When rocks and table mountains are covered in snow and the days become quieter, a special time begins in Saxon Switzerland: from January 30 to February 8, 2026, the Wintersterne cultural festival transforms the national park region east of Dresden into a stage for art, music, theater, and sensual deceleration. For ten days, winter nature meets cultural diversity – in places that breathe history and unfold their very own magic in winter.

In 15 towns and communities, from Pirna to Hohnstein and Neustadt to Bad Schandau, more than 35 events invite you to rediscover winter: concerts in castles, readings in mountain huts, DJ sets in the thermal baths, whisky tastings in the mine, painting courses in studios, and fairy tale formats for the whole family. Castles, palaces, historic lodges, studios, a visitor mine, and even the Toskana Therme spa become venues for a festival that deliberately focuses on proximity, atmosphere, and quality.

Rammenau Baroque Castle in winter © Michael Klinger/Saxon Switzerland Tourism Association

During the day, winter hikes to the table mountains, museum visits, or creative workshops beckon, while in the evening, art and cuisine combine to create atmospheric experiences in often unexpected locations. "From readings in mountain huts to concerts in castles, we show how much life there is in Saxon Switzerland, even in winter," says project manager Nicole Hesse from the Saxon Switzerland Tourism Association.
Highlights include concerts by the Elbland Philharmonic Orchestra of Saxony, which brings Brazilian joie de vivre to the winter landscape with "Carnival in Rio," as well as a rousing performance by the gospel choir The Gospel Passengers. The Dresden trio dreifarbenblau takes listeners on a "movie night for the ears" with classics from 80 years of film history. Theater lovers can look forward to the Landesbühnen Sachsen with the dance theater Tausendundeine getanzte Nacht (A Thousand and One Danced Nights) and Schiller's Maria Stuart.
The festive kick-off belongs to the Hohnsteiner Märchenfunkeln (January 30 to February 1) with fairy tale dinners, readings, puppet shows, and interactive formats. The Pirna Winter Courtyard Night on February 7 provides an atmospheric finale, when the otherwise closed courtyards of the old town open up, are illuminated, and filled with music, dance, and culinary delights. At the same time, the Toskana Therme Bad Schandau invites you to the Liquid Sound Club with electronic underwater beats. The Wintersterne Sächsische Schweiz is a young festival with great appeal – a plea for cultural enjoyment beyond the high season and an example of how nature, creativity, and community can be combined in winter.
January 30 to February 8, 2026
www.winter-sterne.de
www.saechsische-schweiz.de