Party in Essen

Parties, celebrations, clubs in Essen

You may know Essen as the Folkwang city, but Essen can not only be beautiful to look at, it can also be loud! Not only museums and ballet, but also a colorful party life awaits you here in the heart of the Ruhr Valley. Sometimes even in the museum. Here you will find more than just a wide selection of clubs and genres, but also great collectives and opportunities away from the typical chart parties every weekend. Due to the large student population and the proximity to other major cities, creative minds pool here and reshape the club scene. Don't have time for a whole night of partying, want to dance during the week or just want peak time? No problem, LOL120Min offers you exactly that at various locations in Essen and sometimes also in other cities in the Ruhr region - so you can get around really well. For example, the Goethebunker with the Funktion One sound system, the gold standard when it comes to electronic music, offers really great sound. To make sure you get a good night's entertainment, the Goethebunker has a super curated selection of parties and DJs. Experimental, groundbreaking sounds, rough diamonds from the underground that not even HÖR Berlin has found yet or even Berghain veterans have already played here. You can also meet the Essen collective GITTER there more often, who have been enriching Essen's nightlife landscape for years, whether with their own events or their exciting line-ups for other parties. Together with the Folkwang's Young Art Ring, GITTER also brings life and volume to the otherwise quiet walls of the Folkwang Museum. Have you ever raved between Monet and Picasso? GITTER makes it possible. When it comes to Essen's party scene, the Hotel Shanghai also deserves a mention. The owner, Kay Shanghai, is almost better known than his store, but exciting acts can be found here that you will hardly find anywhere else. For example, it's now more or less the standard club for actor Lars Eidinger's unusual sets, but queer scene giants such as Schwuppenexpress have also taken up residence there for the odd party in the past. You'll find all kinds of genres there, dark trap parties, groovy trance or Italo disco that will conjure up an Aperol in your hand. No less iconic in Essen's party history is MusikPalette, or MuPa for short. In 2024, after more than 30 years, the operator finally wanted to take a well-deserved retirement. But it took less than six weeks before it was allowed to reopen under new management, preserving a piece of Essen's party history. If you need a change of scenery so you don't always see the same dressing rooms and bars, then hold on tight: The Third Room is bringing the rave to the monument. In the middle of the disused Zollverein colliery, you can dance for days surrounded by genuine Ruhr Valley history. With events such as the Stone Techno Festival, Third Room gives the word industrial a whole new meaning. International headliners and big names in electronic music gather here to make the old steel structures shake, but they need your help to do so.