Oktoberfest

The world's largest beer festival!

Image by Pexels from Pixabay

The origins of the Oktoberfest date back to 1810 when a festival was held to honor the Bavarian Crown Prince Ludwig's marriage to Princess Therese von Sachsen-Hildburghausen. This festival has been held each year since then but was brought forward slightly in order to maximise the benefits of the September weather. It is now held in late September/early October each year with the centre of the festivities being the Theresienwiesen (Theresa fields) a short distance south-west of the main train station. Do bear in mind that the Munich Oktoberfest is the largest such event worldwide, so making it extremely busy and finding seats for large groups very tricky! Plan ahead!

The format is always similar - plenty of beertents and plenty of beer to drink once you are there. This is often served in staggering measures with a litre being quite normal, and the waitresses serving up to 10 'Steins' of beer at once, is a real sight to behold and wonder! Beer is served from 09.00/10.00 in the morning until 22.30 at night, although certain tents have later licenses until 01.00. During the festival there are also plenty of special events, entertainment and activities to keep you amused.

Over 6 million visitors now make the annual pilgrimage to the festival for beer lovers - make sure you're there to sample the fantastic atmosphere!

Getting to Oktoberfest by train

On arrival at Munich's Hauptbahnhof, it's a short journey on the U4 (green) or U5 (yellow) on the U-Bahn (underground). The closest station to the action is Theresienwiese, and takes just a few, but this stop can get very busy during the Oktoberfest, so you could travel one stop further to Schwanthalerhöhe.

Alternatively, use the U3 (orange) or U6 (blue) from Odeonsplatz, Marienplatz or Sendlinger Tor, and travel to Goetheplatz or, one station further, Poccistraße which takes just 5 minutes, but is generally a bit less busy so may be easier for those travelling with children, for example.