Fasching, also known as the Carnival season in Germany, is a time of joy, costumes, and lively celebrations. The way it is observed varies across regions, and it goes by different names: Karneval, Fasching, and Fastnacht. While all three stem from the same pre-Lenten tradition, each region in Germany has its own customs.
- Fasching & Carnival in Germany
- Fasching in Munich
- Open-air carnival and carnival parade 2027
- Pub carnival
- About the fasching balls
- Hire and buy costumes in Munich
- Events carnival season 26/27
- A brief history of Fasching
- Narrhalla: the first ever Fasching society
- About Ash Wednesday
“Karneval” is mostly used in the Rhineland, including cities like Cologne and Düsseldorf, where elaborate parades dominate the celebrations. “Fastnacht” is common in southwestern Germany, including Mainz and parts of Switzerland, where it even extends beyond Ash Wednesday. “Fasching”, the term most frequently used in Bavaria and Austria, brings a unique blend of traditions, particularly in Munich, one of the key centers of celebration in Bavaria.
In Bavaria, Fasching is celebrated in different ways, with Munich hosting one of the largest and most exciting events. The city center turns into a lively festival area, filled with parades, music, and dancing. It is one of the best places to experience a German-style carnival during this vibrant season.
Fasching begins in mid-January with the crowning of the Fasching Prince and Princess (das Faschingsprinzenpaar). The real festivities, however, take place in the week leading up to Ash Wednesday (Aschermittwoch). During this time, Munich is filled with street parties, colorful costumes, and traditional performances.
The colourful hustle and bustle takes place on Shrove Tuesday, February 9, 2027, and is concentrated around the Viktualienmarkt with music and dance performances, while the ceremonial enthronement of the Narrhalla prince and princess takes place on Marienplatz on January 5, 2027. On Sunday, February 7, 2027, the grand carnival procession of the Damische Ritter and the Narrhalla will parade from Isartor via Rosental to Kaufinger Straße. The celebrations continue at Marienplatz with a stage programme before heading to the pub carnival. Another highlight is "München narrisch" (Munich goes crazy), the open-air carnival with stage performances on Marienplatz and at Stachus from Carnival Sunday, February 7, to Carnival Tuesday, February 9, 2027.
The market women have become quite ambitious: in the course of the year they take professional dance lessons in preparation for their big performance at carnival. The performance by the market women would be inconceivable without the choreography to the cult song by folk singer Weißferdl entitled Wagen von der Linie 8 – a hymn to the Munich tram, full of the humour and griping that is so typical of the city. No chance of keeping a straight face!
When it gets cooler outside on Shrove Tuesday, the hustle and bustle shifts from the Viktualienmarkt to the surrounding pubs. And things get colorful here, almost like back in the days of the cult tv show “Monaco Franze”, who already knew in the 80s: “There are things in life and especially in carnival that, if you haven't experienced it yourself, you almost can't believe it.”
The pub carnival in Munich includes the city center pubs Weisses Bräuhaus im Tal, Augustiner am Platzl, Hofbräuhaus, Zum Franziskaner, Restaurant Donisl, Andechser am Dom, Augustiner Klosterwirt, Augustiner Stammhaus, Hackerhaus, Schlagerbar ROY and Der Pschorr (Partykeller Alice). Many also have other events on the other carnival days.
For several years now, selected city centre restaurant owners have offered a Weisswurst (veal sausage) brunch on Shrove Monday: this is served during the morning, since according to an old custom a Weisswurst must not hear the clock strike twelve. Last season, guests had to pay only one to two euro per Weisswurst.
In recent years, for example, Augustiner am Platzl, Augustiner Stammhaus, Hofbräuhaus, Alte Hackerhaus, Spöckmeier and Zum Franziskaner have taken part in the Weißwurst campaign. The establishments participating in 2027 will be announced in good time.
In 2026, the Weißwurstkrapfen celebrated its premiere at the Wirtshausfasching: a Weißwurst patty (created by Thomas Vollmer, Augustiner Stammhaus) in fine doughnut dough from the Conditorei Kreutzkamm, refined with a mustard mixture of sweet Munich mustard and Düsseldorf Löwensenf. The Munich city centre restaurateurs will announce in good time whether the Weißwurstkrapfen will be offered again in 2027.
Munich carnival very much embraces the tradition of the courtly balls and festival halls, as well as the legendary artists' and studio parties that took place in Schwabing in the late 19th century. Nowadays, every club, guild and fraternity puts on its own ball. The spectrum is wide, with numerous events to choose from – whether colourful Künstlerfeste or balls with evening dress. Fasching in Munich has many faces.
The city's carnival strongholds include Deutsches Theater and Hotel Bayerischer Hof as well as beer cellars such as Löwenbräukeller and Augustiner-Keller. At these venues and others like them, Munich's Fasching societies, clubs and associations – first and foremost Narrhalla, founded in 1893 – organise festive gala evenings, balls and parties for carnival fans both young and old, ranging from a salsa party at Pasión de Baile to the family-friendly Pumuckl-Ball.
You can find an overview of the balls at the Deutsches Theater here.
If you still need a costume and don't want to buy anything separately, you can also find a few costume hire shops in Munich, such as Kostüme Breuer in Schwabing – here you can not only hire a funny costume for carnival, but also chic evening wear for a special event or dirndls and lederhosen for a visit to the Oktoberfest. Those who like it spooky will find what they are looking for among the masks, disguises and all kinds of horror accessories in the Halloween Gore Store in Müllerstraße. And the Kostümfundus treibstoff in Maxvorstadt offers new and old unique items from theatre and film productions.
Costume sales also take place at theatres and opera houses in Munich throughout the year: Once a year, for example, the Gärtnerplatztheater makes room in its stockroom and sells handmade one-offs and special stage costumes. The Bayerische Staatsoper also regularly opens its wardrobes at the end of the year for a big costume sale. At the Münchner Theater für Kinder, this event takes place in February to coincide with carnival!
The dates will follow in the course of the year.
You can also find more information about the 2027 carnival in Munich at www.fasching-muenchen.de.
While other countries and cities celebrate carnival, the people of Munich have what they call Fasching.
The word Fasching itself developed from the Middle High German vaschanc or Fastnacht, i.e. the night before fasting begins, when everyone has one more chance to let loose and engage in high-spirited partying. Being of Bavarian and Austrian origin, the term Fasching is only used in southern Germany. The Munich Fasching probably originated from the war dances and knights’ games of the Middle Ages, with the first documentary evidence dating back to the 15th century. Over the years, carnival activities became increasingly mixed with local customs.
Up until his death, Künstlerfürst (“Prince of Artists”) Franz von Lenbach (1836 – 1904), whose villa today houses Städtische Galerie im Lenbachhaus (art gallery) with its Blauer Reiter collection, was president of the association Allotria, which organised Fasching processions of historic proportions.
The Munich Fasching saw its heyday in the late 19th century, when artists' and studio festivals, parades and jesters' balls were co-sponsored by leading artists of the time. The epicentre was Schwabing's bohemian scene with its artists, writers and free spirits who had settled in the vicinity of the newly built Akademie der Bildenden Künste (Academy of Fine Arts) that opened in 1886.
Up until his death, Künstlerfürst (“Prince of Artists”) Franz von Lenbach (1836 – 1904), whose villa today houses Städtische Galerie im Lenbachhaus with its Blauer Reiter collection, was president of the association Allotria, which organised Fasching processions of historic proportions. Renowned artists such as August Kaulbach designed costumes and sets. The Fasching festivities of these wild years were captured in the works of humourists such as Wilhelm Busch and Karl Valentin and by painters such as Carl Spitzweg and Pieter Breughel.
1893 saw the founding of the first ever Fasching society, Narrhalla, marking the birth of Munich's very own carnival tradition. In addition to a procession, the society started out by mainly organising charity festivals in support of the poor population. The idea was to recreate some of the flair of the Cologne carnival in the city on the Isar river. The coronation of the new prince and princess continues to take place every year: they are the official Gaudimonarchen (“monarchs of fun”) of the City of Munich and receive the golden key of the city from the Mayor at the beginning of the carnival season.
1893 saw the founding of the first ever Fasching society, Narrhalla, marking the birth of Munich's very own carnival tradition.
Helping social causes is still something Narrhalla is deeply committed to: three quarters of all performances and visits take place at social institutions such as homes for the elderly and care facilities, with the aim of bringing joy to those who are unable to take part in the colourful Fasching festivities themselves.
When carnival is laid to rest with a humorous speech at the stroke of midnight on Shrove Tuesday, Ash Wednesday marks the beginning of Lent. But even on Ash Wednesday, not everything is over in Munich. This is the day when the people of Munich take their wallets – which are empty from Fasching – and wash them in the Fischbrunnen fountain on Marienplatz. The Mayor also joins in his tradition, symbolically dipping his municipal purse into the fountain – which supposedly helps fill the coffers with fresh money. This is directly followed by a fish dinner: it is in this way that many traditional Munich restaurants mark the beginning of Lent, which certainly has its attractions, too. After all, no sooner is carnival over than the strong beer season is upon us in Munich.
