© Marc Hoscheid
Originally planned with minimal resources, the scope of the Minett Trail lodge project grew in size due to increased funding, which lead to complications and delays.
Running through a series of intermediate stations from Clemency to Bettembourg and Dudelange, the Minett Trail is about 90 kilometers long.
Situated along the path, which connects 11 municipalities, are also a number of lodges, known as "gîtes touristiques," where hikers can spend one or several nights.
Originally planned to coincide with Esch 2022, the European Capital of Culture, the completion of these cabins faced several delays. While the project encountered various challenges during its development phase, it has now been finalised.
The last of these lodges to open was the old primary school in Linger, which has been transformed into a stop for hikers and bikers where they can rest if needed.
The concept for the Minett Trail emerged in 2017 as part of the bid to designate the Minett region as a UNESCO Biosphere. The project’s scope expanded with the addition of Esch 2022, leading to a significant increase in funding. However, this influx of resources brought its own complications, according to Lynn Reiter, manager at the Office régional du tourisme Sud.
She reflects on the project and says that "Initially, our small working group envisioned using minimal resources, perhaps converting small ruins into functional spaces with a 'box-in-the-box' system. But as funding increased and the project grew, it naturally expanded into something much larger."
In some cases, the funds initially allocated were insufficient, and additional financial resources had to be approved by the municipalities. Strict environmental regulations and of course, the COVID-19 pandemic also contributed to the delays.
Philippe Morgado, founder and manager of Simpleviu, the company which operates the lodges, claims that the delays leading to staggered openings actually came in handy.
"Those are brand new projects that didn't exist in the country before. There are a lot of unknowns, such as 'How they will be received by people? How they will fit into the various locations?'. The delays gave me the opportunity to constantly adapt and improve any mistakes that might have occurred and to avoid them in the future. From a marketing point of view, it is also very interesting because there is always something new going on. A new one opens, and then another one and so on and so forth."
While Morgado is pleased with the current occupancy rates, he chooses not to disclose specific numbers. He is also keen to increase the number of lodges along the trail, and indeed, according to Reiter, some other municipalities are looking to join the project. For example, more lodges are expected to be added by Urspelt Castle, and in Lasauvage.
