"A lively togetherness, many culinary moments of pleasure and rousing music are our 'ingredients' for the Rheingau Wine Week. Not only thousands of guests from Wiesbaden, but also countless visitors from outside the region once again confirm the great popularity of the festival," says Mayor Christiane Hinninger and adds: "The city center presents itself at its best in such a lively and liveable way. Retailers and restaurants also benefit from this crowd-puller in the heart of the city."

Until Sunday, August 17, winegrowers from the region will be inviting visitors to taste their wines and sparkling wines at 96 stands. There is also a large selection of food at numerous snack stands.

The "Riesling Vibes" organized for the first time on Monday evening, 11 August, was also enthusiastically received. "With relaxed lounge music at the Marktkirche, everyone who enjoys electronic music welcomed the end of the day with up-and-coming DJs and celebrated enthusiastically in the evening with DJ Peter Latino. Our goal of carefully modernizing the Rheingau Wine Week while still preserving cherished traditions was a complete success on Monday evening," explains Simon Rottloff, authorized signatory at Wiesbaden Congress & Marketing GmbH and responsible for the outdoor events.

Also new this year is the expanded offer of two guarded bicycle lockers, with another one in Prinzengässchen now being added to the already established location at the rear entrance to the Marktkirche. "The extended offer has already been gratefully received in the first few days," says Mayor Hinninger happily, adding: "Our other environmentally friendly offer, the popular wine festival event ticket, has also been in great demand. As in the past two years, the bus ticket can be exchanged for a voucher for wine tasting at selected winegrowers."

The voucher is available in front of the mobility center, Markstraße 10, daily from 12 to 20:30 upon presentation of the bus ticket.

The program for the second and final wine weekend once again offers numerous events: On Friday evening, August 15, the band "Back 2 the 80s" will set the mood with well-known 80s hits on the stage in front of the town hall. On the Dern'schen grounds, "Medley Crew" will present rock, pop and cult classics and "Love on the Rocks" will play folk rock and country pop in front of the Marktkirche to delight the guests. On Saturday evening, August 16, "Owen Casey" will get the audience going in front of the Marktkirche with a mixture of Irish and reggae, while at the same time the "TQS Clubband" will provide a good mood with dance pop on the Dern'schen grounds, as will the band "Kirkland" with pop and rock in front of the Rathausbühne.

For families, the Protestant family education program in the Wiesbaden deanery is once again offering childcare for children aged five to eleven on the second weekend of Wine Week. On Saturday, August 16, the children will be looked after from 4 p.m. to 10 p.m. in the Haus der Marktkirche (cost five euros per hour, siblings 2.50 euros). On Sunday, August 17, free childcare and playtime is available from 1 p.m. to 8 p.m., supported by Wiesbaden Congress & Marketing GmbH. Children will be looked after as long as places are available.

The awareness teams from the youth aid initiative Moja e.V. will also be out and about again on the second weekend. Their introduction at this year's wine festival is a response to the increased sensitivity and need for protective measures at major events. The aim is to take preventative action. The teams are made up of trained staff who have a de-escalating effect and offer support if required, as well as providing information about the offers for safe nightlife. Services such as the "home phone" are particularly popular with younger guests. "For us as a city, taking preventative action is part of a modern event concept; we act in advance to prevent cross-border situations from arising in the first place," Mayor Hinninger makes clear. Recognizable by their red bags, black T-shirts and purple vests, the teams will also be out and about on the festival grounds on the second weekend from 7 pm to 1 am.

If you don't want to discover the wide range of local winegrowers on your own and take a look behind the scenes, you can experience the Rheingau Wine Week from a new perspective on a guided tour with tasting. The tour is led and moderated by Katharina Höfling, former Rheingau Wine Queen and former German Wine Princess. During the moderated tasting, participants will get to know six Rheingau winegrowers personally at their wine stands. Last tickets for the approximately two-hour tour on Friday, August 15, from 5 p.m. can be booked via the following link: https://tourismus.wiesbaden.de/buchen/erlebnisse?re-product-id=315436 (opens in a new tab)

The Rheingau Wine Week stands are still open on Wednesday, Thursday and Sunday from 11 am to 11 pm (the square in front of the Marktkirche on Sunday from 12 pm) and on Friday and Saturday from 11 am to midnight. Further information on the 48th Rheingau Wine Week, the musical program and the stand plan can be found online at https://www.wiesbaden.de/weinwoche. Impressions of the Rheingau Wine Week can be shared on Instagram using the hashtag #rieslingsfreunde.