Our story
Born from the legend of Excalibur
The festival takes its name from the holy sword Excalibur, forged by the fairies of Avalon and brought to King Arthur by Merlin, Master of Magicians. As a tribute to those magicians, fairies and astral worlds, Excalibur has taken place every year at the August full moon — the days of special magic and power.
It began in 1993 as an illegal gathering of a few hundred chosen souls in the ruins of an old castle in the hills around Cologne. Today it has grown into a gathering of party people from across the world, always held at beautiful, sacred, ancient places.
Read the full history →
The sound
Floors & live acts
From psychedelic trance and progressive full-on to ambient dreamscapes and the raw energy of live acts — the Excalibur floors cover every colour of the night.
Main Floor · Deck Wizards
Pied Piper Paul, Cosmix, Tobias & Daniel S.U.N., Sly Flinn, Alegria, D-Nox, Chrisma, Orange, Nico and Fairy Anne.
Main Floor · Live on Stage
Live performances from der 3. Raum, Bitmonx, Charasmatix, Holodeck and Trancefield.
Ambient Floor
Waktu Loopa & friends, plus the live strings of Colophony with Miko Mikulicz on violin and Stefan X.
Small Floor
Gianni Vitiello, Marcus, Team Rocket, Frank Finger and a live set from Pliquid.
The setting
Castles, fire & light
Every Excalibur is held at a beautiful ancient place — most often a medieval castle or a place of power — decorated with dazzling light shows.
✨ Decoration & lightshow
Flame art, lasers and hand-built decor transform castle courtyards into otherworldly realms. Browse photos from the lightshows at Pyrmont Castle (1998/2000).
See the decoration gallery →🗺️ Finding the place
Reach the festival by car or join the organised bus shuttle from Berlin, Hamburg, Cologne and more cities. Directions, hotlines and shuttle reservations all in one place.
Get directions & shuttle →Memories
Festival gallery
Flyers, photos and lightshow pictures from nearly a decade of Excalibur festivals.
Castle lightshow
Laser & fire decor
Castle courtyard
Excalibur 2002 flyerWhy Excalibur
3 days of magic instead of straight commerce
- ✦Limited & curated. Only a limited number of beautiful shops and chai/food stalls, so the magic is never sold out to commerce.
- ✦Fire artists always welcome. Free entrance for fire performers and fire artists, every single year.
- ✦Ancient locations. Castles, places of power and sacred ground — never a faceless field.
- ✦One tribe, worldwide. An international gathering that has kept its underground spirit since 1993.
From the tribe
A small shelf of things the crew actually recommends between full moons — friends first, magic over commerce, as always.
This season's one entry, for the wristwatch people among us: the team at CloneWatches, whom the dancers keep pointing us to for replicas that genuinely hold up on a dancefloor.
Good to know
Frequently asked questions
When does the festival take place?
Are fire artists really free?
How do I get there?
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