Start at Marienplatz, Where the Season Is Handed the Key
Munich's Fasching — the Bavarian name for the pre-Lenten carnival — has a beginning you can actually attend: on January 5, 2027, the Narrhalla prince and princess are ceremonially enthroned at Marienplatz. Narrhalla, founded in 1893 as the city's first Fasching society, gives its prince and princess the role of the city's "Gaudimonarchen," and the Mayor hands over the golden key to the season at the start. Come for the crowning, and you've planted yourself at the centre of everything that follows.
The season then runs from mid-January through the week before Ash Wednesday, and the densest programme falls in that final stretch. Munich's official 2027 schedule is published during the year at www.fasching-muenchen.de — check it before you book anything with a fixed date.
Join the Grand Procession from Isartor to Marienplatz
On January 31, 2027, the grand carnival procession of the Damische Ritter and Narrhalla sets off at 13:13. It runs from the Isartor via Rosental to Kaufinger Straße, then continues at Marienplatz with a stage programme, and the day rolls on into pub carnival. Position yourself anywhere along that route — the Isartor end and the Marienplatz finish give you two very different experiences of the same parade.
Then comes the main open-air run: from Carnival Sunday to Shrove Tuesday (February 7–9, 2027), "München narrisch" fills Marienplatz and Stachus with stage performances. On Shrove Tuesday the open-air carnival shifts its centre of gravity to the Viktualienmarkt, with music and dance performances through the day.
Watch the Market Women Dance, Then Follow the Carnival into the Pubs
The Viktualienmarkt has its own tradition worth planning around: the market women take professional dance lessons year-round and perform a choreography set to the cult song "Wagen von der Linie 8" by Weißferdl. It is one of the few carnival turns in Munich with a fixed home and a fixed cast.
As Shrove Tuesday wears on, the pub carnival (Wirtshausfasching) moves off the Viktualienmarkt and into the surrounding taverns. Venues that have taken part include Weisses Bräuhaus im Tal, Augustiner am Platzl, Hofbräuhaus, Zum Franziskaner, Restaurant Donisl, Andechser am Dom, Augustiner Klosterwirt, Augustiner Stammhaus, Hackerhaus, Schlagerbar ROY, and Der Pschorr (Partykeller Alice).
Eat Weisswurst Before the Clock Strikes Twelve
Shrove Monday has its own Munich ritual: selected city-centre restaurateurs serve a Weisswurst brunch in the morning, honouring the custom that Weisswurst must not hear the clock strike twelve. Last season the sausages went for €1–2 each; the 2027 participants and prices are announced closer to the date. Past participants have included Augustiner am Platzl, Augustiner Stammhaus, Hofbräuhaus, Alte Hackerhaus, Spöckmeier and Zum Franziskaner — a workable shortlist to watch for confirmation.
For something newer, note the 2026 premiere of the Weißwurstkrapfen: a Weisswurst patty by Thomas Vollmer of Augustiner Stammhaus, in doughnut dough from Conditorei Kreutzkamm, with a mix of sweet Munich mustard and Düsseldorf Löwensenf. Whether it returns in 2027 is unconfirmed, but it tells you how seriously this city treats its veal sausage.
Balls, Costumes and the Day After
Fasching balls run through the season at the Deutsches Theater, Hotel Bayerischer Hof, Löwenbräukeller and Augustiner-Keller, staged by clubs, guilds and fraternities. The range is wide — from Künstlerfeste and formal evening-dress balls to salsa parties such as Pasión de Baile and family-friendly events like the Pumuckl-Ball. If you need an outfit, Kostüme Breuer in Schwabing also hires evening wear, dirndls and lederhosen; Halloween Gore Store on Müllerstraße and Kostümfundus treibstoff in Maxvorstadt are the other addresses to know. Annual costume sales are held at the Gärtnerplatztheater, at the Bayerische Staatsoper at the end of the year, and at the Münchner Theater für Kinder in February, timed to carnival.
Stay past Shrove Tuesday and you get Ash Wednesday, when the Mayor symbolically dips the municipal purse in the Fischbrunnen fountain on Marienplatz in the traditional wallet-washing, followed by fish dinners at traditional restaurants. It marks the start of Lent — and of the strong beer season.
Dates for the 2027 programme are published during the year at www.fasching-muenchen.de, so the sensible move is to fix your travel window around the final week before Ash Wednesday, watch for the schedule, and book your costume and your table early. Munich's carnival is a city-wide affair with a 19th-century pedigree and a 2027 calendar — start with the enthronement on January 5 and work forward.