Dresden Stollen Festival
Dresdner Stollenfest51°03′ N 13°44′ EProcessionDec 5, 2026Seasonal
The Stollenfest suits anyone who wants to see Dresden's bakers parade a giant stollen through the old town, and about 65,000 people came in 2025, so expect full streets. It falls on Saturday 5 December 2026.
The bakers of the Schutzverband Dresdner Stollen have held the festival since 1994, and their association looks after the protected name Dresdner Christstollen. Hundreds of bakers march with fanfare bands and costume groups, and the year's Stollenmädchen joins them as the festival's patron. A wagon carries the giant stollen, which weighed more than two tonnes in 2025. At the stage in front of the Kulturpalast it is cut and sold, and part of the takings goes to a local charity each year.
The festival borrows its idea from 1730, when Augustus the Strong had the baker Johann Andreas Zacharias and 60 helpers bake a stollen of about 1,800 kilograms for the Zeithain pleasure camp. A cultural researcher came across an engraving of that feast in the early 1990s. In 1994 Dresden's bakers made a stollen of the same weight for the first festival.
Worth knowing
- Stand along the route in the old town well before noon; the parade reaches the stage at the Kulturpalast at 12:00.
- Buy a slice of the giant stollen at the stage; part of the money goes to the year's charity project.
Quick answers about Dresden Stollen Festival
When is the Dresden Stollenfest in 2026?
The Dresdner Stollenfest is on Saturday 5 December 2026, the organizer confirms. It always falls on the Saturday before Advent 2.
What happens at the Dresden Stollenfest?
A parade of bakers and bands carries a giant Dresdner Christstollen through the old town to the stage in front of the Kulturpalast, where it is cut and sold. In 2025 the stollen weighed more than two tonnes.
What are the opening hours of Dresden Stollen Festival?
Dresden Stollen Festival is open the parade reaches the festival stage at the Kulturpalast at 12:00. The full 2026 timetable is not out yet.