Things to see and do Esch-Sur-Alzette

The reception centre is located on the edge of the Ellergronn nature reserve. Generous nature and rare habitats have taken precedence over this former industrial zone. Located in the buildings of the old Cockerill mine, the visitor centre is the starting point for several discovery trails. Throughout the year, the centre offers activities to discover the natural wealth of the region. A café-restaurant, An der Schmëdd, is located on the ground floor of the building.

In 1235, Alexandre de Soleuvre founded the Abbey Fontaine Marie of the order of Cîteaux. The various wars that have punctuated the history of Differdange have not spared the Abbey, which has been plundered many times. At the beginning of the 18th century, the site underwent restoration work, of which the façade of the main building and the surrounding wall remain today. Sold many times, the building was bought in 1929 by the commune to become a hospital and then a health centre.

It is at the Titelberg (or Tëtelbierg), an area of 50 ha above and south of the current Pétange and Rodange, and of Minett Park (Fond-de-Gras), which was established in the first century BC. It created a fortified city that would become the region's largest shopping centre, as evidenced by thousands of Celtic coins found in the vicinity. Excavations in some parts of the site clearly show the remains of the Celtic city and the vicus (city) gallo-Roman that succeeded it.

The "Minièresbunn" is a mining train that takes you into the fascinating world of mining in the Grand Duchy of Luxembourg. The journey takes you to the heart of Minett Park, to a time when Luxembourg's iron mines were still the driving force behind the country's industrialization. The site's history dates back to the ^19th century, when Luxembourg's mining industry was at its peak. At that time, numerous iron mines were operating in the Terres rouges region. The "Minièresbunn" train was an essential link in the railway infrastructure, transporting iron ore from the mines to the region's steelworks and blast furnaces.

Today, this mining train has been carefully restored and preserved to offer visitors an authentic immersion in the country's industrial past. Climb aboard and step back in time to relive Luxembourg's mining epic... The narrow-gauge railroad (70 cm gauge) runs from Minett Park (Fond-de-Gras) to Lasauvage, passing through the Doihl mine workings and descending underground through the old rolling gallery. At Lasauvage, the train continues on to Saulnes (France), a former mining and steelworks site. It's an impressive 4 km journey that appeals to young and old alike! Departure from Fond-de-Gras is from the platform next to the café-restaurant Bei der Giedel (with a lovely terrace to stop on the way back).

Located on the main street in the town's pedestrian center, Esch-sur-Alzette's tourist information center provides free maps and brochures, and guides you through the many activities and points of interest the region has to offer. In addition to the usual information and leaflets, there's a ticket office linked to the "Ticketregional" system, where you can buy tickets for all the Grand Duchy's musical and cultural events.

The fortified castle is located on Mont Saint-Jean at an altitude of 410 metres. Excavations, begun in the 1970s, have uncovered Gallo-Roman and medieval remains. Even if the ruins of the castle have long served as a quarry for the surrounding villages, a square keep, six towers, a palis, three wells, a cistern and other buildings remain. The objects discovered during the excavations are exhibited in the Municipal Museum of the town of Dudelange.

The Dudelange Municipal Museum houses a vast collection of precious historical objects: relief frescoes, coins, pottery and everyday objects. Most of them were found during archaeological excavations carried out on the Mont Saint-Jean, near the restored remains of the old castle. The museum also displays military fibulas and firearms, as well as historical and iconographic documents retracing the local history of the city's ironworks and the Luxembourg iron and steel industry.

The Eugène Pesch museum is located in the Depienne house on the former mine tile of the village Lasauvage. It presents the geological history of the region, in collaboration with the National Museum of Natural History. With the help of the many minerals and fossils on display, the visitor will get an insight into the formation of rocks, the genesis of crystals and fossilization. In a second room, the mining tools collected by Eugène Pesch (1908-1991) allow visitors to discover life and work underground, through the reconstruction of a mining gallery.

A real curiosity that this rural museum of Peppange, which has existed since 1999, located about ten kilometres from the capital and in the heart of the Terres Rouges! It exhibits through workshops, handicrafts, school life, medicine or even agricultural work and metal processing of yesteryear. All the agricultural machinery present has been restored and can be put into operation. The exhibition is an imitation of a medieval forge and a village forge in very good working order. Restoration possible at the brewery.

Erected in the middle of the 18th century and restored several times, Bettembourg Castle was listed in 1985. Since 1991, the residence has housed the offices of the town hall and is therefore not open to visitors. This beautiful yellow complex also houses a cultural hall and the Maggy Stein art gallery, which takes its name from a Luxembourg artist. It is also surrounded by a very pleasant park, in which it is nice to walk. The latter hosts various events, such as the Night of Wonders, a major event in the region.

This neo-gothic style church was erected by the architect Charles Arendt at the end of 1873 to 1877, according to plans approved by the father of the neo-gothic Viollet-le-Duc. It strikes from the entrance by its massive façade with its two bell towers and its rosettes with 12 petals. The interior architecture is very well cared for with magnificent life-size statues of saints, perfectly preserved stained glass windows, murals enhanced with gold and a most imposing organ. It is the largest and oldest church in Esch-sur-Alzette.

The cultural service of Differdange develops cultural, tourist and social concepts and projects and ensures their follow-up. It also manages the programming of the shows of the cultural center Aalt Stadhaus. It also takes care of the organization and coordination of cultural events such as exhibitions, concerts, public celebrations, markets, processions, festivals, kermesses... An indispensable service for the life of Differdange!

The Le'h Adventures park is different from the municipal Le'h park where you will find nets, monkey bridges, zip lines, monkeytrees... This is a real adventure park for tightrope walkers of all ages: children are welcome from 18 months old. The Bambini course is in fact one metre above the ground so that parents can help their little ones. The park also offers around sixty workshops. There is also a restaurant on the square and a pavilion for open-air shows.

The parish church of Saint-Martin, built between 1894 and 1897 by the architect Henri-Alphonse Kemp, is one of the most imposing and majestic in the Grand Duchy. It was Dominique Lang, a famous painter from Dudelange, who carried out his Stations of the Cross in 1900. It is also distinguished by its magnificent polychrome murals of Paleochristian and Byzantine inspiration and its neo-Gothic furniture. The organ, the work of Georg Stahlhuth, dates from 1912 and was renovated in 2002. The church regularly hosts concert organists in spring and autumn.

The Schifflange Astronomy Trail starts at the Jean Jacoby Stadium, behind the cemetery, and offers walkers a beautiful 3.9 km walk in the middle of nature, to meet our solar system. Situated on the site of the former open-cast mine, the path is perfectly marked and laid out. The 13 panels along the route, also written in Braille, provide information about the celestial bodies and the mythology behind their names.

This is a very short trail on stilts with observation hut, platforms and explanatory panels to discover the fauna and flora of the marshy areas of the former industrial town of Schifflange. The trail has been designed in the nature reserve Am Brill and reveals a very dense vegetation as well as numerous species of birds. It's hard to imagine such an ecosystem on the edge of the town... The trail starts and ends at the Bestgen mill.

Site of 255 ha protected since 1991, the Giele Botter nature reserve is home to many animal and plant species. It is part of the European Natura 2000 network, which aims to protect the fauna and flora. Two main trails run through it: the Prënzebierg Giele Botter discovery trail (7 km), between Pétange and Fond-de-Gras and the Giele Botter geological trail (4 km), a closed circuit with nine different stations, starting from Niederkorn.

Open since 2017, the Luxembourg Science Center is a fascinating place that encourages the discovery of science and technology in a fun and entertaining way. Nestled in Differdange, it offers an exceptional interactive experience for visitors of all ages. From the outside, the building may not look like much, but inside, there's a whole world of fun scientific experiments to try out and immerse yourself in the wonderful world of science (physics, electricity, magnetism, mathematics...). Nearly 100 interactive stations await the curious, enabling them to lift a car with just one hand, play table soccer with robots, watch astonishing demonstrations or even take part in scientific cooking workshops (access to workshops is only for 6 year olds and 8 year olds for the Show Cuisine).

Another of its projects is "Découverte des métiers", launched in 2019, which enables young people to discover, through hands-on experience, professions and skills linked to science, technology and the industry of the future. The aim is to bridge the gap between education and the professional world, preparing young people for careers in technology. In the same spirit, the Luxembourg Science Center makes resources available to teachers and educators via the ESERO project, co-developed with the European Space Agency (ESA). A family outing as fun as it is interesting, not to be missed.

The nine-room museum immerses visitors in ^19th-century domestic life, regional industrial history and the Second World War. Original objects are on display, as well as a miniature working blast furnace, and various documents on, among other things, the discovery of a mineral water spring in 1885. An exhibition dedicated to the Second World War highlights the Resistance, the Occupation and the poignant destinies of the local people.