Events & Festivals in Strasbourg

Post-holiday clearance sweeps Strasbourg's boutiques, cashmere scarves at half price, Alsatian pottery piled in sidewalk bins while chestnuts roast outside Galeries Lafayette.

A weekend celebrating love with open-air tango lessons on Place Kléber, chocolate sculpting workshops and candle-lit choir concerts inside Saint-Thomas church.

Bright floats glide down rue des Veaux behind brass bands hammering oompah pop covers. Kids hurl confetti that clings to damp cobblestones and the breeze carries frying beignets.

Spring version of Strasbourg's winter wonderland with chocolate hares, pastel-dyed eggs and mimosa-scented soaps. Children hunt for painted eggs hidden among the stalls while linden trees bud overhead.

Hooded penitents carry a hand-carved cross through silent Petite France streets, incense smoke coiling above wet cobblestones. Cathedral bells toll once per minute as dusk settles.

Grass-scented tackles echo inside Stade de la Meinau as international teams sprint across the pitch. Crowds roar over bratwurst and beer in the stands while brass bands blast between matches.

Museums stay open until 1 a.m. with jazz trios in the archaeological basement and shadow plays on medieval stone. Electric torches replace spotlights while Riesling flows in plastic cups.

Four-day fair rings the cathedral with hand-painted ceramics, herb soaps and pork crackling on beechwood spits. Lilac petals flutter from balconies above.

Every corner becomes a stage: cellists under Place Broglie's plane trees, techno DJs in rue des Juifs basements, brass bands marching across Pont du Corbeau. The air vibrates with bass until 1 a.m.

Midsummer bonfire on Quai des Pêcheurs, locals flip merguez under colored bulbs while folk dancers pound wooden planks and the river mirrors orange flames.

Orangerie Park transforms into an open-air gallery where sculptors chisel limestone under lime-tree shade and jazz drifts across the boating lake. Children splash in fountains while parents sip chilled Sylvaner.

The sky above the Rhine explodes in gold and emerald reflections while thousands gather on Pont de l'Europe. The smell of gunpowder drifts over the water as brass bands play La Marseillaise on both banks.

Historic Hôpital Civil courtyard fills with 120 winemakers offering tart Riesling and pinot noir aged in oak. Tangy munster cheese and smoky knack sausages balance each glass while an accordion wheezes in the cloisters.

Contemporary classical music fills Strasbourg's churches and industrial warehouses for ten days. Expect dissonant strings reverberating off 13th-century stone and late-night electronic sets in the former tram factory.

Runners cross Ponts Couverts at sunrise, feet pounding over medieval timber while mist lifts off the Ill. The route loops through Petite France, past half-timbered facades dripping with geraniums and cheering spectators with tarte flambée breakfasts.

Horror fans queue in medieval lanes for midnight screenings of Korean zombie films or Nordic noir. The 1920s UGC Ciné Cité rattles with screams while popcorn smells mix with musty Gothic stone.

Private mansions, bank vaults and bishop's palaces open their gilded doors. Dusty attics smell of beeswax while spiral staircases creak under curious feet.

Copper kettles steam beside caramelized onion tarts as local brewers pour unfiltered kellerbier and tart cherry lambic. Oompah bands echo off half-timbered facades while leaves crunch underfoot.

Ten smoky nights where saxophones echo under vaulted stone ceilings. Belgian gypsy jazz blends with Nordic folk in the Art Nouveau Salle de Musique while late-night jam sessions spill into nearby bars.

Three hundred wooden chalets glow beneath the Gothic cathedral, scenting the frosted air with cinnamon, orange peel and sizzling bredele cookies. Choirs echo around Place Kléber's massive tree while hot orange juice steams in gloved hands.

Smaller companion to the Christmas market, dedicated to the patron saint of children. Choirboys sing in Alsatian dialect while hot spiced beer steams beside gingerbread hearts iced with 'Bon Saint Nicolas'.

Midnight illuminations burst above the cathedral spire while mulled wine kiosks stay open past 1 a.m. Church bells compete with champagne corks across Place Gutenberg.