Harbour Front Literaturfestival 2025

In the organizer's words:

From September 20 to October 19, 2025, Hamburg will once again be transformed into a great stage for literature: the Harbour Front Literature Festival returns!
2025 marks not only a new start, but also the continuation of a tried and tested tradition: Hamburg's port will once again become a lively stage for literary discoveries, intelligent discussions and great stories.
Joachim Lux, artistic director of the festival, said:
"The festival remains true to the spirit of its founders, but at the same time breaks new ground. More than ever, the focus is on the unique combination of literature and the port city. We want to rethink spaces, expand boundaries and make it possible to experience places that show literature in a very special light - on ships, in theaters, in churches and clubs. We look forward to inspiring encounters and to a literary autumn that will hopefully be as wild as it is thought-provoking, quirky, entertaining and glamorous. Here's to an audience festival for Hamburg!"
The Harbour Front Literature Festival team has worked with great commitment and passion to lead the festival into a secure future. Together with many supporting partners, they are working to ensure that the Harbour Front Literature Festival will play a central role in German literary life in the years to come.
The audience can look forward to a variety of high-caliber events: from international stars such as Isabel Allende, Ian McEwan, Samantha Harvey and Mieko Kawakami to German-language greats such as Caroline Wahl, Martin Suter, Marc-Uwe Kling, Heinz Strunk, Rocko Schamoni and Katja Riemann, as well as exciting new voices in the literary world. The program sections "Now" and "Future" address the pressing issues of our time - with a special focus on social developments, sustainability and visions of the future.