Upcoming Holidays and Festivals in Germany
- Before planning a trip around a festival, verify the festival dates on the festival's website or with a local tourist information office. For more information about these and other events, visit the official tourism site for Germany.
- This list includes major festivals in major cities, plus national holidays observed throughout Germany. Many sights and banks close down on national holidays — keep it in mind when planning your itinerary. Note that this isn't a complete list; holidays can strike without warning.
- See upcoming holidays and festivals across Europe
2024
September 21–October 6: Oktoberfest, Munich (a.k.a. Wies'n)
September 13–October 26 (Fridays and Saturdays): Berliner Oktoberfest
September 26–October 5: Filmfest Hamburg
September 27–October 13: Cannstatter Volksfest (Oktoberfest in Stuttgart)
September 27–October 14: Wine harvest festival, Neustadt an der Weinstrasse
October 4–13: Berlin Festival of Lights (light installations on landmark buildings)
October 11–13: Onion Market festival, Weimar
October 16–20: Frankfurter Buchmesse (huge book fair and publishers' convention)
October 18–November 1 (likely): Frankenstein Halloween, Königstein Castle (southeast of Dresden)
October 30–November 3: Jazzfest Berlin
October 31: Reformation Day celebration, Wittenberg (and closures in some Protestant areas)
November 1: All Saints' Day (Allerheiligen, closures in southern and western Germany)
November 6: Leonhardifahrt, Bad Tölz (traditional Bavarian religious procession in spa town south of Munich)
November 9: Night of Broken Glass Remembrance Day; anniversary of the fall of the Berlin Wall (remembrances, but no closures)
November 11: Martinstag (St. Martin's Day) and official start to Karneval season (colorful costumes and revelry in Cologne)
Mid-November–mid-January 2025: Christmas Garden (light show held in gardens and parks in many cities, including Berlin, Dresden, Hamburg, Leipzig, and Mainau Island on Lake Constance)
November 22: Repentance Day (closures in Saxony)
November 23–December 31 (but closed Nov 26 for Totensonntag): Tollwood Winter Festival, Munich (music, circus, and cultural events performed on Oktoberfest fairgrounds, plus Christmas market until December 23)
December: Christmas markets throughout Germany, particularly in Nürnberg, Munich, Rothenburg, and Freiburg, and Berlin
December 6: Nikolaustag (St. Nicholas Day; St. Nick, often with companion in tow, often seen around town on evening prior)
December 24: Christmas Eve (Der Heilige Abend; Germans decorate trees and open presents, shops close at noon)
December 25: Christmas Day (closures)
December 26: Boxing Day (closures)
December 31: New Year's Eve (Silvester; fireworks, particularly big in Berlin)
2025
January 1: New Year's Day (closures)
January 6: Epiphany (Heilige Drei Könige, volunteers dressed as Three Kings go door-to-door caroling and collecting for charity; some closures)
January 24–February 2 (likely): CTM Festival, Berlin (electronic / experimental music and art)
January 26–February 2: Hot-Air Balloon Festival, Lake Tegern (east of Oberammergau, in Bavaria)
February–March: Fasching/Fastnacht/Karneval, primarily in southern regions and Cologne (carnival season — parties and parades in the days leading up to Ash Wednesday; Cologne's huge Rosenmontag parade is February 12)
February 13–23: Berlin International Film Festival (a.k.a. "Berlinale")
March 20–April 13 (likely): Thuringian Bach Weeks, Erfurt
April 18: Good Friday (Karfreitag; closures)
April 19–May 4: Spring Festival, Nürnberg (rides and costumes in Luitpoldhain park)
April 20 & April 21: Easter (Ostern) Sunday and Monday (closures)
April 25–May 11: Spring Festival, Munich (Frühlingsfestival, the "little sister of Oktoberfest")
May 1: May Day (maypole dances in rural areas, labor demonstrations and street festivals in Berlin's Kreuzberg district, closures)
May 1–4 (likely): Hafengeburtstag (harbor's birthday), Hamburg (giant maritime festival)
May 3: Rhine in Flames festival, Bonn (fireworks; nearby Rhine towns host Rhine in Flames later in the year)
May 8–June 8 (likely): Dresden Music Festival (classical music performances)
May 9–10: Die Blaue Nacht, Nürnberg (art events, including projections on castle walls)
May 11–18 (likely): International Dixieland Festival, Dresden
May 17–24: Green Sauce Festival, Frankfurt (street music, green-sauce sampling)
May 21–30 (likely): Fressgass' Fest, Frankfurt
May 23–June 22: Mozartfest, Würzburg
May 28–June 8 (likely): Weindorf wine festival, Würzburg
May 29: Ascension Day (Christi Himmelfahrt; closures)
June 6–7: Elbjazz, Hamburg
June 6–8: Rock am Ring rock festival, Nürburg (near Koblenz — not to be confused with Nürnberg)
June 6–9: Carnival of Cultures, Berlin (street parade on Sunday)
June 6–9: Meistertrunk Show, Rothenburg (historic play and market, medieval costumes, Biergarten parties)
June 6–15: Handel Festival, Halle
June 8 & 9: Pentecost (Pfingsten) and Whit Monday (Pfingstmontag; maypole dancing and flower-bedecked cattle in some rural areas, closures)
June 10–12 (likely): Melt Festival, Gräfenhainichen (electronic music and indie rock, near Wittenberg)
June 12–22: Bach Festival, Leipzig
June 12–28 (likely): St. Katharina Open air, Nürnberg (concert series of eclectic acts in the Old Town)
June 13–15: Luther's Wedding festival, Wittenberg
Mid-June (3 days; iffy): Stadtteilfest Bunte Republik Neustadt, Dresden (huge counter-cultural block party celebrating the Outer New Town's tongue-in-cheek status as an independent republic)
June 19: Corpus Christi (Fronleichnam; processions — particularly in Bavaria, flower carpets — particularly in rural Baden-Württemberg, closures across southern and western Germany)
June 20–22: Traumzeit Music Festival, Duisburg (eclectic line-up staged in a former industrial site)
June 20–July 20 (likely): Tollwood Summer Festival, Munich (concert series, art, street theater)
June 21–29: Kieler Woche, Kiel (world's largest sailing festival, featuring historical-ship parades and cultural events in the city center)
June 25–29 (likely): Fusion Festival, Neustrelitz (Burning Man–esque counterculture free-for-all held on the grounds of a former airfield north of Berlin)
June 26–29: Oberlindenhock, Freiburg (street food, live music)
June 27–29 (likely): Elbhangfest, Dresden (music, dance, wine)
July 3–8: Freiburg Wine Festival (local wines, live music)
July 4–20 (likely): Kiliani Volksfest, Würzburg (county fair–type folk festival)
July 5: Rhine in Flames festival, Bingen / Rüdesheim (fireworks)
Early July: Classic Open Air, Berlin (music on Gendarmenmarkt)
Weekends July 11–27 (likely): Kaltenberg Knights' Tournament (huge jousting festival, near Munich)
July 18–20 (likely): Cologne Pride Street Festival
July 18–27: Kinderzeche, Dinkelsbühl (traditional dancing, parades)
July 20 & August 2 (likely): Klassik Open Air, Nürnberg (series of free classical concerts and fireworks in Luitpoldhain park)
July 25–27 (likely): Bardentreffen Nürnberg (world music festival)
July 25–August 10 (likely): Sommerwerft, Frankfurt (theatre and arts festival)
July 26 (likely): Berlin Pride (a.k.a. Christopher Street Day Berlin)
August 9: Rhine in Flames festival, Koblenz (fireworks)
August 13–17 (likely): Weindorf wine festival, Rothenburg ob der Tauber
August 15: Assumption (Mariä Himmelfahrt; closures in Bavaria and Saarland)
August 21–25: Sandkerwa Bavarian folk festival, Bamberg
August 21–25 (likely): Wine festival, Cochem
August 22–23: Potsdamer Schössernacht (Potsdam's palaces lit up, nighttime performances in the gardens, midnight fireworks over Sanssouci both nights)
August 22–24 (likely): Museumsuferfest, Frankfurt (music, food, culture)
August 23 (likely): Long Night of Museums, Berlin (most museums open until 2 a.m., with one-off installations and performances)
August 27–September 5 (likely): Rheingau Wine Festival, Frankfurt
August 29–September 7 (likely): Berlin Beer Week
August 29–September 14: Nürnberg Fall Folk Festival (costumes, rides in Luitpoldhain park)
August 30 (iffy): Kölner Lichter, Cologne (fireworks and music)
September 4–13 (likely): International Literature Festival Berlin
September 5–7: Reichsstadt Festival, Rothenburg ob der Tauber
September 12–14: Medieval festival, Selb (on the Czech border, northeast of Nürnberg)
September 12–16 & 19–22: Wurstmarkt, Bad Dürkheim (world's biggest wine festival, near Heidelberg)
September 13: Rhine in Flames festival, Oberwesel (fireworks)
September 20: Rhine in Flames festival, St. Goar (fireworks)
October 3: German Unity Day (Tag der Deutschen Einheit; closures)