You open Meetup, see three events and wonder: is nothing going on in Freiburg? There is. It just does not live in one place. A lot of it runs through WhatsApp groups, clubs, partner organizations and Instagram accounts that newcomers have never heard of.
Here is the short version: how to find out what is on in Freiburg today, this week and this month for expats and internationals. Germans who want to meet international people are very much included.
The fastest way: the Sprachmut calendar
We built an events calendar for exactly this question. The events calendar for expats and internationals in Freiburg lists:
- Sprachmut events, meaning the Sprachcafé and our community events
- events from our partners, for example Zusammen Leben e.V. and SwaF
- other events in Freiburg that are interesting for internationals
Every event there is open to internationals and expats: it is either in English or made specifically for internationals and language learners.
You can filter by category, click an event to see place, time and details, and save it to your Google Calendar with one click. The list always starts with the next event, so the answer to “What's on today?” is usually right at the top.
Every week: Sprachcafé on Wednesday
The fixed point of the week: every Wednesday at 4 pm we meet at Zuka Solicafé (Uhlandstr. 2, 79102 Freiburg), together with Zusammen Leben e.V. Small groups by level, one language coach per group, games instead of grammar lectures. Free, all levels welcome. For more on this and other formats in town, see our guide to language cafés in Freiburg.
On the weekend: get outside and move
On Saturdays at 9 am there is the free Dietenbach parkrun, a 5k for every pace. On Sundays the running group Lavender Running meets. We describe both and more in New in Freiburg? Here's What to Do in Your First Month.
Community events and partners
Then there are our community events. They are irregular and always different: hiking, cooking together, mini golf, yard games in the park, the Christmas market, potluck dinners or a treasure hunt. We often run them with partners like Über den Tellerrand, ZLEV, SwaF or the Foodsharing-Café. If you like cooking together, read our guide to Freiburg's open kitchens.
Spontaneous and last-minute
Not everything is planned weeks ahead. For spontaneous hangouts and last-minute changes there is the Sprachmut WhatsApp community. You will also find all Sprachmut events on Meetup if you want to RSVP there.
Make it easy for yourself
- Check the calendar once a week, for example on Sunday evening.
- Pick an event that looks small and relaxed, and save it to your calendar.
- Join the WhatsApp community so you catch the spontaneous stuff too.
And if you only take one tip with you: go to the first event before you feel ready. That is what it is there for.