Dürkheim Sausages Fair
In the heart of Rheinland-Palatinate, the biggest wine region in Germany, this fair is especially well known because it celebrates the excellent local wines, although it is called “Sausages Fair” (“Wurstmarkt”). The fair is proud of being the world’s largest harvest festival and one of the biggest, most traditional and entertaining public festivals in Germany, which has been celebrated for almost six centuries.
Every year, the Wurstmarkt takes place at the end of September in Dürkheim village. The entertainment, along with the wine, is one of the distinctive features of the festival: visitors can enjoy over 150 different wines in over 50 different places. But although the Dürkheim wine is the main attraction, the Wurstmarkt would be unthinkable without its travelling fairground with fun for the whole family. The wheel, the firing stands and bumper cars are just some of its most popular attractions. What’s more, visitors can buy wines from Bad Dürkheim and taste traditional sausages and also a variety of regional delights.
Another major attraction of the Wurstmarkt is the dialect and the humour of the local people. The combination of wine and literature offered on the first Monday of the Wurstmarkt comes highly recommended.
In addition to the wine experience it’s recommended that visitors take time out to enjoy a short walk to the Michaelskapelle (St. Michael’s Chapel) which sits on the Michaelsberg above the market. Up until the 15th century, pilgrims walked up the hill on St. Michael’s Day and this is the origin of the Wurstmarkt festival. It was a peregrination center and in order to feed the peregrines, an autumnal market appeared with two predominant products: sausages and wine.
The event has two editions each year which happens two weekends in a row with a few-days break.