https://feeds.thelocal.com/ Read the latest news and views from Germany in English en-us news@thelocal.com (TheLocal) webmaster@thelocal.com (TheLocal) TheLocal RSS Feed From Donald Trump to Vladimir Putin, no-one is safe when Germans celebrate carnival with floats that satirise politicians. https://www.thelocal.de/20260216/in-pictures-germanys-carnival-floats-take-swipes-at-putin-trump-epstein Mon, 16 Feb 2026 16:19:54 +0100 in-pictures-germanys-carnival-floats-take-swipes-at-putin-trump-epstein In parts of Germany many workers will have taken the day off to celebrate Carnival on Monday. But can those who need to work still wear a costume to the office? Here are the rules to know. https://www.thelocal.de/20260216/can-my-boss-ban-carnival-costumes-at-work-in-germany Mon, 16 Feb 2026 10:51:15 +0100 can-my-boss-ban-carnival-costumes-at-work-in-germany "Helau!" "Alaaf!" "Narri-Narro!" These are some of the different 'fools' calls' from across Germany. Wherever people celebrate Carnival (or Fasching, or Fastnet), you hear the shouts. But where do they come from, and what do they mean? https://www.thelocal.de/20170221/why-youll-hear-these-strange-calls-at-carnival-and-what-they-mean-cologne-karneval-guide Tue, 21 Feb 2017 12:14:07 +0100 why-youll-hear-these-strange-calls-at-carnival-and-what-they-mean-cologne-karneval-guide As Cologne's week of Carnival festivities kicks off on Thursday, here's a guide to make sure you don't miss out on all the debauchery. https://www.thelocal.de/20170222/cologne-carnival-the-locals-essential-guide Wed, 22 Feb 2017 16:00:51 +0100 cologne-carnival-the-locals-essential-guide The end of Germany's famous carnival season was marked by public celebrations on Monday. The Rhineland cities of Düsseldorf and Cologne are especially well known for vibrant parades featuring floats with biting satirical themes. https://www.thelocal.de/20250304/in-pictures-the-wildest-rosenmontag-floats-at-this-years-carnival-in-germany Tue, 04 Mar 2025 11:21:35 +0100 in-pictures-the-wildest-rosenmontag-floats-at-this-years-carnival-in-germany Costume-clad Revellers took to the streets to end Germany's famous Carnival season on Monday. Cities like Düsseldorf are especially known for their colourful parades, which this year carried particularly strong political messages. https://www.thelocal.de/20230220/in-pics-politics-takes-centre-stage-in-rosenmontag-parades-throughout-germany Mon, 20 Feb 2023 18:20:22 +0100 in-pics-politics-takes-centre-stage-in-rosenmontag-parades-throughout-germany Clowns, political floats and lots of shouting: Rosenmontag is usually a massive celebration in parts of Germany. Here's what's happening this year in the pandemic shutdown. https://www.thelocal.de/20210215/germanys-rosenmontag-carnival-cancelled-due-to-lockdown Mon, 15 Feb 2021 09:45:56 +0100 germanys-rosenmontag-carnival-cancelled-due-to-lockdown Cologne and Düsseldorf are usually visited by hundreds of thousands of tourists on November 11th for the start of Karneval season. https://www.thelocal.de/20201111/police-step-up-patrols-as-germanys-carnival-season-starts-online Wed, 11 Nov 2020 09:50:17 +0100 police-step-up-patrols-as-germanys-carnival-season-starts-online November 11th is always a special day in Cologne - it marks the start of the city’s famous Carnival season. But the city mayor has announced that the Jeken will have to sit out the celebrations this time around. https://www.thelocal.de/20201028/no-dancing-no-singing-cologne-cancels-carnivals-traditional-first-day Wed, 28 Oct 2020 10:28:11 +0100 no-dancing-no-singing-cologne-cancels-carnivals-traditional-first-day Should Germany's much-loved carnival be cancelled or is there a way of allowing it during the pandemic? https://www.thelocal.de/20200819/you-cant-cancel-carnival-how-can-germany-celebrate-festival-in-coronavirus-times Wed, 19 Aug 2020 15:45:58 +0200 you-cant-cancel-carnival-how-can-germany-celebrate-festival-in-coronavirus-times To celebrate carnival season, The Local visited Düsseldorf and found the spirits of revellers could not be dampened by stormy weather. https://www.thelocal.de/20200226/dsseldorf-helau-how-i-embraced-the-rhinelands-carnival-celebrations Wed, 26 Feb 2020 14:57:08 +0100 dsseldorf-helau-how-i-embraced-the-rhinelands-carnival-celebrations Despite grey weather, an estimated one million people poured in for Düsseldorf's famous Rosenmontag parade. The Local was among the crowd to capture the most colourful floats. https://www.thelocal.de/20200224/in-photos-the-best-rosenmontag-floats Mon, 24 Feb 2020 14:19:35 +0100 in-photos-the-best-rosenmontag-floats Germany’s Karneval season is in full swing. We spoke to Düsseldorfers ahead of Rosenmontag to find out about political statements, bad music, kissing and how to survive the festivities. https://www.thelocal.de/20200221/its-absolute-chaos-does-dsseldorf-host-germanys-best-carnival-celebration Fri, 21 Feb 2020 16:59:26 +0100 its-absolute-chaos-does-dsseldorf-host-germanys-best-carnival-celebration Karneval in Germany's Rhineland could be described as a political party indeed. https://www.thelocal.de/20200220/floating-ideas-the-political-side-of-germanys-karneval Thu, 20 Feb 2020 15:43:17 +0100 floating-ideas-the-political-side-of-germanys-karneval Although Carnival season is coming to a close soon, the festivities are just beginning to ramp up. https://www.thelocal.de/20200218/where-to-celebrate-carnival-in-germany Tue, 18 Feb 2020 15:36:52 +0100 where-to-celebrate-carnival-in-germany February isn’t just about Valentine’s Day (thankfully). Check out these events taking place all across Germany this month. https://www.thelocal.de/20200130/from-horses-to-hot-air-balloons-7-events-you-dont-want-to-miss-in-february Thu, 30 Jan 2020 16:07:16 +0100 from-horses-to-hot-air-balloons-7-events-you-dont-want-to-miss-in-february A number of violent attacks have marred the start of carnival season in Cologne. https://www.thelocal.de/20191112/seven-arrests-after-violent-attacks-at-cologne-carnival Tue, 12 Nov 2019 10:43:33 +0100 seven-arrests-after-violent-attacks-at-cologne-carnival Costumes during carnival season in Germany range from the colourful to the absurd. https://www.thelocal.de/20190306/why-a-kita-in-hamburg-celebrated-carnival-without-native-american-costumes Wed, 06 Mar 2019 09:56:16 +0100 why-a-kita-in-hamburg-celebrated-carnival-without-native-american-costumes Lyka Sethi, an American writer in Mainz, gives her first surprising impressions of Mainz' carnival, one of the oldest (and rowdiest) in Germany. https://www.thelocal.de/20190305/behind-the-scenes-of-mainz-fastnacht Tue, 05 Mar 2019 13:06:23 +0100 behind-the-scenes-of-mainz-fastnacht There are bound to be a few hangovers today after revellers partied hard for Rosenmontag, the highlight of the carnival season, despite gusts and rain. Here are some of the best pictures. https://www.thelocal.de/20190305/in-pictures-rosenmontag-carnival-celebrations-in-germany Tue, 05 Mar 2019 09:36:56 +0100 in-pictures-rosenmontag-carnival-celebrations-in-germany