A Prost to Oktoberfest

The world’s largest folk festival wraps up in Munich this weekend. Despite a misleading name, Oktoberfest starts in September and goes until the first weekend in October in Munich, Germany. The first Oktoberfest took place in 1810, to celebrate the wedding of Princess Theresa to Bavarian Prince Ludwig. The party was so popular that the celebration became an annual tradition, starting earlier and earlier to draw out the party and take advantage of Munich’s notoriously good fall weather. The Theresien Wies’n is the meadow, named after Queen Theresa, that hosts the annual event--just a short walk from the cobblestone streets of Munich’s old town.

The annual Oktoberfest kicks off when Munich’s mayor taps the first wooden keg. Close to 7 million liters of beer flow to the 7+ million visitors. After Covid forced cancellation the past two years, travelers flocked back to Oktoberfest this year from around the world. The vast majority of attendees wear traditional Bavarian Trachten: dirndls and lederhosen. Walking through the Wies’n and into the football field size tents can feel like being at the world’s biggest Halloween party, where everyone is wearing the same costume.

You don’t need to travel during Oktoberfest to enjoy some of Bavaria’s finest brews. The beer halls are not nearly as crowded, but often just as lively, in the winter. Beers are brewed to match the flavor of the season and a winter Lager, named for the cellar where it is stored, tastes remarkably similar to the Oktoberfest beer brewed for the festival, as both are brewed to be enjoyed when temperatures are a little cooler outside.

Does the name “King Ludwig,” whose wedding marked the first Oktoberfest, sound familiar? It is his grandson, King Ludwig II, who is the namesake for the König Ludwig Lauf Worldloppet Ski Marathon and whose Neuschwanstein Castle inspired the Disney Castle. The race even goes past the Monastery in Ettal, Germany where Ettaler beer is brewed in the courtyard. Learn more about how beer is brewed and ski in the König Ludwig Lauf on the Lumi Experiences Marcialonga & König Ludwig Lauf trip.

Munich is a popular pre- or post-trip destination for many of our travelers. You can tack on a little extra time in Munich on the Lumi Dolomitenlauf & Marcialonga and Seefeld & Engadin trip too! Munich is the perfect place to spend a couple of days recovering from jet lag and exploring the cobbled old-town streets and beer halls before heading into the mountains for your ski trip.

Join me in raising a glass to Oktoberfest. Prost!

Garrott Kuzzy