but I did it in 3.5km and was still impressed.

Luxembourg is a small country – a little bigger than Meath but smaller than Roscommon. It used to be much larger but its location between France, Germany and Belgium means that it has had its shape changed in the 20th century more times than a Hollywood werewolf. Before that it was controlled by the Holy Roman Empire, the House of Burgundy, the Hapsburgs, the odd French or Spanish king, and, eventually, those spiky-helmeted Prussians.

The capital, from a geographical standpoint is not like other European cities because it has two sides 100m apart divided by a 60m steep canyon formed by the Alzette valley. I started my journey on Avenue John F. Kennedy after getting the train from Luxembourg central to Pfaffenthal-Kirch station. This is the ultra modern side of the valley. On this side are glass skyscrapers and modern art museums. I headed across the famous Red Bridge to the old part of the city admiring the beautiful views through the anti-suicide slatted railings. The Red Bridge is famous for being stress tested by driving Patton tanks across it when it was first built.

red bridge luxembourg

Afrer crossing the Red Bridge I turned left and passed by the Pescatore Building, probably the most beautiful old folks home in the world. This is a green area with park benches and lots of people enjoying the sunshine during their lunch. The highpoint of this area is the panoramic elevator overlooking the valley below. It juts out into space and is encased in glass giving 360 degree views as long as you don’t mind walking on an opaque glass floor.

panoramic viewpoint luxembourg

I did not take the lift down to the Grund area below as I was heading for the Chemin. I carried on through the park and then followed the main road to the Place du Theatre where I found Les Saltimbanques. These are a group of lifesize statues representing a troupe of dancing medieval performers. They have a comical energy and give you a taste of the energy of the old city.

les saltimbanques statues luxembourg

I loved the old part of the city even more than the Chemin. It has that quirky layout of narrow streets and old architectural styles that you only get where aristocratic families live with traders inside a military fortress. The streets are cobbled, the buildings are incredibly stylish and it is absolutely spotless. The people all look like they might be the Duke of Luxembourg. He lives here in his 16th century Flemish styled Ducal palace.

I got to see the outlandish Hammelsmarch statue which depicts a tuba player, a drummer and a jolly accordian player leading children and sheep on their annual musical march through the town to the fair. I should have explored more of this area as it was full of nooks and crannies contrasting with wide open squares but I was eager to see the Chemin.

old town luxembourg

I walked around the Ducal palace and out beneath the tower of Eglise St Michel, the oldest church in the city. From here I was walking on the Bock Promontory. This is the sheer rock outcrop that Luxembourg is built on. It started out as a small castle in the 10th century. It could only be accessed on one side and this made it a defensive stronghold. It was this feature that attracted European military powers to it over the centuries. Each wave of invaders built on it – earning it the title of Fortress of Europe. It was inscribed as a World Heritage Site by UNESCO in 1994.

These fortifications were so strategic to military Europe that the Great Powers (England, France, Germany, Russia, Italy, Belgium and Netherlands) agreed to demolish the majority of them after the Austro-Prussian war in 1867. Luxembourg was granted independence and made neutral in an effort to buffer the Great Powers from each other. The fact that Germany later decided to invade Luxembourg was one of the main reasons why the World Wars happened in the 20th century. All that remains here today are the various defensive walls and the Bock Casements, a honeycomb series of 14 miles of tunnels dug into the rock that were built to house cannons. At one stage they were used as Champagne vaults but when conflict returned they were used as air raid shelters in the World Wars.

brock promontory luxembourg

From the top here you can see the Grund below. The Grund is the lowest part of Luxembourg. It is a village within a city. It is the view over its rooftops as you walk from here to the Rose Garden at the Holy Ghost Citadel that marks the Chemin de la Corniche. This section was built by the Spanish in the 17th century and it is lined on one side by rows of beautiful houses while the panorama on the other side extends over the rooftops of the Grund and the meandering Pétrusse river to the Rham Plateau opposite. The spire of Neumunster Abbey stands proud below – built in 1606 by the Benedictines, it eventually became a military hospital and a male prison until the 1980s. Today it is a cultural centre.

neumenster abbey luxembourg

A series of walkways and steps take you down into the Grund if you want to explore more of that area. From the Chemin I can see that it is a beguiling mix of greenery, bridges and viaducts that span any gaps in space. It looks like the stones are growing out of the parks to create a maze of water and sandstone and trees that moves up and down different levels like a 1990s video game.

chemin de la corniche luxembourg

I carry on along the Chemin de la Corniche and follow the stairs up instead. I pass through some narrow streets with small squares and arrive at the Palais de Justice which was quiet and calm with a series of giant multicoloured vases outside facing the Grund. Next door to the Palais is the Holy Ghost Citadel and I crossed a bridge here to head back towards the business side of town and the train station.

palais de justice luxembourg

Travelled in October 2023

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