Cologne Carnival: Kölle Alaaf and the fifth season

Cologne Carnival is Germany's biggest street party, when the whole city dresses up and sings in the local dialect. The highlight is the week from Women's Carnival on Thursday to Rose Monday, when parades fill the streets with music, floats and flying sweets.

Fun facts

• The carnival season officially opens on 11 November at 11:11 am.
• On Weiberfastnacht, women traditionally cut off men's ties.
• The carnival is led by the Dreigestirn: the Prince, the Peasant and the Maiden.

What to see

• The Rose Monday parade, several kilometres of floats and marching bands.
• Street celebrations around the Alter Markt and Heumarkt in the old town.
• The cathedral towering above the crowds in costume.

What to taste

• Kölsch, the local beer served in small glasses that keep coming.
• Halve Hahn, a rye roll with Gouda cheese, despite the name meaning half a chicken.
• Berliner doughnuts filled with jam, eaten throughout carnival.

What to do

• Wear a costume: everyone does, and you will feel out of place without one.
• Shout Kölle Alaaf and catch the Kamelle sweets thrown from floats.
• Join the singing in a traditional brewery pub (Brauhaus).

💡 Tip: Trains and S-Bahn are packed during carnival, so allow extra time from Cologne Bonn or Düsseldorf airport. Book accommodation months in advance.