As the weather starts to get milder, we're excited to set out on our annual Spring Festivals Tour! One of the highlights is witnessing a traditional MayPole raising. A “Maibaum” consists of a single pine tree which is harvested in the wintertime, debranched and prepared for raising on the town square on May 1st. On that day, the town gathers, and the men turn out to raise the Maibaum with no mechanical means. These days, they do have crane on-site with a strap secured around the Maibaum, just in case. The men are not allowed to drink any beer until after the Maibaum is raised and locked into place, so there is a big incentive to get it done right and done quickly!
In the countryside of Bavaria, the Maibaum is decorated with shields that depict what trades are available in the village. It functioned as a kind of early version of a billboard. As for the symbolism and origins of the Maibaum tradition, there is no agreement. Some communities will have a band playing during the long process, some bring out the kids to do a Maibaum dance, and others will put up a festival tent. However, they all will at least have a stand selling beer and most will have little snacks available too!
Another highlight of our trip is at Munich’s Theresienwiese. From April 20 to May 6 the “Frühlingsfest” is underway. There are carnival rides, lots of food vendors, two large festival tents and one large temporary beer garden set up. Sometimes referred to as "Oktoberfest’s little sister," the Frühlingsfest is a much smaller scale and doesn’t attract the hordes of foreign visitors that its big brother does.
The rest of our tour will include visits to Bamberg, Salzburg, and a cruise through the Danube Gorge, so keep an eye out for updates on our Facebook page!
We have already set our plans for 2019 and are now accepting bookings if you wish to join us. The trip will run from April 27 to May 5th, with an add-on option for several days in Prague. We have also changed our itinerary slightly to be more focused on the alpine region. In addition to the Maibaum and Frühlingsfest events described above, we will spend two nights in Füssen and will included visits to 3 castles there. Then, we have two nights in Salzburg, which is always a great destination. For more information, please visit our website:
www.bayerntrips.com/tours-of-bavaria/show/springfest-2019.html