Take a Tour to the Passion Play at Oberammergau in 2020

The Oberammergau Passion Play is performed every decade in the years ending in zero. There have been some exceptions to this, but the 42^nd staging of the Passion Play is scheduled for 2020. Select from over 15 trips that take in Europe and Oberammergau offered by operators such as Trafalgar, Costsaver, Cosmos and Insight Vacations.

For first time travellers to the event, Oberammergau is a pretty village nestled in a valley in the Bavarian Alps and a stunning backdrop to this long held Christian celebration of faith. A home to wood carving traditions and detailed frescos adorning the facades of its buildings, the town looks equally beautiful dusted with winter snow as it is green in the spring and summer.

First performed in 1634 after the unfortunate incident when a returning resident brought bubonic plague with him. He died and other residents in the village were struck with the illness. The desperate residents made a plea to God to spare them from the illness with a vow to perform a passion play as a regular expression of their faith. Following this vow, it is held that, by the grace of God, more ill residents did not succumb to the plague.

This theatrical expression of faith involved over 2000 villagers in 2010. For the first time the performance started in the afternoon, with a three hour supper interval, ending late in the evening. The seven hour play will be performed from 16 May to 4 October 2020 to visitors from all over the world who come to follow the story of Jesus from birth to resurrection in an expression and renewal of their faith.

The villagers of Oberammergau embrace the event wholeheartedly and it has some strict traditions. Only those who have been residents there for over 20 years can be involved in the performance. The play is performed in German with translation booklets available. Preparations are well underway for the 2020 performances. A tradition upheld by the male actors is to grow their hair and beards by Ash Wednesday the year before the performance.

With the village welcoming over half a million visitors to the performance these tours sell out fast. Make the most of any Earlybird discounts, until sold out, so don’t wait to secure your place.