Two times a year, Leopoldstrasse and Ludwigstrasse are transformed into huge pedestrian zones. The cars that usually pass through the city are replaced by a vibrant party strip that attracts countless visitors to Schwabing. In 2022, the whole thing will be a bit smaller, because one of the two street festivals, the Streetlife Festival, will not take place. The organisers want to revise the concept before they start again with fresh ideas. The art and culture festival Corso Leopold will take place as usual.
Leopoldstrasse and Ludwigstrasse in Schwabing have been turned into a mile of excitement and adventure for two weekends a year since the year 2000. The street festival takes place once in spring and once again in autumn; it's said to be one of the biggest of its kind in Europe. Strictly speaking, these two street festivals actually emerged separately, and the original focus was not only on celebrating, but also on idealism.
The Corso Leopold stretches from the Siegestor to the Münchner Freiheit square and dates back to an idea from 1994 that was inspired by cheering football fans who had turned Leopoldstrasse into a party street. One year later, on 21 May 1995, thousands of people strolled down the middle of the road from the Münchner Freiheit square to Odeonsplatz. The motto of the self-proclaimed “Corsaren” was “Hit the road!”. The thought behind this was that the streets didn’t just belong to the cars! The people behind Corso Leopold wanted to make it possible to walk along Leopoldstrasse without cars for two days. But it’s not that easy to block a road in Germany.
In the year 2000, however, luck would have it that the environmental organisation Green City moved its Streetlife Festival to Ludwigstrasse between Odeonsplatz and Siegestor. Before Corona, the original pedestrian movement of the “Corsaren” took place alongside the Streetlife Festival – with a diverse programme spread out across three kilometres.
In 2022, the organisers have announced the temporary end of the Streetlife Festival, because they want to rethink the concept of the festival after 20 years in order to start again with fresh themes at a later date.
The Corso Leopold focuses mainly on art and culture. Each festival has a central artistic theme developed by local artists. Stages are set up at large intersections, and visitors can enjoy music, theatre and readings at various stalls and tents. And there’s certainly no shortage of food stalls.
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