Altstadtfest Sulzbach-Rosenberg

An Upper Palatinate Festival Tradition

The Altstadtfest Sulzbach-Rosenberg has been held annually for decades on the last weekend of June. The twin town of Sulzbach-Rosenberg – the district town of Amberg-Sulzbach in the northern Upper Palatinate, formed in 1934 from the merger of the former residential town of Sulzbach and the mining and industrial town of Rosenberg – has a particularly well-preserved old town with a castle, parish church, Schanze (fortifications), and medieval market buildings. This historic backdrop serves as the festival's stage for three days.

Seven Stages, All Genres

Musical diversity is the festival's hallmark. Live acts alternate on seven stages in the old town:

• Folk music and Bavarian brass music – traditional Upper Palatinate bands
• Rock and Cover – regional and national cover bands
• Country and Rhythm & Blues – one of the few city festivals with an explicit North American genre focus
• Trash Metal Core – its own harder stage, which distinguishes the festival from other old town festivals
• Singer-songwriters, acoustic sets, and up-and-coming artists

Medieval Camp on the Schanze

A special feature of the Sulzbach Old Town Festival: the medieval camp of the historical group Stiber-Fähnlein on the Schanze (castle garden / ramparts). Here, members of the group demonstrate old crafts – blacksmithing, rope making, torch making, basket weaving – in authentic costumes, along with camp life, medieval food, and weapons demonstrations. A format that connects the old town festival with the rich historical heritage of the town.

City Run, Children's Program, Gastronomy

On Saturday morning, a city run through the old town starts with various distances for adults and children. For the youngest guests, there is a dedicated children's program with hands-on activities, games, and creative workshops. The culinary offerings are dominated by Upper Palatinate specialties – Zoigl and Sperber-Bräu beer, roast pork, sausages, snacks – as well as contributions from participating clubs, restaurants, and kindergartens.

Sperber-Bräu and Sulzbach Brewing Tradition

A Sulzbach specialty is the Sperber-Bräu brewery, one of the oldest breweries in the Upper Palatinate, whose beer is a fixture of the Altstadtfest. The combination of beer, mining history (Maximilianshütte), and Renaissance residence makes Sulzbach-Rosenberg a multi-dimensional cultural experience – the Altstadtfest encapsulates this in three days.

Three Days of City Festival in the Northern Upper Palatinate

With around 20,000 inhabitants, Sulzbach-Rosenberg is manageable, but the Altstadtfest attracts visitors from all over the northern Upper Palatinate, the Bavarian Forest, and Franconian Switzerland. It is considered one of the larger old town festivals in the region, combining city festival atmosphere with historical staging – without artificiality.