Smart City Festival Ahaus

When a Pioneer City Becomes a Festival

For over a decade, Ahaus has been one of the most discussed Smart Cities in Germany. Located in the Borken district in western Münsterland, the town of 40,000 inhabitants is known for its early and consistent digitalization strategy—from the contactless library to app-controlled mobility. The Smart City Festival bundles all of this into a three-day format that takes both technical depth and city festival atmosphere equally seriously.

Two Festivals in One

During the day, a classic Smart City congress takes place: expert lectures, workshops, and best-practice presentations from municipalities that want to follow similar paths or have already done so. In the evening, the city center transforms into a pub festival landscape with 15 stages in 14 participating bars and restaurants. This dual structure is the unique feature: those taking a break from the congress during the day might have coffee with the mayor; those attending a concert in the evening might sit next to a city marketing director from Hamburg or Marburg.

A Stage for the Digital Municipality

The speaker panel for 2026 includes municipal decision-makers from all over Germany: Karola Voss, Mayor of Ahaus, representatives from Hanau and Marburg, digital officers, AI ambassadors, and Smart City coordinators. The festival explicitly sees itself as a platform for experience exchange between municipalities—not a glossy tech event, but a place where concrete projects and their stumbling blocks are shared.

Ahaus and the Münsterland Region

The festival takes place in the state of North Rhine-Westphalia, in the Borken district—a predominantly rural district near the Dutch border. This location shapes the program: the focus is not on the big-city problems of Berlin or Munich, but on the digitalization issues facing medium-sized municipalities with surrounding villages. This is precisely where the appeal lies for professional audiences from across the German-speaking world (DACH region).

Pub Festival with Münsterland Charm

The evening pub festival has been a firm fixture in the Ahaus event calendar for years. With Radio WMW as the media partner and a mix of regional bands, cover bands, and DJs, the program covers a wide musical spectrum. The 14 catering establishments within walking distance of the city center make hopping between venues a natural part of the evening.