A Vow Kept Since 1633

2030 Oberammergau Passion Play

Q: When is the next Oberammergau Passion Play?

The next Oberammergau Passion Play is in 2030 — the 43rd staging since 1634. The play is performed once every ten years, in the decadal year. Oberammergau has not yet published the official 2030 performance calendar. Recent seasons have run from mid-May through early October.

Q: Are Passion Play tickets included in a Tekton pilgrimage?

Yes. Every Tekton pilgrimage to Oberammergau includes your ticket to the Passion Play, along with round-trip air, hotels, motorcoach, most meals, a Pilgrimage Manager traveling with the group, and knowledgeable Catholic and Christian guides. You do not need to arrange a ticket separately.

Q: Where is the Passion Play performed?

In the village of Oberammergau in the Ammergau Alps of Bavaria, southern Germany, roughly ninety minutes south of Munich. Performances take place in the Passionstheater, an open-air stage set against the mountains with covered seating for the audience.

Q: How long is the Passion Play, and what is the schedule?

The performance runs about five hours of stage time across eleven acts, divided into two sessions with a long dinner break between them. In recent seasons the first session began in the afternoon and the second ran into the evening, ending around 10:30pm. Plan on the Passion Play occupying the entire day and evening.

Q: Is the Passion Play performed in English?

No. The play is performed in German. An English-language text is provided so English-speaking visitors can follow the spoken dialogue, the choral music, and the tableaux act by act.

Q: Can a parish or group attend the Passion Play together?

Yes, and for 2030 that is the most reliable way to go. Tekton has organized group pilgrimages since 1996 and builds Passion Play itineraries around a parish's own dates, pace, and chaplain. Contact Tekton to begin planning a 2030 group pilgrimage.

Catholic pilgrimages to Bavaria for the 43rd Passion Play

Once every ten years, a village of five thousand in the Bavarian Alps sets down its ordinary life and performs the Passion of Our Lord — because in 1633 its people promised they would. The Oberammergau Passion Play returns in 2030.

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Passion Play Theater | Oberammergau, Germany

30+ Years Guiding Catholic Pilgrims

Daily Mass at Sacred Sites

Catholic/Christian Guides

Reserved Seats at the Passion Play

The Invitation

The Promise Behind the Passion Play

In 1633 the plague had reached the Ammergau valley, carried in by a single day laborer who slipped past the guards to come home for a church festival. Within a year more than eighty villagers were dead. The survivors gathered and promised God that if they were spared, they would perform the suffering, death, and resurrection of His Son once every ten years. They were spared. In 1634 they built a stage in the cemetery, over the graves of the plague dead, and kept the promise for the first time.

Every villager who has since stepped onto that stage inherited a vow made by people they never met. The woman who sings in the chorus in 2030 is keeping a word given four hundred years before she was born.

The Magi carried their gifts a long way, laid them down, and went home by a different way. What they left behind outlasted them. A pilgrim who comes to Oberammergau in 2030 comes to watch exactly that — a gift still being given, generations after the givers. And the question the play quietly puts to everyone in the theater is worth carrying home: what have you promised, and are you keeping it?

The first stage was built in the churchyard, over the graves of the plague dead. The village has been keeping its side of that bargain ever since.

Getting In

When Is the Next Passion Play?

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Counting to an estimated mid-May 2030 opening. Official dates have not yet been announced by Oberammergau.

The next Oberammergau Passion Play is in 2030 — the 43rd staging since 1634, and the first since the postponed 2020 season was finally performed in 2022. The play is given once every ten years, in the decadal year, because that is the term of the vow.

Official 2030 dates have not yet been announced. Oberammergau publishes its performance calendar well ahead of the season, and we are watching for it. Recent seasons have run from mid-May through early October, with performances on most days of the week.

We will publish the confirmed 2030 dates on this page as soon as Oberammergau releases them. Join the priority list below and we will let you know.

The 43rd Season

Passion Play Tickets Are Included

Every Tekton pilgrimage to Oberammergau includes your ticket to the Passion Play. You do not need to arrange it separately, watch for a ticket release, or hope a seat is left when you arrive.

Your seat in the Passion Play Theater comes with the rest of the pilgrimage: round-trip air, hotels, motorcoach, most meals, a Pilgrimage Manager traveling with your group, and knowledgeable Catholic and Christian guides — along with daily Mass at the shrines along the way.

2030 pricing is set once the season calendar is confirmed. Priority-list members hear first.

JOIN THE 2030 PRIORITY LIST

" I really liked the pace of the schedule. We covered a lot of ground, but I never felt rushed.

Fr. Doug M.

Germany Pilgrim Leader from Indianapolis, IN

2030 Registration

Groups Are Forming Now

2030 pilgrimages are not yet open for individual registration. Two things you can do today:

Join the priority list. You will hear from us the day 2030 dates are confirmed — before the pilgrimages are published publicly.

Or bring your parish. Most Oberammergau pilgrimages are parish and group departures built around a pastor's calendar. If you are a priest, deacon, or group leader, this is the moment to start.

No Matching Pilgrimages

Contact us to plan a custom pilgrimage for your group.

PLAN A PARISH PILGRIMAGE

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The Day Itself

What the Passion Play Is Like

Five hours of stage time, eleven acts, two thousand villagers, and one long day you will not forget.

Exterior of the Oberammergau Passion Play Theater (Passionstheater), with its teal gabled facade and cross emblem above the entrance

The Theater

Open to the Sky

The Passion Play Theater stages the play in the open air against the mountains, with the audience under cover. Weather becomes part of the performance — the Crucifixion under an alpine sky is not an effect anyone can stage twice.

Cast members of the Oberammergau Passion Play in costume on the open-air stage

The Cast

Only the Village

Roughly two thousand residents — nearly half the town — perform, sing, play, and build. Eligibility requires birth in Oberammergau or long residence. Cast members grow their hair and beards for years before the season opens.

Lüftlmalerei fresco of the Crucifixion dated Anno Domini 1633 on a house facade in Oberammergau, Bavaria

The Village

Lüftlmalerei and Woodcarving

Oberammergau's houses are painted with frescoes — the Bavarian tradition of Lüftlmalerei — and its woodcarvers have supplied crucifixes and crèches to Europe for centuries. The village is worth the walk before the play begins.

The Shape of It

Two Sessions, One Long Break

The play runs in two halves separated by a dinner break of several hours, ending late in the evening. The break is long enough to eat somewhere in the village and stretch your legs before the second half. Plan for the Passion Play to take the entire day — that is rather the point of it.

The Language

German, With the Text in Hand

The spoken dialogue and the choral music are in German. An English text is provided so you can follow every act. Most pilgrims find that after the first act they are watching more than reading.

The Music

Chorus and Tableaux

Between the acted scenes the chorus sings and the cast holds tableaux vivants — motionless living pictures drawn from the Old Testament, set against the scene you are about to watch. It is closer to sung meditation than to theater.

Where the Road Goes

Sample Oberammergau Pilgrimage Itineraries

The Passion Play is one day. These are the roads Tekton groups have taken around it. Every itinerary is custom-built for the group that travels it — these are starting points, not fixed departures.

Zurich ◆ Lucerne ◆ Einsiedeln ◆ Innsbruck ◆ Oberammergau ◆ Munich ◆ Altötting ◆ Maria Plain ◆ Salzburg ◆ Vienna ◆ Bratislava ◆ Budapest

Day 1

Depart USA

Depart on our overnight flight to Zürich.
Day 2

Arrive Zurich · Lucerne

Met by our Pilgrimage Manager, then a scenic drive to Lucerne on the lake. The evening is at leisure.
Day 3

Lucerne · Einsiedeln · Innsbruck

The medieval city center and its covered bridges, then on to Einsiedeln — Switzerland's foremost pilgrimage shrine — where we celebrate Mass at the Benedictine Monastery before the Black Madonna. Cross into the Tyrol for the night.
Day 4

Innsbruck · Oberammergau PASSION PLAY

The day the pilgrimage is built around. In the Passionstheater, two thousand villagers keep the vow of 1633 once more.
Day 5

Oberammergau · Munich · Altötting

The Wieskirche, Church of the Scourged Redeemer, in its alpine meadow. On to Munich for the Glockenspiel on the Marienplatz and the twin-towered Frauenkirche.
Day 6

Altötting · Maria Plain · Salzburg

Mass in the Chapel of Grace at Altötting, Germany's foremost Marian shrine, where a drowned child was restored to life in 1489. Then Maria Plain, the pilgrim hill above Salzburg.
Day 7

Salzburg · Vienna

The Benedictine houses of St. Rupert — Nonnberg Convent and St. Peter's Abbey — among the oldest in the German-speaking world, and the gardens of Hellbrunn.
Day 8

Vienna

A full day in the Habsburg capital: the Stephansdom, Karlskirche, Peterskirche, and Schönbrunn Palace.
Day 9

Vienna · Bratislava · Budapest

The Cathedral of St. Martin and the Old Town of Bratislava, then on to the city that straddles the Danube.
Day 10

Budapest

Mass at St. Stephen's Basilica, then Heroes' Square, Fishermen's Bastion, and St. Matthias Church in the Castle District.
Day 11

Budapest · Return to USA

Transfer to the airport for our return flight home.

Prague ◆ Altötting ◆ Munich ◆ Wieskirche ◆ Oberammergau ◆ Neuschwanstein ◆ Innsbruck ◆ Einsiedeln ◆ Lucerne

Day 1

Depart USA

Depart on our overnight flight to Prague.
Day 2

Arrive Prague

Met by our Pilgrimage Manager; three nights in the Czech capital. The remainder of the day is at leisure.
Day 3

Loreto Shrine · Prague Castle

The Loreto Shrine's Holy House replica, then Prague Castle, St. Vitus Cathedral, and the Golden Lane. Mass at the Church of Our Lady Victorious before the Infant Jesus of Prague.
Day 4

Old Town Prague

Across the Charles Bridge to one of the best-preserved historical city centers in Europe — the Astronomical Clock and Our Lady before Týn. Farewell dinner tonight.
Day 5

Prague · Altötting · Munich

Across the Bavarian border to Altötting, Germany's oldest Marian shrine, where we celebrate Mass in the Chapel of Grace.
Day 6

Munich

The Marian churches and Counter-Reformation landmarks of the Bavarian capital: the Frauenkirche, Michaelskirche, and Bürgersaalkirche.
Day 7

Munich · Wieskirche · Oberammergau PASSION PLAY

The Wieskirche, considered the most beautiful Rococo church in Europe, and then the Passion Play itself. Overnight at Bad Kohlgrub.
Day 8

Neuschwanstein · Innsbruck

Neuschwanstein Castle and Garmisch-Partenkirchen beneath the Zugspitze, then across into the Tyrol and the Golden Roof of Innsbruck.
Day 9

Innsbruck · Einsiedeln · Lucerne

Einsiedeln, kept by Benedictines since the tenth century. Mass before the Black Madonna in the Chapel of Mercy, then down to Lucerne.
Day 10

Lucerne

A full day in the medieval city on the lake: the Jesuit Church, the Hofkirche, the Lion Monument, and a cruise on Lake Lucerne.
Day 11

Lucerne · Zurich · Return to USA

Transfer to Zurich airport for our return flight home.

Zurich ◆ Einsiedeln ◆ Innsbruck ◆ Oberammergau ◆ Munich ◆ Erding ◆ Salzburg ◆ Prague

Day 1

Depart USA

Depart on our overnight flight to Zürich.
Day 2

Arrive Zurich

Met by our Pilgrimage Manager, who travels with us for the duration of the pilgrimage. The day is at leisure.
Day 3

Zurich · Einsiedeln · Innsbruck

Einsiedeln, Switzerland's foremost pilgrimage shrine, where we celebrate Mass at the Benedictine Monastery before the Black Madonna. Cross into the Tyrol for the night.
Day 4

Innsbruck · Oberammergau PASSION PLAY

The Passion Play — eleven acts across five hours, kept by this village for nearly four centuries.
Day 5

Oberammergau · Munich

Down from the Ammergau valley to Munich, our base for two nights.
Day 6

Erding · Old Town Munich

Adoration at the Church of the Most Precious Blood in Erding, where a Eucharistic miracle dating to 1417 is venerated. Then the Marienplatz, the Glockenspiel, and the Frauenkirche.
Day 7

Munich · Salzburg

Salzburg, founded around the abbey of St. Rupert: Nonnberg Convent and the ancient catacombs of St. Peter's Abbey.
Day 8

Salzburg · Prague

North across the Czech border to Prague for the final nights of the pilgrimage.
Day 9

Loreto Shrine · Prague Castle

The Loreto Shrine, St. Vitus Cathedral, and the Golden Lane, then Mass before the Infant Jesus of Prague.
Day 10

Charles Bridge · Old Town

The Old Town Square, the Astronomical Clock and its twelve apostles, and Our Lady before Týn. Farewell dinner tonight.
Day 11

Prague · Return to USA

Transfer to the airport for our return flight home.

Build a 2030 Itinerary for Your Group

Four Centuries

History of the Oberammergau Passion Play

From a plague vow in the Thirty Years' War to the 43rd season in 2030 — set against what the rest of the world was doing while a Bavarian village quietly kept its word.

World Events Oberammergau Events

1600s

1618 – The Thirty Years' War begins

This lengthy conflict had devastating effects throughout Europe and led to long-lasting consequences for the entire continent. Originally a series of regional clashes between Catholic and Protestant states in the Holy Roman Empire, it eventually encompassed the majority of the European great powers of the age. Death rates exceeded 60% in some regions and over 8 million lives were lost — not only due to formal acts of war, but also other sources of violence, famine, and plague that spread rampantly through the regions.

1626 – St. Peter's Basilica in Rome is completed

Though the first — and deadliest — scourge of the bubonic plague, also known as the Black Death, raged through the Eurasian continent throughout the 14th century, it continued to recur throughout Europe with devastating effects through the 17th century. During the early to mid-1600s, its spread was aided by troop movement of the Thirty Years' War, adding to the effects of that conflict. From 1628–1631, over a million people died in France. In a similar timespan (1629–1631) Italy lost over a quarter million residents, with some regions losing over half their population. With these nearby countries suffering monumental consequences as a result of the plague, Bavaria was not spared and Munich alone lost a significant proportion of its citizens.

The quaint Bavarian village of Oberammergau took every precaution available at the time to seal itself off from contamination by the plague and was reasonably successful until 1632. This was when a villager named Kaspar Schisler snuck by guards to return to his family. He had been working as a day laborer in a nearby town for the season and took advantage of the distraction of the annual church festival to return home. Unfortunately, he also brought the plague with him, eventually leading to his death and over 80 others — at least 20% of the villagers.

With nearly every family touched by the plague, and no end to the Thirty Years' War or the disease in sight, the villagers were desperate for a reprieve. Turning to their deep faith, they prayed to God to be spared from further harm, vowing in return to stage a Passion Play honoring His Son every 10 years.

Performed on a stage built in the cemetery — over the graves of the plague victims.

1644 – 2nd Passion Play Season

1648 – The Thirty Years' War ends

Passion Plays — sometimes called Easter Plays — are not unique to Oberammergau, though the tradition there is certainly long-lasting. Many modern churches and other religious organizations stage versions of the Passion of Christ every year. And the early 17th century was no different. In the first half of the century, nearly 40 passion plays throughout the Bavarian-Austrian region remain on historical records.

1654 – 3rd Passion Play Season

1664 – 4th Passion Play Season

1674 – 5th Passion Play Season

1680 – 6th Passion Play Season

1687 – Isaac Newton publishes his laws of motion and universal gravitation in The Mathematical Principles of Natural Philosophy

1690 – 7th Passion Play Season

1700s

1700 – 8th Passion Play Season

1707 – United Kingdom of Great Britain formed. A parliamentary Act of Union unites England, Wales, and Scotland into a single entity

1710 – 9th Passion Play Season

1712 – The first successful steam-powered engine is built and used to pump water out of a mine

1720 – 10th Passion Play Season

In August, thieves broke into the Church of St. Francis in Siena and stole the chalice containing 351 consecrated hosts. It was found 3 days later with the hosts still perfectly intact, and they remain in perfect condition until the present day.

1730 – 11th Passion Play Season

1737 – St. Vincent de Paul, champion of the poor, is canonized in Rome

1740 – 12th Passion Play Season

1750 – 13th Passion Play Season

1760 – 14th Passion Play Season

The Prince-elector (and Duke) Maximilian Joseph III of Bavaria imposed a ban on all passion plays. One reasoning was that they were forms of extravagance and he was cutting back on such. His decision also seems to be based upon a belief that the theater is not a fitting setting for the expression of the teachings of the Catholic faith.

1776 – American Revolution begins

Oberammergau was given special permission to stage the Passion Play — all others were still banned.

1789 – French Revolution begins. George Washington is elected first president of the United States

1790 – 16th Passion Play Season

1799 – The Rosetta Stone is discovered in Egypt, leading to greater understanding of the meaning and translation of hieroglyphics

1800s

1800 – 17th Passion Play Season

1801 – 18th Passion Play Season

Prior to becoming King Maximillian I Joseph of Bavaria, Maximillian IV Joseph served as prince-elector of Bavaria. It was during this time, influenced by the Enlightenment, that many religious houses and organizations were suppressed, and the secularization of the state extended to a ban on the 1810 running of the Oberammergau Passion Play, despite their previous exemption.

A new text for the script of the play along with fervent supplication resulted in the ban being lifted, and the play is performed just a year behind schedule. From 1811–1820, new music is also composed, and, with minor revisions and a few additions, remains the score performed in current renditions as well.

1815 – 21st Passion Play Season

1820 – 22nd Passion Play Season

1830 – Our Lady appears to St. Catherine Labouré in Paris and presents her with the Miraculous Medal

1840 – 23rd Passion Play Season

1850 – 24th Passion Play Season

1858 – Our Lady appears to St. Bernadette at Lourdes

1860 – 25th Passion Play Season

1861 – American Civil War begins

The conflict of the Franco-Prussian war from July 1870 – May 1871 resulted in the 1870 edition of the Passion Play being suspended mid-season, resuming once the conflict ended.

1880 – 27th Passion Play Season

1881 – Louis Pasteur creates the world's first vaccine

1890 – 28th Passion Play Season

He was world renowned for his preaching and evangelization work on radio and television.

1900s

1900 – 29th Passion Play Season

1903 – The first successful airplane flight takes place in Kitty Hawk, North Carolina, with Orville Wright as the pilot

1910 – 30th Passion Play Season

1914 – World War I begins

On October 13, the Miracle of the Sun occurs — witnessed by nearly 70,000 people.

1918 – World War I ends

The First World War ended in November of 1918, the same year plans would have begun for the 1920 performances. Due to the high number of casualties among the village's men and the economic devastation that followed the war, the season could not be staged.

1922 – 31st Passion Play Season

1930 – 32nd Passion Play Season

1934 – 33rd Passion Play Season · Special 300th Anniversary

1939 – World War II begins

In 1938, preparations for the 1940 play season began on time. However, with the outbreak of WWII in 1939, the entire season was ultimately cancelled.

1945 – WWII ends

1950 – 34th Passion Play Season

1960 – 35th Passion Play Season

1969 – Neil Armstrong becomes the first man to walk on the moon

1970 – 36th Passion Play Season

1980 – 37th Passion Play Season

During these apparitions, she appeared to predict the Rwandan Genocide and the shrine in Kibeho is now named the Shrine of Our Lady of Sorrows.

1984 – 38th Passion Play Season · Special 350th Anniversary

1990 – 39th Passion Play Season

She was canonized in September 2016.

2000s

2000 – 40th Passion Play Season

2010 – 41st Passion Play Season

2020 – 42nd Passion Play scheduled — postponed due to the COVID-19 pandemic

2022 – 42nd Passion Play Season

Nearly four hundred years after the vow, the village will again do what it said it would do.

Pilgrim Voices

From Those Who Have Returned

“I have a greater appreciation for the Saints as well as the fullness of our Catholic Faith.”

Jennifer B.

Germany Pilgrim from Indianapolis, IN

“Richard and staff are very helpful and they went out of their way in helping us plan the pilgrimage.”

Fr. Christopher B.

Germany Pilgrim from Lincoln, NE

“I really liked the pace of the schedule. We covered a lot of ground, but I never felt rushed.”

Fr. Doug M.

Germany Pilgrim from Indianapolis, IN

The Tekton Difference

Why Pilgrims See the Passion Play With Tekton

Over 30 Years in Ministry

Leading group pilgrimages to the shrines and relics of Germany and her neighbors since 1996.

Daily Mass at Sacred Sites

Every Oberammergau itinerary is custom-built, so the shrines vary by group. Daily Mass doesn't — in the Chapel of Grace at Altötting, before the Black Madonna at Einsiedeln, before the Infant of Prague.

Knowledgeable Catholic/Christian Guides

Local guides who share your faith and bring the apparitions and the saints to life on the ground.

Properly Paced Itineraries

Passion Play day is long. We build the days around it so pilgrims arrive rested and leave with room to pray, rather than sprinting from one site to the next.

Custom-Crafted Itineraries

Oberammergau paired with Prague, Vienna, Kraków, Lucerne, or Budapest — built around the needs and pace of your specific group, not a one-size-fits-all template.

Prayerful Pre-Pilgrimage Prep

Spiritual resources to ready your heart before departure — seeds of grace, not souvenirs.

Pilgrim Questions

Questions About the 2030 Passion Play

What to know before you walk the road of the relics.

When is the next Oberammergau Passion Play?

Why is the Passion Play performed only once every ten years?

In 1633, with plague spreading through Bavaria during the Thirty Years' War, the villagers of Oberammergau vowed that if they were spared they would perform the suffering, death, and resurrection of Jesus Christ every ten years. The first performance was held in 1634, and the village has kept the vow ever since.

The ten-year interval is not a scheduling decision. It is the term of the promise.

Are Passion Play tickets included in a Tekton pilgrimage?

Where is the Passion Play performed?

How long is the Passion Play, and what is the schedule?

Is the Passion Play performed in English?

Who performs in the Passion Play?

Only residents of Oberammergau. Roughly two thousand villagers — close to half the population — take part as actors, singers, musicians, and stage crew. Eligibility requires having been born in the village or having lived there for a set number of years.

Cast members grow beards and hair for years ahead of the season. No one is a professional. The entire production is the village keeping its own vow.

Can a parish or group attend the Passion Play together?

What else does a Catholic pilgrimage to Oberammergau include?

The Passion Play is one day; the pilgrimage around it is where the rest of the grace is. Tekton itineraries have paired Oberammergau with the Marian shrine of Altötting, the Wieskirche, the Eucharistic miracle at Erding, Einsiedeln in Switzerland, the Infant of Prague, Neuschwanstein, Salzburg, Vienna, and Budapest.

Every pilgrimage includes daily Mass, a Pilgrimage Manager, and knowledgeable Catholic and Christian guides.

Has the Passion Play ever been cancelled or postponed?

Several times in nearly four centuries. Bavarian bans on religious drama halted the 1770 and 1810 seasons. The Franco-Prussian War suspended the 1870 season mid-run. The aftermath of the First World War prevented the 1920 season, and the Second World War cancelled 1940. Most recently, the coronavirus pandemic postponed the 2020 season to 2022.

A plague delayed a play that was promised because of a plague. The vow has been kept without lasting interruption since 1634.

What is there to see in Oberammergau besides the Passion Play?

The village is known for Lüftlmalerei, the Bavarian tradition of painted house frescoes, and for centuries of woodcarving that has supplied crucifixes and crèches across Europe.

It sits about an hour from Munich in a valley of the Ammergau Alps, near the Wieskirche and Neuschwanstein Castle — which is why Oberammergau appears on so many Bavarian pilgrimage routes even in years when the play is not performed.