Easter in Germany is a time of celebration. For religious, this is a family time with busy Sunday services. For children, osterei (Easter eggs) will be decorated, oster deco (Easter decorations) will be hung and lots of chocolates will be consumed.
Easter also means a long weekend, as Good Friday and Easter Monday are public holidays in Germany. German school holidays are two weeks long and are centered on Easter Sunday. This also means that many people in Germany take this time to travel, with visitors flocking to major German sites. While shops, government offices, and banks are closed, know that hotels, museums, trains, and highways will be crowded. Whatever you do to celebrate this holiday, Germany is ready for spring. Flowers are in bloom, biergartens are open, and people are on vacation mode.
If you’d rather avoid rabbits for something a little more unusual, Germany still has you covered. Trees covered in eggs? An Easter bonfire? A museum dedicated to the egg? Check, check and verify. Here are five unusual Easter traditions and ways to celebrate in Germany.
Decorate the poinsettia
It is not just the Weihnachtsbaum (Christmas tree) that the Germans have made famous.
People in Germany take Easter decoration seriously (as they do many other things). Suitable osterei are hand blown and carefully decorated with waxes and paints. Pre-dyed eggs are also available in many supermarkets throughout the year (although I don’t know why you wouldn’t want to make it yourself!).
Once you have the eggs, hang them from your own ostereierbaum (Easter egg tree), traditionally on Good Friday. Usually this is a small decorative tree sold for the holidays, or you can hang the hand-blown eggs from some inexpensive pussy willows found in a vase.
If you have a property with trees, you can opt for a large-scale Ostereierbaum . The most famous is Saalfelder Ostereierbaum. Volker Kraft started the tradition nearly 50 years ago and their famous tree was adorned with over 9,000 Easter eggs! However, in 2016 the Kraft family donated their collection. With that said, there are plenty of other colorful trees for the public to enjoy.
Look for colorful Easter fonts
Osterbrunnen (Easter fountains) are another sign that Easter is upon us. Depending on when Easter falls, you will notice these decorations from early April to a couple of weeks after Easter.
Popular in the more Catholic parts of southern Germany, the many fountains in public squares are decorated by local clubs with arches of evergreen Easter eggs and cake. Sometimes there is a theme with contributions from the community, such as school groups offering hand-painted eggs.
The most famous of these fountains is in Bieberbach, Bavaria. This fantastic fountain has won multiple Guinness World Records for its decoration and the small town welcomes more than 30,000 tourists at Easter. There are even German tours dedicated to visiting this and other sources.
See the passion play in Oberammergau
If you prefer your Easter celebrations a little more focused on Christianity, Oberammergau is famous for its Passion Play. The representation of the judgment and death of Christ is performed by the residents of this Bavarian village to thank God for saving them from the plague in 1633.
The six-hour epic plays every ten years for seven days a week from May to October. If you want to see a different kind of village people, you will have to wait until the next performance in 2020.
Visit the Ostereimuseum
The only Ostereimuseum (Easter Egg Museum) in Germany and one of our favorite strange museums is a small temple to this all-important symbol of Easter.
Located near Stuttgart in Sonnenbühl, this unusual 2-story museum covers everything to do with the egg. For more than 25 years, this site has exhibited egg carriers, Osterei as a work of art, and different animal eggs decorated in the festive style.
Light an Easter bonfire
Wondering what to do with ostereierbaum once it reaches the Passover? Add it to the osterfeuer (Easter bonfire) at sunset on Holy Saturday. This cleansing fire is part of a pagan ritual made to welcome spring.
Bonfires today are subject to different city and state regulations, so check to see if it’s allowed in your area. Private fires can be allowed, while other sites only allow a supervised public event.
