Amazing Fall Festivals to Experience in Germany (Not Oktoberfest)

Last updated on July 20th, 2023 at 06:03 pm

Pumpkin Display in Front of Ludwigsburg Palace

Updated to reflect Fall Festivals in Germany 2023 information!

Visiting the fall festivals has been one of the things I look forward to most each year in Germany. Many exciting and wonderful events begin to take place as the weather begins to cool off and the leaves change colors. My personal opinion is that this is the best and most beautiful time to visit this magnificent country.

Locals seem to especially enjoy this time, and there is no end to the number of types of fall festivals celebrated throughout Germany. Most outsiders already know about the largest beer festival in the world: Oktoberfest in Munich. But, did you know that Oktoberfest is not just one festival in Munich, but is part of a series of festivals that happen throughout Germany? And Oktoberfest is not Germany’s only fall claim to fame. I want to introduce you to three of my favorite fall festivals that one should not miss when living in or visiting Germany. (Plus, I will tell you all about how we accidentally stumbled across my absolute favorite fall festival of all time!)

***Disclaimer: Be sure to check all travel rules and regulations for Germany as well as any activities you would like to participate in before booking any part of your trip!

3. Bad Dürkheim Wurstmarkt Wine Festival

Wine Festival viewed from the ferris wheel

I have had the pleasure of going to this fall festival only once during our time in Germany (thank you Coronavirus). But I have been longing to go back to it ever since. Bad Dürkheim is a tiny, but beautiful spa town located on the Weinstrasse (wine street) in Germany’s Rheinland-Palatine region. And, once a year they host the largest wine festival in the world which takes place right in the Wurstmarkt (translation: sausage market). Basically, if you love wine and you haven’t made it to this festival yet, you are really missing out!

A Little Information About the Wurstmarkt Wine Festival

This fall wine festival is close to 600 years old and takes place over the course of two weekends each year in September. It includes tents which feature wine from all over the German Weinstrasse. You have the option to buy glasses of wine, or you can drink it like the locals do as a Schorle (a mixture of wine and carbonated water). Even if this sounds unusual or strange to you, it is very refreshing and I would recommend trying it at least once.

There are also fair rides, the opportunity to visit the largest wine barrel in the world (the Dürkheimer Riesenfass), a local crafts display, and more food stalls than you can possibly imagine.

Important information For Your Visit

The dates for the 2023 Bad Dürkheim Wurstmarkt will be September 8-12 and 15-18!

Entrance to the wine festival is free, but you do have to pay for food, drinks, rides, and any trinkets you wish to take home with you. IMPORTANT: You cannot bring your own alcohol into the wine fest.

If you decide to drink at the wine festival, remember that a Pfand (deposit) is collected for the glass. If you return the glass, you will receive back the Pfand. Or, you can do what I did, and keep your glass as a memento of your visit to the wine festival.

Insider tip: This year, there will be two fireworks displays!! The first will be held on Tuesday September 12 at 9 p.m. The grand finale fireworks will be on Monday, September 18 at 9 p.m. If you get on the ferris wheel right before the fireworks start, you will have the best seat in the house to enjoy the show. 😉

Discover More

For more information on the program’s specific dates, times, and programs (including the fireworks display), please visit this website.

Getting There

Nearest Airport: Frankfurt Airport. From there, it is about 1 hour by car or 1.5-2 hrs by train to reach Bad Dürkheim. (This will depend on if you are taking regional or fast trains).

Munich: It’s about 4 hours either by car or by train.

Stuttgart: It’s about 1 hr 45 min by either car or train.

Kaiserslautern: It is about 40 min by car or 45 min by train. I definitely recommend the train if you don’t have a designated driver, but be sure to check when the last return train leaves in the evening!!

Nearby Attractions you might enjoy

1. Heidelberg – one of the most romantic and beautiful cities in Germany, Heidelberg is absolutely worth a visit for the old castle and historic downtown. To get there, it’s about 45 min by car or about 1.5 hours away by train.

2. Baden-Baden – The UNESCO World Heritage site of Baden-Baden is a beautiful, historic spa town. There are many historic sites to visit here in addition to the baths. To get there, it’s about 1 hour 15 min by car or about 1 hr 45 min by train.

2. Cannstatter Volksfest

The Cannstatter Volksfest (also known as the Stuttgart Beer Fest) is the second largest of the fall beer festivals in Germany. It takes place over the course of three weeks in the month of October and can be fun for the whole family. Just keep in mind that as the evening progresses, there will be more people and they will have been drinking longer, so it might get a bit more rowdy. If you have kids, I recommend getting there around the time the festival opens and leaving around 5-6pm.

A Little Information About the Cannstatter Volksfest

The dates for the 2023 Cannstatter Volksfest will be September 22 to October 8!!

At the festival itself, there are lots of food stalls, fair rides, and of course the beer tents. Please note that you admission to the beer tents is free, but there is limited seating. It is best to make a reservation ahead of time to guarantee your spot.

There are always multiple tents to choose from, so if you don’t get a reservation at one, try one of the others. And even if you’re too late to get a spot in a tent, no worries, there are plenty of places to enjoy beer throughout the festival grounds.

Visiting the Beer Tents

We were lucky because we got there soon after the festival opened and before the reservations began for the evening. We asked permission to have a seat in one of the tents and enjoy a drink and while the server did agree, he made sure we knew that we only had 45 minutes before we had to be out of those spots.

It was perfect, there was a band playing in the background and we had just enough time to enjoy one gigantic beer each: my husband got the darkest beer they had and I got a Radler beer. Radler is a traditional way to drink beer in Germany and it is much more refreshing than just straight beer. It is a mixture of one part beer and one part either lemonade or lemon/lime soda. I am not a beer drinker myself, but if I do drink beer in Germany, I personally will choose a Radler.

Important Information for Your Visit

Entrance to the beer festival is free, but you will have to pay for anything you want to eat, drink, or do inside the festival. REMEMBER: You cannot bring your own alcohol into the Cannstatter fest. You will be forced to leave it outside the festival or throw it away.

As with other festivals in Germany, if you decide to order a drink, remember that a Pfand (deposit) is collected for the glass. If you return the glass, you will receive the Pfand back or you can keep the glass as a souvenir.

Need Further Information?

Please see the official Cannstatter Volksfest website for the most up to date information.

How to Get There:

Nearest Airport: Stuttgart Airport

Frankfurt: It’s about 2.5 hrs by car or 2 hrs by train.

Munich: It’s just over 2.5 hours by car and just under 3 hrs by train.

Kaiserslautern: It’s about 2.5 hours by either car or train.

Nearby Attractions you Might Enjoy:

1. Stuttgart is a large city with many things to do. If you are there in the fall, be sure to check out the Ludwigsburg Pumpkin Festival!

2. Mercedes-Benz Museum

3. Porsche Museum

4. Killesbergturm and Park

5. Solitude Palace

1. Ludwigsburg Pumpkin Festival

Not only does Germany host the largest wine festival in the world (Bad Durkheim Wine Fest), the largest beer festival in the world (Munich Oktoberfest), it also hosts the largest pumpkin festival in the world (the Kürbisausstellung Ludwigsburg)!! And this one is by far my favorite of all the fall festivals in Germany!! Seriously, this is next level awesomeness that America’s pumpkin spice will never be able to live up to. 😛

How We “Accidentally” Found The Ludwigsburg Pumpkin Festival

A little back story on how my husband and I accidentally found this festival shortly after we moved to Germany. Back in 2018, we were totally new to Germany and I was looking for things for us to do. I was researching alternative festivals to the Munich Oktoberfest. That’s when I came across the Cannstatter Volksfest and I thought “Hey! This festival is closer to where we live and it’s supposed to be calmer than Munich. Let’s go there!”

So, I started researching things to do in Stuttgart because the festival wasn’t going to open until 3pm and I wanted to see what other things we might visit while we were in the area. That’s when I discovered Ludwigsburg Palace. But, there was nothing (and I mean literally nothing) that indicated any kind of special events happening at the time of our visit.

So, on our chosen Saturday morning, we took the train to Ludwigsburg and then walked to the palace. At first, we thought the gardens were limited to only the area out in front of the palace. In this area, we came across some giant pumpkins and we thought “Wow! This is cool!” We admired the area, snapped a few photos and thought our visit was coming to a close. We had no idea what was in store for us.

As we were exiting, we noticed some people heading off to the left of the front entrance. So, we followed them and that’s when we realized there was soooo much more to the garden area. Every turn seemed to house a new delight. Tree lined aisle ways, more ponds with fountains, an aviary, a small Japanese Garden with bonsai trees, grape vines, a hedge maze, and more. I was completely entranced with the Märchengarten (Fairytale garden) which houses interactive displays highlighting the Grimm Fairytales. It will delight children and adults alike.

And then, we came across the creme de la creme, the pumpkin festival: huge displays and towering creations, all made from pumpkins, smaller pumpkins had been carved into little pumpkin people acting out different scenes, there were sand sculptures, and stalls with every kind of pumpkin food you can possibly imagine! We were amazed and delighted. Ever since then, I have made a special point not only to go back every year, but to also tell everyone all about this unbelievable festival.

Important Information For Your Visit

The pumpkin festival usually starts around the end of August and runs through the end November/early December. Please see the Ludwigsburg Palace Gardens website for the most up to date information on dates, opening hours, and ticket prices.

More Things to Check out at Ludwigsburg Palace

There is also pumpkin boat race!! Sadly, while it seems like a TON of fun, we have not yet managed to make it on the race weekend. But here is the basic gist of what happens: people grow the biggest pumpkin they can. Then, just before race day, they make a hole big enough for a person to sit inside it, remove the seeds, and prepare to race! If you would like to see this one of a kind event, be sure to check the official website for an update on the when the boat race will be held.

You can also visit the interior of Ludwigsburg Palace, but it is a separate fee for entr y. We did the inside tour once, and while it was interesting and informative, it was not our favorite palace/castle tour. I would say that there are other places you can go to get a more extensive palace/castle experience.

How to Get To the Ludwigsburg Palace Gardens:

Nearest Airport: Stuttgart Airport

Frankfurt: It’s about 2 hrs by car or 2.5 hrs by train.

Munich: It’s just under 3 hrs by car or by train.

Kaiserslautern: It’s a little over 2 hrs by car or just under 2 hrs train.

Other Fall Festivals in Germany

> Visit Frankenstein Castle

Ever wondered what it would be like to experience Halloween at Frankensteins’s Castle? Then look no further and find yourself in one of the spookiest places on earth. Depending on the ages of your children, this may or may not be a suitable activity for the family.

> Almatreib

The Almabtreib (also known as the Viehscheid) is a fun cultural event for the whole family! Every fall, the cows, which have been grazing high in alpine pastures come home for the winter. This is an event which takes place on weekends in towns throughout the alps (Germany, Switzerland, Austria, Liechtenstein, and northern Italy) from September to early October.

Cows are decorated with flowers and paraded down the mountain into the towns where people are dressed in traditional clothes. There will be variations from town to town, but in general, you will be able to enjoy traditional music, local foods, and local crafts. Be sure to consult the 2023 calenda r to see which towns will be celebrating on any given weekend.

> Apple Happle Festival

The Apple Happle Festival in Mainz is a small, local fall festival in Germany with fun for the whole family. Located just outside of Mainz, you can pick your own apples and buy all kinds of farm fresh goods from their farm shop. Each year they have a festival with pony rides, a food tent, and more. Be sure to check their website for the most up to date information.

Christine Pushing Wheelbarrow of Apples at Apple Happle Fall Fest in Germany

In Conclusion

I hope you have fun exploring all the amazing fall festivals Germany has to offer! Let me know more about your favorite autumn activities are in the comments below. 🙂

Happy Travels,
<3 Christine