Thousands of pilgrims and jumpers are set to descend on Echternach on Whit Tuesday for the annual hopping procession. One of Luxembourg's most distinctive traditions and a UNESCO-listed piece of cultural heritage.
The 2026 procession opens with a mass at 8pm on Monday, celebrated by Dr Heiner Wilmer, Bishop of Münster. The first pilgrims are set to arrive in Echternach as early as 5.15am, with Cardinal Jean-Claude Hollerich giving the address which marks the start of the hopping procession at 9.15am. The last dancing groups are expected to arrive at the basilica at around 1pm.
Some roads to the town centre will be closed to traffic on Whit Tuesday. A shuttle service will run from the P+R Séi from 8.30am to 4pm, with departures every 15 minutes.
"Sprangpressessioun" or "Sprangprëssioun"?
The procession is known in Luxembourgish as the Sprangprëssioun or Sprangpressessioun. The Luxembourgish Online Dictionary (LOD) explains that when the tradition, which goes as far back as the Middle Ages, was added to the list of UNESCO cultural heritage, the shortened form 'Sprangprëssioun' was retained, with a diaeresis on the -e-, to assist with pronunciation. Both spellings are correct.
