The 2018 Maschsee Festival is officially open!

International dining options, free concert highlights, water sports, open-air dance evenings, romantic sunsets, and an exciting children’s program guarantee a nonstop vacation experience.

“The 33rd Maschseefest is officially open”—at 6 p.m., Hannover’s Mayor Stefan Schostok and Hans Christian Nolte, Managing Director of Hannover Veranstaltungs GmbH (HVG), opened this year’s Maschseefest to visitors. After a short boat ride along the north shore, surrounded by a colorful parade of musicians and vibrant stilt walkers, they kicked off the 19-day festival.

Mayor Stefan Schostok emphasized: “Hanover still has the best weeks of summer ahead, even as the summer break draws to a close. For the summer festival—the now-traditional and legendary Maschseefest—the area around the popular recreational spot in the heart of Hanover is transformed into a Mediterranean-style experience. This year, too, the HVG has set up right by the water and will offer an exciting program featuring international cuisine, concert highlights, and a variety of entertainment for all ages, including the youngest visitors.”

© HMTG

Let your gaze wander over Lake Maschsee from one of the many restaurants along the shore, or dance to one of the musical acts performing on the stages around the lake—whether on boat rides, during relaxed cocktail evenings, or simply while strolling along the lakeside promenade, visitors can immerse themselves in the atmosphere of the Maschsee Festival—unique in all of Germany—and experience their own personal highlight.

A Culinary Journey Around the World – International Cuisine
Specialties from Tyrol to Spain, from Cape Town to Japan offer everything a food lover could desire. In the western part of Lake Maschsee, the culinary journey around the lake begins with Mediterranean Spanish classics. The journey continues along the north shore with international specialties from Canada, Tyrol, Miami, Japan, South Africa, and Greece. In the east, on the Rudolf-von-Bennigsen shore, the Food Village offers a wide variety of international dishes “to go.” The journey then continues via San Francisco toward Geibel, where authentic Hamburg Labskaus, Gosch fish specialties, rustic snacks, and a culinary journey through France await discovery. The lounge chairs on Pier Island offer a chance to catch your breath along the route around the Maschsee.

© Kevin Münkel

From the Löwenbastion, visitors can enjoy the view of the colorful north shore while savoring healthy food and exclusive wines. A few meters further on, the Irish Village invites visitors to linger. At the Maschsee spring, visitors can once again look forward to classic barbecue specialties. Many restaurants around the lake offer a variety of exclusive events during the 19-day festival, such as winemaker evenings, champagne parties, brunches, special theme nights, and whiskey tastings.

Reservations can be made at www.maschseefest.de/tischreservierung. From Monday through Saturday, regular business hours begin at 2:00 p.m.; on Sundays, they start at 11:00 a.m. Some stalls also offer a special lunch menu or set meals during the week.

“The Maschsee Festival brings together leisure and business—right in the heart of the city at Hanover’s local lake. Team-building events, business meetings, employee gatherings, as well as birthday parties, class reunions, and anniversaries are celebrated over these 19 days on the shores of Lake Maschsee. Guests come to us from all over Germany and, in some cases, from neighboring countries as well. It’s a great showcase for our hospitality and the Hannover way of life,” says Hans Christian Nolte, managing director of Hannover Veranstaltungs GmbH (HVG), with delight.

Music and dance—outdoors and free

Visitors can also look forward to many musical and artistic highlights on the stages around Lake Maschsee—regional, national, and international acts will create a vacation atmosphere right in the heart of the city. As is tradition, the ffn hosts will kick things off on the Maschsee Stage on the north shore and accompany Hanover through the first two summer nights by the lake. With Namika (Aug. 3) and Stefanie Heinzmann (Aug. 4), two incredibly popular female artists will take the stage. On the festival’s second weekend, Antenne Niedersachsen will take the Maschsee stage with the band Marquess (Aug. 11). On Sunday, August 12, at 3 p.m., the starting signal will be given for the Bahlsen “Crazy Crossing” fun boat race, which will be commentated on by the Antenne Niedersachsen hosts. RADIO 21 will present Diana Babalola and Mariuzz on the festival’s final Friday (August 17) and the popular cover bands reejoy and Hellfire on Saturday, August 18. On the other days of the festival, the HVG, in cooperation with the Pavillon Cultural Center, will present a colorful mix of international and local artists and bands on the Maschsee Stage. Right on opening night, Brazzo Brazzone—the only Italo-World-Groove brass band—will take the stage. Emersound (Brazilian Grooves), Andy Lee & his Rockin’ Country Men (piano rock ’n’ roll), Soul Control, and crowd favorite Juliano Rossi are just a few examples of the diverse lineup on stage at the north shore. The Löwenbastion has also put together a wide variety of concert highlights for the 19-day festival. On opening night, MUNIQUE (soul, R&B, funk, rock, and pop) will take the stage.

© At 18

MIT 18 – THE Westernhagen cover band rocks the first Saturday, while Help! A Beatles Tribute turns “Sunday” into “Funday.” Reckless Roses, a Guns N’ Roses cover band, kicks off the second weekend, followed by the Queen Revival Band and Goldplay, a Coldplay cover band. To wrap things up, the Disco Boys await visitors as an absolute highlight at the big closing party. Even with the cover bands taking the stage at the Maschseequelle, the difference between the original and the cover is often barely noticeable: Die Toten Ärzte will rock the south right on opening night. Picknick Park Tribute makes its debut on the first weekend. Razzle Dazzle, MerQury, Guns & Rosis Tribute, and many other bands bring a great party atmosphere to the Maschseequelle. At the Hamborger Veermaster, there’s a maritime program featuring shanty and sailors’ choirs, themed evenings centered on cult stars Freddy Quinn and Hans Albers, and the popular “Dancing by the Lake.” Pier Island also invites you to dance: Every Tuesday, right on the shore, you can hit the dance floor together with the Bothe dance schools. Hanover’s salsa dance clubs present Latin dance shows, including short workshops, every Tuesday and Thursday at the Maschseequelle. Argentine tango takes center stage every Tuesday at the Löwenbastion. Jazz brunch events—such as those held on Sundays at the Löwenbastion or Maschseequelle—round out the program.

Cabaret, Children, and Pirates

On Tuesdays, Thursdays, and weekends, the north shore and the area around the Stadion pier are taken over by street performers and cabaret acts. Sometimes cheeky, sometimes acrobatic, sometimes sizzling—but always professional: On August 2, the Jazz Police will be out and about, and on August 7, the Party Ambulance will be entertaining visitors to the Maschsee Festival. The Cooking Ladies and the ever-popular Bett-Män also provide entertaining performances. Of course, even the youngest visitors have their own program: Many restaurants around the lake offer play areas, art corners, and special activities for young guests. On the large children’s lawn at the HDI Arena, a fun-filled world opens up for all play and craft enthusiasts from Friday through Sunday and on Wednesdays. Face-painting booth, kids’ yoga, craft stations, goofy clowns, a bounce house, and a Bobby Car course for the little ones—beach chairs, drinks, and coffee for the grown-ups. On Tuesdays and Thursdays, the popular pirate ship “üstralala” sets sail with Captain Zopf and ship’s boy Mathjes! Together with the stowaway, Bounty the parrot, and helmsman Achim, the young passengers experience all sorts of unusual adventures. They sing offbeat pirate songs and, with a little luck, might even find the key to the treasure chest.

The Star – The Lake

© Crazy Crossing

At the heart of the festival, Lake Maschsee, fun and athletic activities will take place throughout the 19 days of the event. In a truly romantic scene on August 4, over 100 divers from the Hannover Diving Club will swim along the eastern shore during the torchlight swim. On August 12, the starting signal will be given for the Bahlsen Crazy Crossing fun boat race, organized by Antenne Niedersachsen. On the festival’s final weekend, the NKR will be making its ninth appearance at the Maschsee Festival. 100 large Big Ducks and 5,000 small rubber ducks will take part in the NKR Duck-Fun(d)racing race against leukemia (August 18).

Ideas Boulevard@Maschseefest

© HVG / Kevin Münkel

Kreativ.Digital.Hannover—under this motto, the “Ideenboulevard” will be making an appearance at the Maschseefest on August 14. Starting at 1:00 p.m. on the “Kreativ-Meile” along the north shore, the motto is “Touch, Join In, Try It Out”! Companies, projects, and initiatives from Hannover will showcase how they’re helping to make the city a digitally charming place. Participants include CEBIT, üstra, the City of Hannover, the Social Innovation Hub of the Hannover Region, cody, the Freaky Fashion Pop-Up Store, and many more. The “NachsITzen – Youngster Sessions” for school classes will take place in the pavilion. Here, interactive presentations will offer insights into current digital topics—from data protection to Instagram. For businesses, the UpDate Conference will take place at the Courtyard Hotel and offer valuable insights into digital marketing. In the GrooveGarden, four so-called MeetUps will come together: covering topics ranging from artificial intelligence and HannoVR to robotics and blockchain. Afterward, startups will pitch their business ideas at the “Höhle der Karpfen.”

National Climate Action Initiative of the Federal Ministry for the Environment
Learn about “vertical gardening” and self-sufficiency in the urban future, or reach your destination in a climate-friendly way with the “One drives, two ride, three save the climate” rickshaw—the Federal Ministry for the Environment (BMU) will be presenting these and many other activities from August 3 to 5, 2018, at the Maschseefest on the Rudolf-von-Bennigsen Ufer.

Social Partner – UNICEF University Group Hannover
For the first time, members of the UNICEF University Group in Hanover are collecting bottle deposits on the east bank on weekends to support a good cause. Under the slogan “Donate your bottle deposit and save lives,” UNICEF is helping children gain access to clean water.

Accommodations
: For anyone who would like to combine the Maschseefest with a short trip to Hanover, Hannover Marketing und Tourismus GmbH (HMTG) has put together a special experience package as well as a discounted group offer. For more information, visit www.maschseefest.de/uebernachten.

For more information about the Maschsee Festival and the complete program, visit www.maschseefest.de

Photos for editorial use can be found at: www.maschseefest.de/presse