Oktoberfest Survival Guide
Yana Immis
Are you already in Munich? Or heading here soon? For all those who plan to visit Oktoberfest this is a very helpful guide!
There is not much solid information in the English language, but many foreigners need to be aware of what Oktoberfest really is.
👨🌾🙌🏻🍻 Oktoberfest is the world's largest Volksfest held annually in Munich, Bavaria, Germany. Read everything about it here!
Oktoberfest Basics
This year Oktoberfest started on Saturday, 22nd of September and will finish 7th of October.
It all began in 1810 when Crown Prince Ludwig married Princess Therese. Ever since then, the festivity escalated to more than 6 million tourists visiting annually. Oktoberfest takes up 420,000 square feet and includes roller coasters and different rides, games, food, drinks, tents, dances, music, costumes – everything! And, of course, beer.
Who Goes? 70% Bavarians; 15% rest of Germany; and 15% other countries. How high is the percentage you will have fun there? 100 percent. Oktoberfest will be the best festival you will ever attend. It’s 16–18-days long and it is held annually in the capital of Bavaria (Munich). Attention, it starts in the middle of September and finishes at the beginning of October.
Do not be tricked by the name!
You can reach Oktoberfest from U3/U6 station Poccistrasse or Goetheplatz as well as U4/U5 station Theresienwiese. You can also walk and cycle and take those new scooters 😊 or horse carriage or taxi or trains or DriveNow… or riksha! You can figure out the way, do not worry!
What time to go:
Monday to Friday: 10.00 am – 10.30 pm
Saturday, Sunday & Public Holidays 09.00 am – 10.30 pm
Oktoberfest Budget & Accommodation
The entrance to the festival is free. You do not have to spend anything if you are just walking around and taking photos.
If you plan to eat/drink/go on rollercoasters, then prepare to become broke. Calculate to spend 50-100 Euro per day at least, considering each beer is approximately 12-13 Euro with tip, chicken is around that sum, and don’t forget to take Obatzda and gigantic Brezen and go for rollercoasters and and and…
Do not rely on credit cards. Here you can only pay cash, hence the big tips! It is a very tough but rewarding job to be a server at Oktoberfest. If you do not have cash, you can go to the ATMs on the territory, but the queues are very big.
You simply have to get used to queues overall: to sit down, to go to the restroom, to take the money out, for rollercoasters. Do not underestimate the power of beer. And by the way, there are vegetarian foods and alcohol-free drinks (alcohol-free beer as well), hence everyone is welcome on the Wiesn.
Small snacks like bananas in chocolate, apples in sugar, ZUCKERWATTE (cotton candy), sandwiches can cost you 4-6 euro, but the meals at the table can easily go for 20 Euro each.
When you have a reservation, most of the time the food will be served as a set of beers with particular Bavarian snacks, so make sure to double-check that.
If you do book at one of the tents, be aware that most tables seat 6-10 people and cost about 300 EUR (about 30 EUR per person). You’re required to book a whole table, so even if it’s just one of you going, you reserve the table as though you are going to fill it.
The first thing you have to keep in mind, that there is nothing else like Oktoberfest. The second thing, Germany is a complicated country in terms of accommodation search, especially during Oktoberfest.
The majority of the landlords prefer to rent their rooms/flats short-term for the foreigners, because there are 6 million tourists visiting Munich throughout a 16 days festival. Munich, with a population of 1.5 million people simply cannot host everyone so easily, hence the occupancy rate on Booking.com for the Oktoberfest season is 99% and the prices range from 200-300 Euro for a simple room per night. You can go ahead and book it a year in advance, how many people already do.
Munich has good infrastructure, hence there is no need to book something right at the Theresienwiese, it can also be within 40 min commute, but at least it won’t cost you a fortune. You won’t believe it, but many people actually stay at a camping place or even tents, due to no availability.
Oktoberfest Precautions
1. Getting into the tent is difficult
The earlier you come and the fewer people you are the higher are your chances of finding a table inside or in the Biergarten outside of each big tent. Simply ask the people at the table if they have a place for 2 or 3 or 4.
2. Going to Oktoberfest in big groups without reservation doesn’t make sense
Unless you go early in the mornings during the week. Because you might have to split or you will take a lot of time searching for a table and you might not even find it! You can reserve tables a year in advance and many people do so! If you don’t have a reservation it can get very crowded and a very daunting experience. The average search time for a table is 40 minutes.
3. Do not underestimate the power of the German beer and the amounts
The minimum you can drink on Oktoberfest is 1 liter, that is the way beer is served in 1 liter Steins called Mass (Maß). Considering you would most probably be tired by the time you sit down, the first beer will evaporate. Consider your minimum would be 2 liters. 2 Liters of beer to start the day? Not everyone can handle that.
Moreover, the beer here is stronger than something you are used to.
4. Do not order other alcohol drinks than beer
They most probably won’t have them and they will get offended. Who are they? Everyone. There is just one tent offering Wine (Weinzelt) but the vibe there is different.
5. Hydrate: drink a lot of water while you’re there
6. Drink slow
If you start at 10:00 you can also be done at 2 PM this way. You can manage to drink large amounts of beer if you drink slowly and pace it with the food.
7. Do not dance on the tables
Dance everywhere else: in the streets, at the tent, in the Biergarten, on the benches, but not on the table (you will be punished). People fall all the time by the way and so will you. So get ready for some bruises.
8. Do not carry big bags or backpacks
Either you will be refused in the entry, or you would have to store your things at the entrance.
9. Be careful not to underestimate the weather
Everyone has Oktoberfest flu, because it is the end of September and not very warm in the mornings and the evenings, make sure to take a jacket with you and put on comfortable and warm socks.
10. For girls, it is not recommended to wear heels
Because the roads are in pavement blocks or in the grass and generally, you can hurt yourself if you are dancing on the bench. Also: the majority won’t last all day on the heels, it is not worth it. Put on something that you do not regret getting dirty and messy and /or destroyed.
11. Wear good and comfortable clothes, which you do not necessary care about
Because the rivers of the beer will be spilled on it!
12. Be ready that you will lose your credit cards, your bag, your phone, your jacket
Do not take anything you are afraid of losing.
13. Make sure to remember where you stay
Write it on your arm or on a piece of paper or smart people take their hotel business card. You will be lost! And you will lose your group of people – it happens all the time!
14. Set a meet-up point
The grounds are huge. If you’re there with friends, set a meeting point in case you get separated (which is inevitable).
Oktoberfest Food & Drink choices
Eat like there is no tomorrow. In the kiosk while passing by you can get all the amazing small snacks, like caramelized cashew, almonds, macadamia, fruits in white chocolate, herring with pickles sandwiches, sandwiches with sausages and so on.
The food on Oktoberfest is delicious. Ochsenbraterei offers oxen dishes and Café Kaiserschmarrn is known for their amazing Bavarian desert.
You can buy all Bavarian deviations of food in the tents and the beergartens otherwise.
DRINKS
with alcohol
Helles – a light beer
Dunkel – a dark beer
Hefeweizen – a wheat beer
Bleifrei 😊 – alcohol free beer
Radler – 50% beer / 50% lemonade
FOODS
Kaiserschmarrn
Wiesnhendl (roasted chicken)
Schweinehaxe
Brezen
Weißwurst
Käsespätzle
Alcohol-free drinks:
Apfelschorle – Apple Juice + Sparkling water
Spezi – very famous drink here, something in between Fanta and Cola
Sodas, Juices, Water
Oktoberfest Tips
If you want to feel the whole atmosphere, dress up, sing along, jump dance, drink, eat and fully engage.
· Consider buying yourself a national outfit.
o Men at Oktoberfest typically wear lederhosen (leather pants) with checkered shirts.
o Women at Oktoberfest typically wear dirndls, a dress, which you connect from different parts or buy a one piece. They are usually very colorful and you can exchange aprons and jewelry to change the styles. Girls also wear lederhosen sometimes as the new fashion.
You can buy one very cheap for 50 Euro at Flohmarkt up to thousands of Euro. If you want to fit in, get the traditional clothes, but you do not have to. The beauty of Bavarian outfits for Oktoberfest is that they hide all your drawbacks and underline your benefits, they are very comfortable!
· Get to know people.
You will sit with Germans, but as well with so many nationalities. It is common to cheer with your neighbours even not having known them 2 minutes ago. By the end of the first hours you will know at least 50 new people if you are open to new acquaintances.
· Sing along to the songs the good old 90-s among those, great Bavarian & German hits
· Ride rollercoasters across the whole Wiesn territory. You will find fun rides and attractions for all ages
· Visit as many tents as you can!
o Which beer brand you get depends on the tent you go to! You can see on top of the tent the brand & the logo.
Favourite tents of mine: Schützen & Schottenhammel. Try them all and find the one you love. You can get only 1 type of beer in each tent 😉 Munich’s ‘big 6’ breweries serve beer with a 6% alcohol content.
· Be touristy: make photos and videos of the grounds & the wonderful Bavarian costumes
o You are not living in Munich and you do not plan to move here yet? Then bring something with you home – souvenirs!
You can buy hearts with a certain text, beer mugs, pins, magnets, funny hats – anything that will keep dearest memories.
I hope this guide helps you and you are coming back to Munich and decide to move here for studying purposes. Then you know where to find me ;-)
