Luxembourg has become one of the most unpopular tourist destinations
Jacek Dylag, Unsplash
According to Eurostat, 2024 was a record year for European tourism - the total number of nights spent in hotels and other tourist facilities exceeded 3 billion, which is 2.2% more than in 2023. In Luxembourg, however, the situation was different: here the number of nights spent by tourists totalled 3.4 million, making the country one of the least visited in the EU.
The decline was -2.7 per cent compared to 2023, while most European countries saw growth. France (-0.6%), Belgium (-0.2%) and Sweden (-0.1%) also recorded a drop in tourist traffic, but on a smaller scale.
The growth leaders were Malta (+14.4%) and Latvia (+7.4%), indicating growing interest in these destinations. In the last quarter of 2024, almost all EU countries showed an increase in tourism, with the exception of Ireland (-1.8%).
Although Luxembourg is not a traditional tourist destination, the decline in visitor numbers may signal the need to rethink the strategy for promoting the country as a tourist destination. Unlike major EU tourist centres such as Spain (500 million nights), Italy (458 million) and France (451 million), Luxembourg remains a niche destination with a limited number of tourists.
