Remich – Schengen | Schengen – Thionville | Thionville – Metz (33 km/20 mi, or 63 km/39 mi)
While having breakfast we will cruise to Schengen, where our cycling tour will start. The “Schengen agreement” is something everybody in Europe has heard of, whereas almost nobody knows that it is named after this little town in Luxembourg at the 3-country border.
Soon we will cross the Luxembourg- French border and experience the outcome of this agreement: no border controls. We pass the fortress of Sierck-les-Bains, one of the palaces inhabited by the powerful Dukes of Lorraine. The route is lovely through French countryside, and friendly villages. Around lunchtime we will arrive in Thionville, the center of the steel industry until the 1980s. That might sound modern and industrial, but the city is ancient. The historic center shows us the medieval ramparts, lovely gardens, old streets and St.Maximin basilica. Here the ship is waiting to pick us up to cruise to Metz, another ancient city strategically situated on a Roman trading route. St.Etienne Cathedral is the 3rd largest gothic church in France with flying buttresses and Marc Chagall stained glass windows. Metz is full of stunning architecture, flowers and great cafes.
I believe it is possible to continue cycling from Thionville into Metz. If this is the case, check out the Day 6 Optional video