Venue
Wacken, Steinburg district, Schleswig-Holstein, Germany
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Wacken Open Air guide
Metal's biggest gathering in a northern village.
In short
Wacken Open Air suits metal fans willing to book a year ahead and camp. The 36th edition is confirmed for 28 to 31 July 2027, with campsites open from the Sunday before. Tickets went on sale on 2 August 2026 and editions sell out within hours, so buy early and pack for rain.
Wacken Open Air, known to its regulars as W:O:A, is the heavy metal festival that takes over the farming village of Wacken in Schleswig-Holstein, in the far north of Germany, for four days at the turn of July and August. Around 85,000 people from more than 80 countries come for roughly 200 bands on a site of about 240 hectares.
The heart of it is the Infield, nicknamed the Holy Ground, where the Faster, Harder and Louder stages face a single field of fans. Around it sit the Bullhead City Circus tent with the W.E.T. and Headbanger stages, the medieval Wackinger village, the post-apocalyptic Wasteland and a beer garden with a stage of its own.
The bill runs from the biggest names in metal to young bands who won their place through the festival's own contest. Most visitors camp on the fields around the village, and many arrive days before the first headliner plays.
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Key Facts & Stats:
Ends: Saturday, 31 July 2027
Where: Germany
Venue: Festival grounds
Held: Every year
Type of event: Live Events, Musical Events
Currency: Euro (EUR, €)
Time zone: Central European Time, UTC+1 (UTC+2 in summer)
Language: German
Map
Getting around
Hotels near the venue fill up around the event dates.
Arriving early to get a good camping pitch
The campsites open several days before the music, and arrival day sets the tone for your week.
- Arrive early
- pitches near the Infield fill first, and the queues for vehicles build quickly.
- Ground
- pitch on the highest dry patch you can find and dig in for rain.
- Shelter
- a gazebo makes the difference between a wet and a dry evening, but peg it down for wind.
- Power
- bring power banks; there are few charging points across the fields.
Boots and rain gear for changeable weather
Schleswig-Holstein sits between the North Sea and the Baltic, and the weather changes fast.
- Wellington boots or waterproof boots, plus spare socks.
- A proper rain jacket.
- A warm jumper or hoodie for nights that can feel cool even in July.
- Earplugs, sunscreen and a refillable bottle.
Buy tickets only through the official channels; tickets offered on social media are a common scam, and a ticket is only valid with the name and wristband rules the organisers set.
What happens on the day
- Sunday
Campsites open
The fields fill as early arrivals claim their pitches.
- Monday and Tuesday
Warm-up days
A smaller programme runs on site before the main festival.
- Wednesday
First festival day
The Wacken Firefighters open proceedings in the beer garden.
- Wednesday to Saturday
Main programme
Headliners play the Infield stages while the tent, Wackinger and Wasteland run their own bills.
- Sunday
Departure
The campsites empty; expect queues on the roads out.
Buying tickets as soon as sales open
Wacken tickets go on sale the moment the previous festival ends and sell out within hours, so the decision to go is really made a year in advance. Use only the official Wacken shop and Metaltix, and keep an eye on the organisers' announcements for line-up waves and camping options.
Plan the arrival as carefully as the line-up. Coming on the opening Sunday or Monday means a better pitch and a calmer start, and the warm-up days have their own programme. For ideas on the rest of a trip, see our Germany travel page.
How Wacken grew from 800 fans in 1990
The first Wacken Open Air in August 1990 was a small two-day event with about 800 visitors. Thomas Jensen and Holger Hübner, who had dreamed it up the year before with friends Andreas Göser and Jörg Jensen, kept it going on the edge of their home village, and through the 1990s it built a reputation that drew bands and fans from far beyond Germany.
By the 2000s it had become the best-known metal festival in the world, selling out year after year. Its organisers first worked as Stone Castle Rockpromotions, and the village has grown used to hosting a crowd many times its own size every summer.
The 2026 edition was the 35th anniversary. The 36th, in 2027, follows the same four-day pattern.
Getting there
Flying in
Hamburg Airport is the nearest major airport for international visitors.
By train
Regional trains from Hamburg run to Itzehoe, the nearest sizeable town, where festival shuttles usually connect to Wacken.
By car
Wacken is reached from the A23 motorway; follow the festival signage to the parking and camping areas, and expect delays on arrival day.
Where to stay during the festival
Camping is how almost everyone does Wacken, on the fields that ring the village. Hotel rooms nearby are few and booked far ahead; Itzehoe and Hamburg are the realistic alternatives, with the daily journey to plan in advance.
Campers get the full week of atmosphere and the warm-up days; hotel guests get a dry bed and a commute.
Weather and what to pack
Expect northern European summer conditions. The 1991-2020 normals for Hamburg-Fuhlsbüttel, the nearest major station, give July an average high of 23.2°C and a low of 13.3°C, with about 82 mm of rain over roughly 16 days and around 219 hours of sunshine.
That is one of the wettest months of the year, which explains Wacken's reputation for mud.
Worth packing
- Waterproof boots and spare socks
- A proper rain jacket
- A warm layer for the nights
- A gazebo and extra tent pegs
- Earplugs
- Power banks
- Photo ID to match your ticket
Car hire in Germany
Airport transfer to Wacken Open Air
Met at arrivals and driven door to door to Festival grounds.
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Need help?
Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)
Timing & weather
The 36th edition runs from Wednesday 28 July to Saturday 31 July 2027. The campsites open on the Sunday before, with a warm-up programme on the extra days.
General
The first announcement in August 2026 named Five Finger Death Punch, Helloween and Electric Callboy, with Dragonforce billed for their only European festival show of summer 2027. More names follow in waves through the year.
Very quickly. It sold out ten years in a row from 2006 to 2015, and the 2023 and 2024 editions each went in about five hours.
The nickname for the Infield, the main arena where the Faster, Harder and Louder stages stand. Until 2016 they were called the Black Stage, True Metal Stage and Party Stage, and older fans still use the old names.
The village fire brigade's marching band. They open the festival in the beer garden before the official start, and their set has become one of the best-loved traditions of the week.
An international contest for unsigned bands, first held in 2004. National heats run around the world, and the winners meet in a final at the festival itself.
A medieval-themed area with its own stage, food stalls and craft traders. It is a good place to spend an hour between the bands you came to see.
It is. In 2023 heavy rain and storm warnings led the organisers to stop motor vehicles entering the site for the first time in the festival's history, and many fans could not get in. Pack for a wet field every year.
Thomas Jensen and Holger Hübner came up with the idea in 1989, and the first festival took place on 24 and 25 August 1990 in front of about 800 people.
Booking
The presale opened on 2 August 2026, the evening after the 2026 festival ended, through the official Wacken shop and Metaltix. Recent editions have sold out within hours, so waiting is risky.
Cancellations & changes
Yes. The 2020 and 2021 editions were called off, and 2022 was the first festival after the break. The event has run over four days since 2023.