Saluting the past is very much part of the Erlangen cultural scene. The oldest beer festival in the world and Franconia's biggest fair (Bergkirchweih) is celebrated on Burgberg hill The popular Poets' Festival takes place in the baroque palace gardens. The biennial international Comic Salon adds its own special touch to the cultural goings-on in the town.Bergkirchweih fair
This romantic "pearl of Franconian fairs" has been celebrated for 250 years. Every May/June, more than a million visitors attend the fair where Franconian specialities are served up beneath age-old chestnut trees strung with lanterns.Erlangen Poetry Festival
The Poetry Festival in August is a wonderful mix of talent and laissez faire. For a period of two weeks, some 60 authors, journalists and critics take to the stage in the Erlangen palace gardens, in the Redoute Hall and in the Margravial Theatre to discuss the latest publications and debate cultural issues. The highlight of the Poetry Festival are the long poetry reading afternoons in Erlangen's palace gardens.International Comic Salon
For four days every two years, Erlangen becomes the comic strip capital of Germany. The International Comic Salon is the German-speaking world's largest and most important festival of what is known here as the "ninth art". The programme explores the relationships between comics and film, comics and music, comics and literature and comics and the fine arts.