Altötting Monastery Market

Altötting — Pilgrimage City and Monastery Market

For centuries, Altötting in southeastern Upper Bavaria has been one of Central Europe's most important Marian pilgrimage sites. At its heart is the Chapel of Grace with the Black Madonna of Altötting — the destination for several hundred thousand pilgrims each year. The Kapellplatz surrounding the chapel has always been the spiritual center of the city.

The Idea of the Monastery Market

Since 2004, this square has opened up once a year for a special market: Monasteries, abbeys, and religious communities from all over Germany, Austria, Italy, and other European countries travel here with their products. The idea: the centuries-old economic and craft traditions of the monastic communities — brewing, distilling, beekeeping, cheesemaking, baking, carpentry, pottery, candle making — are made visible to a broad audience in close proximity to the Chapel of Grace.

Over 30,000 Visitors Annually

With over 30,000 visitors annually, the market is one of the largest monastery markets in the German-speaking world. The organizer is Altöttinger Klostermarkt e.V. in cooperation with the City of Altötting and the Catholic Parish of St. Philippus and Jakobus.

What is Offered

The range of products from the monasteries is exceptionally diverse:

• Monastery Beer — from Andechs, Ettal, Weltenburg, Mallersdorf, Mehrerau, and other monastery breweries
• Monastery Wine — from vineyards of Bavarian and Austrian monasteries
• Liqueurs, digestifs, monastery schnapps from the monastery pharmacy
• Honey from the monastery's own apiary, jams, preserves
• Cheese from the monastery dairies
• Bread, pastries, and gingerbread from monastery bakeries
• Herbs, teas, and remedies from the monastery garden tradition
• Candles, soaps, natural cosmetics
• Handicrafts: icons, wood and clay work, embroidery, books, and devotional items

Opening and Participation

The market is traditionally opened by a prominent monastic figure. In 2026, this role will be taken by Abbot Primate Jeremias Schröder OSB from Rome — the supreme representative of the worldwide Benedictine Confederation — on Friday, September 4th, at 4:00 PM.

Atmosphere

Unlike a classic weekly market, the Monastery Market combines spiritual encounter with culinary experience. Often, the monastics themselves — monks and nuns — are at the stands, sharing stories about their house's traditions. Spiritual programs accompany the market: Marian devotions in the Chapel of Grace, concerts, vespers.