In Lingen Preparations are under way for the flying Father Christmas. A high-wire company has assembled the sleigh and reindeer figures for the flying show and lifted them by crane onto a rooftop, NDR reported on 14 November 2026. The attraction is due to appear above the market square on the opening day of the Christmas market, 23 November.
According to the broadcaster, the team secured the figures with self-locking bolts. For the flight, the sleigh will be guided along a cable system. A large Christmas tree will serve, among other things, as a counterweight. Calculating the structural forces took almost a year, Peter Weisheit of the high-wire company told NDR. The overall construction of the Christmas market is already under way, according to Lingen Wirtschaft und Tourismus GmbH.
The flying show was first included in Lingen’s Christmas market in 2025. The city said funding for the 2026 season had been secured by three regional partners: Sparkasse Emsland, with ROSEN Group and Krüssel Immobilien. NDR reported that the market recorded a visitor record last year. The figures do not provide a reliable basis for determining what contribution the flying show made.
For the organisers, the attraction is also a tool for revitalising the town centre. According to the city, the Christmas market is intended to bring people from the region to Lingen and generate additional demand in the town centre. It is also intended to give families a chance to visit together, regardless of their financial circumstances. Whether these aims will be achieved in the 2026 season will not be clear until the market opens.
The tourism company says the official opening is scheduled for 17:00 on 23 November 2026. The first flight is due to take place afterwards. The company has announced shows at 17:00 and 19:00 for the rest of the market. The Christmas market is due to run until 30 December; it will be closed on Christmas Eve and Christmas Day. Limited attractions and opening hours will apply on Boxing Day.
The market covers the market square and other parts of the town centre. This year, for the first time, the entire Marienstraße is to be included. The tourism company has also announced additional children’s carousels and a new location for Father Christmas’s living room in Burgstraße where children will be able to hand in their wish lists.
The preparations show how much technology lies behind the brief performance above the stalls: the sleigh, figures, cables and counterweight must all work together before the show can begin. The announcement of the first flight is a plan by the organisers, not confirmation that the performance has already taken place.
Editor: Mira Cadena (Article created with AI assistance).