Hocketse Mehrstetten

Hocketse Mehrstetten — Swabian Folk Festival on the Alb

The Hocketse Mehrstetten is the annual summer event of the small Alb community of Mehrstetten in the Reutlingen district, high up on the Swabian Jura. From August 7 to 9, 2026, the school grounds will be transformed into a three-day festival mile. Free admission. The Hocketse is traditionally organized by the local youth center and several Mehrstetten clubs (music club, sports club, fire department, rural youth).

What is a Hocketse?

The Hocketse (also Hockete or dialectally Hocketse) is a typical Swabian folk festival format: not a classic commercial wine or beer festival, but a communal gathering of village or district clubs with catering, music, and long-lasting conviviality. The name itself means something like 'sitting down together' — the Swabian answer to the Bavarian beer tent or the Franconian Kirchweih.

Classic Hocketse elements, which you will also find in Mehrstetten:

• Long beer tables outdoors or in festival tents
• Homemade or from the club grill Swabian specialties: Maultaschen, Spätzle, grilled sausages, Schäufele, Schnitzel, Käsknöpfle, potato salad, and Schwarzwälder Schinkenbrot (black forest ham bread)
• Draught beer (usually from the local Swabian brewery), Swabian wine, apple juice spritzer
• Live music by local clubs — brass bands, party bands, later cover bands or DJs
• Game stations and children's catering on weekends
• Club life character — club members serve, the club's finances benefit

Mehrstetten — The Small Alb Community

Mehrstetten is located in the Reutlingen district on the Swabian Jura, almost 700 meters above sea level. With about 1,700 inhabitants, it is a very small community whose identity is almost entirely carried by the local clubs. The marketplace tradition, alongside the Hocketse, is the second major summer format here — the marketplace association organizes summer festivals with themed evenings ('Italian Night', etc.). The Hocketse itself takes place on the school grounds of the local school, which serves as the festival site in summer.

The Youth Center as Co-organizer

Particularly noteworthy in Mehrstetten is the close collaboration with the Youth Center (JuZe). The JuZe Mehrstetten regularly organizes a 'JuZe-Hockete', which coincides with or is thematically linked to the Hocketse — young people from Mehrstetten aged 14 and over take over stands, manage the stage, or organize program elements. This is a clear advantage: the Hocketse is not just an event for the middle generation, but structurally involves the youth.

Swabian Jura in Summer

Anyone visiting Mehrstetten should take a walk through the village and the surrounding area — the Swabian Jura is one of the most beautiful hiking areas in Southern Germany. Limestone rocks, beech forests, heathlands, juniper meadows, the karst springs of the nearby Münsingen Heath. Combining a visit to Mehrstetten with a hike on the Alb offers a complete Southern German summer day.