This two-day event has been held since 1991 on the weekend before Christmas in the medieval Bergkwartier in the old Hanseatic sector of Deventer.
Volunteers play hundreds of characters from the books of Charles Dickens (1807-1870), such as Scrooge, Oliver Twist, Mr. Pickwick, Christmas Carol singers, orphans, drunks, artisans and many other poor and wealthy people. The Dickens Festijn is visited annually by about 120,000 people. There are also many foreign visitors, especially from Germany.
Entrance for the festival is free.