Dorffest Ratekau

Ratekau — Municipality on the Edge of the Bay of Lübeck

Ratekau, with around 14,500 inhabitants, is one of the larger municipalities in the Ostholstein district. It is located between Lübeck and the Baltic Sea coast — a few kilometers from Hemmelsdorfer See and the Baltic seaside resort of Timmendorfer Strand. Several districts (Ratekau, Sereetz, Techau, Pansdorf) belong to the greater municipality, but the Dorffest Ratekau is clearly focused on the village center.

Tradition Every Two Years

The village festival takes place every two years in even-numbered years — a frequency that allows the municipality to organize a larger and more elaborate festival each time. The date is traditionally the last weekend of August. In 2026, the festival days will be Saturday, August 29, and Sunday, August 30.

Parade as the Kick-off

The actual start of the festival is the parade on Saturday at 2:00 PM: from the assembly point in the street Blüchereiche, a procession of floats, clubs, music bands, and guests of honor — led by the municipal council and Mayor Thomas Keller with his deputy Gabi Spiller — moves along Sereetzer Weg and Bäderstraße into Westring to the village square (Wilhelm-Rehpenn-Platz). The official opening will take place there around 3:00 PM.

Program on Saturday and Sunday

On the two stages at the village square, the program alternates between live music, club performances, and children's entertainment:

• Saturday from 6:30 PM — Jaybee with Blues to Rock (2 hours)
• Saturday from 9:00 PM — The Indispensables with Rock and Pop from the 80s to today (until midnight)
• Sunday from 11:00 AM — Morning pint with live music
• Sunday — Performance by the "Gnisse(e)bären" Boy Group with sea shanties, Schleswig-Holstein songs, and Irish songs

Between the stages, stalls, a shooting gallery, children's activities, and traditional food combine to create the classic village festival atmosphere. The festival is organized jointly by the municipal council, the Ratekau clubs, and the fire department.