Hansefest Neuss

Hanseatic City of Neuss – A Forgotten Heritage

That Neuss was one of the Hanseatic cities is less well-known today than the Hanseatic status of Lübeck, Hamburg, or Cologne. However, the city on the left bank of the Lower Rhine was an important trading metropolis of the Hanseatic League in the 13th and 14th centuries – with its own staple rights and close ties to the Hanseatic kontors in Bruges, London, and Bergen. With the Hansefest Neuss, the city annually revives this heritage on the third September weekend.

Date 2026: September 19/20

The 2026 edition takes place on Saturday, September 19, and Sunday, September 20, 2026. The venue is the entire city center, with a focus around the Quirinus Münster (Freithof, Markt, Münsterplatz). Free admission.

Hanseatic Cities as Guests

The special feature of the Neuss Hansefest: it is a partnership festival. Every year, friendly Hanseatic cities present themselves with their own stands, specialties, and cultural contributions. Regularly attending: Wesel (Lower Rhine Hanseatic City), Kalkar/Grieth, Emmerich am Rhein, Salzwedel (famous for Baumkuchen), and Brilon (Sauerland Hanseatic City). A journey through the Hanseatic history of the Rhineland, the Lower Rhine, and beyond.

Marketplace with Music and Crafts

On the stage in front of the town hall, an entertainment and information program with local and visiting artists runs on both days. Between the town hall, Markt, and Freithof, there are arts and crafts stalls: potters, leatherworkers, basket weavers, wool merchants, bookbinders, blacksmiths – some in medieval attire. In addition, there are food stalls with Hanseatic specialties: roasted herring, hearty stew, mead, beer according to historical recipes.

Historical Camp and Hands-on Program

A historical camp by the Hanse-Gesellschaft Neuss demonstrates the daily life of a Hanseatic garrison: camp life, craft techniques, weapon knowledge. The Jugendhanse Neuss – its own initiative – is present with hands-on activities and a children's program: blacksmithing for children, writing with quills, messenger runs through the city center.

Quirinus Münster as a Backdrop

The backdrop of the festival is extraordinary: the late Romanesque Quirinus Münster (12th/13th century) with its double-towered crossing apse dominates the square. In Hanseatic times, Quirinus was the city's patron saint – and even today, the Münster stands as a symbol of the economic and religious significance of historical Neuss.

Neuss – Hanseatic City on the Rhine

Neuss is the southernmost Hanseatic city in Germany. The city actively cultivates its membership in the modern Hanseatic Cities' League – with representation at Hanseatic Days, with city marketing campaigns, and with this annual Hansefest. In the Rhein-Kreis Neuss district, the city is the largest with a good 150,000 inhabitants – a city center with a long history between Düsseldorf and Krefeld.