70th Peitzer Fischerfest

Carp, Fishermen's Jousting, and Folk Festival Since 1957

Anyone traveling in the Niederlausitz region during the summer should know about the Peitzer Fischerfest. Since 1957, it has been the traditional folk festival of the carp town of Peitz — which is surrounded by 27 ponds where around 500 tons of carp are raised annually. The Peitz carp is even sold in Berlin's KaDeWe, is a protected specialty, and the town's identity-defining product. The Fischerfest is the summer homage to this tradition.

70th Anniversary and 725 Years of Peitz

2026 is a double anniversary year for Peitz: the Fischerfest celebrates its 70th edition, and the entire year is themed "725 Years of Peitz". The 2026 edition runs from Friday, July 31, to Sunday, August 2, 2026, in Volkspark Peitz, located right on the outskirts of town with access to the Teufelsteich ponds.

Program and Highlights

Friday kicks off the festival from 3 PM with a senior coffee afternoon, stage opening, and the first live concert. Saturday and Sunday run all day until 10 PM and 7 PM respectively. Highlights:

• Fishermen's Jousting on the Teufelsteich — a centuries-old tradition: two teams try to push each other off small boats with long poles into the water
• Grand Parade on Sunday, August 2 — clubs, the fishermen's guild, carnival societies, and floats parade through Peitz
• Coronation of the Teichnixe — the annual festival queen, chosen from young women of Peitz
• Live Stage with cover bands, Schlager acts, dance groups, and DJ sets
• Fairground Classics — carousels, Ferris wheel, shooting galleries, caramel, cotton candy

Carp Market and Culinary Specialties

The Peitz carp is the highlight of the culinary mile: smoked, fried, in jelly, as a carp burger. Also available are eel, trout, and tench from the ponds, Pilsner beer from the region, and Lusatian specialties. Anyone who hasn't tried at least one carp in Peitz over the festival weekend hasn't truly been to Peitz. Throughout the festival weekend, there are also fishing events where visitors can catch trout and carp themselves from special pools.

Peitz and the Carp Ponds

Peitz is a small town in the district of Spree-Neiße, about 20 km north of Cottbus. The Peitz Ponds — a landscape of 27 historic carp ponds, established since the Middle Ages — are a unique cultural asset and have been the town's livelihood for centuries. Visitors to the Fischerfest should plan a walk through the pond landscape — in the summer, it's a bird paradise and one of the most beautiful natural areas in the Niederlausitz.