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Take advantage of our latest saving of up to £30 per person when booking European and UK Winter and Spring holidays on or before 1st June 2018.
Take advantage of our latest saving of up to £30 per person when booking European and UK Winter and Spring holidays on or before 1st June 2018.
On this Christmas Market holiday, we stay in Luxembourg whilst enjoying the best of the festive season with visits to the Christmas Markets of medieval Trier and nearby Metz.
We depart St Pancras International by Eurostar to Brussels. Our journey continues by train to Luxembourg, where we spend four nights at the Novotel Luxembourg Kirchberg, situated in the Kirchberg area.
After a leisurely start we meet up in the Old Town for a guided walking tour of this lovely city, a UNESCO World Heritage site seated on top of a rocky promontory. The rest of the day is free to perhaps wander around the Christmas Market at the Place d'Armes, where the scent of mulled wine and baking fills the air. Here gift ideas and crafts line the stalls, set out under chestnut trees. You could also visit the smaller but charming market in the Place de Paris, where the illuminated chalets sit beneath the tallest Christmas tree in Luxembourg city.
Today's excursion takes us into Germany by rail. We arrive in Trier, which at over 2,000 years old, claims to be the Germany's oldest city in Germany and is home to the UNESCO-listed Porta Nigra, the northern entrance to Trier, built by the Romans around 200 AD. Its name means 'Black Gate', a name it has retained since the Middle Ages, by which point the stone had become discoloured. In the 11th century, much of the gate was turned into a church. There is plenty to explore here, including the birthplace of Karl Marx, possibly Trier's most famous son, and the Roman Baths. At this time of year however, one of Trier's highlights has to be its annual Christmas Market, set against the idyllic backdrop of the city's turreted cathedral, which also boasts the title of Germany's oldest church. Here you can wander round the hundred or more festive traditional wooden chalets, beautifully decorated for the Christmas season.
Today we take the train to France to visit Metz, one of France's greenest cities. The cathedral of Saint Etienne is renowned for its stained glass, which covers a surface of 21,312 sq ft. The diverse architecture, from its ancient Gallo-Roman remains to the futuristic Pompidou-Metz Centre, makes Metz a extremely interesting city. The Christmas Market in the impressive Place Saint Louis is charming and well worth a visit. We enjoy a farewell dinner tonight at the hotel.
We leave Luxembourg by train for Brussels. Here we join the Eurostar to London.
Please note that while every departure of this tour will feature the same excursions, the order may differ from that shown above.
Provisional departure and return times, where available, can be found together with our dates and prices by clicking on the 'Prices & Availability' button. We write to all booked customers approximately 10 weeks prior to the start of their tour to advise the exact departure and return time for their particular group.
An escorted experience and all travel arrangements
Comfortable accommodation in your destination
Delicious meals included
Exciting excursions and free time to explore
Enhancing your tour
My friend and I had a first rate experience on our first trip with Great Rail Journeys.
The efficiency, from the initial query about booking to the return journey, was excellent. The information about the trip was comprehensive and informative and we had no difficulties while there.
The Tour Manager was friendly, efficient and organised at all times. The fellow travellers were friendly and we have made some firm friends.
This is a company that cares about standards and giving value for money and we will certainly recommend it to friends and consider further trips in the future. Thank you sincerely for the whole experience.
A festive tour of Luxembourg's UNESCO sites
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