The crematorium in Hamm now has more space for ceremonies and bereaved families. Inaugurated on Wednesday 11 November 2026, the extension includes refurbished rooms and a third lawn for scattering ashes. It accommodates different ways of saying goodbye, from choosing a ceremony to finding a place for remembrance.
Modernised cremators, but pressure on the rooms
More than 3 200 cremations took place at the Hamm crematorium in 2025, RTL reports. The facility can carry out up to 80 a week. These figures describe its technical activity; on their own, they do not tell us how many families can be accommodated for a ceremony.
The site’s two cremators had already been modernised in recent years. The extension inaugurated on Wednesday 11 November 2026 addresses a different constraint: according to Tom Jungen, president of the inter-municipal union SICEC, the limitations were felt mainly in the ceremony rooms. The aim was to give families and friends more opportunities to gather and pay their respects, rather than to add a cremator.
One of the rooms can accommodate up to 50 people. It is equipped with a screen and multimedia equipment, allowing images, for example, to be shown during the ceremony. To understand how the site is organised, three activities should be distinguished:
| Space | Role in the farewells |
|---|---|
| Cremators | Carry out the cremation, an operation separate from the gathering of bereaved relatives. |
| Ceremony rooms | Bring family and friends together for a civil or religious tribute, possibly accompanied by music and images. |
| Gardens of Remembrance | Provide a place to scatter ashes and allow people to return to pay their respects. |
A ceremony can take several forms
SICEC describes a process in which the family chooses a funeral director. The director contacts the crematorium and brings the coffin there. If the bereaved wish to hold the funeral at the site, the ceremony can be adapted to their wishes or those expressed by the deceased. It can be civil or religious, with background music chosen by the family. The family can bring flowers and engage its own celebrant, or ask the crematorium to provide one.
These options provide practical guidance without prescribing any particular form of farewell. A ceremony with family and friends, a period of remembrance and then the scattering of ashes are not one single mandatory step: the arrangements allow for different choices. SICEC says that if the ashes are not scattered at the site, the funeral director takes the urn back to bring it to the cemetery chosen by the bereaved.
The Gardens of Remembrance in Hamm are open to the public. They provide a place to return and pay one’s respects. This option also matters when making arrangements: the place where the ceremony is held and the place where the bereaved can later pay their respects may be linked, but are not necessarily the same.
Ceremonies and ash scatterings: two separate counts
RTL’s report distinguishes between around 650 ceremonies a year and an average of some 850 ash scatterings. These figures describe different activities; they do not allow us to calculate how many cremations involve a ceremony or an ash scattering, nor to conclude that an ash scattering takes place without family and friends present.
A third lawn for scattering ashes has been laid out. Tom Jungen explains that it is intended, among other things, to give the grassy areas time to regenerate. It also provides an additional option for ceremonies. The manager reports an increase in ash scatterings without family members present, particularly since the Covid period, while stressing that this does not mean the bereaved have lost interest in the deceased. This is an observation by the operator, not a survey of the practices of the population as a whole.
The absence of family members at an ash scattering therefore does not, on its own, allow us to infer what they feel or the place they give to mourning. Practices vary, and the crematorium offers spaces for several forms of ceremony rather than a single ritual.
An opportunity to see the refurbished spaces
RTL announces an open day on Saturday 14 November, from 10:00 to 17:00. Visitors are to be shown the refurbished buildings, ceremony rooms and gardens. This is a one-off event: the advertised opening hours do not mean that ceremonies are open to the public every Saturday.
The crematorium is at 1, allée des Châtaigniers, in Hamm, L-1366 Luxembourg. Its contact page gives the number 43 16 01 and the email address reservation@sicec.lu. It lists opening hours of Monday to Friday, from 08:30 to 16:00, which should be distinguished from the open day announced for Saturday 14 November, from 10:00 to 17:00.
For a specific question about the visit or arrangements for welcoming visitors, these contact details can be used to reach the facility. The sources do not specify a booking procedure or entry conditions for this day; this information can be requested directly from SICEC. For funeral arrangements, its services page states that the family chooses the funeral director, who then contacts the crematorium. This intermediary role is separate from the visit to the refurbished spaces.
References
- RTL, “Crematoire zu Hamm: Méi Plaz fir e leschten Äddi”
- SICEC, funeral services and ceremonies
- SICEC, address and contacts
A white chrysanthemum. Stock photograph.
