Carnival in Wiesbaden 2012
The so called fifth season will be celebrated again in the Hessian capital, this year from 16th February to 22nd February. This year's motto is "Im Zeichen der Elf" and is dedicated to the historic date 11.11.2011 and 11.11 a.m. This years' parade takes place on the 19th February, the Dacho carnival celebration on 5th February in the Kurhaus Wiesbaden.
The so called fifth season has been officially celebrated in the Hessian capital since 1859, with the hot phase of carnival in 2012 taking place from 16th to 22nd February. The party starts on Thursday, 16th February, with the traditional 'Altweiberfastnacht' in the old quarter of Wiesbaden. A large number of merrymakers then throng to the centre of the city to wildly celebrate the beginning of the Wiesbaden carnival.
The festivities in the Hessian capital continue on Saturday, 18th February at 10:33 with the grand children's festival which has been ringing in Carnival Saturday for a few years. The popular children's parade starts at 15:33 letting junior carnival fans test what it's like being a big merrymaker. After the children's parade, the merrymakers storm the Wiesbaden town hall and rule until Ash Wednesday.
The great Carnival Sunday Parade starts at 13:11
On Carnival Sunday, 19th February, the Wiesbaden Carnival Parade famous far beyond the city limits awaits. As a grand old tradition, it starts at 13.11 on the Elsässer Platz. From there, the parade makes its way through the centre of the city past the town hall and thousands of merrymakers lining the streets. The partying goes on in Wiesbaden long after the parade is over. The high-spirited carnival atmosphere in the bars and pubs lasts until the early hours of the morning.
It's all over on 22nd February and the merrymakers return the keys of the town hall to the Lord Mayor, Dr. Helmut Müller. They then put their costumes away again and start preparing for the 2012/2013 carnival season.
Dacho carnival celebration on 5th February in the Kurhaus
Even before the really hot phase kicks in, carnival celebrations take place in Wiesbaden in the form of successive ‘carnival revues’. The "Roten Herolde" thus held their revue on 13th January in the Tattersall and the great Dacho stage show will take place on Sunday, 5th February in the Wiesbaden Kurhaus.
