The town of Klötze in Saxony-Anhalt lies along the Altmark region, neighboring Gardelegen and just 40 from Wolfsburg. It’s close proximity to these towns, among others, makes it easy enough to get here.
Why even bother to come to this town of around 11,000 people? I’d really say it was for all the festivals and markets that take place here.
Sure, there are historical sites and all sorts of hiking & biking trails too. That just makes being here in Klötze even better.
I mentioned festivals first, so I’m gonna tell you all about those before anything else. One of the biggest festivals takes place at Schloss Kunrau in October, which is also part of a huge music festival.
October is also when the 4-day Martinimarkt takes place at the end of the month, the largest festival of its kind in the Altmark. Autumn is a big deal around here, especially when you add in all the choral concerts too.
Summer isn’t going to be left out of all the festive fun. In August there’s the Mill Festival, which takes places at the totally romantic Gallery Dutch Windmill.
I’m not done yet, either. Marck has the annual Tulip Sunday, then there’s the Dahlia Festival, the Christmas Market in early December, and one of the yummiest festivals of them all: the Spargel- und Besenbinderfest in May.
For those of you who don’t know, Spargel is asparagus. So, if anything, you’ll certainly eat good at this Springtime festival.
Enough of the partying — it’s time to get serious. Yeah, like I actually wrote that with straight face. ;-)
You don’t have to get all serious to appreciate the historical side of Klötze. You’ve already heard about the castle, right? What you have left to see is the Iron Cross War Memorial in the forest, and there’s a Pedestrian Zone with all sorts of shops and cafes.
The funny part of Klötze is found along the many hiking trails. Each of them are named after an animal — like the Fledermaustour (Bat Trail), the Fuchstour (Fox Trail), the Froschtour (Frog Trail), the Hirschkäfertour (Stag Beetles Trail)… um, you get the point.
There’s even a Trimm-Dich-Pfad or Trim Path, where you can shed off a few calories that you might’ve picked up at Klötze’s Spargel Festival. ;-)