If you know me at all, you already know I’m obsessed with pretzels. So, when I found out there was a whole pretzel festival in Germany, I planned my entire summer around it. And it was such a good time!
If you’ll be traveling around Germany in the summer and don’t want to wait until September for some Oktoberfestivities, I highly recommend a visit to Speyer for this unique celebration. This post will tell you everything you need to know about the Speyer Brezelfest—Germany’s quirky pretzel festival. Enjoy!
What is Speyer Brezelfest?
The Speyer Brezelfest is an annual summer volksfest in the small town of Speyer. (A Volksfest is what you’d call Oktoberfest in Munich or the Cannstatter Wasen in Stuttgart. Think: beer festival + carnival + local traditions.)
This festival celebrates the beloved Speyer pretzel (and just pretzels in general) and the pretzel theme is everywhere. There are beer tents and beer gardens, great food and drink options, live entertainment, fun carnival-style rides and games, exciting events, and more.
Speyer Brezelfest has been happening mostly annually (wars and pandemics and such) since 1910. In fact, this is actually the largest volksfest in this entire region of Germany–a fact they’re very proud of.
The Speyer Pretzel
Legend has it that the modern German pretzel we all know and love was born here in Speyer. (This legend involves a baker, a wedding, a cat, and a happy accident, the way most legends do.) Of course, no one knows if this is all true or not, but don’t say that to anyone in Speyer.
Regardless, Speyer is, without a doubt, a town formed around the history of the delicious pretzel and pretzels remain a huge cultural aspect here. There are pretzel kiosks up and down the main thoroughfare; the street crossing lights even feature the famous brezelbu (“pretzel boy”); the cathedral has a pretzel on its façade; and, of course, the giant pretzel festival of which I’m about to speak.
When is the Speyer Brezelfest?
The Speyer Brezelfest takes place annually in early-mid July. Dates change each year, but it always begins on the Thursday before the second weekend in July and ends on the following Tuesday. The opening times for the festival grounds vary each day (check the official program for the most up-to-date info.)
Speyer Brezelfest 2027 will take place from Thursday July 8 to Tuesday July 13, 2027.
Where is Germany’s pretzel festival?
As the name suggests, Speyer Brezelfest takes place in the town of Speyer, Germany. Speyer is located near Germany’s far-western border with France in the state of Rhineland-Palatinate (or Rheinland-Pfalz as they say here).
Speyer is about a:
Also check out: Why You Need to Stay at the Bratwurst Hotel on Your Next Trip to Germany
How to get to Speyer
Getting to Speyer is easy and, as you can see, you can get here fairly quickly from many other great Germany destinations. If you have your own rental car, getting here is super straightforward and there are lots of cheap and easy parking areas around town. (Rent a car here if you need one.)
When I visited in 2026, I drove here from Munich (via a stop in the Black Forest). I parked for my entire visit at the Postgalerie Tiefgarage. I was able to walk everywhere I needed to go in Speyer and didn’t move my car until I left town.
You can also easily take the train here from just about anywhere. Trains from the cities mentioned above take about the same amount of time and pretty much all of them involve just one transfer. Check out train schedules and rates here.
Where to stay in Speyer
Speyer has tons of great hotel options, but I personally stayed at the Hotel Goldener Engel and loved it. The location is perfect (with parking right across the street) and we were able to walk everywhere. Our room and bathroom were both huge and the staff was so nice.
But really, the biggest of props go to their flawless and much-needed air conditioning. It was literally 100°F during our visit and I can’t even imagine having to stay in a non-air-conditioned hotel. Nein. Just nein.
Book your room at the Hotel Goldener Engel here.
As far as other options, here are the other Speyer hotels I considered:
- Hotel Domhof – Excellent reviews, beautiful modern rooms, its own beer garden, free private parking on-site.
- Hotel Residenz am Königsplatz – More great reviews, in a quieter location but still central and walkable to almost everything.
- Hotel zum Kaiserdom – Exceptional reviews, air conditioning, right outside the town’s cathedral and walkable to everywhere, super close to the pretzel festival in case you see many many beers in your future.
- Check out all other Speyer hotels here.
What to do at the Speyer pretzel festival
The Speyer Brezelfest is your typical German volksfest. But if you’ve never been to one of those, know that you can expect a lot of beer drinking, great food to eat, and live entertainment with dancing on benches. There’s also tons of carnival-type rides and games for kids and (probably drunk) adults alike.
Speyer Brezelfest beer gardens & tents
If you’re used to the beer tent situation at Oktoberfest, you might be slightly disappointed, only because this festival is so much smaller. But, it’s still the same vibe everywhere you go here.
There are a few main areas within the festival to check out:
Speyer Brezelfest food & drinks
After you’ve had your fill of pretzels (obviously), there’s tons more great food to try here. You’ll find everything from delicious bratwursts and other typical volksfest stuff like currywurst, candied almonds, and dampfnudel, to flammkuchen, pizzas, pork sandwiches, pasta, and beyond.
The beer you’ll be drinking here is Eichbaum (delicious), but the craziest thing… no one drinks liters here! Technically you can order a maß if you want, but it’s not the norm and you’ll definitely stand out. Instead, ½ liters it is. In fact, I’d even say I saw more people drinking something other than beer here. What alternate universe have I stumbled into??
You can also get radlers, wine, Schorle, non-alcoholic drinks, cocktails, sekt (German sparkling wine), and pretty much anything else here. A lot of (terribly misguided) people were drinking Aperol spritz.
Pro tip: The sandwiches from the tent that’s roasting a pig outside (near one of the exits) are phenomenal. We ate here twice. In one day.
Speyer Brezelfest entertainment
Every night of the festival (beginning at either 6 or 7pm depending on the day) there are multiple live bands and DJs on the festival’s three main music stages—the music beer garden, the marquee, and the wine tent.
The bands in the music beer garden play mostly rock music. If you want to hear songs by bands like AC/DC, Queen, Billy Idol, etc., this is the stage for you. (But many of the bands that play here also play their own stuff too.)
In the main tent (the Marquee), expect to hear classic German schlager hits, more of the stuff you’d expect to hear at Oktoberfest if you’ve been. (Check out my Oktoberfest playlist here.) Expect a lot of high energy party music including recent hits, 80s and 90s classics, and probably a lot of stuff you don’t know unless you speak German.
In the wine tent, you’ll hear mostly DJs spinning electronic music of some sort.
Rides & games
Like Oktoberfest and all the other German volksfests out there, you’ll also find a bunch of loud and flashy carnival-style rides and games. Ride responsibly (before you drink), that’s all I’m saying here.
Flea market
There’s also a pretty big flea market here that’s open for the entirety of the festival. You’ll be able to buy stuff like clothes, home goods, jewelry, bags, shoes, and all kinds of other stuff.
Pretzel festival souvenirs
There’s also a really great souvenir booth here at the pretzel festival. They sell a ton of pretzel-themed jewelry, t-shirts, bags, pins, hats, magnets, and I even bought a Speyerer Brezelfest flag to wave around like the pretzel fangirl maniac that I am. But the best part is that everything here is incredibly reasonably priced. Some would even say “shockingly cheap.” (It’s me; I am “some.”)
Pretzel festival events
Besides the actual festival, there are a bunch of festival-related events as well, like:
The pretzel parade
The main pretzel parade happens on Sunday afternoon and it is so fun! It’s your standard small-town parade filled with floats, marching bands, performers, local civic groups of all sorts, and so much more. But the best part is all the pretzels!
Tons of the parade floats actually throw pretzels out to the crowd so it’s fun to see how many you can catch. They also throw out tons of candy, stickers, and other goodies for kids. The agriculture groups passed out wildflower seed packets which I love as well as fresh vegetables. (I caught a carrot!)
The parade starts in the western part of the city and winds its way around until it reaches Maximilianstraße (the main street in the center of town) and ends behind the cathedral near the festival entrance. We watched from the middle of Maximilianstraße which I’d say is probably the best place to be.
Day of traditional attire
The powers that be have dubbed the Saturday of the festival the “day of traditional attire.” This is when you’re supposed to wear your traditional Bavarian trachten (dirndls and lederhosen). And if you know me at all, you know I’ll find any excuse to wear one of my dozens of dirndls.
I was really excited about this and even made a new pretzel-themed apron to go with mine. But alas, ‘twas an oppressively humid 100°F day this year and I couldn’t even fathom going outside in a skin-tight dress and blouse. Absolutely not.
That said, there actually weren’t a whole lot of people dressed up in traditional attire anyway. I’m sure some of that had to do with how brutally hot it was, though some might have had to do with the fact that Speyer isn’t even in Bavaria? Just a guess. Oh well. Like I said, “any excuse.”
Speyer Brezelfest tips
Here are a few helpful tips and things you need to know for attending your first Speyer Brezelfest:
1. What to wear to Speyer Brezelfest
Traditional attire day aside, this is a summer festival so it’s probably going to be hot. Wear whatever is most comfortable. Your outfit is irrelevant here. (Though might I suggest something from the MWL shop?)
2. Be prepared to pay a Pfand
A Pfand is a small deposit you pay when you order a beer (or whatever else) that you get back when you return the glass. This is why they’ll charge you, say, €12 for a beer when the sign actually says €10. They’ll give you your drink and either a paper ticket or a token of some sort with it.
When you’re done, bring the glass and the token back to where you bought it (or one of the designated Pfand tables) and you’ll get those €2 back (or whatever the amount is). Be aware that different drink vendors may have different Pfand amounts. And don’t lose your token!
3. When to attend the pretzel festival
Most days, the festival doesn’t open until 2pm. Even then, it’s only the rides and other vendors. The bands start each night at either 6 or 7pm (depending) and that’s when the party really gets going. I wouldn’t even bother going before then unless your schedule demands it. Saturday is definitely the busiest and most lively day to attend. Sunday was a lot more chill.
4. Pretzel parade tips
If you plan on attending the pretzel parade, here are my biggest tips for you:
What else to do in Speyer
I was seriously charmed by the town of Speyer as a whole and spent a lot of time exploring outside the festival too. I’m currently working on a post about all the stuff to see and do in Speyer so I’ll post that as soon as it’s ready.
More info for your trip to Germany
Like this post? Have questions about the Speyer Brezelfest? Let me know in the comments below. Have fun in Germany!
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