Oktoberfest-Munich, Germany

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I have been lucky enough to go to Oktoberfest twice, maybe I should rephrase that as I have been lucky enough to survive Oktoberfest twice. On both occasions I was overwhelmed by the amount of people, beer and chicken.


Oktoberfest is held each year over 3 weekends in Sep/Oct- these are referred to as the Opening Weekend, Middle Weekend and Closing Weekend. I do recommend attending the Opening Weekend as this is where all the fun and chaos begins. It all starts early on the Saturday morning, when all the locals and visitors make their way to the Beer Halls dressed in the traditional Dirndls and Lederhosen. The Beer Halls are giant tents all in with their own themes and are named after the brand of beer that they produce. They open about 8am but people are lined up well before this to get in on the very first day, if you are lucky enough to get in early then you can race for a table to base yourself for the day. The official start of Oktoberfest is not until midday when there is a twelve gun salute and the tapping of the first keg of Oktoberfest beer by the incumbent Mayor of Munich with the cry "Ozapft is!" ("It's tapped!" ). The place to see this is at Hofbrauhaus Tent which of course is where you will find all the festival tour groups (First Festival, Top Deck etc.) full of Aussies and Kiwis and every other culture you can think of. The anticipation of your first stein on builds with the hours you have to wait but as the waitresses arrives carrying 10steins at once the party really begins. The steins are usually 8-9 Eur but you need to tip so make sure to have a bunch of 10eur notes to hand over per stein. All tents have a traditional live band to keep the atmosphere going with traditional Bavarian songs and some English ones too. As the day turns to night everyone is on the table dancing and singing. It all starts to wind down and the beer stops at midnight when you stumble home. Then it is up early again the next day to do it all over again!

If you haven’t been to Oktoberfest before and you are thinking about attending then here are a few important things:

What to wear? Wear the traditional clothing, you can buy this prior for a fraction of the price on eBay or you can buy it in Munich. There are plenty of shops in the city who sell the traditional clothing but be warned-these are pricey (about 100eur for a Dirndl)

Weather? It is usually quite mild on the Opening weekend but cold at night and early morning. It gets really hot in the tents though.

How much money should I take? Depends on how much you can drink, a stein is a 1 litre. One stein is 10eur

What weekend to go? Opening weekend is the most popular but the middle and closing are just as fun.

What to take to the Beer Halls? Try not to take valuables, there are a lot of people and you will get drink so losing/breaking phones and cameras is easy. Beware of pick pockets like all large festivals. Make sure to take smaller notes like 5 and 10’s as it is easier to pay for your steins.

What tents to go too? Hofbrauhaus but make sure to stay away from the pigpen girls (this is in the middle with the standing tables, if you stand under the hanging decoration then boy will rip your bras/knickers off!)

This is a festival that has over 6million people visit each year. It is amazing and everybody is friendly and I felt very safe both times I was there. If you are by yourself then you should definitely go with a tour where you can make friends, friends are always easy to make over a few steins.


Prost!


x J

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