Lanterns Moving Through Bergedorf After Dark
It is just past five on a November Sunday and the light has already gone. Somewhere in Lohbrügge a brass band starts up, and a man on horseback moves off through the crowd — St. Martin, leading the way. Behind him come hundreds of children carrying lanterns they made themselves that afternoon, and the whole procession winds through the streets of Bergedorf's historic centre until it reaches the church. This is the centrepiece of Hamburg's St. Martin's Day, and it happens in the city's southeasternmost district, on the first weekend of November.
Two Markets, One Weekend
St. Martin's Day in Hamburg is marked by two separate Martinsmarkt events, and you can plan around either or both.
- Martinsmarkt Bergedorf — planned for Saturday 7 and Sunday 8 November 2026, with the exact date to be finally confirmed in late summer 2026 via the parish and Wir Sind Bergedorf (wsb-bergedorf.de). The market spreads from the square around St. Petri und Pauli Church along Bergedorfer Schloßstraße to Alte Holstenstraße. Saturday hours are 10:00–18:00; Sunday 11:00–18:00. Admission is free; individual stalls, the tombola and shop promotions charge.
- Martinsmarkt 2026 at the Köster-Stiftung — Sunday 8 November 2026, 11:00–18:00, at the Begegnungszentrum der Köster-Stiftung in central Hamburg. More than 40 hobby arts-and-crafts exhibitors sell handmade goods, with music from "Bongo In A Bubble" and coffee, cake and savoury food served under a large canopy. Free admission.
What to Do With Children
Both markets are built around families, and the lantern is the thread running through the day.
- At Bergedorf, the Wolke-7 team runs a children's programme on the Saturday with entertainment, a tombola and lantern-crafting.
- At the Köster-Stiftung, children can make lanterns (Laternen basteln) on site before the parade.
- The Bergedorf lantern parade sets off on Sunday at 17:00 from in front of the Edeka/Marktkauf in Lohbrügge, led by St. Martin on horseback and the TSG Bergedorf brass band, and finishes at the church around 18:00.
- The Köster-Stiftung parade starts at 17:30, led by the marching band Spielmannszug Tonndorf-Lohe.
Eating and Shopping Your Way Through the Weekend
The Bergedorf stalls sell books, jewellery, bags, clothing, candles, jams, honey and cakes, and there is a cake bazaar alongside the food stalls. Expect bratwurst, mulled wine, children's punch and hot drinks — November food, eaten standing up with a lantern in your other hand. On the Sunday, Bergedorf and Lohbrügge city centre shops open 13:00–18:00, one of the few Sunday shopping days of the year in Hamburg and traditionally the local start of the Christmas shopping season.
Getting There and What to Expect
Take the S-Bahn S2 or S21 to Bergedorf and walk about five minutes toward the city centre; bus lines 8, 28, 35 and 43 also stop there. Bergedorf was an independent town until 1867 and still keeps its own centre, castle and event calendar, which is part of why the market feels like a town fair rather than a city one. Several thousand visitors come from Bergedorf, Lohbrügge, southern Hamburg and the neighbouring Lower Saxony communities, so arrive before the parade if you want room to move. The Köster-Stiftung market is the central-Hamburg alternative if you would rather stay close to the middle of the city.
Dates for the first weekend of November 2026 are already sketched in, with the Bergedorf confirmation expected in late summer — so keep an eye on wsb-bergedorf.de, book your S-Bahn route, and start thinking about whether you will carry a lantern or just follow the band.