Nuremberg and Straubing battle for Bavaria’s second-biggest festival

Nuremberg and Straubing are disputing which city hosts Bavaria’s second-largest folk festival, BR reported. Nuremberg’s autumn festival begins on August 28, while Straubing’s Gäubodenvolksfest has already finished.

Nuremberg is promoting itself as a “showmen’s city” ahead of the festival’s 200th anniversary. The city insists its event ranks second in Bavaria behind the Wiesn, Bavaria’s largest folk festival.

That claim is challenged by Straubing, whose organisers market the Gäubodenvolksfest as Bavaria’s second-largest. Lorenz Kalb, chairman of the South German Showmen’s Association, supports Nuremberg’s position. He says the number of showmen is the key measure, with about 170 businesses in Nuremberg compared with roughly 130 in Straubing.

Straubing’s Exhibition and Events GmbH points to different figures: seven beer tents with 27,500 seats and total beer sales of 680,000 litres. The festival also features what organisers describe as the world’s largest ghost train, which recently lost a crocodile.

Visitor numbers provide another measure. Before the coronavirus pandemic, Nuremberg’s organisers estimated attendance at between 2.1 million and 2.3 million people, putting it ahead of the Gäubodenvolksfest. Straubing’s organisers expect about 1.3 million visitors this year. They say, however, that more people attend their festival each day.

Rosenheim is taking the battle for second place more calmly. Its Herbstfest draws about one million visitors, fewer than the festivals in Nuremberg and Straubing. Organisers there say most visitors are local and highlight the region’s traditional costumes, brass musicians, whip-crackers and Schuhplattler dancers.

Rosenheim also points to its Flötzinger beer tent, which is described as Europe’s largest timber-built beer tent, as well as a Ferris wheel offering views of the Alps.

Ultimately, the ranking depends on what is being measured. The atmosphere, food, beer and traditions may matter more to visitors than the number of tents, seats or guests. For some, the greatest festival may simply be the one they attended as children, even if it is the small folk festival in Haunzenbergersöll, which has previously advertised itself as Bavaria’s smallest.