Festival of Lights returns to Berlin from 9 to 18 October 2026, its 22nd edition, under the motto “Colours of Love”. Façades, monuments and squares in the centre become surfaces for installations and projections. The organiser says lights typically run daily from 19:00 to 23:00. The site map is not yet closed; “more locations coming soon” remains on the programme page.

A large part can be seen from public space, without a ticket. Tours, special transport and events inside Berlin Cathedral do cost. In 2026 the cathedral hosts “Beyond the Light” (9–11 October) and “Festival of Lights in Concert” (13–17 October) — ticketed formats, distinct from the façade projections.

Crowds are to be expected. The route, public transport and marked zones should be read on the night. Not every historic monument is confirmed for 2026 on a final list; this account does not promise the Brandenburg Gate or the TV Tower if the official map still marks them “coming soon”.

Personal photography is not the same as commercial reuse of the projections. The newsroom will not publish mapping stills without a right.

The source is festival-of-lights.de and the visitBerlin listing. Any archive image that accompanies the article carries the year of the edition photographed, not 2026.

9–18 October, “Colours of Love”, 19:00–23:00 in the street, tickets only for the cathedral formats. The rest is a map still being filled in.

Image: Plaksie, Festival of Lights 2025 at the Brandenburg Gate, Berlin, CC BY-SA 4.0, Wikimedia Commons. Archive photograph from 2025, not the 2026 edition.

Source consulted: Festival of Lights Berlin — official site.