The Speyer Brezelfest is an annual funfair

Funfair

A funfair or simply "fair" is a small to medium sized travelling show primarily composed of stalls and other amusements. Larger fairs such as the permanent fairs of cities and seaside resorts might be called a fairground, although technically this should refer to the land where a fair is...

 and beer festival

Beer festival

A Beer Festival is an organised event during which a variety of beers are available for tasting and purchase. Beer festivals are held in a number of countries...

 (Volksfest

Volksfest

A Volksfest is a large event in Germany which combines a festival and a carnival. Admission to a Volksfest is free however you have to pay for each ride separately....

) in honour of the pretzel

Pretzel

A pretzel is a type of baked food made from dough in soft and hard varieties and savory or sweet flavors in a unique knot-like shape, originating in Europe...

 in the city of Speyer

Speyer

Speyer is a city of Rhineland-Palatinate, Germany with approximately 50,000 inhabitants. Located beside the river Rhine, Speyer is 25 km south of Ludwigshafen and Mannheim. Founded by the Romans, it is one of Germany's oldest cities...

, Germany, running the second weekend of July from Friday to Tuesday.

History

The festival was initiated in 1910 by the Speyer tourist association to promote the sales of Speyer breweries, pretzel bakers and cigar factories. Today it is the largest beer festival in the Upper Rhine

Upper Rhine

The Upper Rhine is the section of the Rhine in the Upper Rhine Plain between Basel, Switzerland and Bingen, Germany. The river is marked by Rhine-kilometers 170 to 529 ....

region and attracts about 300,000 visitors. The festivities are officially opened by the mayor on Friday evening, when he taps the first barrel of beer. They include a number of other events, such as contests, a “Brezelfest marathon” (8.2 km), fireworks on Sunday and Tuesday evening and a parade on Sunday with about 100 bands, clubs and floats.