Esch-sur-Alzette is the second largest city in the country after the capital Luxembourg. It is located in the south of Luxembourg, right next to the French border. Today, it shows a real dynamism and many attractions.
Population in Esch-sur-Alzette
Number of inhabitants as of January 1, 2022
Number of different nationalities
- of foreign population 52%
Habiter Esch-sur-Alzette, une ville aux multiples attraits
La ville d’Esch-sur-Alzette dispose de toutes les structures scolaires et extra-scolaires pour faciliter la vie de ses habitants. Même si elle longtemps souffert d’une mauvaise réputation, la ville de Esch-sur-Alzette retouve aujourd’hui un regain d’attention.
La Rue de l’Alzette et la grande zone piétonnière font le bonheur des amateurs de shopping avec ses nombreux magasins, ses restaurants et bars et son marché.
Esch propose également une vie culturelle importante avec le théâtre de la ville, le grand cinéma Kinepolis à Belval, la bibliothèque, le conservatoire de musique, sans parler de la Rockhal, magnifique salle de concert au luxembourg. La ville a d’ailleurs été désignée “capitale européenne de la culture” pour 2022.
Par ailleurs, l’offre scolaire est complète avec plusieurs écoles fondamentales publiques, des maisons relais. Les plus grands y trouvent également des lycées d’enseignement secondaire luxembourgeois ou international.
Pour les plus sportifs, la ville proposent de nombreuses structures sportives comme le skate park, son club de foot Jeunesse d’Esch, plusieurs fois champion du Luxembourg, le Centre omnisports aux multiples infrastructures, la piscine des Bains Municipaux, un stand de tir…
La ville dispose également d’un véritable poumon vert qui permet à ses habitants de se ressourcer avec la colline du Gaalgebierg, sa patinoire naturelle en hiver et sa vaste forêt.
En ce qui concerne les transports, la ville est très bien desservie par l’autoroute ou par les transports en commun, bus ou train. Un projet de tramway ultra-rapide reliera Luxembourg et Esch-sur-Alzette en 26 minutes en 2028. Il sera doublé par une autoroute à vélo, pour développer la mobilité douce.
Outre des prix plus bas par rapport à la capitale et ses environs, les habitants de Esch-sur-Alzette apprécient les commodités de Esch, les multiples activités et l’ambiance si particulière de cette ville du sud.
ESCH 2022, capitale européenne de la culture
Avec 10 communes du sud du Luxembourg et 8 communes françaises voisines, Esch-sur-Alzette devient Capitale européenne de la culture 2022.
Décerné chaque année à deux villes de l’Union européenne, le label “Capitale européenne de la Culture” met en lumière la diversité de culture au sein du continent européen. La communuaté urbaine autour de Esch-sur-Alzette a été sélectionnée en même temps que la ville de Kaunas en Lituanie.
Pour rayonner en tant que Capitale Européenne de la culture, Esch 2022 présente un programme “Remix culture”. L’objectif est de créér des synergies autour d’un même projet commun de développement durable et d’engagement fort du public.
Tous les résidents des territoires autour de Esch, en France ou au Luxembourg, sont invités à participer en publiant leurs plus belles photos en utilisant les hashtags de leur municipalité : #bettembourg2022, #ccphva2022, #differdange2022, #dudelange2022, #eschsuralzette2022, #mondercange2022, #kaerjeng2022, #kayltetange2022, #petange2022, #rumelange2022, #sanem2022, #schifflange2022, … L’occasion de découvrir la région avec un oeil nouveau.
De multiples événèments sont organisés autour de différents thèmes : musique, arts de la rue, danse, design, architecture, nature… Ces événements sont conçus pour tous les publics et tous les âges.
Real estate prices in Esch-sur-Alzette
As far as real estate prices are concerned, Esch-sur-Alzette remains a very affordable commune. See below (source Immotop).
Price per m2 for sale
- Increase of 7.12% over 1 year (March 2022/April 2021)
- Comparative southern region: 7,405 euros/m2
Price per m2 for rent
- 1.62% decrease over 1 year (March 2022/April 2021)
- Southern Region Comprative: 20.12 euors/m2
Consult other municipalities
| Luxembourg | Esch-sur-Alzette |
| Bertrange | Hesperange |
| Niederanven | Sandweiler |
| Strassen | Walferdange |
Esch-sur-Alzette, une histoire forte magnifiquement mise en valeur
La ville d’Esch-sur-Alzette est située au sud du Grand-Duché de Luxembourg, au centre des Terres Rouges dont elle est la capitale. Métropole du Fer, elle est le symbole du passé sidérurgique du Luxembourg. De cette histoire industrielle, elle en a gardé les hauts-fourneaux et une population fortement étrangère (plus de 30% de ses habitants).
Suite à la crise sidérurgique ayant touché également la région Lorraine en France, le dernier haut-fourneau de Esch-Belval a fermé ses portes en 1997. Le aminoir de Schifflange a été fermé en 2012.
Esch-sur-Alzette a su reconvertir magistralement certains de ces sites historiques. Le quartier de Esch-Belval intègre aujourd’hui magnifiquement les anciens hauts fourneaux au cœur d’un quartier très moderne, vivant et très fréquenté. On y trouve de nombreuses entreprises, un grand centre commercial Belval-Plaza, la Rockhal haut lieu de concerts et shows musicaux, et le principal campus de l’Université de Luxembourg.
Discover Luxembourg’s steelmaking past
Luxembourg has a rich industrial past. Its iron mines, now closed, were exploited for nearly 100 years in the south of the country. Iron ore has contributed to the prosperity of the Grand Duchy, thanks to the mining industry in the Terres Rouges region.
Do you want to know more about the industrial history of Luxembourg? Plan a fun and cultural outing for the whole family in the Redlands.
Minett Park, a steam train tour dedicated to iron ore mining
Fond-de-Gras, near Differdange, is a site marked by numerous iron mines exploited from 1870. The iron ore extracted from the mines was then transported to the ironworks in Luxembourg or abroad. It was here that the last iron mine in Luxembourg closed its doors in 1964.
Today, You can relive some of this history by visiting Minett Park. While having fun, we understand better the daily life of the miners who went down every day in the underground galleries. By harvesting iron ore (Minett in Luxembourgish), They could thus feed their families, sometimes at the risk of their lives.
Today 2 mining trains still run in Minett Park Fond-de-Gras, thanks to the action of volunteers. A real museum, theMinett Park presents the history of iron mining in Luxembourg from the end of the 19th century.
The A steam train from the 1900’s will take you on the old railroad line of the Minières which transported the iron ore. between Pétange and Fond-de-Gras (round trip).
The collection of the association “Train 1900” includes a dozen steam and diesel trains, carefully restored.
To continue the journey back in time and better discover the reality of the mines, you will take the “Minièresbunn” mining train on the narrow railway line between the old mine of Fond-de-Gras and the workers’ village of Lasauvage . The latter is also an exhibition and tourist attraction. Don’t forget to bring a sweater!
You can also visit the buildings that bear witness to the former industrial activity: the miners’ lodgings, the picturesque Victor Binck grocery store, which was open until 1980, the power plant in the Paul Wurth hall, the rolling mill train, the historic café-restaurant “Bei der Giedel”, the “hanging room”, ….
These historic sites and trains are accessible to tourists every Sunday and holiday from May 1 to September 30.
Many events are organized in the framework of Minett Park Fond-de-Gras, do not hesitate to consult their website to discover this place before the end of the season!
You can also simply visit the site of the nature park and walk along the various marked paths on the former open-cast mining site “Giele Botter”.
Joanna Gizewska, Ambassador of Poland for the JUST ARRIVED Ambassadors’ Club , said: “Every year, the official opening of the season reminds me of a similar tradition in my country, Poland. On Labor Day, celebrated on May 1, the industrial regions of Poland proudly present their steam trains, offering the first trips after a long winter. It’s a very nostalgic memory!”
National Museum of Iron Mines in Rumelange
At the National Museum of Luxembourg Iron Mines in Rumelange you will discover the mining past of Luxembourg, from the end of the 19th century until the 1990s.
Discover the very difficult working conditions of the miners and the technical evolution of the extraction of the ore, in underground mines and then in open air. Once extracted, the ore was then transported to the blast furnaces to be transformed into cast iron or steel.
Don’t miss a visit to a historic iron mine, the Langengrund Gallery. You can get there by small train. You will walk through the underground galleries and the iron extraction sites. The visit lasts 1h30. You are required to wear a helmet on your head. Temperatures are between 10 and 12° C, so don’t forget your wool! Former miners accompany the guided tour. The exhibition rooms present different objects from the past, including tools, machines,… There are also fossils.
Ask about the opening hours, the museum has different schedules depending on the season.
It is also possible to celebrate birthdays in the museum. Interactive tours are organized for children from 6 to 14 years old. Children learn the hard work of miners by pushing wagons, digging or breaking blocks of ore!
Belval and its blast furnaces
If you want to go further in the discovery of Luxembourg’s industrial past, don’t forget to visit Belval, near Esch-sur-Alzette.
The Belval site wonderfully highlights the old industrial site and its blast furnaces. In operation until 1997 for blast furnace B, blast furnaces A and B remain the testimony of the exploitation of iron ore by the steel group Arbed from 1911. The transformation of the ore into cast iron and then into steel was ensured through successive mergers, with the Arcelia and Usinor groups in 2002, then in 2006 with Mittal Steel to give Arcelor Mittal
Today, a part of the site has been reconverted to keep this testimony of the past thanks to a magnificent renovation and a successful integration in a new urban landscape. The Belval site is now home to new companies, including the University and the Cité des Sciences, de la Recherche et de l’Innovation. The former industrial site has become a modern and active city.
The Cité des Sciences and the blast furnaces can be visited, in particular the platform of the gueulard which overhangs all the zone of Belval and its new districts.
The festival of the Blast Furnaces takes place every year in July. It gives rise to multiple animations.
Arcelor Mittal is still active in another part of the Belval area and is one of the largest employers in Luxembourg.
Do you want to discover other typical places in Luxembourg? Click here for more information.
What activities and outings to do with the family in Luxembourg?
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