Sai-Fescht Bonlanden

District Festival with Sai-Soicher Tradition

The Sai-Fescht is one of the traditional district festivals in the Filder region — the fertile plateau south of Stuttgart. Bonlanden, one of the four districts of Filderstadt, has retained its own identity: its own coat of arms, its own clubs, its own carnival guild. The "Sai-Soicher" are the local carnival guild, whose name goes back to an old local nickname — a typical Swabian phenomenon where almost every village has a nickname for its inhabitants. The Sai-Fescht is named after this carnival guild and is part of the local identity.

Clubs as Organizers of the Festival

Like many Swabian district festivals, the Sai-Fescht relies on its club structure: the Vereinsring Bonlanden coordinates the festival, where local sports, music, heritage, and social clubs run their own stalls. From the music club to the sports club to the Sai-Soicher carnival guild itself — each group contributes something, and the proceeds go towards the club's activities. The culinary offerings range from Swabian classics (Maultaschen, lentils with Spätzle, Rote Wurst) to international specialties and cakes and coffee on Sunday afternoon.

The Sunday Shopping — Filder Tradition

A special feature of the Sai-Fescht is the simultaneous Sunday shopping: while the festival is underway, Bonlanden's shops open their doors on Sundays. This combination of district festival and Sunday shopping is traditional in the Filder region and the Stuttgart surrounding area — it brings families from the surrounding Filder towns and from Stuttgart to the district and combines conviviality with the rare opportunity for Sunday shopping at local branches.

Bonlanden — Filderstadt District with Independence

Bonlanden is one of the four districts of Filderstadt (Esslingen district, AGS 08116) and is located on the Filder plateau south of Stuttgart, near the airport. Filderstadt was formed in 1975 from the merger of Bernhausen, Bonlanden, Plattenhardt, and Sielmingen — an administratively enforced merger at the time, which, however, did not lead the districts to abandon their identities. Bonlanden has around 11,000 inhabitants and, with its historic town center around St. Mauritius Church, serves as the festival venue. The Filderstadt Sai-Fescht is part of a dense Filder festival calendar, which ranges from the Bernhausen Hocketse to the Plattenhardt Summer Festival to the Sielmingen Kirbe.