Walpurgis Night

WHERE: Braunlage, Germany
WHEN: 30 April 2024

You see the crowding, the bumping into each other, the shuffling that they do. And they scream and moan and chirp and buzz and whistle; and sparkle and sparkle, and burn and burn! Oh, the great devil!
[Mephistopheles in Faust I, Goethe]

Immense bonfires. Bonfires and witches. Demon-possessed people who praise Satan …
Between mysticism and paganism, a sort of Halloween to the extreme, celebrated in Saxony, and, in particular, in the Harz region.

The Walpurgis Night is an extraordinary event that has its roots in the pre-Christian period, as a sort of middle ground between propitiatory rites and the celebrations of Spring.

On the night of April 30, the witches danced around large bonfires on the Blocksberg mountain.
Abundance was invoked in the harvest. Fertility. Prosperity. Often, through esoteric ceremonies.
Then, with different facets, the rites spread almost everywhere. Not just in Germany.

Today, don’t expect any witch hunts, but an extraordinary European event where people dance, laugh and go wild for a whole night. Young and old. Children and adults. Between great fires. Witches, devils and extravagant disguises. Artists, jugglers and fire eaters, who will make your experience truly unforgettable!

PRACTICAL INFO

HOW TO GET

Walpurgis night is celebrated practically all over Germany. The real focus of the celebrations takes place, however, in the Harz region and in the villages of Bad Grund, Braunlage, Hahnenklee, Sankt Andreasberg, Schierke and Thale.
The best way to reach the Region is by train or car. For medium/long-range distances, we recommend using the plane. Hanover and Leipzig are the two closest international airports.

From Leipzig, travel approximately 170 kilometers on the A38 (fastest route) to get to Braunlage. From Hanover airport, however, it takes just over 90 minutes to reach the city.

WALPURGIS NIGHT PROGRAM AND TIMES

The Walpurgis Night of Braunlage takes place between April 30th and May 1st. It starts in the early afternoon.

The program is really wide and rich, involving in particular the youngest ones. In various points of the city, you will find artists and make-up artists ready to create scary masks.

The traditional game of Walpurgis will offer all children the opportunity to show off their courage and get the prize of the Magical Order of Witches.
At 18:00, in the streets of the center, a parade with shady individuals and strange figures awaits you.
At 19:00, however, children can cheer with Walpurgispiel in the city park. Here, in the evening, concerts and shows on the big stage.
And, again, fireworks and lots of food and gastronomy.