Potato Festival Museum KulturLand Ries

From the Monastery Courtyard to the Folk Life Museum

The Museum KulturLand Ries is located in the former monastery complex of Maihingen, which has shaped the village for centuries. The museum is supported by the district of Swabia; the focus of the exhibitions is on the rural culture and way of life of the Nördlinger Ries and the adjacent Swabian-Bavarian border region.

Potato as the Central Theme

At the Potato Festival, the tuber is the star. Over more than three centuries, the potato has evolved from a 17th-century ornamental plant to a staple food and still influences Swabian rural cuisine today. On the festival day, harvesting takes place on historical fields with old equipment, potato specialties are prepared in the museum kitchen, and children learn traditional processing methods at hands-on stations.

One-Day Family Program

Unlike the multi-day folk festivals in the region, the Potato Festival is a one-day harvest festival—from 11:00 AM to 5:00 PM. This compact timeframe makes the festival particularly family-friendly: a morning visit with a picnic in the monastery courtyard, afternoon demonstrations of old harvesting equipment and hands-on activities, and departure after afternoon coffee.

32nd Edition in 2026

2026 will celebrate the 32nd edition of the Potato Festival—a testament to its tradition spanning around three decades. The festival has been a firm fixture in the museum's event calendar since the 1990s and a meeting point for families from the Nördlinger Ries and the neighboring districts of Donau-Ries, Aichach-Friedberg, Ostalb (BW), and Weißenburg.

Nördlinger Ries — UNESCO World Heritage Candidate

The Nördlinger Ries is an impressive landscape, formed about 14.5 million years ago by a meteorite impact. The almost circular basin structure is clearly visible from Maihingen. With the Geopark Ries, the region also holds the status of a UNESCO Global Geopark, underscoring the geological significance of the site.