Gonsenheimer Carneval Verein and SWR1 announce a joint carnival meeting!

Gonsenheimer Carneval Verein and SWR1 announce a joint carnival meeting!

The Gonsenheimer Carneval Association (GCV) is mobilizing for the coming carnival season and has announced an exciting cooperation with SWR1 Rhineland-Palatinate. This partnership aims to showcase the creativity of Mainz's carnival scene in an innovative way. On January 30, 2026 at 7:11 p.m. the new costume session “Fastnacht in SWR1 – The STREAMung from Mainz” will take place in the hall of the Turngemeinde 1861 in Mainz-Gonsenheim. This event will be broadcast live in the ARD media library and also broadcast on SWR1's radio program, reports mainzund.de.

Planning has already begun and tickets are in high demand. From today, November 11, 2025, at 11:11 a.m., those interested can purchase their tickets on SWR1.de. There are two categories with prices of 44 euros for category 1 and 40 euros for category 2. If you are lucky, you can also win tickets via SWR1, because the anticipation for the event is already noticeable, as swr.de reports.

A costume session with musical highlights

What can visitors expect? The session promises to be a real feast for the senses, as special program items and musical highlights will be staged. Similar to the popular SWR1 RLP hit parade, those present can look forward to big hits. This will definitely be a highlight in the 2026 carnival campaign and could lead to a positive turnaround in the previous decline in television broadcasts in Rhineland-Palatinate, due to the withdrawal of Südwest Fernsehen.

SWR1's involvement in the Mainz carnival is not new. For many years, the station has been broadcasting the big Mainz television carnival “Mainz remains Mainz” as well as the meeting of the Mombacher Bohnebeitel. In 2019, a STREAM event was launched during the corona pandemic, which was moved online in 2021. The new session represents a successful combination of live experience and digital streaming, which is also very popular with the younger target group.

What is Shrovetide?

Carnival is not just a celebration, but an important cultural expression in the region. In Germany, this celebration between Epiphany and Ash Wednesday has different names: Fastnacht, Karneval and Fasching. While “Fastnacht” is particularly widespread in the southern German-Alemannic region, “Carnival” is used in the middle Rhine. “Fasching”, on the other hand, is popular in Bavaria and Austria and refers to the last opportunity to enjoy sumptuous food and drinks before Lent, as treibwiki.de explains.

Preparations are already in full swing and expectations are high. The Gonsenheimer Carneval Association and SWR1 Rheinland-Pfalz bring the Mainz carnival to life in a fresh, contemporary way. Be ready to attend the costume session and enjoy a piece of the carnival experience! The countdown to January 30, 2026 is on!