Pfingstkirmes Gangelt — Schützenfest

A Whitsun Tradition in Selfkant

The Pfingstkirmes Gangelt combines a funfair and Schützenfest into a four-day Whitsun festival in the municipality of Gangelt, located in the far west of North Rhine-Westphalia, on the Dutch border. The organizer is the St. Johanni Schützenbruderschaft Gangelt. The Selfkant – famous as the westernmost tip of Germany – cultivates its own festival culture at the German-Dutch interface.

2026 Programme: Four Days at the Festival Tent

The festival runs from Friday, May 26th to Whit Monday, May 29th, 2026. The venue is the large festival tent at Gangelt Town Hall, at the corner of Burgstraße / am Bongert. The days are traditionally structured:

• Friday, May 26th, 2026: Festival Evening with opening and dancing.
• Saturday, May 27th, 2026: Dance Evening with a live band or DJ set.
• Whit Sunday, May 28th, 2026: Homage to the King and Queen and a grand Festival Parade through Gangelt.
• Whit Monday, May 29th, 2026: Family Day with children's programme and winding down the festival.

Schützenbruderschaft and Church Affiliation

The St. Johanni Schützenbruderschaft – named after Saint John – is part of the ecclesiastical-historical marksmen tradition in the Diocese of Aachen. Like many Rhenish brotherhoods, it combines Catholic tradition (saint's patronage, services) with club life and the creation of social identity. The Gangelt-Selfkant Deanery publishes the festival dates in the official church event calendar (dekanat-gangelt-selfkant.de).

Gangelt — NRW's Western Corner

Gangelt is located in the Heinsberg district in western North Rhine-Westphalia, directly on the border with the Netherlands. The municipality, with its districts of Birgden, Brüggelchen, Buscherheide, Gangelt, Hahnbusch, Hastenrath, Mindergangelt, Niederbusch, Schierwaldenrath, Stahe, and Vinteln, has a total population of around 12,500. With the Schwalm-Nette Nature Park and the Dutch province of Limburg in the neighbourhood, the area possesses its own cross-border identity. The Pfingstkirmes is one of the municipality's most important civic festivals.