One of the big events of my trip to Europe was going to Oktoberfest with my brother and visiting the relatives who live just outside of Munich.
Seeing Oktoberfest on a beautiful sunny Saturday was an awesome experience and a fun highlight of the trip.
But OMG going to Oktoberfest on a beautiful sunny Saturday is an absolutely crazy idea.
Luckly our relatives had a contact who worked with Paulaner and got us reservations to the Festzelt Winzerer Fähndl.
300% Thanks to the awesome German relative who has contacts and got us a table for #Oktoberfest #eurotrip
— Robert (@robertdall) October 3, 2015
Very little had prepared me for an experience of a Beer Tent at Oktoberfest. It is the largest party in the world.
Prezels the size or steering wheels, Huge Lebkuchen Hearts with a variety of messages hung from your neck and litres and litres of traditional Bavarian beer.
So how do you get into a tent in Oktoberfest without relatives who have contacts with a brewery?
- Don’t go at the start or end of the festival.
- Don’t go on a weekend if you can help it early weekdays are best.
- Arrive very early Tents open at 10:00 and can be full by 10:15
- Be prepared to wait hours to get into a tent.
- If you can’t get into a tent try a beer garden. Their are both tents and gardens.
You can have an awful lot of fun without going into the tents and there is a variety of family fun available. One of the most uniquely Munich things we did was the Teufelsrad or Devil’s Wheel which has been part of Oktoberfest since 1910.
To survive the Devils Wheel you need to have a strong sense of balance a good start position on the wheel and some good luck. I tried my hand at the wheel and well I don’t think the two litres of beer before hand helped my chances and I was flung off in quite short order. But my niece Morgan did far better surviving to be the last girl on the wheel. (Being 10 at the time she was also far more sober then I )
Also an attire suggestion. Don’t buy one of these hats. You’ll just look like an idiot.
If my writings have helped you out, you can buy me a coffee or a beer via paypal: