The Bottom Line
- One of the biggest, if not the biggest annual sailing events in the world
- Events for the entire family day and night
- Great music, great drinks, great food
- Absolutely beautiful location
- 3.5 million people is a lot of people so it is crowded
- Things can be a bit expensive
Description
- One week long (Thus the name, Keiler Woche) June 21 -28 2008.
- 5,000 sailors with more than 2,000 yawls and yachts
- 100 tall ships or windjammers parade through the harbor the last Saturday of the event
- Destroyers, frigates, corvettes, minesweepers and launches from navies around the world hold tours
- Location : Kiel, Germany, on the Baltic Sea
- Visit the Kieler Woche Website
Guide Review - Kieler Woche - Kiel's International Sailing Festival
There are regattas daily culminating in the Tall Ships parade with over 100 majestic sailing vessels on the last Saturday of the festival. The events are not limited to ships, though, as sailors from around the world compete in various levels of sailing including catamarands, international and olymic dinghies and offshore yachts.
Back on land, the festival offers up a wide array of great music, dancing and events including an international fair, opera, ballet, a huge number of street performers and fireworks in the evening.
It is definitely worth braving the crowds to take in this really fantastic event. The ideal thing is to try to stay somewhere in town or on the Firth so you can see enjoy the regattas from your room as well. That being said, make sure you make your reservations early. There are plenty of lovely places around Kiel and along the coast that offer the benefits of sea air and other seaside pastimes.