Events and festivals in Baden-Württemberg on the weekend of September 19-20, 2026: the Umbrian-Provençal Market marks its 30th edition with more than 100,000 visitors in Tübingen's old town.
Saturday afternoon in Tübingen's old town, somewhere between truffle stalls and brass bands. Baden-Württemberg marks several major traditions across the state on September 19 and 20, 2026. Events and festivals in Baden-Württemberg on the weekend of September 19-20, 2026: the Umbrian-Provençal Market marks its 30th edition with more than 100,000 visitors in Tübingen's old town.
The Umbrian-Provençal Market in Tübingen
Thirty years of market history come together this weekend, with threads reaching into the university town's twin cities. From September 16 to 20, 2026, the Umbrian-Provençal Market turns Tübingen's old town into a Mediterranean marketplace for the thirtieth time. The event rests on the long-standing partnership between Tübingen, Provence and the Italian region of Umbria, and ranks among southern Germany's great food and twin-city festivals.
Twenty-one traders travel in especially from Provence, carrying lavender soap, fabrics, olives and their southern French wines. Just as many food stalls arrive from twin city Perugia, joined by around thirty-five stands from Tübingen itself, selling ceramics, cheese and leather goods. Truffles sit next to wine, craftwork next to street food, packed tight along the narrow lanes of the historic old town.
On September 19, 2026, and again on 19-20 September 2026, buyers and browsers crowd between the stalls during the busiest days of the five-day market. More than 100,000 visitors attend the event, and this thirtieth edition closes on Sunday, September 20, with one last stroll through the old town.
The rest of the weekend
Long-running folk festivals mark several corners of the state this weekend, each carrying its own, often centuries-old history. In Crailsheim, the Franconian folk festival holds its 185th edition from September 18 to 21, with more than 90 showmen, three large festival tents, a trade fair and parades on both weekend days. In the Geislingen district of Eybach, the Eybacher Huttanz has danced on, unbroken, since 1648, founded as a peace celebration after the Thirty Years' War and still one of Germany's oldest circle-dance traditions. Karlsruhe's Durlach district marks its own Durlacher Kerwe, a parish fair more than 400 years old, with classic fairground rides and Baden specialities staged below the Karlsburg.
Two historic sites invite visitors into earlier centuries, each with its own stage for the public. At Hohenzollern Castle in Bisingen, Courtly and Heroic turns the castle courtyard into a medieval stage, with sword-fighting displays, courtly dances and a family programme built around castle life. In Hüfingen, the Hüfingen Roman Festival revives the town's genuinely preserved Roman bath ruins from the Brigobannis fort, with a legionary camp, an antique market and guided tours.
Music and culture run through two cities on Saturday. The 26th Kulturnacht Ulm/Neu-Ulm opens more than 100 venues for around 500 performers and artists across theatres, museums, galleries and churches, with a single ticket for every venue costing 14 euros. In Freiburg, the Freiburg Jazz Festival opens the same day, organised by E-WERK Freiburg and Jazzhaus Freiburg, with nine days of programming between established stars and rising musicians from the region.
Runners and diners get their own programme too. The Tübingen Erbe-Lauf sends runners over 10 kilometres and three laps through the old town on Sunday, starting and finishing at the Neue Aula, with a shorter 5-kilometre route for less practised runners. In Karlsruhe, the Karlsruhe Enjoyment Summer offers a three-course dinner for two at a fixed price of 99 euros in 13 selected restaurants, ranging from classic regional cooking to casual fine dining.