Aachen belongs to the Rhineland, which may come as a surprise seeing that the Rhine is 75 kilometres away. For anyone who knows the Aachen Carnival, however, there can hardly be any doubt as to where Aachen belongs, considering the fact that Aachen together with Cologne, Düsseldorf and Mainz is firmly in the hands of this uniquely Rhenish fifth season of the year.
The first Carnival Associations were founded here as early as the beginning of the 19th century. The Aacheners (Öcher) carnival motto "Spass an der Freud" (Have fun with joy in your heart) is concise and easy to remember. They sing arm in arm, they dance and laugh, they drink and jest. From the eleventh day in the eleventh month more than 50 Carnival Associations and their bands have been welcoming in the Carnival in Charlemagne’s city and making sure that the events have the right note of carefree abandon. You can find all the important fixtures and information on the pages of the Aachen Carnival Committee.
Medal for Combating Deadly Seriousness
This unique award of the Municipality of Aachen has so far been granted to more than forty personalities of public life, by way of tribute to typically human virtues with a touch of the clownish. More information
