Book is must-have for newcomers to Luxembourg

A guide to living in Luxembourg for expats has come a long way since it was first published in the 1950s.

Now in its 16th edition, the crucial reference for making the most of the Grand Duchy has more content, is easier to use and, for the first time, is available in colour.

Living in Luxembourg's pages are jam-packed with information, which ranges from a directory of English-speaking health services to suggestions on where to find your favourite food brands.

Produced by the American Women's Club of Luxembourg every five years, the latest edition came to life thanks to a team of 30 editors, updaters and researchers.

Co-editor Suzy O'Connor told wort.lu/en: “When we started we said that we weren't going to reinvent the wheel. We just wanted to update the information in the last edition, which came out in 2006.

“We ended up giving it a more modern look. This time we've focused on including useful websites, to encourage people to find the information by themselves, rather than us putting down specific addresses.”

The first edition of the guide was written by Mary Elvinger, one of the founding members of the American Women's Club in Luxembourg (AWCL).

“When it first started it was called Hints in Luxembourg,” explained AWCL president Lisa Williams, adding: “It's just to help the women get settled and find things to do. We've been publishing a guide every five years since then. But, we've decided that five years is too long because so much changes in a short space of time so, the next edition will be printed in two years.”

While more guide books to living in Luxembourg have since been released in Luxembourg, the AWCL version is considered to be one of the most detailed and, thanks to its colour-coded sections, it is easier to use than previous editions.

“We also realised now that there are far more publications out there like ours so we needed to be a bit more competitive. I think that this book is much more nitty gritty than a lot of other publications. This gets down to the real basics like enrolling for social security- it's all the things that you need to know when you arrive.”

Order your copy of Living in Luxembourg for 25 euros by contacting AWCL at 51, rue Marie-Adelaide, 2nd Floor, L-2128 Luxembourg. You can call the AWCL on 44 84 77 or email secretaryawcl@gmail.com

For more information, visit www.awcluxembourg.com