Hessentag 2025: A folk festival of the generations in Bad Vilbel!

Hessentag 2025: A folk festival of the generations in Bad Vilbel!

What a festival in Bad Vilbel! Hessentag, the oldest state festival in Germany, has been running since Friday and has already lured many people into the Wetterau. According to hessenschau.de , over 300,000 visitors found the way to the celebrations on the first weekend. The organizers will expect up to 750,000 guests in the coming days. The festival that its roots in 1961 in Alsfeld is becoming more and more a tradition and attracts young and old alike.

A look at the history of Hessentag

Originally, the Hessentag was a small event; Just 40,000 people came in the first few years. However, this number doubled in the 1970s, and a record was set with 720,000 visitors in the 1990s. From 2000 to 2010, the average number of visitors was even 986,000, and the million limit was exceeded several times. Last year in Fritzlar, on the other hand, it was "only" 519,000 visitors, which is still impressive.

The Hessentag is not only a festival for Hesse, but also inspired other federal states. Similarly stored festivals are now taking place in numerous area countries, but there is an exception: Bavaria and Schleswig-Holstein. While Bavaria launched the “Franconia Day”, the other federal states have designed their own events based on the model of the Hessentag.

criticism and opportunities

Nevertheless, the Hessentag is not without controversy. There are always voices that question the high costs for the country and the host municipality. A current survey shows that 20.0 percent of those surveyed are planning to visit the Hessentag this year, while 53.2 percent cannot express their interest and 20.3 percent cannot participate for other reasons. So far, only 4.4 percent have not participated in the festival, but are planning to come soon. The survey of 521 people was answered in total.

The mixture of tradition and modern entertainment makes the Hessentag an important event and economic factor for the host city. It remains exciting to observe how the celebrations in Bad Vilbel will continue to develop. The festival undoubtedly has the potential to boost both the image of the city and the regional economy.