Stendal Light Festival

Light on the Brick Cathedral

The Stendal Light Festival is the Altmark's quiet favorite festival. For two evenings in October, from 7 PM to 10 PM each night, the Gothic St. Nicholas Cathedral in Stendal's old town becomes the focal point of a grand light installation. Outside, light artists project large-scale visuals onto the cathedral's brick facade, accompanied by a laser show with beats, fire pits on the Cathedral square, and atmospheric music.

Inside, the character changes completely: hundreds of candles bathe the high nave in warm light, accompanied by ambient music or organ sounds. Visitors can sit or stroll through the space. The interplay between the outdoor spectacle and indoor tranquility is what gives the Light Festival its special charm – a format rarely found with such consistency in Central Germany.

The 11th edition in 2026 will take place on October 9th and 10th. Various food stalls on the Cathedral square will provide refreshments – mulled wine, bratwurst, crêpes, and regional Altmark specialties. The festival is family-friendly, stroller-accessible, and the entire Cathedral square is easily accessible.

Stendal is the district capital of the Stendal district and, with over 1,000 years of history, one of Germany's oldest Hanseatic cities. St. Nicholas Cathedral is a 15th-century Gothic structure and one of the most significant brick buildings in the North German Plain. Saxony-Anhalt's Altmark region begins here – a quiet, vast landscape with rich history and architecture that has siblings in Tangermünde, Salzwedel, and Havelberg.