Luxembourg

The Moselle Valley wine region spans France, Luxembourg, and Germany, with wineries closest to Luxembourg City located within less than a half-hour's drive from there. The scenic river valley offers abundant wine-tasting opportunities for Riesling and Elbling aficionados; tastings can be arranged at most local wineries, but contacting in advance to check for availability is recommended. If in doubt, try Caves du Sud in Remerschen, Caves St Martin or Caves Desom Saint-Remy in Remich, or Domaine Mathes and Domaine Alice Hartmann in Wormeldange. The region is also excellent hiking grounds, with hiking trails and cycling paths, with boat tours running along the Moselle.

Both castles of Beaufort are worth a visit. The first, demolished during the Battle of the Ardennes of WWII, is now in ruins, the second — a Renaissance château— can be visited on a pre-booked guided tour during high season. Tasting of a locally made fruit liquor is included in the price of admission.

The Renaissance Château de Wiltz is no longer its original 13th-century incarnation, but a beautifully reconstructed building that contains a museum dedicated to the Battle of the Ardennes, as well as an unlikely Beer & Tanney Museum (guided tours on request), with a functioning microbrewery and an impressive collection of bottles.

Founded in the 7th century by St Willibrord, the patron saint of Luxembourg, the Abbey of Echternach contains a fascinating scriptorium — once the most important in Medieval Europe — in its cellar, with manuscripts dating as far back as the 11th century. Part of the abbey complex, the Basilica of Saint Willibrord contains a crypt with the saint's holy remains. A dancing procession that draws visitors from all over the world (Saint Willibrord Pageant) is held in the town annually on Whit Tuesday.