Freiburg Fasnet 2026 — Street Fasnet & Rose Monday Parade

Swabian-Alemannic Fasnet in the Breisgau Region

The Freiburg Fasnet is one of the major stages of the Swabian-Alemannic Fastnacht — a South German carnival culture that fundamentally differs from the Rhenish "Fasching" variant. The focus is on artistic wooden masks (Larven), traditional costumes (Häs), carnival calls (Narrenrufe), and guild customs, some of which have been passed down for centuries. The organizer of all major events is the Breisgauer Narrenzunft e.V.

Schedule of the 2026 Fasnet

Schmutziger Donnerstag, February 12, 2026: Opening of the street Fasnet with the "Hemdglonkerumzug" (nightgown parade) in the evening. Schools are "stormed," and the town hall is symbolically taken over. The jesters take charge from this day on.

Fasnetsfreitag to Fasnetssonntag (February 13–15): Daytime activities in the old town, evening jester balls and witch dances. The Fasnet figures — Breisgauer Hexen (Freiburg Witches), Schopfheimer Salpeterer, Narros — are out and about in the alleys.

Grand Rose Monday Parade, Monday, February 16, 2026, 2:00 PM: The highlight of the Fasnet. Over 4,000 costumed participants from more than 120 carnival guilds in the region march through the city center — from Konstanz in the south to Offenburg in the north, almost every traditional guild is represented. The parade typically starts at Kaiser-Joseph-Straße and leads across Rathausplatz and Martinstor.

Fasnetsdienstag, February 17, 2026 — Geldbeutelwäsche: On Rathausplatz, purses are symbolically washed in a fountain — a custom that ritually ends the financial drain of the Fasnet days. Afterwards, a mourning procession for the "burial" of the Fasnet.

Costumed Participants and Guild Customs

Over 4,000 costumed participants take part in the Rose Monday Parade. They wear hand-carved wooden masks, often heirlooms passed down through generations. The most important Freiburg figures are the "Breisgauer Hexen," the "Breisgauer Narro," and the "Schopfheimer Salpeterer." Each guild has its own carnival call — in Freiburg, "Hoorig, Hoorig isch die Katz" (The cat is horny) is common.

Tradition and Present

The Swabian-Alemannic Fasnet has been a UNESCO Intangible Cultural Heritage of Germany since 2014. The Breisgauer Narrenzunft is a member of the "Vereinigung Schwäbisch-Alemannischer Narrenzünfte" (VSAN), which cultivates the umbrella organizational character of the tradition.