Events and festivals in Rhineland-Palatinate on October 31 and November 1, 2026 range from Halloween to new wine. In Pirmasens, over 1,000 costumed fans parade through town every year, and a fire show is the highlight.
Fire on the Exe. That is the Exerzierplatz in Pirmasens, where the Halloween Spectacle takes place on Saturday, October 31, 2026. In Pirmasens, over 1,000 costumed fans parade through town every year, and a fire show is the highlight.
The Halloween Spectacle on the Exerzierplatz in Pirmasens
The Halloween Spectacle in Pirmasens takes over the Exerzierplatz and the pedestrian zone on Saturday. It is the town's colourful contribution to the international Halloween tradition. Ghosts, vampires, witches, monsters, skeletons and the undead set the scene, joined by fanfares that give the proceedings a ritual feel.
More than 1,000 horror fans in costume walk through the city centre every year and meet thousands of onlookers. The costume parade runs through the pedestrian zone.
The fire show on the Exe is the high point.
Halloween in Pirmasens is a family outing. Many come dressed up, others to watch, the children go all out on their costumes, and the parents tag along. Light effects and fire shape the evening mood.
In Pirmasens, entry is usually free, costumes are welcome, and an early arrival is wise if the crowds are large.
Cellar vaults, new wine and Saturday markets
Beneath the old town of Oppenheim, the cellar labyrinth opens on Saturday for a special Halloween tour. Torches and candles replace electric light, and costumed guides tell of the Black Death and the Thirty Years' War. Several tours run in the evening, group sizes are limited, and booking goes through the tourist information office. The tour is not suitable for very small children.
The Halloween party at GLEIS4 in Frankenthal fills a former industrial hall with fog machines, cobwebs and pumpkins. Resident DJs play house, chart hits and EDM, and around midnight a jury picks the best costumes. In the big tent at GATE99, the Pfalzwiesen, a self-styled Oktoberfest of the Palatinate, close their run with the bigFM Halloween Party.
At the Federweißenfest in Cochem, Moselle winemakers pour Federweißer, the young, still-fermenting wine, in several colours and stages of maturity in the tent on the Endertplatz, on Saturday and Sunday. Fresh onion tart comes straight from the oven, and pop and Schlager bands alternate on stage. Entry is free.
The guided wine hike in Trittenheim on Saturday, October 31, 2026 leads through the steep vineyards of the Moselle loop. The route is six kilometres long, with four to five stops where local winemakers pour their Rieslings, plus small bites. Taking part costs 49 euros per person, and sturdy shoes are needed.
All Saints' Day on Sunday is a public holiday in Rhineland-Palatinate. On the Hauptmarkt in Trier, the wine stand opens from 11 am to 10 pm for the last time this season, serving Moselle wine straight from the grower between the Porta Nigra and the cathedral.
On Saturday at 9 am the market breakfast starts in Mainz: Rheinhessen winemakers pour wine on Schillerplatz, Tritonplatz and Fischtorplatz, with Weck and Worscht (rolls and sausage) until 3 pm. On the market square in Worms, the Wormser MarktWinzer serve their wines on Saturdays from 9 am between the Dreifaltigkeitskirche and the cathedral, and the format marks its tenth anniversary in 2026.
In Kaiserslautern, the Gartenschau shows its pumpkin exhibition for the last time on Saturday, with around 45,000 pumpkins under the motto Fire.