Oktoberfest is happening again after two years of a pandemic break.
Welcome to Munich to all of the new and old Oktoberfest visitors!

In this post, I give some tips for first timers on how to get the most out of the fantastic Fest.

Overview

The Fest is huge. Millions of visitors pack the event area, Theresienwiese, over the 2 weeks, 3 weekends the festivities last. While the event is a beer festival, there is much more in the area and it looks more like a carnival than a beer festival at first glance. The area is filled with carnival rides, food booths and other attractions on top of the dominating beer tents. You can ride roller coasters and many other rides with a hefty price.

Beer tents

These tents, Bierzelt, don’t really have much in common with traditional tents other than they’re temporary structures. The tents are constructed over many months and have multiple areas and levels. Each tent serves beer from a single brewery. So once you enter, that’s what you’re stuck with.

The beer

Only Munich breweries are selling their beer in Oktoberfest. In the tents you can get Festbier, a slightly stronger variant of their Helles, and Radler. Weissbier is only served outside the tents on special Weissbier stands.

Tips for drinking

In the tents, the beer is only served in Mass (1liter). It is slightly stronger than normal Helles as well as being slightly less fizzy. So it is very easy to drink the beer fast. Especially if you’ve been waiting for an entry for a long time, it’s tempting to down the first one quickly. Don’t. Take your time to enjoy the beer instead. The first one will set the pace for your visit. Most people are going to be drunk after the second, or at latest, after the third. Oktoberfest is more fun when not completely wasted.

Ordering beer

The waiting staff is busy. There’s a lot of drunk people to serve. They work long shifts and have probably carried thousands of liters of beer already when you first talk to them. So give them a break if they sound a bit rude. Part of it is just them being Bavarians and direct and part of it is just the heavy work they do over the two weeks.

Each waiter/waitress has their own section they serve. So trying to catch one from other sections is useless, they won’t serve you. The best thing to do is to wait a bit, look around and see which people are serving the area you’re in. They’ll get to you, eventually.

You order your beer and pay when it is delivered to you. It’s fine for everyone to pay for their own beer but you can make things smoother by paying for the whole table at once. You want to pay with cash and with as little return change expected as possible. So take coins with you. Round up the cost upwards to make it easy. Tipping is not required but if you round up an Euro or two, you’ll probably get quicker service in the upcoming rounds. Do not expect 10/20 cnt change back.

Safety and how to behave

Despite the massive drunken crowds, Oktoberfest is a pretty safe place to be. Just pay attention to your surroundings and be aware of the normal things that might happen to you in a nightclub, for example

Don’t take a big bag or backpack with you to the Fest. You might have to leave it outside or at very least it will be searched. It’s just easier to be there without a bag.

Getting into a tent

The tents all have multiple entrances. Side entrances are usually used by people with reservations. So if you're waiting in line, pay attention that you’re not in one of these lines as you’ll only get in if you already have a ticket.

The main entrances are usually crowded but the wait might not be very long (depending on the day). The security people will let people in once others leave. Follow their instructions and wait patiently. There won’t be an orderly line but instead a ball of people around the entrance. Don’t worry too much. Somehow it just works.

Being in the crowd

The tents are crowded. You will be pushed by accident and on purpose. Don’t block the walkways for the waiting staff or you will be yelled at.

It’s quite normal that people are standing on the chairs instead of sitting on them. It might be safer for you to do the same as it’s less likely someone will fall on you if you’re on the same level with them.

Keep your wits about you and you’ll have a good time!