Big Holiday Guide

Oktoberfest in Munich, also called Wies’n (meaning “meadow”) by locals, is the largest festival in the world. Although there are many imitations of big beer party, none of them will manage to reach the dimensions of the original in Munich Wies’n performed each year in late September and early October. It attracts as many as six million visitors and approximately 6 million liters of beer and a large number of grilled chicken, sausages and pretzels are consumed yearly.

These statistics may seem overwhelming for anyone to not like crowds but Oktoberfest is such a great event that everyone should experience this festival at least once in their life. Miss Oktoberfest and you’ll you’ll lose a great experience and probably a lot of fun too. To make the most of your trip to the Oktoberfest, it is worth planning in advance and there are some important things you should know and prepare yourself for when you go there for the first time.

Oktoberfest was first held in 1810 when Crown Prince Ludwig (later King Ludwig I) married Princess Therese of Saxony-Hildburghausen Bavaria. Marriage took place on October 12, 1810, and on October 17, the big horse races organized. The event was repeated and in 1819, decided by the city council’s festival will take place every year, no matter what the situation. Since then it has done every year on the Theresienwiese, named “Teresa” of Saxe-Hildburghausen, in Munich for two weeks in late September and early October.

Preparation for Oktoberfest began about two months before the festival opened. Six factories in Munich and about eighty showmen set up a beer hall and various attractions such as ghost trains, roller coasters and other rides playground.

Do not be surprised to see a real city with its own infrastructure like roads, toilets, police, post office, first aid station and even its own waste disposal system. Hundreds of people employed each year just to work there. Oktoberfest is not only boost tourism but also has a huge impact on the economy of Munich.

Due to the popularity and scale of the Oktoberfest, it is highly advisable to book your flight and your hotel well in advance and a few months would be far too short. Prices for flights and hotels usually skyrocket during the Oktoberfest. The same applies if you want to sit in one large beer hall, which are mostly located in one of the main road is also referred to as “Bierzeltstrasse” (beer-hall road). Although the beer hall is very large compared to the usual beer tent, the place has been booked even one year in advance and will be difficult to enter one of them without reservation. You may be lucky in finding a chair outside the room where most beergarden beer. This may be a better option as a beer hall can be very stuffy, hot and hard.

The best way to get Wies’n is to go there by foot. It is about 15 minutes from Munich main station Hauptbahnhof and easy to find. In most cases, you do not even have to ask someone, you just have to follow the crowd. Another way to get there by subway: line of no use. 4 or 5 and get off at the “Theresienwiese” or not. 3 or 6 and get off at “Goetheplatz”. When you use the first option, you will be directly on Wies’n when you leave the underground, from Goetheplatz you will have to walk a few meters. Tram no. 19 also stop near the Oktoberfest. It is not advisable to use a private car or your bike because you will not find a place to park your car. If you come by bike, be sure to leave a safe place but it can be difficult as vandalism by drunken are very common.

Another consideration is to be aware of pickpockets by keeping your stuff. When you use one of the fairground rides (which is better done before drinking beer and eating), then it is best to have your money safely in your pants pocket is closed – otherwise you might just lose it.

Beer drunk in large quantities and weight of 1 liter cup. It’s hard to get regular servings ½ quart but if you’re lucky, you may be able to order a ½ liter Weißbier (“eine Halbe Weißbier”) but this is not the norm. Oktoberfest beer is a special kind of beer that is stronger than regular beer so be careful. If you are not used for drinking, even one 1-liter beverage cup with a strong Oktoberfest is probably too much! Not only beer, but everything is quite expensive at the Wies’n compared with normal prices.

Although there are plenty of toilets at Oktoberfest, especially on the side street next to the beer tent, you may have to wait quite a while. This causes a lot of drunks pee directly on pasture (they call it “wild piss”) and not something that should be recommended as you will be charged if caught by one of the many police around. So, do not be surprised when you see people piss drunk out in the open or lying in a meadow near the main entrance.

Things get worse as the night progresses and it is important to keep a distance when you see a drunk aggressive with a big glass of beer because it can be very dangerous to hit one of them. For many people, the best option is to go to Oktoberfest early enough or even better, for a week. The same applies if you want to attend one of the popular events held on the first weekend as you have to arrive very early to see anything.

On the first Saturday at 10:45, there is a parade of the innkeeper to Wies’n Oktoberfest brewing with lead their horses by the Münchner Kindl and Munich Mayor. The route is from Sonnenstrasse through Schwanthalerstrasse to Theresienwiese. At noon, Maj. Munich taps the first barrel of beer in a beer hall Schottenhammel. On the first Sunday, there is a big parade of traditional costumes and armed gun to Wies’n which began at 11.00 am in Siegestor in Ludwigstrasse in Schwabing.

If you keep in mind everything mentioned here and even lucky with the weather, you will have a great time at Oktoberfest. Just watch the people (many of them are wearing traditional costume), enjoy the Oktoberfest beer and having a good time!