Every year, the Tollwood Winter Festival shines on the Theresienwiese! While in September it delights visitors from all over the world with the world-famous Oktoberfest, in winter it transforms into the setting for a unique alternative Christmas market. There is not only mulled wine, bratwurst and roasted almonds under twinkling lights, but also thrilling performances by artists from the circus and music scene.
These spectacular performances take place in the “Grand Chapiteau”, the acrobats’ seated arena. Under the motto “Festival du cirque”, you can experience impressive acrobatic shows by Circa, Circo Zoé and “The 7 Fingers” in the large theater tent. Before the premiere, you can watch the athletic artists rehearse their acts – often upside down on the rope! If you don’t have tickets yet, you should snap them up quickly, as there are only a few tickets left.
Around 400 events await you at the Tollwood Winter Festival. These include 60 concerts in the “Hexenkessel”, where the already fully booked senior citizens’ afternoons and the big New Year’s Eve party also take place. If you want to take a break between all the hustle and bustle, you can relax in the reading lounge in the bazaar tent, which is always open. Books and newspapers are available there for you to relax on cozy sofas and armchairs. And no one at the Tollwood Festival needs to worry about getting hungry – with over 50 food stalls, there is something for every taste.
This year, the “Ess-Zimmer” will reopen for the first time after the pandemic. African specialties such as anousi, bantou spinach or sambusa with voodoo sauce await you there. Also new is “Ravellis Manufaktur für feine Leckereien” in the bazaar tent, where you can enjoy three types of organic pumpkin seeds in variations such as ginger caramel or gingerbread. If you like it traditional, you should try the three types of dumplings – bacon, spinach and Kaspressknödel – in the main entrance street.
There is a deeper meaning behind all the lights, shows and decorations. The festival’s motto is “Get active and stand up courageously for an open society, community and peace”. To symbolize this message, the so-called value benches were set up on the plaza in the bazaar at the southern end of the site. Every day, a bench with a specific theme is painted, covered with stickers and written on – visitors can give free rein to their creativity and get involved in promoting important social values. The motto “We need you!” stands for justice, freedom and the inviolability of human dignity, which can only be preserved in our society through active engagement.