Kieler Umschlag 2026
Hotels in Kiel for the Kieler Umschlag
The Kieler Umschlag is the city's oldest folk festival, dating back to a medieval market day. Around the Old Market Square and Holstenstrasse, historic markets, jesters and music bring the wintry old town to life.
The Kieler Umschlag is the oldest folk festival in the city and goes back to a medieval market and settlement day. In the middle of winter it takes over the Alter Markt (Old Market Square) and Holstenstrasse with historic market stalls, jesters and music. This is a completely different Kiel from the summer sailing crowd, and a much more local one.
Good to know before you book
- February on the Baltic is cold and windy. Dress the way you would for a New England winter and plan indoor breaks between market stops.
- The old town around the Alter Markt and the Nikolaikirche (St. Nicholas Church) is compact, so a central hotel keeps you inside the festival area on foot.
- Winter is one of Kiel's quieter travel seasons, which usually makes a central room easier to get than in June.
Dates and where it happens
- Event dates
- February 20, 2026 to February 22, 2026
- Location
- Old Market Square, Kiel, Germany
- Check-in used here
- February 19, 2026
- Check-out used here
- February 22, 2026 (3 nights)
These dates have already passed. Once the date for the next edition is confirmed, we update the hotel search here. In the meantime, browse the complete hotel index for Kiel.
More of Kiel while you are here
Kiel is the capital of Schleswig-Holstein and sits on a long Baltic inlet, the Kieler Foerde (Kiel Fjord). It is also the Baltic end of the Nord-Ostsee-Kanal (Kiel Canal), the busiest artificial waterway in the world, and a cruise and ferry port with terminals right in town.