During the last year, many people have spent their holidays at home during the corona pandemic. Visiting historical and cultural sites (castles, palaces, museums, churches, etc.) was particularly popular, while many Luxembourgers also spent their #Vakanzdoheem with hiking and cycling to explore the country.
On June 4th 2020, Tourism Minister Lex Delles presented the plan “Restart Tourism – Stabiliséieren. Adaptéieren. Promouvéieren.” which aims to strengthen the support for that sector. In this context, another campaign called “Lëtzebuerg, dat ass Vakanz” has also been announced. The Goal of this campaign is to make a holiday trip in Luxembourg more attractive to Luxembourgers and others living in nearby Countries.
With success. In the months from July to October 2020, a large number of attractions recorded significantly more visitors from Luxembourg. This resulted in an average of +40% for leisure attractions, +60% for castles, and more than double the number of visits to tourist information offices across the country. A survey also showed that 69% of our hoteliers and 61% of our campsite operators have noticed an increase in customers from Luxembourg for the 2020 season.
The 50-euro accommodation voucher introduced by Lex Delles in 2020 as part of the “Neistart Lëtzebuerg” plan to support the economy and the tourism sector has certainly contributed to this success. This voucher can still be redeemed by cross-border commuters and residents over 16 years of age in an accommodation structure in Luxembourg until the 18th of April. In total, about 730,000 people received a 50-euro accommodation voucher. About 100,000 vouchers have already been redeemed.
In Luxembourg, tourism contributes about 9% to the GDP. More than 30,000 jobs are related to this sector.
“Taking a holiday at home has allowed us all to discover the beauty, the quietness and diversity of our country, its landscape and its nature, of which we can be very proud,” says Minister Lex Delles.
