Enjoying Oktoberfest
Drawing over 6 million visitors from around the globe, Munich’s annual Oktoberfest is the world’s largest beer festival – a 2-week extravaganza of beer drinking, sausage-eating, lederhosen-wearing and Oompha-band dancing, celebrating Bavaria’s unique culture and heritage.
What’s On
Oktoberfest is held in the Theresienwiese Park just outside of Munich, where over 30 tents house representations of Munich’s historic beer halls, serving rivers of beer night and day. Among the hundreds of kiosks, stands, amusement rides and carts selling sandwiches, würstel and giant pretzels, the main tents like the Hippodrom, Hofbräu, Löwenbräu and Schottenhamelare are where the most action is.
One of the most popular events of Oktoberfest is the official opening ceremony, culminating in the tapping of the first keg by Munich’s Mayor and a 12-gun salute to signify the start of the festival. On the first Sunday of the festival, the colourful Oktoberfest Costume and Riflemen’s Parade is another highlight, when a 3-mile long procession of over 7,000 performers, dancers, brass bands and costumed marchers take to the streets of Munich, finishing up at Theresienwiese, and the second Sunday also hosts an open-air concert of Oktoberfest bands, set against a backdrop of the city’s Bavaria Statue. To make the most of your Oktoberfest experience, read up on the DOs and DON’Ts of Oktoberfest before you arrive.
Visiting Oktoberfest 2013
The 2013 Oktoberfest runs from September 21st until October 6th, with the beer tents open from 10am-11.30pm on weekdays and 9am-11.30pm on weekends (although beer stops being served an hour before closing). The Opening Ceremony will be held at noon on Sept 21st in the Schottenhamel tent (get there as early as 9am to bag a good seat) and the Rifleman’s parade will start off from Munich’s Max II Landmark at 9.45am on Sept 22nd.
Entry to the beer tents is free but there’s a strict no seat no table rule in place, so the best option is to reserve a table in advance or book an Oktoberfest ticket and tour. If you really don’t want to book, plan to visit the tents before 2.30pm during the week or early morning at the weekends, then join the queue.