Next dates
2027 dates not yet announced — typically around May. We're watching and will update this page when they land.
Quick answer
The Wasserradfest in Georgensgmünd (Middle Franconia) is a village festival named for the community's historic waterwheel on the Rezat, scheduled for 17 May 2026 — its 41st edition since it was first held in summer 1984 on the initiative of the local Heimatverein. For 2026, the festival moves from its traditional Marktplatz site to the Rezat riverbank.
Georgensgmünd’s waterwheel festival — named for the historic Rezat waterwheel — next on 17 May 2026 (41st edition).
Georgensgmünd's Wasserradfest is named for a historic waterwheel the community received as a gift and re-erected on a historic site along the Rezat. First held in summer 1984 on the initiative of the local Heimatverein, it has become an annual late-May highlight alongside the August Kirchweih. The 2026 edition, 17 May, is the 41st — and for the first time, it relocates entirely from its traditional Marktplatz site to the Rezat riverbank, between the waterwheel and the 'Drei Durchfahrten' (three crossings). Georgensgmünd's own Wasserradfest should not be confused with Fürth-Stadeln's similarly named 'Stadelner Wasserradfest,' a separate event at a separate historic waterwheel, held one day earlier on the 2026 calendar.
The full story
Georgensgmünd's Wasserradfest takes its name from a historic waterwheel the village received as a gift and re-erected along the Rezat river — a local landmark that anchors a one-day family and club festival each spring. First held in summer 1984 on the initiative of the local Heimatverein (heritage association), the 2026 edition on 17 May marks its 41st year, and comes with a genuine change: for the first time, the festival moves off its traditional Marktplatz site and onto the Rezat riverbank itself, staged between the waterwheel and the "Drei Durchfahrten" (three crossings).
The programme leans toward sports and culture rather than a beer-tent atmosphere: a climbing wall, a rubber-boot relay race through the Rezat organized with the local trade association, a children's flea market, lawn skiing, and a music-and-theater program, with general catering rather than a dedicated Festzelt. Admission is free; the Wasserradfest sits alongside — and is distinct from — Georgensgmünd's own separate Kirchweih each August.
One distinction worth keeping straight for visitors: Fürth-Stadeln, also in Middle Franconia, runs its own separate "Stadelner Wasserradfest" around its own historic waterwheel, and in 2026 that festival falls just one day earlier, on 16 May. The two share a name format and a near-identical calendar slot but are otherwise unrelated events at unrelated sites. See Wasserradfest Georgensgmünd page or explore Middle Franconia.
Eat & Drink Nearby
- Local specialty
- A small Middle Franconian village festival — expect standard fest-stall food and drink rather than a documented specialty menu.
- Pair it with
- Georgensgmünd's own Gasthäuser if you want a sit-down meal beyond the festival stalls.
- Itinerary fit
- A one-day village event, best folded into a Middle Franconia day trip rather than planned as a standalone destination.
Frequently asked questions
- When is the Wasserradfest Georgensgmünd in 2026?
- The next Wasserradfest takes place 17 May 2026 — its 41st edition, and its first year on the new Rezat riverbank site.
- What is the festival named after?
- A historic waterwheel that the community received as a gift and reinstalled at a historic site — now a local landmark and the fest’s namesake.
- How long has the festival existed?
- The first Wasserradfest took place in summer 1984 on the initiative of the Gmünder Heimatverein; 2026 is its 41st edition.
- Where is Georgensgmünd?
- In Mittelfranken (Middle Franconia), Bavaria — the fest is a local highlight alongside the August Kirchweih.
- Is this the same as the Stadelner Wasserradfest?
- No. 'Stadelner Wasserradfest' is a separate, similarly named festival in Fürth-Stadeln, built around a different historic waterwheel — in 2026 it falls one day earlier, on 16 May. The two events are unrelated aside from sharing a name format and a calendar slot.
- Free entry