Hordel Neighborhood Festival

Hordel — the Wattenscheid district with a mining heritage

If you're in western Bochum, on the border with Gelsenkirchen and Herne, you'll come to Hordel — a district with around 7,000 inhabitants and an independent identity deeply rooted in Ruhr area mining. For decades, Hordel was shaped by the Hannover colliery, one of Bochum's major mines, whose industrial monument with the characteristic Malakow tower remains one of the most important industrial monuments in the Ruhr area to this day. Today, Hordel is a residential district with a history of migration, community life, and a strong sense of togetherness, which is even reflected in the association's name Wir sind Hordel e.V.

Wir sind Hordel e.V. — Neighborhood movement since 2018

The association Wir sind Hordel e.V. was founded in 2018 — a relatively young civic initiative that sees itself as an initiator of positive change in the neighborhood. The association's values: Support, Action, Progress. Specifically, the association organizes flea markets, school events, holiday celebrations, social projects — and the annual neighborhood festival. An open meeting takes place monthly on the fourth Friday in the Beamtenplatz-Treff (5–7 p.m.); interested citizens can get involved.

Beamtenplatz — the central festival grounds

The festival's venue is Beamtenplatz at Hordeler Heide 160–168 — the central Hordel event location, also home to the Beamtenplatz-Treff (association premises) and the monthly association meetings. During the festival weekend, the square transforms into a festival meadow with a stage, beer stands, children's play areas, and food stalls.

Eve's Dämmerschoppen Friday, June 12

On Friday, June 12, 2026, a traditional Dämmerschoppen (evening get-together) will open the festival weekend. The Dämmerschoppen is a smaller opening event on the evening before — a chance to meet, initial greetings, and a cozy toast before the main festival on Saturday. This two-day choreography is typical for Rhenish-Westphalian neighborhood festivals and makes the weekend a double occasion.

Main Festival Saturday, June 13

On Saturday, June 13, 2026, the main festival runs all day. Live music on stage, children's program with a bouncy castle and games, food and drinks from Hordel associations and businesses (sausages, potato pancakes, crêpes, drinks), stands from local initiatives, schools, and sports clubs. The festival is explicitly designed to be intergenerational — grandparents with grandchildren, youth groups, families, and singles from the neighborhood meet on Beamtenplatz.

Neighborhood Festivals in Bochum — the genuine tradition

Hordel is part of a dense landscape of neighborhood festivals in Bochum. Bochum Tourism lists about a dozen neighborhood festivals throughout the year: Linden, Werne, Wattenscheid, Stiepel, Querenburg, Langendreer, Riemke — each with its own organizing association, its own character, its own history. The model is typical for the Ruhr area: each district organizes itself instead of a single large city festival event. This fosters identification and community life — and is simultaneously one of the genuinely urban cultural forms of the region.