Jesters and minstrels, knights in shining armor and damsels in distress: Prince Luitpold of Bavaria founded the annual Kaltenberg Knights Tournament in 1979. Set on the premises of a 13th-century castle east of Munich, the festival is said to be one of the largest of its kind worldwide. From July 14 to July 30, you can see real knights jousting - professional stuntmen, of course!

Concerts, workshops and an educational program: The Ruhr piano festival offers 69 events in different cities in the densely populated Ruhr area, featuring newcomers as well as international piano stars - just follow the trademark red piano! The festival, which has was launched in 1988 and has more than 50,000 visitors every year, started on May 5 and continues through July 20, 2017.

Set on the day the official summer break season for schools in the state of North Rhine-Westphalia starts, on July 15, the city of Cologne holds its popular, gigantic annual fireworks display. Impressive, synchronized with music, it lights up the skies at night along the stately Gothic cathedral and the Rhine River. The event draws hundreds of thousands of people.

Every year, thousands of people flock to the Redefin Stallion Parades, which were first held in 1935. Horses have been bred since the beginning of the 18th century at the State Stud Farm at Redefin, in Germany's eastern state of Mecklenburg. Redefin has 30 breeding stallions. The horse shows take place on three consecutive Sundays, beginning September 10, 2017.

The scenic Tegernsee Valley will once again draw thousands of nature buffs this year from October 18 to 22, for the fifth Tegernsee International Mountain Film Festival. Grand mountain landscapes and breathtaking adventures: Film submissions from all over the world compete in different categories. "K2 - Touching the Sky" (picture) won first prize last year in the Mountain Experience category.

Pirates of the Caribbean, beware: the annual Störtebeker Festival on the Eastern German island of Rügen is an open air theater that tells the story of Germany's very own medieval privateer and pirate, the legendary Klaus Störtebeker - a veritable Robin Hood of the Seas. The fun spectacle is acted out on one of Europe's largest open air stages, from June 24 to September 9, 2017.

For the Cruise Days event, held from September 8 to 10, 2017, six mammoth cruise ships - along with 24 smaller ships - stream into Germany's northern city of Hamburg. The total length of the cruise ships on the water is more than one and a half kilometers. At night, the port eerily illuminated through the Blue Port Hamburg light art installation.

Another event in the northern port city: From September 13 to October 15, 2017, Hamburg hosts the Harbourfront Literature Festival. National and international authors will present their new books through 79 events, reading to audiences at the most spectacular locations in and around Hamburg's harbor. This year, the festival focuses on literature from Turkey.

Finally, an event that sounds like a lot of fun if you own or simply adore the sturdy, energetic pint-sized dogs, and happen to be in or near the German capital: the eighth International Pug Meeting in Berlin on August 19. The annual highlight: the pug race!

Heidelberg Castle is one of the best-known castle ruins in Germany. It was only partly restored after it was destroyed more than 200 years ago. Today it’s a magnificent backdrop for the Heidelberg Schlossfestspiele, a festival that dates back to 1994. This year’s program also features Cole Porter's "Kiss me, Kate".

The Schleswig-Holstein Musik Festival was founded in 1896 and remains one of the largest and best-known events of its kind in Germany. Performances are held in churches, castles, barns, and country estates - like the Emkendorf estate near Kiel, pictured here.

Love and hate, pride and betrayal - it's the stuff the Nibelung myth is made of. The saga is said to have taken place in medieval Worms. And since 2002, it’s also been at the center of the Nibelung festival in that very city. More than 230,000 viewers have already basked in the saga of Siegfried and Kriemhild - and every year’s staging in front of the Worms Cathedral offers fresh surprises.

A craggy landscape full of beauty and mystery - that’s the Luisenburg Festspiele, set in the Fichtel Mountains near Wunsiedel. The festival kicked off in 1890, making it the oldest event of its kind in a German-speaking region. The repertoire ranges from popular Bavarian and children’s theater to classics like Mozart's "The Magic Flute."

To the left the cathedral, on the right St. Severi Church, and at the center a staircase with 70 steps. That’s the spectacular backdrop that transforms Erfurt’s landmark into a concert stage every summer. This year will feature "The troubadour" by Giuseppe Verdi.

Since 1952, Germany’s Wild West has flourished in the town of Bad Segeberg, not far from the North Sea. Every summer, one of Karl May’s adventures is staged at the Kalkberg Stadium open-air arena. With characters familiar to generations of German schoolchildren, the performances feature action and stunts galore, and are a festival of delight for the entire family.

Bad Hersfeld has long been known as one of the premiere locations for open-air theater. The festival at the ruins of the old church is now in its 67th year.

There are still legends galore about Klaus Störtebeker, a pirate who waged battles for freedom and justice on the North and Baltic seas in the 14th century. His adventures are the focus of a spectacular festival on the Baltic Island of Rügen. The event includes 150 actors and staff, four ships, 30 horses, and countless stunts and special effects.

Berlin’s Gendarmenmarkt, with its neoclassical architecture, is one of the loveliest squares in the city. For 25 years, the festival has offered a broad musical repertoire, ranging from Italian arias to bombastic symphonies, to classics of jazz and even film scores. But the highlight is always the fireworks that light up the night sky of Berlin.