It was only a matter of time before the Wurstfest Association of New Braunfels announced the Wurstfest was canceled due to COVID-19. The festival, which was scheduled for November 6-15, will not be operating this year after a decision made by the Wurstfest Board of Directors which included input from a committee assigned to continually monitor the latest coronavirus pandemic information.
Randy Rust, 2020 Wurstfest President, shared in a statement on Wurstfest.com,
"This will be the first time Wurstfest has canceled a festival in our 60-year history. We have had our challenges in the past, including flood events and most recently a fire that destroyed the Marktplatz building. We have always overcome our challenges while making the festival better each year. We made this decision knowing what a difficult year 2020 has been and that our guests were looking forward to Wurstfest more than ever. We also realize how important the festival is to the community non-profit organizations that participate. Many of them make their fundraising goals for the year during the ten days of Wurstfest and go on to use those funds to do good work that benefits our community throughout the year. That made this decision even more difficult. When we looked at how festival operations would have to change to prioritize safety, plus the related operational restrictions, we just didn't feel we would be able to provide the Wurstfest experience we are known for."
Next year, the 2021 festival will be held November 5-14 and will include a new and improved Marktplatz building.
What is Wurstfest?
In 1961 Ed Grist, the city meat inspector, created a festival to honor sausage in Comal county. After a week of local restaurants and grocery stores selling sausage specials, the special event concluded with a festival.
The first year the unique annual celebration was dubbed "The Sausage Festival," then "Wurst Week," and now the Texas fun festival is known to all as Wurstfest.
Today the festival boasts Bavarian-style entertainment, carnival rides, delicious sausages, and fine beer all served on the Wurstfest Grounds next to the Comal River. Texans can enjoy German culture at the Wursthalle, listen to live music and dance the polka in Das Grosse Zelt, and drink domestic beer at the Biergartens.
