Luxembourg's festival calendar is lively given the country's size. Most of the main events happen between spring and autumn, but the Christmas markets draw visitors well into December.
Emaischen (Easter Monday)
One of the oldest folk traditions in the country. Locals buy peckvillercher — small clay whistling birds — from market stalls in Luxembourg City and Nospelt. Street festivities, folk dancing, and general good cheer. A distinctly Luxembourgish occasion.
Buergbrennen (mid-Lent)
Villages across the country build large bonfires to burn winter away — a pre-Christian custom that survived Christianisation as a mid-Lent ritual. The bonfire is paraded through the village, effigies of winter are sometimes thrown in, and the community gathers around for sausages, pea soup, and beer.
Fête de la Musique (21 June)
One of Luxembourg City's biggest annual events, with free concerts across the city on the summer solstice. Every genre, every size of venue, most of it free.
Festival de Wiltz (July)
Theatre, concerts, and musical events through the whole month of July, staged against the backdrop of Wiltz Castle in the northern Ardennes. An atmospheric setting for anything from opera to contemporary dance.
Schueberfouer (late August – early September)
Luxembourg City's great annual funfair, held on the Champ du Glacis at Limpertsberg. One of the oldest fairs in Europe, dating to 1340. Rides, food stalls, and a cheerful late-summer chaos that the whole country seems to attend.
Grevenmacher Wine and Grape Festival (September)
A long-weekend celebration in the Moselle wine town of Grevenmacher, with the harvest providing the occasion. Wine, music, and local food in an unpretentious setting.
Christmas Markets (December)
Luxembourg City runs three separate Christmas markets — at Place d'Armes, Place de Paris, and Place de la Constitution — with light installations, an ice rink, and craft and food stalls. Less heaving than the markets in Strasbourg or Cologne, but well-organised and genuinely festive.
National Day (23 June)
The Grand Duke's official birthday, celebrated with a torchlight procession on the evening of 22 June and military parade and festivities on the 23rd. A good moment to see Luxembourgers express their national pride.