9 Best Sights in Echternach and Little Switzerland, Luxembourg

Around 15 km (9 miles) west of Echternach, at the top of the Ernz Noire valley, a short detour leads to Beaufort. Near the village stand two splendid castles, side by side: a magnificently imposing medieval shell only partially restored after World War II bombing left it in ruins, and a Renaissance-style chateau dating from the 17th century. 

Echternach was founded in 698 by St. Willibrord, who came from Northumbria. He established a Benedictine abbey, which thrived until it was razed during the French invasion of 1794. It was rebuilt twice thereafter: first in the 19th century, and then again after it was destroyed in World War II. All the while, the relics of the saint remained safe in the crypt. Beneath the carving of the tomb's neoclassical marble canopy, you can still glimpse the simple tooled stone sarcophagus cut in the 7th century. 

Berdorf is a small town just 6 km (4 miles) west of Echternach. It has built up a name for itself as a vibrant center for rock climbing and hiking and is surrounded by interesting trails rising up from the plateau and passing through gorges, grottoes, rocks, and fissures. It's a popular base for hikes, with maps and guides to the area found in the local Tourism Information. If you still crave sights, the 55-meter-high Aquatower (www.aquatower-berdorf.lu) overlooking the town ironically contains a rather dry museum on drinking water, but the view from the top is worth the visit. 

At the top of the Ernz Noire valley, a short detour leads to Beaufort. Just west of the village, a splendid ruin, the Château de Beaufort, only partially restored to its 15th-century form, rises over green grounds full of sheep and forests laced with walking trails. You can step into guard towers with archers' slits, look down wells, visit the kitchen fireplace, cross a drawbridge, and ogle torture equipment, including a rack, in a dungeon. At the ticket counter, you can buy (drink) samples of the local kirsch and cassis. An easy nature walk is across the street.

Less than a mile south of the town center lies an artificial lake. Visitors can't swim in the water, but it is surrounded by trails, making it good for cycling (you can rent a bike next to the youth hostel) or a pleasant stroll. In summer, it often hosts an open-air cinema. The remains of a Roman villa (free) can also be found just north of the water.  

On a hill just behind the basilica, a church stands on the remains of a Roman castellum and shows, in its spare architecture, signs of Merovingian, Romanesque, and Gothic influence. Hour-long private tours (€60) of it can be booked at the tourism office. 

Larochette has the striking step-gabled Larochette Castle, which looks out over the town. The castle is privately owned and occupied, but adjoining ruins from an earlier incarnation (with evocative views over the small houses below) may be visited. An easy footpath, or a nice driving road, leads from town up to the ruins.

In the Middle Ages, Echternach was known throughout the Western world for the exquisite illumination (miniature illustrations) that accompanied the hand-copied texts produced by the Benedictine abbey's scriptorium. The original abbey is long gone, but a quadrant of abbey buildings from the 18th century remains. The books displayed here are painstakingly executed reproductions of the originals, down to their gem-studded covers. 

Echternach's cobbled place du Marché, in the old town center, offers a charming mix of Gothic arcades and restored medieval houses, festooned with wrought-iron signs and sculpted drain spouts. The arched and turreted 13th-century Hôtel de Ville (Town Hall) is its centerpiece.