'Lëtzebuerg, Dat Ass Vakanz' Campaign Kicks Off with Active Tourism Focus

The 2023 edition of the "Lëtzebuerg, dat ass Vakanz!" (Luxembourg, that's a holiday) tourism campaign will kick off on Friday 14 and Saturday 15 April 2023, with various information stands set up in Place d'Armes in Luxembourg-Ville.

On Friday, Luxembourg's Minister for Tourism, Lex Delles, presented the 2023 edition of "Lëtzebuerg, dat ass Vakanz!" as well as the implementation of the tourism strategy "Mënschen, Regiounen an Ekonomie: de wäertorientéierten Tourismus als aktiven Dreiwer fir méi Liewens- an Openthaltsqualitéit", which translates in English to "People, regions and economy: value-oriented tourism as an active driver for a better quality of life and stay". Minister Delles also presented an overview of the 2022 tourist season and looked ahead to expectations and planned activities for the 2023 season.

In 2022, arrivals in tourist accommodation establishments increased by 34% compared to the previous year. Moreover, hotels recorded a total of 1.5 million overnight stays, i.e. an increase of 20% compared to 2021; campsites recorded an increase of 44% and hostels recorded an increase of more than 80% compared to the previous year.

According to Minister Delles, the 2023 tourist season also looks promising, as confirmed by the booking figures for the first months of the year (collected by Luxembourg for Tourism GIE). Overall, interest in Luxembourg as a tourist destination is increasing, including among residents. The search level for hotels in Luxembourg has increased by 24% compared to 2022 and is almost at the same level as 2019.

However, according to surveys conducted by Luxembourg for Tourism GIE, tourists' behaviour has changed. Savings in terms of travel budgets are expected to trickle down to the length of stay. However, a possible reduction in the length of stay may have a positive effect on Luxembourg as a short-term destination that can be experienced in two to three days.

Minister Delles commented: "We expect a record year in 2023 for tourism in Luxembourg."

Looking to the future, Luxembourg's General Directorate for Tourism developed a new tourism strategy as part of a collaborative process in 2022. This strategy aims to actively develop the positive effects of tourism. On Friday, Minister Delles presented tourism initiatives and projects that have been implemented since the presentation of this tourism strategy in May 2022, in collaboration with regional and national partners in four priority areas. The field of action "modern and rich in experiences" includes, for example, the development of tourist branches such as cycling, hiking and remembrance tourism. He also highlighted that many projects in the area of "integrative and user-oriented digitalisation" have been completed already or are still being developed. In this context, he presented the national database feeding tourist communication channels as well as the planned new functionalities of the Visit Luxembourg application.

The 2023 edition of "Lëtzebuerg, dat ass Vakanz!" also follows the guidelines of the tourism strategy and was developed in collaboration with regional partners and players in the Luxembourg tourism sector. This year, the focus is on the theme of "active tourism". In collaboration with the Regional Tourist Offices, a quality tourist product has been developed by region, highlighting their regional specificity.

This year's "Lëtzebuerg, dat ass Vakanz!" begins on 14 and 15 April in Place d'Armes, with information stands manned by regional and national tourism players as well as by local producers. The campaign will take place for the first time throughout the year.

Minister Delles concluded that "together with national and regional tourism stakeholders, we look forward to a successful transposition of our tourism strategy. 'Lëtzebuerg, dat ass Vakanz!' is a tangible example of this implementation."