The change follows a definitive ruling by the Bavarian Higher Administrative Court.
These measures were part of the Bavarian government’s intensive campaign against the partial legalization of cannabis at the federal level. In April 2024, Health Minister Judith Gerlach (CSU) announced that the Free State would fundamentally prohibit the consumption of hemp products at folk festivals, in beer gardens, and within several state-run parks. While restrictions for outdoor dining were anchored in health protection laws, the Bavarian Administration of State-Owned Palaces, Gardens, and Lakes issued specific decrees in May 2024 for Munich’s English Garden, Hofgarten, and Finanzgarten, as well as the Hofgarten in Bayreuth.
A few days ago, the Palace Administration published amendments to both the Munich and Bayreuth decrees in the Bavarian Ministerial Gazette: the clause prohibiting the smoking, heating, or vaporizing of cannabis products has been struck out. Consequently, consumption in the English Garden and the three other park zones is permitted once again, provided that nationwide legal requirements are met—such as the prohibition of use in the immediate presence of minors.
High Administrative Court Ruling Becomes Legally Binding
The basis for the amendments was a decision by the Bavarian Higher Administrative Court. In November 2025, judges ruled that the ban in the three Munich parks was unlawful and therefore void. The court found it unjustifiable to claim that within these zones: “Cannabis consumption in any form (smoking or vaporizing) and quantity, at any time of day, in all conceivable combinations, in all parts of the park, and regardless of possible encounters with third parties, causes significant nuisance.”
The plaintiffs were two men from the Munich area who wished to consume cannabis in the English Garden: one for recreational enjoyment and the other for medical reasons. Initially, the ruling did not take legal effect, and the decrees remained temporarily in force while the Palace Administration announced a thorough review of the court’s reasoning.
That review has now concluded, as the Palace Administration confirmed in response to an inquiry from BR. Officials stated: “No complaint against the non-admission of an appeal was filed with the Federal Administrative Court.” The Higher Administrative Court also confirmed that the decision is now legally binding.
State Government Maintains Strict Course
Despite the court’s decision, the state government intends to maintain its restrictive approach to the issue. Health Minister Judith Gerlach (CSU) emphasized in November: “Regardless of the current decision by the Bavarian Higher Administrative Court, it remains clear that the legalization of cannabis for consumption purposes was a mistake, primarily from the perspective of health and youth protection.”
On Sunday, the Minister reaffirmed her demand for a total repeal of recreational cannabis authorization. She cited the European School Survey Project on Alcohol and Other Drugs (ESPAD), which allegedly showed an increase in problematic consumption among 15- and 16-year-olds in the Free State. The Minister added: “This trend is an alarming signal.”
Green Party Position: “Prohibition Mania”
Toni Schuberl, the Green Party parliamentary group’s legal affairs spokesperson, noted that the lifting of the restrictions was long overdue. He emphasized: “It was literally a prohibition mania: things were being banned here even though the Bundestag—the people’s representative body—had ruled that it was legal.” Schuberl expressed hope that the CSU would now exercise greater restraint regarding the topic.
Source: BR
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