250th Plötzkau Plum Cake Market

A Market Festival for 250 Years

The Plötzkau Plum Cake Market is one of the oldest continuously celebrated folk festivals in Saxony-Anhalt. Its roots go back to 1775, when the farmers of Plötzkau began the plum harvest in late summer and baked leftover fruit together into sweet sheet cakes. Over the decades, this neighborly communal ritual grew into a three-day market festival that is now known far beyond the borders of the Salzlandkreis.

2026 will be a special year: the 250th edition is approaching. Plötzkau, a district of the Saale-Wipper administrative community, is planning an anniversary program that combines tradition with modern festival culture. The association, municipality, and festival committee have been working for months on a fitting birthday celebration for one of Germany's oldest plum festivals.

Yeast Cake, Stage, and Festival Parade

The centerpiece is – of course – the plum cake. Thousands of sheet cakes are baked on long tables and topped with freshly preserved damsons from the region. Coffee, streusel, sour cream, and always a little tip from the Plötzkau baker are served alongside. Those who have bought a slice stroll on through the market: among showman stalls, carousels, a small Ferris wheel, and snack stands.

Friday evening traditionally opens with the tapping of the first keg, followed by a torchlight procession through the town and a long disco night. Saturday is for the children – with a school program, puppet theater, and dance crew. In the evening, a live band takes over the festival stage, and shortly before midnight, the Plum Cake Market Queen is crowned. On Sunday, brass bands play, a pop singer performs, and the festival concludes with a parade and fireworks.

Plötzkau Castle and the Saale-Wipper Arch

Plötzkau is located between Bernburg and Aschersleben at the transition of the Saale and Wipper valleys. The 16th-century Renaissance castle towers over the town, forming a spectacular backdrop for the festival. Anyone traveling in the state of Saxony-Anhalt in September should definitely plan to visit the Plum Cake Market in the Salzlandkreis – a piece of living folk culture that has remained true to itself for almost 250 years.