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KARNEVAL/FASTNACHT/FASCHING
STARTING FEB. 27, GERMANY WIDE
Thursday, Feb. 27. marks the beginning of the Karneval season in Germany. Thursday is referred to as “Altweiberfastnacht” (old wives’ Fastnacht), where witches steal the keys to the city hall and take over command for the weekend. There are celebrations throughout the weekend and the festival culminates on “Faschingsdienstag” (Shrove Tuesday), as Ash Wednesday marks the beginning of Lent.
Kaiserslautern, March 4 at 2:11 p.m. – Open-air Fasching event is taking place at Stiftsplatz. Anyone interested is welcome to join the fun.
The largest parades take place on Rose Monday, March 3 in the city centers: Köln/Cologne, 10:00 a.m., Düsseldorf, 12.30 a.m., Mainz, 11:11 a.m., Aachen, 11:11 a.m., Stuttgart, 12:00 a.m.
Ramstein-Miesenbach, Westricher Fastnacht, Tuesday, March 4, at 2:00 p.m., with 30,000 spectators and KMC participation expected. Please note that roads in the city center of Ramstein will be blocked off for traffic 12:00 a.m. to 6:00 p.m. Visitors are advised to come early, park out as far as possible and walk to the event.
COME ALONG WITH US – SIGHTSEEING TOURS 2025
VARIOUS DATES, TOURIST INFO KAISERSLAUTERN
What’s the best way to get to know your new town? Listening closely while you walk around! The City of Kaiserslautern is offering a series of old and new discovery tours around the town in English. In addition to the classic tour of Casimir Saal and the underground tunnels, there will be exciting excursions to learn about and experience other places of interest in the city. Tours include the hidden history of Kaiserslautern’s breweries, a guided historical walk, a guided cemetery tour, K-Town for kids, Hohenecken castle and tours during the holiday season. Individual tours for groups can also be arranged. For detailed information, flyer and individual dates visit: www.kaiserslautern.de, search “Come along with us.” Registration for all tours is required at: touristinformation@kaiserslautern.de
KAISERSLAUTERN ON ICE
UNTIL MARCH 9, MESSEPLATZ, KAISERSLAUTERN
Time to lace your skates and turn pirouettes, it’s the icy time of the year again! This year too, ice skating fun at Messeplatz in Kaiserslautern is a wonderful opportunity to enjoy the winter atmosphere. Great music events will take place at the ice rink every week, for a full schedule visit: https://mrf-erlebniswelt.de/events
EASTER EGG MARKETS
VARIOUS DATES/MONASTERY LOCATIONS
Germany and Europe have a long tradition of elaborately decorating Easter eggs. Watch artists from the Ukraine, France, the Netherlands, Hungary, Poland, Slovakia, England, Belgium and Germany work and display their crafts at various markets in historical monasteries throughout southwestern Germany. Dates: March 8-9 Kloster Seligenstadt, March 15-16 Kloster Eberbach, Eltville, March 22-23 Kloster Maulbronn. The opening times are 10:00/11:00 a.m. to 5:00/6:00 p.m.
HOMBURG FLEA AND ANTIQUES MARKET
MARCH 1, 8:00 A.M. – 4 P.M., FORUM/LANDRATSAMT, HOMBURG
The biggest flea market in southwest Germany, always takes place on the first Saturday of the month. The flea market was launched in 1975 and has developed into the largest in southwest Germany. Traders and customers find opportunities to sell and buy goods from January to November. The flea market has become the top address for customers from France, Luxembourg and Belgium, and all this makes the flea market a tourist attraction. Further dates: Apr. 5, May 3, June 7.
JAZZBÜHNE MEETS NATO-JAZZ
MARCH 14, 7:30 P.M., FRUCHTHALLE/JAZZ STAGE, KAISERS-LAUTERN
In this concert, the jazz stage once again invites special guests to take a journey through jazz history. Professional musicians in uniform, from top jazz ensembles from NATO member countries, merge with the Lautrer Jazz Trio into a musical unity after just one rehearsal. The proceeds from this concert in cooperation with the NATO Music Festival Foundation will once again be used for a charitable cause. This unique cooperation project between the Culture Department and the Headquarters Allied Air Command in Ramstein arose from the former military music festival at Betzenberg stadium. Betzenberg. https://www.eventim.de
LUMINESCENCES (LANTERN FESTIVAL)
UNTIL MARCH 29, ZOO AMNÉVILLE, FRANCE
The third lantern festival is back in force with a new theme: Magic Indies. Luminescences is a colorful and luminous invitation to discover South Asian culture and nature. It is a 1.4 km route through the zoo’s alleys, featuring over 10,000 light installations to be discovered as soon as night falls. Get ready to embark on a magical journey you’ll long remember! Please make sure to read opening times and important information at: https://zoo-amneville.com/en/common-questions/
EXHIBIT: OPERATION VITTLES
MARCH 23, DOCU CENTER RAMSTEIN
The next special exhibit commemorates the Berlin Airlift and will be in three sections: General information about the airlift, safeguarding the cargo by the 86th Fighter Wing (now 86th Airlift Wing at Ramstein Air Base) and loading/unloading of cargo by labor service units. In addition to the Docu Center’s own collection, there will be a special collection from the Allied Museum in Berlin. The 86th Airlift Wing historian also provided photos and historical documents. Don’t miss out on this unique exhibit. For details and opening hours, visit: https://www.dc-ramstein.de/
9TH HINKELSTEIN HIKING MARATHON/TRAIL
MARCH 30, OTTERBERG
With the first rays of spring sunshine, hiking enthusiasts and trail running fans can put their early sporting form to the test and take part in the “9. Hinkelstein Hiking Marathon/Trail” and look forward to an exciting outdoor event.
In the vicinity of the imposing abbey church with the start and finish point at the town hall in Otterberg, the varied route follows the certified Hinkelsteinweg: In addition to natural forest paths and passages across open fields, past historical boundary stones, menhirs and idyllic ponds, the path offers attractive and breathtaking landscapes views, including the Donnersberg, the highest mountain in the Palatinate. Whether at a moderate or brisk hiking pace in the marathon distance, hikers and trail runners have to cover a total of around 42 kilometers and 500 meters in altitude. A half marathon distance of approx. 22 kilometers and 200 meters in altitude is also offered as an option for hikers.
The start times are 7:30 a.m. – 8 a.m. for the marathon, 8 a.m. – 9 a.m. for the half marathon and 9 a.m. – 9:30 a.m. for the trail. The route is marked and signposted throughout and there are various refreshment stations and checkpoints set up for all participants along the way.
Registration portal: https://www.otterbach-otterberg.de/tourismus-freizeit/wandern/hinkelsteinweg/hinkelstein-wandermarathon-trail/
Further information is available at https://www.otterbach-otterberg.de/tourismus-freizeit/wandern/hinkelsteinweg/hinkelstein-wandermarathon-trail/
or at the Tourist Information in Otterberg, Hauptstrasse 54, Tel. 06301 – 607800, tourist-info@otterbach-otterberg.de
