Leipzig Festival of Lights 2025

• five light art projects by West and East German artists that address the events of 1989: Neumarkt and Schillerpark
• Thousands of candles that invite us to remember the Peaceful Revolution together: Schillerpark

• Peace prayer and speech on democracy: St. Nicholas Church

• Ceremonial laying of the foundation stone of the Freedom and Unity Monument: Wilhelm-Leuschner-Platz

• The Festival of Lights takes place from 19am to 22pm in Leipzig city centre. 

• A peace prayer and speech on democracy will take place at 17 p.m. in St. Nicholas Church.

• The ceremonial program for the laying of the foundation stone of the Freedom and Unity Monument will take place at 20 p.m. on Wilhelm-Leuschner-Platz.

This year, the Leipzig Festival of Lights 2025 will extend through a section of Leipzig's city center in the form of a path of light along Neumarkt and Schillerpark. Featuring five light art projects, the path connects the Nikolaikirchhof (Peace Prayer, Speech on Democracy) with Wilhelm-Leuschner-Platz (the ceremonial laying of the foundation stone of the Freedom and Unity Monument).

No, admission to the Leipzig Festival of Lights is free. On October 9, everyone is cordially invited to celebrate the festival of lights together with contemporary witnesses, Leipzig residents, and guests. 

On October 9, starting at 20 p.m., visitors to the Festival of Lights can look forward to a festive stage program featuring guests of honor such as Minister of State for Culture Wolfram Weimer, Saxony's Minister-President Michael Kretschmer, Leipzig's Mayor Burkhard Jung, Leipzig's honorary citizen Gesine Oltmanns, and the Georgian-German author Nino Haratischwili. Guests can also enjoy the world premiere of the choral work "Unser Mut wird nah bei uns sein" (Our Courage Will Be Near Us), in cooperation with the Leipzig Opera.

The award-winning author, theater director, and playwright Nino Haratischwili will deliver the speech on democracy in St. Nicholas Church on October 9.

For the Leipzig Festival of Lights 2025, there is both a printed program booklet and a digital tour in the Explore Leipzig app (Download Android version and Download iOS versionHere, guests can enjoy the tour in German and English, as well as an audio version. 

Program booklets for the 2025 Festival of Lights are available at the Leipzig Tourist Information Center at Katharinenstraße 8. You can also download the program booklet as a PDF file here for free. 

This year, the large candle 89 (the candle pedestal) is located in Schiller Park, waiting to be lit with tea lights by the visitors to the Festival of Lights.

The candles are available free of charge or for a voluntary donation as part of the Candle sponsorship served in reusable cups. By the way: This year, the Festival of Lights is relying 100 percent on reusable cups. Guests are asked not to take the candle cups home with them, but to leave them on the candle pedestal or candle stands after use.

Due to the Leipzig Festival of Lights 2025, there will be no planned traffic restrictions on October 9, 2025. Public transport will also operate according to schedule. Detailed information can be found hereAs guests arrive and depart for the ceremony, there may be temporary traffic restrictions in the Nikolaikirchhof and Wilhelm-Leuschner-Platz areas. However, underground parking garages in Leipzig city center may be closed. The following parking facilities are expected to be unavailable on October 9, 2025: 

• Courtyard/underground car park Messepalast
• the Messehof/Timonhaus underground car park
• the underground car park and delivery garage of the Neo shopping centre
• the Volksbank underground car park
• the parking lot in the courtyard of the music school

The parking garages and parking spaces in the inner courtyard of Gewandgässchen, Magazingasse and Kupfergasse will remain.

Yes, public transport will operate despite the Leipzig Festival of Lights. The timetable will change only slightly due to the Leipzig Festival of Lights. Bus line 89 will not run through the city center between 16 p.m. and midnight and will be diverted towards the main train station via Goerdelerring, and towards Connewitzer Kreuz via Augustusplatz and Wilhelm-Leuschner-Platz. Further information can be found here.

• We recommend coming to the Festival of Lights on foot, by bike or by public transport.
• Those arriving by train can get off at Leipzig Central Station and from there walk or take the bus and train towards Wilhelm-Leuschner-Platz or Roßplatz. From there, it's just a one-minute walk to Neumarkt and Schillerpark, where the light installations are illuminated.
• If you arrive by S-Bahn, you should get off at Wilhelm-Leuschner-Platz.
• By bike and public transport you can easily reach the inner city ring road, where the light festival takes place.
• For those arriving by car or bus, the city recommends the Park&Ride parking lots at the Leipzig Trade Fair, at the Völkerschlachtdenkmal, in Lausen, on Plovdiver Straße and on Schönauer Ring, as well as the parking lots at the Sportforum.

For those arriving by car or bus, the City of Leipzig recommends using the Park & ​​Ride lots at the Leipzig Trade Fair, at the Völkerschlachtdenkmal (Völkerschlachtdenkmal), in Lausen, on Plovdiver Straße, and on Schönauer Ring, as well as the parking lots at the Sportforum, as underground parking garages in Leipzig city center may be closed. The following parking spaces are expected to be unavailable on October 9, 2025: Courtyard/Underground Parking of the Messepalast.

• the Messehof/Timonhaus underground car park
• the underground car park and delivery garage of the Neo shopping centre
• the Volksbank underground car park
• the parking lot in the courtyard of the music school

The parking garages and parking spaces in the inner courtyard of Gewandgässchen, Magazingasse and Kupfergasse will remain.

Permanent exemption permits and resident parking permits will no longer be valid during the Festival of Lights. 

All venues of the Festival of Light are accessible for wheelchair users. Descriptions of the light projects along the Light Trail are available as audio files in the app. Explore Leipzig – City Tours is available for storage, management and analysis.