The past few editions have been quite heavily dominated by Covid - though admittedly less so last year - but that seems rather unlikely for 2023... but this introduction is being written ahead of a dive into the statistics, so let’s see what last year brought.
The year was off to a classic Luxembourg start, with our most-read article announcing that the next wage indexation would be triggered on 1 February. Making matters even more Luxembourgish is the fact that our second-most read article was also about indexations - specifically a Statec prediction that two indexes might be triggered within two months (this one was published a few weeks before the most-read).
But that’s where finance and cost of living articles ended, as the third-most read article was about another point of Luxembourg pride: the strength of the Luxembourgish passport! Rounding the top articles of January off was another article with a positive slant, namely a reader Letter with the title “if only had given birth in Luxembourg.”
The month of February started off on a decidedly more sombre note, with the news that a woman had been slashed with a box cutter following a supermarket altercation. In second place was another article of a negative nature, though thankfully less violent, as we heard testimony from a 41-year-old who’d come to the realisation that they won’t be able to buy a home in Luxembourg due to the steep property prices.
As we approach the third and fourth places, we’re back to inflation with an article declaring a new indexation for the end of the year, and an explainer on how the February indexation affects your income.
And finally, the month is rounded off with the entry of the Grand Ducal Court, and new details about poor staff treatment.
An honorary mention here is also in place for an article that only just missed our top-read list, but certainly caused more discussion across our social channels and beyond than do most of our stories - namely, restaurants complaining about no-show customers.
Following in the footsteps of February, March was also off to a dark start as the most-read article centred on a fatal collision in Neudorf.
Second place saw the return to a long-running favourite subject: housing, and two developers sounding the alarm about the ‘freefall’ in the market.
Much to yours truly’s personal satisfaction, the third-most read article in March was a ‘Knowledge Bite’, in which we discuss things particularly Luxembourgish. This one was about Grevenmacher’s Georgely, aka ‘the world’s smallest man'. The final top-5 for the month is rounded off with heavy snowfall and subsequent chaos, and, of course, more indexation news.
There are a handful of subjects we tend to know will be of interest to our audience. Housing, indexation, mobility, and, of course, aviation. People love travel news, it seems, and that’s exactly what hit the #1 spot for April, as a Cargolux plane required a spot of luck following a failed landing at Findel.
Second place hits another favourite, with the news that “the peak has been reached” for housing prices across Luxembourg. Third place went to an unusual accident in Belgium, where a car smashed through the wall of a sports centre, while the ever-popular subject of money hit fourth place through an article titled ‘do you earn a good income in Luxembourg?’.
The fifth spot - again to my immense personal pleasure - went to our April Fool’s joke, and the announcement of a new domestic airline to serve Luxembourg.
What better way to start a month than by reading, again, about money. This month, you all loved an article on tax reductions, and what you needed to know about them. Things then took an unusually dramatic turn, with the announcement of an arrest following a bomb scare at Luxembourg central station.
We then return to the Cargolux story of April, and news that the runway was again open. We’ll skip past the fourth-most read for a minute for the sake of subject continuity, and present you first with #5 on our list: several Luxair flights cancelled due to technical faults.
And in fourth place was a reader poll - specifically, we asked whether you think it true that Luxembourg is dangerous.
Know the news? Try our 2024 Luxembourg news quiz!
When compiling these lists I only look at individual articles, not article categories (where Luxembourg news is always on top of the list), but in June I saw that our ‘municipal elections’ section jumped right to the top - so I just wanted to high-five you all for caring about local politics, which is important.
On to the list! Some big and long-awaited news came in June (though some were disappointed by its final form): Luxembourg legalised the cultivation and consumption of cannabis at home. With that over and done with, we’re back to our good friend housing, with prices continuing to fall.
Festive spirits struck for fourth place, with our guide to National Day. The month ended with a somewhat controversial and highly discussed event, wherein International School of Luxembourg shared the news that two pupils had reportedly been approached by a suspicious individual in a white van.
I for one adore how July started - the second instalment of our food tour of Luxembourg hit the top spot, and saw Emma and Caro on the hunt for the best croissant. The fact that their verdicts were, in my opinion, completely wrong, is secondary - we can and will send them back out, in the hopes that they will come to their senses.
Second place went to a slightly unusual article, in that it’s fairly uncommon for this subject to hit our most-read lists: easing work access for third-country nationals.
Third place sees us return to housing - and despite the news of peaks being reached and prices dropping, a ramshackle property in Remerchen on sale for €420,000 raised eyebrows. Money took fourth places as well, this time through an interactive salary comparison by municipality.
And finally, a spot of mobility! The fifth-most read article was about our beloved tram, and the extension to Findel.
Another month, another set of articles about money. The top-2 spots both went to articles about indexation (and this one). It is perhaps not surprising that money is always a popular topic among our readers, but it doesn’t exactly make for a thrilling roundup of the year if the same subject returns every month. With the cost of living crisis across Europe this year it is, of course, understandable.. but might I ask that you vary your clicking habits a bit for 2024, please and thank you?
Things then took a considerably darker turn, with news of an attempt at self-immolation in Luxembourg City, and a non-fatal shooting in Esch.
And finally, some much lighter news: an article write-up of an interview from Today Radio‘s show The Home Stretch with Melissa Dalton nabbed the fifth-most read spot. To make things better yet, it was about the lovely world of literature, and Luxembourg’s premier book festival.
An honorary mention this month also has to go to Luxembourg’s literal lone wolf, as RTL received exclusive footage of a sighting, and later received confirmation from the Nature and Forest Agency.
Again, I couldn’t be happier with the article that hit the first spot here - as it was the final vote in our our inaugural (but returning!) young authors contest! We received around 50 fantastic short stories across the two age categories, and our audience voted for their favourites in each category. Thousands of votes were cast, and we hope that dozens of young pens were inspired to keep honing their craft.
In second place was our second unexpected birth story of the year, when a woman who didn’t know she was pregnant gave birth to a healthy baby, rather spontaneously and at much surprise to everyone involved, at the Schueberfouer!
More good news followed in third place, as a young Luxembourgish rugby fan went viral after tearfully shoving his bum in the direction of South Africa national team player Faf de Klerk - who gracefully signed the young man’s underpants. The young man then found his way to RTL where he was interviewed by Steps Lowe. Here Nathan Swart explained how he is using this ‘fame’ to highlight a need to raise funds for the youth in Port Elizabeth, ensuring sports kit and equipment is available for all - through the Sport Revolution fundraiser.
Rather predictably we’re back to money for the fourth story, with more indexation news. If I never have to write the word ‘indexation’ again after today, I’ll be a happy man. I’ll gratefully accept them in my pay packet, though.
In the fifth and final spot for September is an unusual accident - and a tragedy mercifully averted - as a balcony collapsed in Kirchberg.
The local elections page dominated June, and I’m equally glad to see that the national elections page took our top spot in October - and the election live ticker article took first spot! It was one heck of a night to work, and on a private note I was absolutely delighted with our reader (and Today Radio-listener) engagement throughout the evening!
Second spot went to the month-straddling mega-hit that was the vote for Luxembourg’s finest young authors (linked in September).
In third place came a dire warning from the Employers’ Association, who drew attention to a ‘competitive crisis’ faced by the country, in part linked to the rising cost of employment through wage indexations.
Real estate made another return to the top-5, this time through the news that Luxembourg’s real estate market was among the EU’s worst-hit.
Another reader favourite nabbed the fifth spot: aviation, this time with news of a Ryanair flight from Luxembourg colliding with a vehicle.
And because I can, I’m going to give an honorary mention this month to a new series which only just missed out on the top spots, as we launched the first two instalments of our series on Luxembourg’s English schools.
I’ll have to try to conceal a slightly smug smile on my face as I reveal that the most-read article of November was a quiz that I put together a little while back, which tests your Luxembourg knowledge. If you would believe it, second place went to an article about... money. Not indexation this time though, but the new tax scale and how it will affect your salary.
Third place saw that old holiday spirit enter our readers’ collective minds, with a guide to the Grand Duchy’s Christmas markets. Speaking of festive, fourth place went to the announcement that a Luxembourg resident (sadly not yours truly) had scooped up an €83 million Euromillions jackpot!
And finally, things returned to politics as - following the October national elections - the new Frieden-Bettel government was formed.
What better way to start off a new month than by diving into a completely new subject - one not yet seen in this annual roundup of ours, and quite an outsider too! That certainly would be nice, but it’s equally certain that this isn’t at all what we’ll be doing. Instead, we’re right back to... money! Tax cuts, specifically, and ones coming in 2024.
Another favourite returns in second place, with the not entirely unexpected news that real estate prices have fallen this year, while rents have positively (but negatively for renters) soared.
Security comes in third, with the police issuing a warning of a new break-in technique employed by would-be burglars. More pleasant and a veritable injection of joy into the old heart is that third place went to not an article, but a photo gallery as Kleeschen took to the streets of Luxembourg City.
The final story really is a bit of a surprise. A hypothesised at the start of this article that we wouldn’t see much about Covid - and so far we’ve seen not a single story in our monthly top-5 (nor indeed our top-10), but that doesn’t mean that the virus has given up on us altogether. In fifth place: Luxembourg faces epidemic as infections surge.
And with that... thank you all for reading not only this article, but for visiting us however often you do throughout the year. We couldn’t be here, doing a job we love, without you, our readers and listeners. On behalf of the whole Today team, I wish you all a fantastic start to the new year!
