In the neighbourhood: Junglinster
North of the City, and a popular commuter district with an International School offering the European baccalaureate, Junglinster is an increasingly attractive residential neighbourhood for expats.
More than 55 square kilometres, much of it forested, the commune includes the villages of Altlinster, Beidweiler, Blumenthal, Bourglinster, Eisenborn, Eschweiler, Godbrange, Gonderange, Graulinster, Imbringen, Junglinster and Rodenbourg. It has a total population of 8,460 representing a number of nationalities.
A little background...
A record of Junglinster dates back to 867, but it was put firmly on the map in the 11th century when construction began on Bourglinster castle, which took several centuries to complete. From 1772 to 1774 the priest, Otto Borrigs, built the parish church of Junglinster. A commune was established in 1789, and Jean Guillaume Flammant became the first Mayor of the town. In 1836 Bourglinster castle was auctioned off and remained in private hands until 1968 when it was bought by the state.
Today the commune hosts two of the world's most powerful long wave transmitters (the older one was installed in Junglinster in 1933 and the second one in Beidweiller in 1972), which were used by Radio Luxembourg to gain iconic status with audiences in Britain and Ireland in the 1930s and again in the 1960s and 70s, thus giving Junglinster an important role in the history of pirate radio.
You can take a virtual tour of the town here.
Property prices
According to Wort Immo the current real estate price per square metres in the area is:
- Apartment (new) €9,624
- House (old) €6,646
- House (new) €7,192
Facilities
Shopping & Services
There are two shopping centres Langwies 1 (Rue Hiehl) and Langwies 2 (Rue Nicolas Glesener) which between them have more than 50 shops and services. The former contains a Delhaize supermarket, Intersport and an Opti-Vue.
Langwies 2 includes classy kid’s furnishings store Arbitare Kids and Living, an organic and natural food store, Alavita. You can get advice on interior and exterior design at Firstfloor.
If you need to fix your smartphone screen or get help with other home technology, CRW is also based at the centre (appointment only, as there is no physical shop), as are a number of clothing, lingerie and shoe shops, a florist, perfume emporium and a Party Shop, in addition to tour operators, and a hairdresser, Georgie's cut, where the staff speak English.
Nearby a number of garages sell, service and repair many of the main brands of car, and there is a Globus Baumarkt for all your DIY needs (it also has a Fischer coffee shop). Plans for a new multi-purpose 37,000m2 centre with shops, restaurants, a hotel, creche and gym were announced in 2019.
You can stock up on ecological cleaning products and natural cosmetics at Haka in Rodenbourg.
In Junglinster town, you’ll find an Aladdin's Cave of a shop Rischette, which stocks school supplies, seasonal items like carnival costumes and decorations, fireworks, games, and unusual household items including the Thermomix which they regularly demonstrate. Next door, the Portuguese grocery shop Duarte comes highly commended for its excellent customer service.
If you are in need of a beauty treatment you can try Pure Beaute PIA, or sample some Dead Sea salt therapy at the Salzgrotte.
There's a Paediatric Centre on Rue de Godbrange and a pharmacy at 4 Lernzwee. The Junglinster Library is open on Tuesday from 16.00 to 18.00, and Saturday from 10.00 to 12.00. It stocks books in French, German, Luxembourgish, English and other languages for adults and children. The Bicherbus mobile library also drives around the commune on a regular basis and there is a bicherschaf in front of the cultural centre near the library.
Schools
You'll find crèche Baby Bird and crèche Kwaki on Rue Rham in Junglinster, crèche KidsCare on Rue Maria Montessori, and crèche Babyhome on Rue des Cerises. The Paiperlek creche is at 24 rue du Village and takes children aged 0-3 years.
The Maison Relais in Junglinster puts a lot of effort into the wellbeing of its children and is the first in Luxembourg to write and introduce a kid’s constitution. Meetings of La Leche League take place Wednesday mornings at the Cultural Centre.
There's a pre-school and primary school in Bourglinster, Gonderange, and Junglinster, where the Lënster Lycée is also located. The international section of this school also offers the European Baccalaureate curriculum and has English, French and German sections.
Transport & parking
Junglinster is well-served by public buses and you can find a full list of them, together with destinations, here. Local school bus timetables are given here, and the late night bus, which travels to Kirchberg, Clausen and the city, here.
The City Bus runs from Monday to Friday by appointment only (which must be made at least the day before with the municipal administration) by e-mail to citybus@junglinster.lu or by telephone 78 72 72-1. You can be picked up at home and taken to any location in the municipality for the cost of €2 per trip. The Laangwiss Navette runs from Monday to Friday from 5:40 20.20, between P+R Lënster Bierg and Sportshal Op de Fréinen. It's free, with a timetable here.
mBoxes for storing your bike are located near the Op der Gare bus stop to reduce the risk of theft. The area also has a pump and repair station.
Veloskonzept was set up by the commune and created a network of 45km to connect the 12 villages of the municipality, installing 250 signs to indicate the right path to cyclists. The routes follow roads and field or forest paths. You can download a GPX for each route here.
Recreation
Sports & Parks
There's a wooden park complete with slides and ropes in Bourglinster on Rue de l'Ecole, and a couple of small wooden play areas in Eisenborn. Most of the villages have play areas or you can access those belonging to the local schools. For a playground for all ages, try the one with water features in Junglinster at Rue du Village.
There are walking paths and circuits in Junglinster, Biergerberg, Bourglinster, Godbrange, Beidweiler, Rodenbourg and Eschweiler. You can find out more about these routes here. The walking association Lënster Trëppler organises rambles and hikes in the area.
There's an 9.2km circular walk in Junglinster available here. Locals recommend the lovely walk from Rue de la Gare in Gonderange to Ernster. There's also a chalet BBQ available for hire.
In addition to the cycle network listed under the Transport section, PC2 Luxembourg to Echternach and PC4 Ernster to Metert pass through the Junglinster municipality. You can find more information on the routes here, and in addition, the commune has linked up to Cycle path 5 so you can cycle from Junglinster to Reisdorf. You can find the location for camping car spaces here.
The Lënster Lycée swimming pool is open to the public on certain days, as is the Op Fréinen tennis hall.
There's a golf course, complete with club-house and a golf school at Domaine de Belenhaff. The club-house is also home to a restaurant offering fine-dining. If you're a dab hand with the shuttlecock, check out the Badminton Club.
There's a Capoeira society on Rue de Godbrange, or you can learn to play table tennis here. The youth football club plays at Op de Freinen, and the Fitness Club Junglinster has classes for adults and children.
If you prefer taekwando or tennis both have clubs in the area. There's also a rhythmic gymnastic club in town, Passion GR.
You can find a full list of sports infrastructure here.
You can find out more about chorale societies, amateur dramatics clubs, school associations and charities, dog training schools, motorcycle clubs, and scout groups on the Junglinster commune website here.
The Am Duerf Cultural Centre runs events, shows, exhibitions and workshops, whilst the Town Hall, is now located in what was once a magnificent 18th century farm house. The Baroque church has a beautiful altar and frescoes from the 18th century as well as the tombstones of the Lords of Lënster.
Bourglinster Castle has a rich history dating back to 1098, although many of the original features were destroyed in different wars. A music festival is organised by the Friends of Bourglinster Castle and the barn opposite has been restored for art workshops. The castle now houses a restaurant but you can organise group tours of it here.
The Häerdcheslee is a solitary rock north of Altlinster depicting two people, and is believed to be a Gallo-Roman funerary monument from the first or second century AD, built from Luxembourgish yellow sandstone.
Restaurants and cafes
For something upmarket splurge on Michelin-starred Restaurant La Distillerie at Bourglinster Castle, run by award-winning chef René Mathieu. Nearby Millebieres is easier on the wallet and has burgers, vegan Thai curry or risotto, Kuddelfleck or steak, plus a big selection of beer. The menu changes regularly too.
The trendy chic V8 serves traditional Luxembourgish dishes, fish and steaks (plus a kids menu). It's currently serving up deer and mussels.
The grocery shop, Le Gourmet also has a restaurant serving steaks, pasta and seafood. For what are heralded as the best burgers in Luxembourg, head to Beidweiler and Lou's Diner.
For Chinese, Thai, Vietnamese and Korean try Maison des Gourmets. You'll find Chinese and Japanese fare at Restaurant KIN.
Bistro Lënster, offers a range of Luxembourgish wines, sharing platters, steaks, burgers, ceviche and vegan options, all served in a cosy atmosphere with comfy chairs and an outside terrace. Farmers in Rodenbourg is run by three generations and serves (to rave reviews) steak that you cook on hot stone, with sauces.
The Pizza Guy Foodtruck comes to Junglinster Monday to Wednesday for lunchtime and in the evening, plus evenings on Thursday and Friday, or tuck into a pizza at Piccobello. Restaurant I Fratelli is an Italian place and you can get pasta, risotto and various meat and fish dishes.
The newly reopened Lenster Stuff is serving up burgers, whilst for a coffee and sweet treat, try Meglio which has nice grey sofas and serves up omlettes, paninis, waffles and of course, pastries and cakes. The Lenster Keller serves wine and beer and is open from Tuesday to Saturday.
The True Brew Trade sells a selection of organic craft beers and some amazing ginger tonic. It’s based in Gonderange but you can pick up their produce at the organic/artisan market held the last Saturday of every month in front of the Cultural Centre Am Duerf in Junglinster.
Find out more....
For more information on Junglinster on the commune website. Families can also join the Junglinster Parents group on Facebook.
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