Your Ultimate Guide to Ludwigsburg Pumpkin Festival – The Largest Pumpkin Festival in the World – Germany

Who’s ready to see the world’s largest pumpkin festival? Let me tell you, it is well worth the drive! Delicious pumpkin dishes, a family friendly atmosphere and the most rockin pumpkin statues you’ll see in Germany await you! Never been before? Maybe you have and just aren’t sure what to expect with COVID-19? We’ve got you covered.

For 2022, the festival runs through December 4th and is just a 2.5 hour drive from Wiesbaden.

Parking

There is ample parking near the festival (all of which are an easy walk to the entrance). My suggestion is finding “Schloss Ludwigsburg” on Google maps then typing “parking” on your phone. This will populate a red “P” symbol on your device which notates all the parking lots in that immediate area.

Parking lot we used: Parkhaus Lotter (Eberhardstrabe 7, 71634 Ludwigsburg, Germany)

Tickets & Pricing

Tickets can be purchased online for this event, but some browsers may have difficulty accessing the website. No need to worry though! We arrived at around 10 a.m. on a Saturday and had no issues purchasing our tickets at the entrance. Our recommendation is to bring cash. There are three lines to purchase tickets upon arrival and the cash line (which we used) was the fastest. There is an attendant present to direct you to the correct line. If you speak English, do not fret. The workers were able to communicate with us enough to answer our basic questions regarding walking directions and ticket pricing.

Click here to purchase online tickets

• Adult ticket: 10 Euros
• Children (4-15 years old): 4.80 Euros
• Family Card (1 adult, 2 children): 18.50 Euros
• Family Card: (2 adults, 2 children): 27 Euros
• Additional children (if you purchase a family card): 3.50 Euros
• Dogs: FREE (Information on bringing your dog can be found below)

We spent a good 10 minutes figuring out which entrance was the correct one to purchase our tickets and attend the festival. We’ll save you the time, input this to your Google Maps for walking directions to the entrance: 48.896170,9.196192

Restrooms

Once you purchase your tickets and enter the grounds, you will see a restroom behind the main ticket kiosk. This restroom has three stalls, two of which are average sized and one is a family stall that includes a changing table for children. There is no cost to use this restroom.

As you proceed through the Gardens, you will take a right and follow a small street lined with food vendors to enter the festival. At the end of the vendors, you will see a restroom area to your right (just across from the pumpkin seed stand). It is slightly hidden behind shrubbery.

Find yourself needing a restroom during the festival? Walk down the hill that leads to the gastronomy vendors. You will see a large brown cafe building (unlike the wooden gastronomy buildings set up for the event). When facing the cafe, there will be a restroom sign to the right that you can follow.

Bringing Your Dog?

Dogs are allowed at the festival! There is no entrance fee for dogs, but there are some rules:

• Must be leashed at all times (the facility notates this must be a short leash, not a long retractable one)
• Cannot walk on the maintained lawns or plants in the garden area (the grass patches near the gastronomy area are allowed)
• Cannot enter the children’s areas (example: playground or water area)
• If your animal uses the restroom, you must clean it up immediately (bring poop bags, there are plenty of trash cans)
• No climbing on the pumpkin displays!

Unsure if you want to bring your dog to the event? Here are some things to consider:

• If your dog is sensitive to loud noises, there is a bell that goes off frequently. It is quite loud and rings for several minutes.
• There will be other dogs at the event. If your dog is reactive to other dogs, I recommend leaving them at home. We had several dogs come around corners lunging at my service dog and barking. Save yourself the embarrassment of being removed from the event by security.
• The event does not provide water or bowls for dogs. We brought a collapsible travel bowl and purchased bottled water from the vendors (Highly recommend bringing your own water instead of paying 3 Euros per bottle like we did).
• Shade is sparse on the property. You will need to be mindful of the temperature to ensure your dog does not burn their paws on the sunny paths.

Kids

This event has tons of activities for children! There is a wonderful play area behind the gastronomy section and even a small zoo. We spotted a few water areas as well (It wouldn’t hurt to bring a change of clothes or swim wear for them to play in).

Can you bring snacks for the little ones? Absolutely! We saw many families having picnics on the grass with snacks and drinks from home. I wish we had known we could bring our own bottled water (definitely would have saved us a pretty penny).

Can I navigate with a stroller? Yes! The facility was set up in a manner to accommodate wheelchair accessibility as well as strollers. There are a few hills that you will need to climb up, but overall it was an accommodating event.

Food

What dish should I try?

Our favorite dish from the festival was hands down these little pumpkin balls. They are fried pockets of deliciousness filled with a mix of pumpkin and vegetables. Tip: dip them in a bit of ketchup, you won’t regret it.

Look for the first gastronomy stand at the bottom of the hill to purchase these (pictured above).

What snacks are good?

Our favorite snack was one we accidentally stumbled upon: Seasoned pumpkin seeds! When we smelled the most delicious mix of cinnamon and sugar on our way out of the festival, we had to give these seeds a try. Funny thing, we thought we were purchasing candied almonds until they gave us our cones! We ended up trying two flavors: chili and cinnamon. Both were divine! Each flavor has a sweetness to it from the sugar they are candied in, but the chili version had a nice little kick at the end (not overpowering with the spice though). They are not sticky, hard to bite down on (my husband is a member of the sensitive teeth crew), nor are they a mess to carry around in your bag. I highly recommend snagging a bag (or two) on your way past. Other flavors included chocolate and mint.

Location: At the end of the long line of vendors leading into the festival.

What should I pass on?

Not saying these dishes are bad, but they weren’t anything to write home about. We tried a few varieties of bratwurst and they were fine, but they weren’t anything special. The french fries were seasoned nicely, but I wish we would have saved our money and purchased another festival specific food item in their place.

Our must have take home items:

• Himbeere & Kürbis Jam: We eat this every morning with our toast! It is raspberry and pumpkin jam. The consistency is thicker than normal and it spreads nicely. It is subtly sweet and not overpowering. Price: 4 Euros
• Kürbis-secco (Pumpkin wine): I know, I know. PUMPKIN wine? It sounds nasty, but believe me it is delectable. We enjoyed our whole bottle in one sitting! Price: 7 Euros
• Kürbis Chili Seasoning: We tried this out the other night and it gave our chili a wonderful sweetness! Depending on what you add to your chili, you can have a whole new flavor profile every time you use the seasoning. Price: 3 Euros

Purchasing Pumpkins

Any variety of pumpkin you see at the festival, you can purchase! There are crates filled to the brim with pumpkins right below the famous “DJ Pumpkin.” The pumpkins were fairly priced starting at about 1.50 Euro for smaller decorative ones to roughly 6 Euros for larger varieties (depending on the size, the price may exceed this).

Special Events

• Every year, there is normally a pumpkin canoe race. Sadly, this year it is cancelled due to COVID-19. Be on the lookout for next year though, you can even rent a giant pumpkin for yourself to race!
• Watch pumpkin gnomes be carved in real time! It was truly fascinating to watch the artists work. Notice a pumpkin without a face in the event? They just haven’t been carved yet! Every day new faces are carved and arranged in various scenes throughout the event. The carvings start daily around 11 a.m. and continue until December 6th.
• Pumpkin Fairy tales: Every Saturday and Sunday in the Blooming Baroque. Look for the straw bales arranged under the trees! This takes place at 1400, 1500, 1600 and 1700 (weekends only).
• Pumpkin Carving: Starting September 19th, there will be a pumpkin carving tent available on Saturdays and Sundays! It opens around 10 a.m. and will have professional guides to provide advice.
• Europe’s Largest Pumpkins: Sunday October 11th, giant pumpkins will be weighed in hopes of gaining the title of Europe’s largest pumpkin!
• Pumpkin Slaughter Festival: At around noon on November 1st, the giant pumpkins will be cut up at the festival.

What should I bring?

• Hand sanitizer: I found this to be lacking at the event. I highly recommend bringing sanitizer and/or wipes.
• Sunscreen and Sunglasses: It was very sunny when we attended the event. Shade was lacking as well.
• Money: Account for entry, any food/beverages you wish to purchase, etc.
• Comfy shoes: There are pallets and gravel areas that you will walk on throughout the event. I would recommend avoiding heels.
• Picnic Blanket: I highly recommend bringing a picnic blanket to set out and eat on. It is much easier than finding a table.
• Travel Dog Bowl: If you are bringing a dog, this is 100% a must.
• Water and Snacks: This would have saved us a pretty penny on drinks. Also a great idea if your little ones are fussy eaters.
• Camera: To capture your amazing day out, duh!

I hope you enjoy your trip to the Ludwigsburg Pumpkin Festival! Find this blog helpful? Let us know down below!

Additional questions or concerns? Ask us below or reach out via Instagram!

We also provide information on festivals/events all around Germany on IG: @helloitsjasper

Check out our Vlog from this year’s festival: