In Germany, Carnival Sunday is coming to an end before the start of the Easter fast, and economists' sober calculations show that these days of wild fun and costumed parades will bring the economy around two billion euros this year.
Carnival is marked by street parades, throwing confetti and candy from decorated, colorful vehicles, excessive eating and drinking, costumed children and adults, but what appears to be a wild folk party will bring in around 1,96 billion euros to the economy this year, the Institute for German Economics (IW) in Cologne has estimated.
According to the IW forecast, the catering industry will earn almost 900 million - food, and above all traditional drinks, primarily beer, are a strong factor in economic growth during the carnival days.
Retailers will profit by around 400 million euros, which Germans will spend on wigs, costumes and sweets. Public transport, buses and railways, will earn around 286 million euros, hotels will earn another 210 million euros on overnight stays, and carnival participants will spend another 162 million euros on tickets, media and the construction and decoration of floats for the processions.
Carnival is, according to IW, "a short-lived ecosystem of tradition, beer and gross value creation."
Since Carnival largely originated from Roman Catholic tradition, and although it is held in many cities and even villages throughout Germany, the most important center of Carnival is Cologne in the most populous state of North Rhine-Westphalia, which can count on an income of around 850 million euros.
The Protestant Church generally disapproves of wild celebrations before Lent, but today all Germans, regardless of religion or ethnic background, enjoy Carnival. However, Carnival's strongholds are still in the western, predominantly Catholic parts of Germany.
Carnival also has its expensive side. An overnight stay in Cologne during Carnival is 66 percent, or 88 euros, more expensive than usual. The city attracts many guests from home and abroad.
In the north, in Bremen, the price of an overnight stay has become only 14 percent higher, while in Düsseldorf or Mainz the price has remained stable or a night in a hotel has become even cheaper.
This, writes IW, is also proof that these cities live off guests from the region, while Cologne attracts curious visitors from all over Germany and abroad.
Carnival is not just an engine of economic development. Since ancient times, it has also been a social outlet, an opportunity to mock the powerful, reverse roles, and bend the rules. "Carnival creates a few days of distraction from bad news and brings togetherness into the spotlight," writes IW.
And that, it adds, "is not only good for personal happiness, but also for the economy."
For comparison, the famous carnival in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, brought in around 2 billion euros in revenue for the entire country last year.
New Orleans, the largest city in Louisiana famous for Mardi Gras, the American version of carnival, earned a total of 850 million euros in 2023 during the multi-day event.
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