New performance indicators for Luxembourg tourism

20.07.2023Market Research

New performance indicators for Luxembourg tourism

How do you determine the success of a destination? One measure is qualitative performance indicators, which Luxembourg for Tourism (LFT) has developed to enable tourism stakeholders to react nimbly to the challenges facing the sector.

“LFT is taking a modern approach, supplementing its market surveys with new sources of data (e.g. mobile phone data, online reputation analysis),” explains Alain Krier, Head of Insights & Strategy of Luxembourg for Tourism.

“The aim is to go beyond just tourist arrivals and overnight stays, and track the entire journey of our visitors, in order to obtain as complete a picture as possible of their travel needs and behaviour. Furthermore, tourism is a cross-disciplinary activity, which means that we need to adopt a global perspective when it comes to understanding markets.”

The performance of Luxembourg as a travel destination can be described by the following six key factors:

1. Visitor evaluation and expectations

Visitors' expectations are exceeded in Luxembourg. Our visitors are characterised by the fact that they attach more importance to quality than to price. Despite this high standard, our destination has won over our visitors, 2/3 are "completely" satisfied with their stay and 42% have seen their expectations exceeded in a positive way. This proportion is even higher among first-time visitors, half of whom are keen to return for another visit in the future.

2. Travel experience in Luxembourg

A connection with nature and moments of happiness are central to travel experiences in Luxembourg. This high level of satisfaction is based on a range of experiences to be had in Luxembourg that resonate with visitors' motivations: enjoying themselves, , immersing themselves in the destination by travelling in a more attentive way. The emotions, encounters and close contact with nature add value to our visitors' stays.

3. Sustainable growth with high added value

In order to ensure the quality of the experience over the long term, it is vital to focus on sustainable growth with high added value. By way of illustration, visitors’ spending has risen steadily over the last decade (2017: €114 per person/d; 2022: €144). Between 2021 and 2022, spending has risen by 17%, which is faster than inflation, confirming that our visitors are prepared to spend more for high quality. In terms of sustainability, visitors rate our offer above the European average on evaluation platforms.

4. Overtourism

Overtourism is not (yet) a problem in Luxembourg. Sustainability and immersive experiences are at odds with mass tourism. Only 2% of visitors felt that Luxembourg was over-visited. Tourism intensity in Luxembourg is below the European average. It is highest in Vianden, but remains much lower than in places visited abroad. Digital tools (such as the VisitLuxembourg App) and the storytelling approach (Luci magazine, etc., presenting authentic experiences off the beaten track) are helping to spread tourist flows over space and time and in this way also serve to avoid the phenomenon of overtourism in the future.

5. Local support for tourism

72% of residents say they support tourism in Luxembourg, a necessary condition for a warm welcome and satisfied visitors. 74% of residents consider that the impact of tourism on quality of life is positive, confirming that tourism offers real added value for residents, and also helps to improve the cultural and leisure offer in Luxembourg.

6. The contribution of tourism to the country's image

Another strength of tourism is its ability to make a positive contribution to Luxembourg's image. Indeed, LFT's studies highlight the gap in perceptions of sympathy, intentions to visit and positive associations between those who have already visited our country and those who have not. For example, 83% of past visitors view Luxembourg favourably (versus 55% on average).

These key messages - and the indicators associated with them - confirm that Luxembourg as a destination is firmly committed to developing tourism that is even more sustainable, high-quality and beneficial for visitors, residents and the local economy. LFT has equipped itself with the necessary tools to constantly monitor progress along this path, and to identify new future opportunities for our destination.