What is Oktoberfest and Why Is it Celebrated?

Beer drinkers and pretzel lovers know the best festival of the year happens in autumn.

No, it's not Halloween. It's Oktoberfest. More than 200 years old, this much-loved Bavarian tradition is still celebrated in its home city of Munich, and it has inspired Oktoberfest celebrations all over the world. Munich is famous for its beer hall culture, which promotes a democratic sense of what Bavarians call 'Gemütlichkeit'. There's no neat English translation, but it roughly means good feeling, belonging and warmth, and it reaches its peak during the annual folk festival.

If you're wondering when Oktoberfest happens, the name isn't much of a clue. It starts in September, on the first Saturday after 15 September, and runs until the first Sunday in October. If that Sunday falls before 3 October (German Unity Day, a public holiday), the festival carries on until the 3rd. In 2026, that means 19 September to 4 October. So the best time to start planning your own Oktoberfest celebration is mid-September at the latest. (Good news: we've got the recipes.)

The first Oktoberfest took place in October 1810: a five-day festival celebrating the marriage of Crown Prince Ludwig of Bavaria (later King Ludwig I) and Princess Therese von Sachsen-Hildburghausen. A horse race concluded the festivities, taking place on a meadow that came to be known as Theresienwiese, German for 'Therese's meadow'.

Today, Bavarians simply call the festival 'Wiesn', short for Theresienwiese, where it's still held every year. But the Oktoberfest we know today took shape over the years that followed, as locals kept wanting the party back.

In 1819, the city of Munich took over running the festival, already aware it was a reliable crowd-puller. New traditions followed over the decades, including the famous roast chicken, first sold at the festival in the 1880s, and the big beer tents and halls that appeared from 1896. Today, more than six million visitors come to Munich each year for the beer, the food and the fairground atmosphere on the Theresienwiese. The festival was cancelled in 2020 and 2021 because of the pandemic, and when it returned, so did the crowds: 2023 set an all-time record of 7.2 million visitors, who drank around 6.5 million litres of beer between them.

All Oktoberfest beer comes from Munich's six big breweries: Augustiner, Hacker-Pschorr, Hofbräu, Löwenbräu, Paulaner and Spaten. If you're hosting your own Oktoberfest at home (and we've got some 'sehr lecker', or 'very delicious', German recipes to help), look out for these names. Several are easy to find across Europe.

It wouldn't be Oktoberfest without the classic dishes that festival-goers know and love. Expect to see dishes like roast pork with Kartoffelknödel (potato dumplings), roast chicken, bratwurst with sauerkraut, creamy spätzle noodles, crispy pork schnitzel with potato salad and, of course, pretzels!

Pretzels (Brezn, as they're called in Bavaria) are good on their own, but Bavarians know the best partner: a cheese dip called Obatzda. You'll find it in German supermarkets, but homemade is best. To make it, combine Camembert, cream cheese, butter, caraway seeds, paprika (both sweet and hot) and a splash of beer (naturally). Do as the Bavarians do and spread the dip on chunks of pretzel and spicy radishes. In the mood for something sweet? Oktoberfest offers desserts such as Kaiserschmarrn, a fluffy pancake that's torn into pieces, dusted with icing sugar and served with stewed plums or cherry compote.

Bavarian brass bands provide the traditional soundtrack, but it isn't really Oktoberfest until you join in with the tent favourites. Alongside classics like 'Ein Prosit der Gemütlichkeit', which ends with everyone raising their glasses and drinking, expect international hits like Gloria Gaynor's 'I Will Survive' and the 1980s Italian pop song 'Sarà perché ti amo' by Ricchi e Poveri.

Oktoberfest evolves with the times, but you'll definitely see plenty of lederhosen for men and dirndls for women. These were once everyday clothes in Bavaria. Now they mostly come out for this time of year. If you do decide to wear a dirndl, think about where you tie the apron bow: on the left if you're single, on the right if you're taken and at the back if you're widowed (or working).

Feeling inspired? Chill some beer, put on your dirndl and cue the brass band. Prost!