In September and October, Munich hosts the world’s largest folk festival – Oktoberfest – the city’s signature event – the “fifth season”! For 16 days, a town of 1.5 million welcomes 6-7 million visitors, consuming 7 million liters of beer, over 2 million roasted chickens, 1.5 million sausage pairs, and countless other snacks. I wrote about the world’s best parties, and you can see why Oktoberfest made the list.
The name Oktoberfest can be misleading. While most cities in the world that host an Oktoberfest party will celebrate until October 30th, like Helen, Ga, the official Oktoberfest festival in Munich usually hosts events for the last 2 week of September, with only the 3rd and final week being in early October. For 2022, those dates are from September 17 to October 3. Oktoberfest 2023 takes place from Sat September 16 until Tue October 3
Oktoberfest is more than just beer
Oktoberfest is a large, traditional German beer festival. The festivities, however, go far beyond beer. The festival is also a major cultural event. Here men will come wearing lederhosen, and the women will attend the fest wearing dirndls. In addition to the beer tents, there are rides, games, and haunted houses outside. There are so many family-friendly activities that sometimes you forget this festival is all about drinking!
Dress up!
Buy a men’s authentic leather lederhosen or Bavarian dirndl dress to wear and fully participate You won’t be alone as both tourists and Germans dress up to enjoy the festivities. And it makes for better pictures!
Make a reservation
As you see in above pictures and possible elsewhere, there are tons of people that show up to Oktoberfest and are crammed around long wooden tables. It can be extremely chaotic. So make official reservations here to make your life easier and do it ASAP! Many reservations close months before it is Oktoberfest, wrapping up in April for some tents. You can still enjoy some festivities without a reservation, but you will need to get to there early and wait in line, or get lucky with one of the lesser-sought-after tents. You can learn more about making reservations or how to get by without them in this blog, which I found useful: link.
When I went, the most popular tourist tent, Hofbräu, was full and no more people were admitted, which was upsetting. It definitely seemed like the most lit tent to be in.
Tents have distinct personalities
At Oktoberfest, there are many tents, all of which have their own personalities. If you plan on making reservations, keep this in mind. There is a tent that caters to Americans if you want to stick with people from your own country. However, it’s a ton of fun to try out some of the other tents!
Hofbräu is the wildest tent to be in if that’s your scene. It is full of mostly international tourists, and has a reputation for being for “stupid tourists”. That being said, if you are looking for a fun time, you can’t go wrong here. Augustiner is one of the local favorites that serve Munich’s oldest beer, if you’re looking for something more authentic. Some other popular tents to look at are Hacker-Pschorr, Paulaner, and Käfer
Go early if you plan to go to Käfer tent
The Kafer tent remains open later than the other tents so it’s often where everyone closes down the night. Most tents close at 10:30 PM, but the Kafer tent stays open until 1:00. The place will be packed if you arrive after 10:30 so try to head there a bit earlier so you can get in and enjoy the end of the night!
Make a smart travel plan
If you decide to attend a beer festival, you might know there will be a lot of drinking involved. So, make sure you keep this in mind when planning. Five days of drinking beer can be a lot, so I would say three days is a good amount of time to visit the festival and a few different tents to get a feel for the space. Walking distance to the fair grounds where all the tents are set up can be really nice, but not necessary. Munich is a very clean and safe city with an easy to use tram to help you navigate from your hotel or hostel to the festival everyday. Many Germans speak English and are happy to give directions. I would know, I asked many! Also make sure to plan your exit each day, there were many people that fell asleep on the hill outside the tents.
Take advantage of Oktoberfest during the weekday
The most exciting part of Oktoberfest is at night and on the weekends when the crowds are the biggest and the action is the most intense. However, don’t forget about the possibility of attending on a weekday. Though the daytime experience might be tamer, it is still authentic, and if easier to enjoy without a reservation made months in advance. You can try the lunch menus at many of the tents, find seating, and get served easier!
Make a postcard and send it.
If you’re enjoying Oktoberfest, send a postcard home while you’re there. Be sure to send one to both your friends and family, as well as your own home. The Oktoberfest grounds have specially constructed mailboxes where you can send cards. Mail sent from these mailboxes will receive a special German stamp created specifically for Oktoberfest. Your trip will be remembered for a lifetime with this wonderful souvenir.
Enhance your ability to drink
Traditionally, Oktoberfest is a beer festival. So here, a wide variety of beer is available for consumption. However, most people can only drink so much beer before they become dehydrated. Combine your beer with lemonade to extend your capacity. Try filling your stein half full of lemonade and then half full of beer. It great, keeps you hydrated, and allows you to drink for longer periods of time.
If you want a beer, sit down
You must sit on a bench to order a beer unless you’re in the Hofbrau tent, which has room for standing. In all other tents, standing patrons can’t get the attention of servers, so placing an order will be impossible. It is for this reason that most people do not stand near tents. Your best option if you can’t find a seat in the tent is to ask someone sitting if they can order you a beer. However, as a token of appreciation, don’t forget to buy a beer for the person who ordered it for you!
Don’t spend the night outside
As mentioned earlier, there are plenty of Oktoberfest tourists that end up having a snooze behind the tents. When you’re inebriated, the hills and the park benches might seem tempting but be careful! Some people get pickpocketed after passing out.
Now that you know what to expect from Oktoberfest, you are ready to set out for Munich to check it out for yourself. Prost!
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