Kempodium e. V. | Events & Opening Hours

The Kempodium e. V. in Kempten (Allgäu) is a vibrant place for creative minds, makers, teams, and families. In the open workshops for wood, metal, technology, pottery, and cooking, professional equipment and expert guidance meet a family atmosphere – ideal for turning ideas into tangible projects, learning something new, or celebrating together. The house at Untere Eicher Straße 3 combines workshop culture, course programs, event expertise, and room rental under one roof. Convenient for visitors: Office and info hours ensure reliable accessibility, the rooms are barrier-free, and parking is available right in front of the building. In addition to courses and open workshop sessions, recurring events such as the disco on the first Saturday of the month shape the calendar; children and youth offerings from the open children's workshop to holiday programs complete the profile. Those looking for inspiration can find many impressions and examples on the workshop subpages and social media channels – and those who come with a specific project idea receive professional support on-site for planning, implementation, and material selection.

Events and Program at Kempodium

Kempodium sees itself as a place for creative encounters and shared experiences. This is reflected in the event calendar: Under “Current/Events,” courses, open workshop times, special actions, and formats for different age groups are continuously published. A highlight with tradition is the Kempodium disco, which has attracted people from Kempten and the surrounding area for over 20 years. It usually takes place on the first Saturday of the month, with entry starting at 20:30, and the admission fee is 5 euros. Musically, the range spans from classics to rock and pop to current hits – just the right mix to meet friends, make new contacts, and unwind in the evening. Additionally, there are regularly themed workshop experiences aimed at both beginners and advanced participants. Examples from recent months show the broad orientation: In the wood workshop, small furniture and unique pieces were created under expert guidance, while in the pottery workshop, the focus was on the potter's wheel, engobes, and glazes. Seasonal actions such as a “Father's Day workshop” or open children's workshops with baking or crafting themes complement the annual program and specifically address families. From the technology sector, there are offers around 3D printing, laser engraving, and electronics, often with a STEM focus; in the culinary area, the cooking workshop enables sociable cooking evenings, team cooking, or children's birthday parties at the stove. Groups visiting – whether associations, school classes, trainee teams, or faculty – find tailored formats among the team events: team workshop, team cooking, trainee team workshop, or customized workshops. The special aspect: Kempodium combines “doing it yourself” with professional support. This results in outcomes that can be showcased, and the shared activity becomes a sustainable community experience. Whether creative holiday offerings, open children's workshops on Friday afternoons, or the big disco on Saturday evenings: The weekly rhythm offers many occasions to experience the house. Those who want to stay updated can check the program overview on the website – where the dates are bundled and updated. Fixed time slots apply to individual workshops, which can be viewed online in advance; for many offers, registration is required to ensure that spaces and machines are planned accordingly.

Opening Hours, Directions, and Parking

Reliable opening hours and a clear travel description are important for good planning. Kempodium can be reached organizationally during office and info hours: Monday to Thursday from 09:00 to 14:30 and Friday from 09:00 to 12:00. During these time slots, inquiries can be made particularly well by phone or on-site, for example regarding course bookings, room rentals, or individual workshop uses. Additionally, the homepage communicates temporary notices – for example, company holidays over the turn of the year or specifics regarding the contact form. The address for directions is Untere Eicher Straße 3, 87435 Kempten (Allgäu). Those arriving by car benefit from the location: According to site information, parking is available “at the door,” and the building is barrier-free, significantly facilitating use for wheelchair users and people with strollers. For additional parking in the surrounding area, there are public options on Eicher Straße; an example is the parking lot “Hauptbahnhof Rückseite P1” (Contipark) on Eicher Straße with all-day opening hours and affordable daily rates. For day visitors to the city, Kempten also offers a number of central parking spaces as well as – depending on need – special solutions for buses, electric vehicles, and motorhomes; the city's tourist information page provides current overviews on this. Conveniently: Those planning a longer creative day at Kempodium can coordinate arrival and departure with the workshop windows, for example, on Friday evenings when open times are available in the wood or technology areas. Visitors who firmly plan their participation in open workshops should pay attention to the online registration rules (for example, registration two days in advance for the technology workshop in season) – this ensures that supervision and machine access are planned. By the way, the website not only provides opening hours and dates but also allows for tracking short-term changes; therefore, it is worth taking a look at the workshop page or the homepage before heading out.

Open Workshops: Wood, Metal, Technology, Pottery, and Cooking Workshop

The open workshops are the heart of Kempodium. They combine a high-quality, professionally equipped infrastructure with the principle of “doing it yourself, but not alone,” as experienced professionals accompany the projects. In the 300 m² wood workshop, a format circular saw, thickness and surface planers, table routers, edge sanders, frame presses, routers, and lamello systems are available – ideal for precise cuts, stable connections, and clean surface finishing. Open wood workshop times take place on Fridays from 17:00 to 20:00; bookings are made in units with consultation (workshop time without machine 16.00 € per hour, machine time 0.50 € per minute, consumables as needed). In the metal workshop, the focus is on forging, welding, and screwing – in short: the diversity of metal processing. On about 40 m², traditional and modern methods come together; surfaces can be brushed, burned, oiled, or painted, and the combination with wood opens up additional design possibilities, for example, with unique furniture pieces. In the technology sector, Kempodium relies on an open-source-based CAD/CAM structure. The equipment includes, among others, 3D printers (Prusa i3, Elegoo Saturn), a 100-watt CO₂ laser (working area 1200 x 900 mm), soldering stations, electronic components, and the necessary software – perfect for prototyping, customization, engravings, or small electronics projects. The open technology workshop runs in the season from mid-March to September on Fridays from 17:00 to 20:00; registrations should be made at least two days in advance. The pottery workshop offers a potter's wheel, various clay masses, engobes, glazes, tools, and a kiln. In addition to the open workshop in the evening (Tuesdays and Wednesdays 18:00–20:00), there is a children's pottery time on Mondays from 15:30–17:30. Billing is transparent: 14.00 € for two hours of pottery (including expert advice), glazing 7.00 € per hour; clay costs 8.00 € per kilogram. Those who prefer to be creatively culinary can use the cooking workshop with four cooking stations (each with four ceramic fields and four ovens) plus two gas cooking stations and complete kitchen inventory. In the adjacent dining room “Esche,” about 15 people can sit together to eat – ideal for cooking courses, birthdays, private events, or team events with a kitchen professional. Whether wood, metal, technology, clay, or cooking: The principle is always the same and yet individually experienceable – one works independently but can rely on know-how and coaching if needed. This results in high-quality outcomes in a short time, and at the same time, one's own craftsmanship skills grow. The workshop pages not only provide dates and prices but also valuable “pro tips” from the respective leaders that help with entry – for example, on turning on the potter's wheel or suitable types of wood for solid table projects.

Renting Rooms for Parties, Seminars, and Team Events

Kempodium is more than a workshop – it is also a flexible location for seminars, conferences, club evenings, celebrations, and team events. The rooms are regularly renovated and equipped with modern presentation technology. Several sizes are available: “Linde” (44 m², approx. 25 people without tables or 16 with tables), “Birne” (30 m², approx. 15 or 10 people), “Kirsche” (45 m², approx. 30 or 20 people), and the largest hall “Eiche” (115 m²) for up to approx. 100 people (without tables) or 40–50 people with table seating. All rooms are accessible at ground level or appropriately connected; the house is barrier-free. For private parties, useful services are available: dish and glass rental, beverage service (billing according to consumption, excluding wine and spirits), refrigerators, standing tables, music box, catering, accessible restrooms, and a gastro coffee machine. Tables, chairs, and standing tables are included in the rental price; the usual rules regarding smoking bans, youth protection, and noise emissions apply. For conferences, Kempodium additionally offers flip charts, meta-plan boards, projectors, screens, Wi-Fi, flip chart paper, moderation cases, and speaker's podium – bookable as additional services. The special added value of the location lies in the combination of seminar rooms and workshops: After a conference day, a team workshop or cooking together in the cooking workshop serves as a team-building element. Established are also trainee programs, where joint building and problem-solving are the focus. Those planning a celebration might combine the “Esche” as a dining room with the large hall “Eiche” – depending on the concept, from family celebrations to club anniversaries. For planning, it is advisable to make an early inquiry via the form or by phone, so that date, room size, technology, and service packages can be precisely coordinated. The availability of parking directly in front of the door facilitates logistics, as does the barrier-free design. For the evening, it is advisable to check for parallel events – for example, the disco – to coordinate capacities in case of overlaps in good time. With its mix of creative spaces, technology, gastronomy options, and an experienced team, Kempodium is a versatile address for events of all kinds.

Children's Programs, Holiday Program, and Disco

Family-friendliness is part of Kempodium's self-image. A recurring format is the open children's workshop, which usually takes place on the first Friday of the month from 15:00 to 17:00. Children from about six years old bring their own ideas and take finished pieces home; the participation fee usually includes the material (guideline: approx. 20 €). In addition, the team develops seasonal holiday programs with different focuses: During the carnival or summer holidays, for example, pottery, wood or technology projects, and small sewing or upcycling projects are on the agenda. Such offers combine craftsmanship skills with playful learning and strengthen concentration, self-confidence, and team spirit. Those planning a children's birthday will find – depending on age and interests – different modules: from creative crafting to pottery lessons to cooking actions in the workshop kitchen. For schools and educational partners, there are tailored formats from project days to recurring workshop hours, often with a STEM reference in the technology workshop. In addition to the children's and family offerings, the already mentioned disco stands out as a public event. It takes place on the first Saturday of the month, entry starting at 20:30, admission 5 euros. Musically, the evening is intentionally broadly set up, so that there is something for many tastes. The disco thus complements the “makers” side of Kempodium with a “celebration” side – being creative, eating together, dancing: Many guests experience the house in different roles. Those who were guests at the open children's workshop on Friday may come back a few weeks later as a team to cook or use the holiday time for a more intensive workshop series. This variety and permeability of formats make Kempodium attractive for the local community. Notices of short-term changes, additional dates, and registrations appear on the website and on the social media channels; checking there is particularly worthwhile before holiday periods and weekends. Experience reports and photos from the workshops show what realistically emerges – from the first desk lamp in the technology area to self-turned dishes to the individually crafted bench from local woods.

Photos and Impressions: This is what lived creativity in Allgäu looks like

Those who do not yet know Kempodium can orient themselves before their first visit based on numerous photos and insights. The workshop pages show authentic images from ongoing courses and open times: wood projects with plenty of shavings on the workbench, potter's wheels in action, laser engravings that were just drawn on the computer, and steaming pots in the cooking workshop. These insights help plan one's own project – from material to technique to estimated time. Additionally, the profile texts and “pro tips” from the workshop leaders provide orientation: Which types of wood are suitable for a solid dining table? How do you control the clay on the potter's wheel? What does the CO₂ laser achieve with engravings on wood or acrylic? Visitors can immediately see that it is not just about pure theory here, but about practical doing with professional support. Those looking for impressions of the event experience will also find image material – from atmospheric disco evenings to team actions in the workshop and kitchen. For those interested in room rentals, the room images of “Eiche,” “Kirsche,” “Birne,” and “Linde” are helpful: They convey a sense of proportions, equipment, and seating variants. This results in quick answers to planning questions: Is “Kirsche” enough for the workshop? Does the large “Eiche” hall need to be used for a product presentation? Does the combination of the cooking workshop and “Esche” fit the planned birthday dinner? Those wanting to delve deeper will find additional announcements for children's and family actions on regional event portals – practical for drawing friends and relatives' attention to shared dates. A special feature of Kempodium is also its integration into networks of open workshops and creative places: The house is recognized as a Bavarian creative place and is listed in the network of Open Workshops, which makes the embedding in a larger DIY and educational culture visible. These recognitions reflect what one experiences on-site: community, quality in equipment, professionalism in support – and a lot of enthusiasm for DIY. This makes Kempodium a point of attraction for Kempten and Allgäu that connects generations and appreciates practical doing.

Sources:

• Kempodium e. V. – Homepage (Address, Office Hours, Notices)
• Kempodium – Wood Workshop (Equipment, Times, Prices)
• Kempodium – Pottery Workshop (Dates, Conditions)
• Kempodium – Technology Workshop (Equipment, Seasonal Times)
• Kempodium – Disco (Dates, Entry, Admission)
• Kempodium – Seminar and Conference Rooms (Capacities, Technology)
• Kempodium – Rooms for Private Parties (Service, Parking, Accessibility)
• Contipark – Parking Hauptbahnhof Rückseite P1, Eicher Straße (Parking Info)
• State Prize for Bavarian Creative Places – Kempodium e. V. (Profile)
• PlanetAllgäu – Event Notice Kempodium (Example Family Offer)