Safety in Luxembourg

Overall: The Grand Duchy sits consistently on the lists of the safest places on earth. You can walk the streets at night without any real worry for yourself or your belongings.

Theft: The one minor risk is pickpocketing, which occasionally happens around the railway station. Keep an eye on your bag in a crowd and do not leave valuables on café tables.

Police: Officers are polite and genuinely ready to help a visitor. Streets are patrolled regularly, which is part of why the general level of calm is so high.

Roads: Local drivers are extremely disciplined and always stop for pedestrians at crossings. Fines for any traffic offence are enormous, so visitors should be equally scrupulous.

Healthcare: Medical standards are excellent but everything costs a great deal. That is exactly why a solid travel insurance policy is a genuine necessity here.

Getting help: In any unpleasant situation, dial 112. The operators usually speak several languages and coordinate the relevant services very quickly.

Luxembourg is a tiny and very prosperous country where there is hardly anyone to cheat a tourist.

Pickpockets. Only around the station and the Gare quarter, and on a modest scale.

ATMs. Decline the machine's currency conversion.

Fuel. The one local quirk that works in your favour: petrol in Luxembourg is cheaper than in neighbouring Belgium, Germany and France, and the border stations are always busy. This is not a scheme but a reason to fill up here.

Restaurants. Prices are objectively high — the country is wealthy. There is no deception.

Transport. Since 2020 all public transport in Luxembourg has been free for everyone, tourists included. No tickets are needed at all — the only country in the world like this, and visitors often do not know.

Drink-driving. The limit is 0.5 per mille, and 0.2 for new drivers.

Drugs. Cannabis for personal use at home has been decriminalised since 2023, but buying and using in public remain offences.

Driving. The roads are excellent, but the country is small and speed cameras are dense. Fines are substantial.

Drones. Registration is compulsory and flights over the city and airport are prohibited.

Languages. Three official ones: Luxembourgish, French and German. Administration and police use French; daily life uses all three. English is widely spoken given the large foreign population.

Documents. Carry a passport copy.

Quiet hours. As in Germany: no noise at night or on Sunday.

Vaccinations. None.

Water. Tap water is excellent.

Healthcare. Among Europe's best and most expensive systems. Emergency care on 112 is available to everyone; beyond that foreigners are billed at Luxembourg rates. Insurance is essential.

Ticks. Lyme disease and encephalitis occur in the Mullerthal and the northern forests. For hiking, the vaccine is worth discussing.

The Mullerthal. "Little Switzerland" is a network of routes among rocks with narrow passages and ladders. The stone is slippery after rain and injuries happen.

Weather. Temperate and wet. No particular risks.

Pharmacies. Duty pharmacies on a rota, with the list on the door.

Emergency number is 112.

Luxembourg ranks very high on the Corruption Perceptions Index. Bribery does not exist.

Numbers. 113 for police, 112 for the European line.

Reporting theft. Reports are taken at any station and certificates for insurers issued. English is spoken.

Street crime. Among the lowest in the world. The one area calling for evening attention is the quarter around the station (Gare), and even there the issue is petty theft rather than assault.

Traffic police. There are many cameras for such a small country and fines arrive automatically.

What actually matters. Luxembourg is a case where there is barely anything to fill a safety section with. The main risks of a trip are the slippery rocks of the Mullerthal and a hospital bill without insurance.