February Festivals

The Berlin International Film Festival: also known as the Berlinale takes place in various venues throughout the city in late February and is one of the most prestigious film festivals in the world. The coveted Silver and Golden Bears awarded here are symbols of high achievement in the global film industry.

World-class filmmakers take advantage of the opportunity to launch their latest films here in the competition’s various categories. Events also include filmmaking workshops and opportunities for young producers and directors to screen one-minute films during the festival.

There’s international music and dance, theatre performances, traditional crafts demonstrations and an unbelievable variety in food and drink. The highlight of the carnival is a very colourful street parade boasting hundreds of elaborate floats escorted by dancers, jugglers, musicians and other entertainers. The events take place on the streets of the Kreuzberg District, in June.

Berlin Philharmonic Orchestra: performs during the month of June on the Waldbuhne stage following the end of the Berlin Philharmonic's regular season. You can enjoy the open-air concerts in casual comfort, with some of classical music’s most well-known and best-loved pieces featured. Many aficionados picnic by candlelight, creating a truly unforgettable experience.

Audiences continue to be enchanted and fascinated by the elaborate and dynamic performances under the Bedouin-style circus tent. From June to September you can enjoy this event which is found at Am Hauptbahnhof.

July Festivals

The Love Parade: was originated by the German DJ Dr Motte and has become undeniably the world’s largest dance event held. Its beginnings were as a 'demonstration for peace, love and tolerance between different nations’, music being the sole medium of communication.

Christopher Street Day: is a celebration of gay pride, featuring a parade in July that has its origins in New York’s Christopher Street in Greenwich Village. This is a commemoration of the social ‘coming out’ of gays and lesbians that began in New York in 1969.

Today in Berlin, there are huge street parties celebrating the greater integration of homosexuals into Berlin society as well as a public demonstration of self-confidence and pride. Although this colourful festival sees a mix of hundreds of thousands of participants, its focus is largely political and that is the demand for legalisation of homosexual partnerships.

August Festivals

The Berliner Gauklerfest: or juggler’s festival is an event that combines the best in arts and crafts, clowns and jugglers, live music and an assortment of street performers with good local food and beer. Every August the city’s historic centre is transformed into a world of family entertainment, featuring daily programmes of attractions and plenty of fun for the kids.

September Festivals

Berlin Marathon: is held every September on a course taking runners past most of the city’s famous and historic sights. This annual marathon is one of the world’s most popular, ending with a great deal of fanfare at the Brandenburg Gate.