Spanning just 999 square miles or 2,586 square kilometers in what amounts to approximately the same size as Rhode Island, the European nation of Luxembourg has a history that dates back to 963 when a local count acquired the mountainous high point around which the capital city’s castle would later be built.
In the modern age, Luxembourg transitioned to a steel economy and in post-year war quickly grew into one of the richest countries in the world. With a total population of just under 700,000 residents, Luxembourg consistently lands in top spots on global rankings of life expectancy, human development and safety.
According to the last ranking by the World Population Review, Luxembourg is behind only countries like Iceland, Switzerland and Canada as the 14th safest in the world for both residents and visitors (the United States is in 47th place in 2026).
State Department raises travel advisory for northern Luxembourg
While keeping the country at the lowest safety rating, the U.S. State Department recently updated its Luxembourg travel advisory for a separate section on its northern part.
The four-tier rating system established in the 1970s begins at level one’s “exercise normal precautions” and goes up to level four’s “do not travel” that is given out to a select list of authoritarian governments and countries actively at war.
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The travel advisory updated on April 8 adds a new section for the north of the country around the presence of unexploded ordnance [mounted guns and other artillery] from when Luxembourg was invaded by German forces during World War II.
As a result, the northern part of Luxembourg has been raised to level two’s “exercise increased caution” due to the rare chance that travelers wandering through its valleys and forest hills accidentally come across an unexploded weapon. The northernmost part of the country or the border town Wilwerdange is, meanwhile, just 35 miles or 50 kilometers away from the capital Luxembourg City which is ranked at the lowest possible level.
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“Searching for old war items with metal detectors is dangerous and prohibited”
While the country’s small size and lack of touristic popularity on the global scale means that it is often visited primarily by locals from neighboring France and Germany and hardened travelers from farther away, it is a two-hour train ride from Paris — some also come specifically to learn about war history or independently seek out unexploded weaponry (an illegal practice that the State Department advisory wanted to get ahead of).
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“These are especially present in areas where the Battle of the Bulge took place in 1944-45,” the travel advisory reads. “These unmarked areas are usually found on farms or rural construction zones. The Luxembourg Explosive Ordnance Teams are working to find, remove, and safely detonate these devices, especially during planting and harvest seasons. Searching for old war items with metal detectors is dangerous and prohibited.”
The rest of the advisory says that Luxembourg is “generally a safe destination for travelers” where the biggest crimes against visitors would be petty crimes such as pickpocketing and purse-snatching.
Related: U.S. government issues strange warning on Ireland travel
