3 Tage Marburg – City Festival

Three Days Marburg – A Festival for Everyone

The city festival "3 Tage Marburg" (short 3TM) is Mittelhessen's largest city festival and takes place every year on the second weekend in July. The organizer since the beginning has been Marbuch-Verlag, a Marburg-based publishing house. In 2026, the event runs from July 10th to 12th – three days during which the historic city center of the university town transforms into a festival mile.

City Festival on Multiple Squares

The program is spread across the entire Marburg city center: the market square in front of the Renaissance town hall, Steinweg, Reitgasse, Schuhmarkt, and the Lahn riverbanks. Several stages will be set up, allowing for simultaneous performances at different locations. The musical genre spectrum is exceptionally broad: rock, pop, jazz, classical, and world music. In addition, there are sports activities.

The Dragon Boat Race on the Lahn

A highlight that distinguishes 3TM from other city festivals: the dragon boat race on the Lahn. Teams from Marburg and the surrounding area – often including university teams – compete against each other on the river flowing through Marburg's city center in traditional dragon boats. Spectators line the Lahn riverbanks and bridges, contributing to the special atmosphere of this city festival.

Marburg, University Town with Half-Timbered Scenery

With around 76,000 inhabitants, Marburg is the university town of the oldest Protestant university in the world (founded 1527, Philipps University). The city is picturesquely situated on the Lahn river, with the Landgrafenschloss (Landgrave's Castle) towering 102 meters above the old town, and the Elisabethkirche (St. Elizabeth's Church) being one of the first purely Gothic church buildings north of the Alps. The historic upper town with its narrow, cobblestone streets and half-timbered buildings forms part of the festival backdrop.

Students Meet Tradition

With approximately 24,000 students, Marburg is a city with a strong student presence. The 3TM brings together students, long-time Marburg residents, families from the Marburg-Biedenkopf district, and visitors from the surrounding Mittelhessen region. The atmosphere is correspondingly lively – young, diverse, academically influenced, yet accessible.

City Festival That Includes the Location

Unlike some city festivals held in isolated locations, 3TM involves the entire city: local restaurateurs extend their outdoor seating areas, university bookstores host readings, and the Lahn bridges become observation decks for the dragon boat race. This creates a format that turns the city itself into a stage.