In Europe there are various places where countries meet at a so-called tripoint. The well-known tripoint is at Vaals in the Netherlands, but also countries like Switzerland, Austria, Germany, Slovenia and Italy These unique geographical features offer something special. When searching for a great cycling route in Luxembourg, you’ll notice that these three points are surprisingly close together. In fact, if desired, you can cycle from Longwy in France to the famous Schengen in Luxembourg within a distance of 120 kilometers – and back again. This makes Luxembourg an excellent cycling destination where you can effortlessly enjoy routes through France, Luxembourg, Germany and Belgium.
Beautiful route
We have mapped out a beautiful cycling route in Luxembourg for you that, if you follow it, is exactly 200 kilometers long. This route is ideal for both a micro-adventure and a mini-adventure. Are you ready to follow us on this cross-border cycling adventure? With this cycling route in Luxembourg, you not only experience the charming diversity of the region, but also enjoy the boundless freedom that cycling in Luxembourg offers you. Whether you are a beginner cyclist or an experienced adventurer, this route has something for everyone. So, cycling in Luxembourg becomes an unforgettable experience where you can truly experience the rich culture and breathtaking nature of the heart of Europe.
Start in Esch
This piece is about cycling in Luxembourg, but the route ultimately leads back to Luxembourg via Germany, then via Belgium and a little bit of France to Esch, where we started. It’s a tough ride, as we say ourselves. The first part is relaxing though. The route leads us through a rugged landscape towards the water, just below Remich. The climb to Filsdorf, after about 25 kilometers, is the first real challenge. Before that, it’s really just a short walk along the Moezel river towards Schengen. This place is definitely worth a stop, even if only because of its historical significance.
Schengen
The village of Schengen will be familiar to many. The ‘Schengen countries’ are all the countries that agreed to allow free movement of people and goods. As a Dutchman, you benefit from this in many ways. No passport checks, easy to import or export goods. So less hassle. It’s actually quite funny that Schengen is a village of minimal size, but has such a huge impact on our daily lives. The route there along the moezel is a nice flat road, and therefore quite pleasant to start with.
Let’s go to Germany
Germany is our next destination, and specifically the routes around Saarbrucken and Saarburg. The Saarland is well known for its beautiful nature, its steep climbs, and its beautiful ‘river bends’. It also goes up directly from Schengen. A 4.5-kilometer climb towards a plateau. There you have stunning views. It’s also going quite quickly because we’re already about 50 kilometers into the journey. Once on the plateau, you reach an altitude of up to 411 meters, and after a slight turn to the right, you dive back down. Then there’s a tricky stretch with the steepest 26% in the area. That does produce some nice photos though.
Up and back cycling to Luxembourg
In the end, we make a long loop, riding up again after this climb of 26% km to Saarburg. The terrain here is a bit hilly, but without any notable Flemish-style hills. At Saarburg, we reach the 100 km mark, so we’re over half of the distance on this leg. From Saarburg, the climb gets steeper towards the end. The 4.6 km climb really hurts the legs, because you’re up against 10-15% km elevation gain! That’s not a bad thing. You can really feel that you have to climb a hill to get back into another valley. After just over 105 km, we’re back in Luxembourg.
Luxembourg – City
Now another nice stretch is coming up. We drive a bit below Luxembourg city. First, before we start climbing again, we cross the moezel valley. After the moezel valley, we slowly go up again. It’s now up and down but steady up. When we’re back in Luxembourg after 10 kilometers, another tricky climb awaits us. Here again, the percentages are back towards 10-11-15%. They didn’t tell us that in advance!
On to France
Once past Luxembourg city, as mentioned earlier, we take a short detour towards Garnich, where the climb to the top offers a nice view. We are now very close to Belgium and also France. The three-country junction itself, near Longwy, is nicely framed by a monument and some flags. It just feels a bit desolate there, next to a petrol station and the river. That could be better. Via Petange we drive through Belgium (for a very short time) towards Longwy and then via Differdange back into the Grand Duchy. At the border between France and Luxembourg we are again pleasantly surprised by a 1100-meter-long hill. From then on, it's a downhill stretch to Esch. If you really want to do something exciting, by all means drive to the Bamhaischer café. A unique place for a coffee or a good lunch!
Questions & tips
Do you have any questions about this route, or have you been there yourself? Share them here. We read everything and usually respond within a few days.