Land of the Red Rocks

The Land of the Red Rocks, also known as the Esch-sur-Alzette Canton, is a former mining region in southern Luxembourg that is filled to its brim with industrial heritage.
The name Land of the Red Rocks comes from the reddish iron ore that was found and extracted from the ground in high amounts. The growth the region experienced during the 1900s can still be seen in numbers: Six of the ten biggest cities and towns of Luxembourg are located in the Land of the Red Rocks.

By car

The A13 services the entire canton, starting at Pétange, combining with the A4 near Esch-sur-Alzette to continue eastward as the A13 again in the direction of Mondorf-les-Bains. After passing the German border, the Autobahn 8 connects to Saarlouis, Neunkirchen and Homburg.

From Luxembourg City

The Land of Red Rocks can be accessed via three main highways when travelling from Luxembourg City, namely the A3, which links up to the A13 near Dudelange, the A4, which connects to Esch and the E44, which connects to Pétange.

From Belgium

Coming from Belgium, use the E25 (when travelling from Liège or the E411 (when traveling from Namur) to head for Luxembourg, but before the border, at exit 32, turn right onto the N81. When the road turns into the A28, take the first exit (Pétange), and take a left onto the N88. Ater the border crossing, you will find yourself on a roundabout in the west of Pétange. Turning left here will get you onto the E44/A13, which connects to the rest of the canton. Alternatively, the A6 can be used to get to Luxembourg City, followed with the E44, A4 or A3 as described above. This does however result in a longer route.

From France

When travelling from France, first get to Metz or Thionville, from which you take the A31 heading north. Not long after crossing the border you will find yourself at the Croix de Bettembourg, from which you can turn left onto the A13 heading for Esch-sur-Alzette to connect to the entire canton.

By train

Most of the region is covered in railway tracks, most of which service(d) the mines. The bigger cities such as , , and can easily be accessed by rail. Trains from Luxembourg to Nancy (and vice versa) both stop in , from where the entire canton can be reached.

While all of the cities can easily be explored on foot, getting from one city of town to another usually takes a long time and a lot of effort. If you still want to see the best parts of the region while hopping between places, then use a mountainbike. The region is filled with cycling routes and dedicated cycling lanes and roads (pistes cyclable), most of the touristic routes will go off-road.
The best way to get around quickly is by either car or train. You will be able to easily drive from one city over to another via the highway network, which is one of the densest in Luxembourg. Trains service only the most important cities and some of the towns in between them. They connect directly to Luxembourg City and Namur (Belgium). Alternatively, most of the heritage railways listed here connect several towns and cities. Using them as a daily way of travel may get expensive, though visiting just one town for a day using the heritage rail network may very well be a welcome addition to your visit.

• Centre d'Art Nei Liicht / Dominique Lang

  phone: +352 51 61 21 29 2
  address: 25 Rue Dominique Lang, L-3505 Dudelange
  Two joint museums in the town of Dudelange focused on showing and facilitating access to modern art for the people of Dudelange, and provide a platform for up and coming local artists.

• National Resistance Museum

  phone: +352 54 84 72
  address: Place de la Résistance, L-4041 Esch-sur-Alzette
  The National Resistance Museum traces the history of Luxembourg from 1940 to 1945. There is also an exhibition of the Nazi concentration camps and the treatment of Luxembourg Jews.

• Parc Merveilleux

  phone: +352 51 10 48 1
  address: Route de Mondorf, L-3260 Bettembourg
  The Parc Merveilleux is an amusement park just east of Bettembourg in the south of Luxembourg. Designed above all for children, the park has a wide range of attractions including exotic birds, animals in their natural habitats, a pony ranch, a miniature railway, children's self-drive cars, adventure playgrounds, scenes from fairy tales, a restaurant and a cafeteria.

The Land of the Red Rocks is not only covered in rocks, rich in iron, but is also covered in railway tracks built to transport the mined iron to smelting works. Some of these have been converted into heritage railways, namely:

• Train 1900

  phone: +352 26 50 41 24
  address: Fond-de-Gras, L-4676 Niederkorn
  A touristic steam train between Fond-de-Gras and Pétange

• Train 1900

  address: Route de Niederkorn, L-4762 Pétange

• Minièresbunn

  address: Rue Principale, L-4640 Lasauvage
  Narrow gauge track connecting Fond-de-Gras with Lasauvage. The track goes through the abandoned mine galleries.

• Musée National des Mines de Fer Luxembourgeoises

  phone: +352 56 56 88
  address: 26 Rue de la Bruyere, L-3714 Rumelange
  Small museum on local mining activities and a guided tour through the mines. Entry to which is serviced by a narrow-gauge railway. The tour guides speak mostly Luxembourgish and French, translations are available in the form of audio guide, which is available in Dutch, English, French, German.

• Circular hikes and tours

The region also houses a major nature reserve, large zoo and large swimming pool, all of which can be found around Esch.

• Ellergronn nature reserve

  phone: +352 26 54 42 1
  address: Rue Jean-Pierre Bausch, L-4114 Esch-sur-Alzette
  Expositions and guided viewings

• Escher Déirepark-Gaalgebierg

  phone: +352 27 54 37 50
  address: Rue du Stade, Esch-sur-Alzette
  Large terrain with sport-infrastructure, playgrounds, animal park, rosary and waterfall.

• Bains du Parc indoor pool and sauna

  phone: +352 26 53 13 53
  address: 1 Place des Sacrifiés 1940-1945, L-4115 Esch-sur-Alzette

Malls

The region offers just one mall, which are rare in Luxembourg. Aside from Belvalplaza, another mall can be found in Mersch, about 30-40 minutes from Esch-sur-Alzette when travelling by car.

• Cine & Shopping-Center Belvalplaza

  address: Esch-sur-Alzette

Supermarkets

While malls are limited in the area, supermarkets are found in much higher quantities. The major chains have shops throughout the region, though mostly located in and around the major cities.

• Aldi - German discount supermarket

• Aldi

  phone: +352 50 59 69
  address: Avenue du Luxembourg, L-4950 Bascharage

• Aldi

  address: Route du Luxembourg, 3515 Dudelange

• Aldi

  phone: +352 54 36 36
  address: 59 Rue d'Audun, L-4018 Esch-sur-Alzette

• Aldi

  address: Rue du Brill - Zone Commerciale, L-3898 Foetz

Carrefour - French hypermarket

• Carrefour

  phone: +352 26 53 03 23
  address: 5-7 Rue de l'Alzette, L-4011 Esch-sur-Alzette

• Carrefour

  phone: +33 3 82 23 25 79
  address: 26 Rue Aristide Briand, F-54400 Longwy

Cactus - Luxembourgian supermarket

• Cactus

  phone: +352 26 50 50 1
  address: 6 Avenue de Luxembourg, L-4950 Käerjeng

• Cactus

  phone: +352 55 14 14
  address: 136 Rue de Luxembourg, L-4222 Esch-sur-Alzette

• Cactus

  phone: +352 28 28 90 15
  address: Rue Principale, L-3612 Kayl

• Cactus

  phone: +352 28 28 90 18
  address: 1 Rue Pierre Grégoire, L-4702 Pétange

Delhaize - Belgian supermarket

• Delhaize

  phone: +352 58 46 44
  address: 19 Rue du chemin de Fer, L-4556 Differdange

• Delhaize

  phone: +352 27 51 03 71
  address: 12 An Hinnefen, L-3491 Dudelangen

• Delhaize

  phone: +352 26 57 89 13
  address: 14 Avenue du Rock'n'Roll, L-4361 Esch-sur-Alzette

Match - Hungarian supermarket (part of Delhaize)

• Match

  phone: +352 52 07 61
  address: 75 Rue du Commerce, L-3450 Dudelange

• Match

  phone: +352 26 17 98
  address: 29 Rue de Moedling, L-4246 Esch-sur-Alzette

• Match

  phone: +352 51 95 27
  address: Rue de Bettembourg, L-3378 Livange

• Stella Rosa

  phone: +352 59 39 02
  address: 273 Rue Metzerlach, L-4441 Soleuvre

• Moustache

  phone: +352 26 53 02 90
  address: 52 Grand-Rue, L-4132 Esch-sur-Alzette

• Brasserie K116

  phone: +352 26 17 59 74
  address: 116 r. de Luxembourg, L-4221 Esch an der Alzette,

• Restaurant le Pavillon

  phone: +352 54 02 28
  address: Rue du Stade, L-4142 Esch-sur-Alzette

• Restaurant Postkutsch

  phone: +352 54 51 69
  address: 8 Rue Xavier Brasseur, L-4040 Esch-sur-Alzette

• Dimmi Si

  phone: +352 26 54 33 33
  address: 12 Avenue du Rock'n'Roll, L-4361 Esch-sur-Alzette

• Happy House

  phone: +352 26 58 15 86
  address: 68 Rue Emile Mark, L-4620 Differdange

• Villa Hadir

  phone: +352 26 58 02 15
  address: 51 Rue Emile Mark, L-4620 Differdange

• Lagano

  phone: +352 26 58 22 04
  address: 67 Grand-Rue, L-4575 Differdange

• Asia Garden

  phone: +352 50 35 28
  address: 13 Rue Jean-Baptiste Gillardin, L-4735 Pétange

• Restaurant Annapurna

  phone: +352 50 01 79
  address: 13 Rue de la Reconnaissance Nationale, L-4936 Pétange

• Restaurant Kathmandu

  phone: +352 51 64 09
  address: 29 Rue Jean Jaurès, L-3490 Dudelange

• Antica Bari - Ristorante Pizzeria

  phone: +352 26 51 07 32
  address: 28 Rue de la Fontaine, L-3470 Dudelange

• Les 3 amis

  phone: +352 50 71 12
  address: 4734, 33 Avenue de la Gare, L-4734 Pétange

• Café Belami

  phone: +352 26 58 38 01
  address: 135 av. d'Oberkorn, L-4640 Differdange

• Coyote Café

  phone: +352 42 85 86
  address: 10-12 Avenue du Swing, L-4367 Belvaux

• Bar/Lounge/Café La Strada

  phone: +352 26 55 06 17
  address: 2 Rue de Belvaux, L-4025 Esch-sur-Alzette

• Amadeus Bar

  phone: +352 53 23 70
  address: 23 Rue de l'Église, L-4106 Esch-sur-Alzette

• Café Casablanca

  phone: +352 26 53 18 34
  address: 110 Rue de l'Alzette, L-4010 Esch-sur-Alzette

• Café du Parc

  phone: +352 50 41 72
  address: 1 Rue du Parc, L-4771 Pétange

Budget

Budget hotels in the region are mostly located where travellers wouldn't normally go. Some of them will be distanced from the highways, located some ways out from the cities. Changing your travel routes to end up in cheaper hotels that are just as decent as mid-range hotels might end up being rewarding.

• Hôtel-Restaurant de la Frontière

  phone: +352 23 61 51
  address: 52 Robert Schuman Strooss, L-5751 Frisange

• Logis Hotel Cottage Dudelange

  phone: +352 52 05 91
  address: Rue Auguste Liesch., Dudelange

Mid-range

• Threeland Hotel

  phone: +352 26 50 80 0
  address: 50 Rue Pierre Hamer, Pétange
  4-star hotel

• Hotel-Restaurant Gulliver

  phone: +352 50 44 55 1
  address: 58 Rue Nicolas Meyers, L- 4918 Käerjeng
  3-star hotel

• Hotel Ibis Luxembourg Sud

  phone: +352 26 52 01
  address: Rue de Turi, L-3378 Livange

Splurge

• Hotel de la Poste

  phone: +352 54 00 18
  address: 107 Rue de l'Alzette, L-4011 Esch-sur-Alzette

• Logis Hotel Acacia

  phone: +352 54 10 61
  address: 10 Rue de la Libération, L-4210 Esch-sur-Alzette
  3-star hotel

• Hotel Ibis Esch Belval

  phone: +352 26 17 31
  address: Avenue du Rock n Roll, 12, L-4361 Esch-sur-Alzette
  3-star hotel

• The Seven Hotel

  phone: +352 54 02 28
  address: 50 Galgebierg (rue du stade), L-4142 Esch-sur-Alzette
  4-star hotel

Tourist Offices

Whenever you need information on the region, visit tourist offices. They will be the best places to get your information from people that know what they are talking about.

• Esch-sur-Alzette Tourist Information

  phone: +352 54 16 37
  address: Place du l'Hôtel de Ville, L-4138 Esch-sur-Alzette

• Differdange Tourist Office

  phone: +352 58 77 1-1900
  address: 38 Avenue Charlotte, L-4530 Differdange

• Pétange Tourist Information

  address: Place J-F Kennedy, L-4760 Pétange

• Dudelange Tourist Office

  phone: +352 51 61 21-1
  address: Plade de l'Hôtel de Ville, L-3401 Dudelange

Post offices

All post offices in the region can be found online. Post Luxembourg offers, aside from typical mail-related items, a wide range of telecom solutions. May you be in need of for instance a Luxembourgian SIM-card for cheaper data and phone calls in the country, your solution is as easy as browsing their site or visiting one of their many offices, located in most every town.

• Bureau des Postes Bettembourg

  phone: +352 51 12 31 21
  address: 8 Rue de l'Indépendance, L-3238 Bettembourg

• Bureau des Postes Rumelange

  phone: +352 56 50 31 21
  address: 1 Place Grande-Duchesse Charlotte, L-3710 Rumelange

• Bureau des Postes Esch-Lallange

  phone: +352 800 28 004
  address: 5 Boulevard Pierre Dupong, 4086 Esch-sur-Alzette

• Bureau de Poste Esch-sur-Alzette

  phone: +352 800 28 004
  address: Rue Zénon Bernard/Rue Xacier Brasseur, L-4030 Esch-sur-Alzette

• Bureau des Postes Pétange

  phone: +352 800 28 004
  address: 13 Avenue de la Gare, L-4734 Pétange

Emergencies

Luxembourgian Police (Police Grand-Ducale) can be reached on phone number . Their offices are found in the bigger cities. In case of medical help, phone . Hospitals are found in Esch-sur-Alzette and Niederkorn. Almost all major cities and town have a drug store (Pharmacie) for the non-severe cases.

• Police Bettembourg

  phone: +352 24 46 12 00
  address: 33 Rue de l'Indépendance, L-3238 Bettembourg

• Police Esch Sud

  phone: +352 24 45 82 00
  address: 104 Boulevard J.-F. Kennedy, L-4171 Esch-sur-Alzette

• Police Esch Nord

  phone: +352 24 45 42 00
  address: 46 Rue du N, L-4260 Esch-sur-Alzette

• Police Dudelange

  phone: +352 24 46 22 00
  address: 30 Rue Jean Wolter, L-3544 Dudelange

• Police Pétange

  phone: +352 24 45 62 00
  address: Place du Marché, L-4756 Pétange

• Police Mondercange

  phone: +352 24 45 52 00
  address: 10 Rue de Reckange, L-3943 Mondercange

• Luxembourg City, the only UNESCO World Heritage listing in the country is Luxembourg's old quarters and fortifications. The city can easily be reached via the highway or rail network.
• Echternach, the oldest town of the country, being founded in the 7th century. The city is filled with historical heritage and is surrounded by the beautiful landscapes of the Mullerthal.
• Namur (Belgium), the capital of the Wallonia region, located along the river Meuse, which can be reached effortlessly by train.
• Metz, Nancy and Strasbourg are all French cities worth visiting and they too are reached easily by train via the capital.
• Vianden, a delightful historical town and one of Luxembourg's biggest tourist attractions, featuring a wonderfully restored medieval castle.