Oktoberfest in Munich
Welcome to Oktoberfest!
So without further ado, here we go!
Contents:
1. Terminology / German to English notes
2. Assorted tips
3. What to wear
4. Carnival rides & games
5. Tents of Oktoberfest
6. Where to stay
7. Munich outside of the festival
8. Other guides & resources
I will not really be going over the history of Oktoberfest, as I'm no historian or history major. If it's your first time, you'll likely have some Munich tours that will cover it much better than I ever could. Or, feel free to Google it.
Words to Know
• Wiesn: Probably the most important term to know. 'Wiesn' is what locals refer to Oktoberfest as. In fact, they may likely make fun if you call it Oktoberfest. Wiesn is derived from the name of the fairgrounds where the festival is held: Theresienwiese.
• Wiesn Koks: AKA Oktoberfest cocaine, Wiesn pulver/Oktoberfest powder, etc... Don't worry, this cocaine is no cocaine at all, but rather, a completely legal snuff powder made only of sugar and menthol. It's used as a quick pick-me-up, a pallette cleanser, or even just as a social bonding activity. So, if you see your new-to-Oktoberfest friend go over to a group of old guys and snort something off their hand... it's probably okay. You can buy Koks in some of the stands at the festival for around 6-7 euros.
• Prost!: Cheers! You'll meet people from all over the world here, speaking many different languages, but Prost! is one word you've gotta know!
• Radler: For my non-beer gurus, a radler is a mix of beer and lemonade (or sometimes Sprite, although I've only seen the lemonade mix at the festival)
Tips
• KNOW: If you aren't already aware, know that Oktoberfest starts in and is put on primarily in September, it only goes into the first couple/few days of October.
• DO: take plenty of cash (euros, obviously). Cards are not accepted at the festival, and you'll wanna be prepared. Beers come in steins, which are one liter each, and there is very little difference in price between tents. Most cost around 12 EUR.
• KNOW: If you're not into beer, you have some other options! Like I've mentioned, maybe give a radler a shot! There is also a wine tent, and some vendors outside will sell wine as well. Many tents will sell soda and water if you're a non-drinker or if you just need a break.
• DON'T: bring large bags with you. They have quite a few bag rules, and it's so much easier to just not take one. They do have lockers available for a fee, but I'll tell you that the chances of you forgetting and leaving your bag there are pretty dang high.
• DO: PACE YOURSELF. Oktoberfest is a marathon, not a sprint. Pace yourself by making sure you're eating well during the festival, drinking some water at least occasionally, and/or splitting up your beers by drinking a radler or two in between.
• KNOW: The beer here is different. It's brewed especially for the festival, but other than that, I can't explain it. Even if you don't generally like beer, you may just like the beer here.
• DO: Go early! Start your day with Oktoberfest first thing, and it'll be so much easier to get tables!
• DON'T: Dance on tables! You can stand on the benches and around, but do NOT stand or dance on the tabletops.
• LASTLY: Pick a meeting spot! Service can be very spotty, sometimes nonexistent, so make sure you have a backup plan in case you and your group get separated.
What to Wear
Wait, what's a dirndl? Lederhosen?
The first question I see from every traveler is, "Do people really dress up for the festival?" YES. 1000x YES.
Follow up is usually "will I look like a tourist?" or "will I get made fun of?" No. I think the only thing that would single you out is by wearing a Bavarian costume from a Halloween costume store or a very cheap Amazon costume. The most authentic thing you can do is buy from a local shop when you arrive or from a local seller beforehand.
How do you plan for that? A couple options! If you want to buy ahead, I've included a few options to purchase them online via links below. Etsy is another great option to find authentic outfits. These in general... are not cheap. They're extremely well made, and a lot of pride goes into making them. Another option is to buy on your arrival in Germany! This can vary from expensive to actually maybe saving you a little bit of money. Our Tour Director took us to a local thrift shop, and we were all able to find something there! It wasn't extremely cheap, but it was cheaper than buying one brand new. I highly highly recommend this option! If not a thrift store, there are other big box stores that will sell them there as well.
I recently returned to Oktoberfest in 2023, and this time around I did plan to purchase ahead. As a now plus size person, I was worried it may be a bit more difficult to find sizing upon arrival, and I was correct in assuming this. I tried on so many options at a Pick n Weight store, and literally nothing fit unfortunately. I went with lederhosen this year, as I'm simply more comfortable in shorts. I bought ahead, and they did the trick! My tour guide this year, a woman, also wore lederhosen even - it's not as uncommon as you may think!
"Wait, what am I looking for exactly?"
If you choose to wear traditional outfits (yes, it's totally encouraged by everyone!), you're going to look for either a dirndl or lederhosen. A dirndl is a feminine dress, and lederhosen are short or knee-length leather breeches that are worn as traditional garments. Traditionally, dirndls are worn by women and lederhosen by men. Wear what you're comfortable in! I wore a dirndl my first time on this trip, but as I mentioned, I wore lederhosen this last time instead!
Some online options:
Some local options:
Carnival Rides & Games
You may be surprised to find out that this festival is held at the fairgrounds, which is on pavement, and spans across a HUGE area. Many people attend expecting Oktoberfest to be a bit more... rural... and take place in a large field like it once did. People are also often surprised to find out just how large the "tents" are. The term tent is really used pretty loosely. These are MASSIVE buildings. As this festival is held at the fairgrounds, the event is also really similar to a fair itself. There are many many games and rides to be found here.
I won't go too in depth into this list, but I do want to touch on a few specific rides and games! The rest, you'll want to discover yourself as you wander the fairgrounds!
• Teufelsrad (Devil's Wheel): This is the MAIN thing I really wanted to talk about. Without trying to explain it myself, here's an excerpt from the city website: "The idea is simple: daredevils from the audience balance on a round platform, through the rotation and a swinging ball, more and more people fly out. Until in the end only one remains. On the one hand, this is completely safe, on the other hand, you don't even have to enter the "arena" yourself, because watching the "Devil's Wheel" is also entertaining."
• Ferris wheel: Can't go wrong with a classic.
• Olympia-Looping: When you see how many loops this roller coaster has, you'll understand the name right away! If you can stomach this amongst the drinking, I'm sure it would be exhilarating! Perhaps do this one first thing!
• Toboggan: Another popular carnival game/ride that's gone quite viral. Your goal is to make it to the top to slide down, but standing in your way is a relatively fast treadmill that's harder than it looks! And likely even harder due to the consumption of beer.
Those are the ones I wanted to really highlight, but of course there are many many others. From the classics like bumper cars and the chair swings to more obscure and unique rides like "Ride to Hell" and "Ghost Palace."
Oktoberfest Tents
Ahh yes, this is probably what you came here for! I want to start off by saying that this is not a guide on how to book reservations for tents. Unfortunately, that's not really my area of expertise. Both of the times that I've been to Oktoberfest have been with a young adult group travel company called EF Ultimate Break -- so they did the bulk of the planning, including any reservations we had.
However, I also think Oktoberfest is incredibly doable even without reservations! On the days when my group didn't already have reservations, we still spent quite a bit of time at Oktoberfest, and it was relatively easy!
Sure, the popular tents will get busier and busier as the night goes on, but I assure you that there is ALWAYS a table to be found and fun to be had! There are over 30 tents and a world of possibilities, after all. Along with the popular, massive tents, you absolutely CANNOT MISS going into Oide Wiesn, the traditional area of Oktoberfest. It's around 4 EUR to enter, and worth it a million times over! This entry fee allows you to come and go throughout the day, so don't worry about missing out on any of the other sections by going here. If you can't find a table anywhere, go here. We were able to find tables late at night even with a group of 6-10 (people disappear and reappear, it's all good).
I've had reservations in both Lowenbrau and Schottenhammel -- and I personally preferred Lowenbrau! After our reservations ended around mid afternoon, we'd go out to explore the rest of the tents! Here's a little bit about some of the most notable!
• Schottenhammel: This was the first and original tent & they do the keg tapping on the first day here. This tent tends to draw the younger crowd. It felt like most other tents during the day, but come nightfall, they blasted pop hits and had quite the lightshow going on.
• Lowenbrau: Quite the party at night, also very popular among Italians
• Hofbrau: One of the largest tents, this one draws in people from all over the world. This is known as the tourist tent.
• Hacker-Pschorr: One of the most GORGEOUS tents with the sky themed ceilings, you can't miss at least checking this one out!
• The Schützen: One of the few tents where you can get hard liquor and wine in addition to beer
• Festzelt Tradition: One of the three large tents in Oide Wiesn, this is where the traditional Bavarian dancers preform.
• Augustiner Festhalle: Easily some of the best beer within the entire festival!
• Schützen-Festzelt: Frequented more by locals, also serves wine
There are so many more! I'll link an incredibly helpful guide I found specifically for tents and reservations at the end of this as well. No affiliation to this blogger whatsoever, just found it personally helpful!
Where to Stay
Instead, here are a few places I have saved and have heard good reviews for:
Munich Outside of Wiesn
Munich is full of things to do outside of the festival, but this wouldn't be an Oktoberfest guide if I didn't mention Hofbrauhaus in the ultimate number one spot!
Now that that's out of the way, here are an assortment of Munich recommendations in really no particular order!
Other Guides & Resources
If you'd like to check out more of my guides around the world, I have several to choose from with new guides being released often. I'm currently living in Las Vegas, but like you all, have vast goals to travel the world. I'd love to take you with me!
If you're interested in learning more about group travel or the trips I've done with EF Ultimate Break, you can find those guides along with my first time traveler discount here:
Oktoberfest Website:
Oktoberfest tent guide that I mentioned above:
Connect with me!
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View more discounts and links via my LinkTree here:
Thanks for reading!
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