Oktoberfest: it was the best of times it was the worst of times. All descriptions of this 200+ year old event should begin with or at least include this statement. You've never felt more excited and more alive than when you head to the tents that first day. And you've never felt more miserable and more dead than when you head to the train station that last day. But that's the nature of the beast. Buy the ticket, take the ride.
As my entire time in Munich centered around Oktoberfest, I'm not sure how long this post can be. There are only so many ways to describe drinking beer, singing songs, and generally embracing revelry. This was my second time at Oktoberfest; I went last in 2009 as part of a larger trip through Germany and met some of my work buddies for three days of beer-fueled madness. This time I was on my own and I was coming in direct from New York. The plan was to arrive, check into the hotel, drop my stuff off and head to the tents.
It should also be noted that this marked the second time in my eight month European venture that I utilized Starwood points to put myself up in luxury. In this case it was particularly worth it as nearly all other accommodations were booked and most people I would meet were camping 20+ minutes away from the fair grounds by train. The Le Meredien Munich, on the other hand, is a 5 minute walk to the grounds and sits directly adjacent to the main train station. You can't ask for a much better location.
Notwithstanding my earnest intention to stick to my initial plan, I was unable to sleep on the flight and was thereby exhausted from the lack of sleep plus the cumulative effects of the wedding and time with my friends in New York. The girl at check-in must have noticed my fatigue as, upon presenting my identification, made a phone call, had a brief discussion in German, and then returned with "you are getting a suite." Excellent. And even better yet, it was ready.
How comfortable does that bed look? It was too much to resist- I felt I had to give it a test run and a wonderful two hour nap ensued. Feeling refreshed I took a quick shower and went through the mental preparations I would need to endure my first session at Oktoberfest. Having survived the Oktoberfest experience once before, I was aware of several critical facts that would prove extremely handy in doing so again: (1) always eat something before you go; (2) drink as much water as you can before you go; and (3) if you don't go early in the morning (i.e. before 11am) it's best to wait until around 5pm when they are recycling the tables for the evening session to try and sneak a spot.
It was around 4pm by this point so to heed all three I acquired some pretzely food items and water from the train station and then headed to the fair grounds at around 4:30. As I joined the throng of people pouring into the fair grounds, great memories and haunting images of Oktoberfest-past rose to forefront of my mind. Could I really survive another three-day run of this? And all by my lonesome? Just as I was pondering these thoughts I rounded the corner and this came into view:
As my entire time in Munich centered around Oktoberfest, I'm not sure how long this post can be. There are only so many ways to describe drinking beer, singing songs, and generally embracing revelry. This was my second time at Oktoberfest; I went last in 2009 as part of a larger trip through Germany and met some of my work buddies for three days of beer-fueled madness. This time I was on my own and I was coming in direct from New York. The plan was to arrive, check into the hotel, drop my stuff off and head to the tents.
It should also be noted that this marked the second time in my eight month European venture that I utilized Starwood points to put myself up in luxury. In this case it was particularly worth it as nearly all other accommodations were booked and most people I would meet were camping 20+ minutes away from the fair grounds by train. The Le Meredien Munich, on the other hand, is a 5 minute walk to the grounds and sits directly adjacent to the main train station. You can't ask for a much better location.
Notwithstanding my earnest intention to stick to my initial plan, I was unable to sleep on the flight and was thereby exhausted from the lack of sleep plus the cumulative effects of the wedding and time with my friends in New York. The girl at check-in must have noticed my fatigue as, upon presenting my identification, made a phone call, had a brief discussion in German, and then returned with "you are getting a suite." Excellent. And even better yet, it was ready.
How comfortable does that bed look? It was too much to resist- I felt I had to give it a test run and a wonderful two hour nap ensued. Feeling refreshed I took a quick shower and went through the mental preparations I would need to endure my first session at Oktoberfest. Having survived the Oktoberfest experience once before, I was aware of several critical facts that would prove extremely handy in doing so again: (1) always eat something before you go; (2) drink as much water as you can before you go; and (3) if you don't go early in the morning (i.e. before 11am) it's best to wait until around 5pm when they are recycling the tables for the evening session to try and sneak a spot.
It was around 4pm by this point so to heed all three I acquired some pretzely food items and water from the train station and then headed to the fair grounds at around 4:30. As I joined the throng of people pouring into the fair grounds, great memories and haunting images of Oktoberfest-past rose to forefront of my mind. Could I really survive another three-day run of this? And all by my lonesome? Just as I was pondering these thoughts I rounded the corner and this came into view:
A tingling of excitement and cool chill ran simultaneously down my spine. "Here we go," I thought, "let's do it." Oktoberfest has been a tradition since 1810 when it began as a wedding celebration for crown prince Ludwig (Ludwig I). The citizens of Munich were invited to the festivities on the fields in front of the city gates where the festival is still held today. The festival has changed some over the years but the primary goal was always to celebrate Bavarian culture, a huge part of which is the brewing of beer.
These days there are around 14 large "tents" seating anywhere from 1,000 to 7,000 inside and an additional 500 to 4,000 outside. Additionally there a number of small tents and venues scattered about the festival grounds. I say "tent" because these are mammoth structures that take around two months to set up and two months to take down. Some quick statistics: the festival runs from 16 to 18 days depending on when the first Sunday in October falls, each year over 6 million people visit the festival, and over 7 million liters (so roughly 21 million 12oz cans) of beer are consumed. That's a lot of beer.
Since I wasn't sure what the crowds would be like in the middle of the week I decided to return first to one of the larger tents, and an old friend, Schottenhamel. The plan if you're solo or with a small group is simple: try to find a table that seems to have a little space, approach and say hello, offer to buy them a beer and ask if you can sit down. When I got to Schottenhamel, the non-reserved tables were already pretty packed. It was probably 5:30 and the scene was already building in pace.
I was a bit concerned about getting in with a group but while I was standing along the railing and contemplating my next move I bumped into Nico, a half-Dutch half-Italian super nice guy who offered for me to join his table. Well, we were both more or less connected to the table via our annexed standing area but we had beers and that was all that mattered.
If you're wondering what actually goes on once you've made it into the tent and secured a beer, here is a quick recap of the Oktoberfest process: (1) drink beer; (2) band plays; (3) sing with band and slap people on the shoulders while laughing heartily; (4) drink beer; (5) chat with someone; and (6) repeat 1-5. As the night wears on it becomes a great mass of jovial people singing, drinking, and chatting about all sort of topics with total strangers (now great friends) in varying stages of drunkenness. This is by no means exclusive to just the patrons- the band puts on an impressive beer drinking performance as well.
These days there are around 14 large "tents" seating anywhere from 1,000 to 7,000 inside and an additional 500 to 4,000 outside. Additionally there a number of small tents and venues scattered about the festival grounds. I say "tent" because these are mammoth structures that take around two months to set up and two months to take down. Some quick statistics: the festival runs from 16 to 18 days depending on when the first Sunday in October falls, each year over 6 million people visit the festival, and over 7 million liters (so roughly 21 million 12oz cans) of beer are consumed. That's a lot of beer.
Since I wasn't sure what the crowds would be like in the middle of the week I decided to return first to one of the larger tents, and an old friend, Schottenhamel. The plan if you're solo or with a small group is simple: try to find a table that seems to have a little space, approach and say hello, offer to buy them a beer and ask if you can sit down. When I got to Schottenhamel, the non-reserved tables were already pretty packed. It was probably 5:30 and the scene was already building in pace.
I was a bit concerned about getting in with a group but while I was standing along the railing and contemplating my next move I bumped into Nico, a half-Dutch half-Italian super nice guy who offered for me to join his table. Well, we were both more or less connected to the table via our annexed standing area but we had beers and that was all that mattered.
If you're wondering what actually goes on once you've made it into the tent and secured a beer, here is a quick recap of the Oktoberfest process: (1) drink beer; (2) band plays; (3) sing with band and slap people on the shoulders while laughing heartily; (4) drink beer; (5) chat with someone; and (6) repeat 1-5. As the night wears on it becomes a great mass of jovial people singing, drinking, and chatting about all sort of topics with total strangers (now great friends) in varying stages of drunkenness. This is by no means exclusive to just the patrons- the band puts on an impressive beer drinking performance as well.
And to that last point about the varying stages of drunkenness- those beers sneak up on you pretty fast. First it doesn't feel like that much but you are holding 1 liter of beer (approximately 3 regular beers), and second, the beer is coming in at around 6% alcohol. Remember the pro-tip about food and water? Thankfully the tents also have you sorted out with a variety of food options, the most popular being the baked chickens, sausages, and schnitzel. Personally, I've always been a fan of the girls with the baskets of pretzels bigger than my head.
Anyway, there's not much else I can tell you about the night. I made a lot of new friends, talked about who knows what, sang a bunch of songs, and drank a handsome amount of beer. And most of the people who started at "our" table made it to the end of the night, myself included. Day one: victory.
Day two was Thursday. I had initially planned to wake early and make my way to the tents for the early session, however, the combination of the previous night's events, general left-over exhaustion from NY, and the extreme comfyness of my bed made any attempt at arising a futile gesture. Plus, I also figured that of my three days there Friday would be the most crowded so I would save my morning session for that day. Decision made, I slept like a baby until just after noon and awoke hangover free. Since the general rule if you miss the morning session was to wait until 5, I used the afternoon to sort out some administrative tasks including validating my rail pass.
Around 4 it was time to get to work. And work I got to. First, I had an overwhelming impulse to visit my other old friend, and Oktoberfest favorite, the infamous Hippodrome tent. Last time, on the exact same Friday, the fellas and I arose for the morning session of beer in said tent and then smoothly transitioned to an absolutely legendary evening in the tent's champagne room. Many hundreds of euros were spent. Now that I'm an unemployed vagabond traveler such an experience was out of the question, however, I still wanted to have a beer and soak in some of the Hippodrome glory.
Unfortunately one beer was all I could manage as the Hippodrome is one of the hottest tickets in town and they were clearing out all the non-reserved riffraff (including me) shortly after I arrived. From there I ended up in the Haufbrau tent, a new one for me, with a crew of Aussies.
Employing the old tactics I was able to score some beers. The funny thing about Oktoberfest is that you have to order your beer at the table. You can stand at or near the tables drinking- or walk around with your beer under most circumstances, however, you cannot walk up to a beer station and order one.
Not having a table we bounced around until we finally found a place at one of the outdoor seating areas where we joined a group of Germans and Brits. For the life of me I couldn't tell you what we were talking about or how long we were there (presumably until the end). Again, the beer sneaks up on you and then, suddenly, Oktoberfest has you.
It's also worth noting the attire of most of the patrons at Oktoberfest. You might think only a handful of people would wear the traditional lederhosen (for men) and drindls (for women), and you would be dead wrong. It's probably 70-80% of people wearing the traditional Bavarian clothes (or at least some variation thereof) to the remainder in casual clothes.
At some point in the evening (or likely early morning) I found myself back at the hotel bar mixing it up with some other travelers where various further antics ensued. Day 2: victory.
Needless to say when I awoke at 8:30am to prepare myself for the early session on day 3, I was in what some might call poor shape, and what others may consider "on-the-cusp-of-deathish." But, it being my last day and the finish line so clearly in sight, I collected myself and pressed on.
For my final effort I decided to try a new tent, the Augustiner-Festhalle. I'm a big fan of Augustiner's dunkelweiss back home so I figured if I'm going to have to start so early I might as well test out their Oktoberfest brew. In line for the doors to open I met a heap of other Americans; we teamed up and with our powers combined were able to secure a very favorable table. At 10:30am, the first round of beers hit the table.
I'll be honest, choking down that first beer on the morning of day 3 at Oktoberfest is one of the most challenging feats of drinking I've ever encountered. I remember sitting at the Hofbrau House 3 years back with buddies Mark and Pado struggling with exact same dilemma. And here, despite probably a slightly better beer, it was like drinking glass. But the good news is, and there is always good news when drinking beer, once you have that first one down, you feel remarkably better and the festivities can resume. Emboldened, some even go overboard:
By around 1pm the Augustiner-Festhalle was already rocking and the band was in full swing. We ended up switching seats back and forth with some Swiss guys who were at the table behind us. Then I was at another table with some Brits, then found some Canadians; it was chaos. Augustiner ranks highly on my list of tents now.
One other phenomenon at Oktoberfest that was especially prevalent at this tent- if, upon receiving a fresh beer, you are challenged to chug it, you must stand on the bench toast the entire crowd and down the mug in one go. One of the guys from California, who I called Teddy because he looks like Teddy from the Hangover 2, was challenged by the Swiss. He was up for the challenge.
And finished it like a boss!
Sometime towards the end of the afternoon I went outside for a bit of fresh air. Upon emerging into daylight my body in it's current state decided that it was finished with Oktoberfest 2012.
Without my command, it marched me back to the hotel where I promptly collapsed into slumber. Perhaps not the blowout ending to Oktoberfest that you, or even I, was expecting but considering the five days that led up to it and the 3 days of the festival themselves, an unplanned crash out seems almost inevitable in hindsight. Just like before, and even as a solo traveler on a budget, Oktoberfest was a blast. And just like in 2009, that morning train ride out was an absolute disaster. It was the best of times, it was the worst of times.
Anyway, there's not much else I can tell you about the night. I made a lot of new friends, talked about who knows what, sang a bunch of songs, and drank a handsome amount of beer. And most of the people who started at "our" table made it to the end of the night, myself included. Day one: victory.
Day two was Thursday. I had initially planned to wake early and make my way to the tents for the early session, however, the combination of the previous night's events, general left-over exhaustion from NY, and the extreme comfyness of my bed made any attempt at arising a futile gesture. Plus, I also figured that of my three days there Friday would be the most crowded so I would save my morning session for that day. Decision made, I slept like a baby until just after noon and awoke hangover free. Since the general rule if you miss the morning session was to wait until 5, I used the afternoon to sort out some administrative tasks including validating my rail pass.
Around 4 it was time to get to work. And work I got to. First, I had an overwhelming impulse to visit my other old friend, and Oktoberfest favorite, the infamous Hippodrome tent. Last time, on the exact same Friday, the fellas and I arose for the morning session of beer in said tent and then smoothly transitioned to an absolutely legendary evening in the tent's champagne room. Many hundreds of euros were spent. Now that I'm an unemployed vagabond traveler such an experience was out of the question, however, I still wanted to have a beer and soak in some of the Hippodrome glory.
Unfortunately one beer was all I could manage as the Hippodrome is one of the hottest tickets in town and they were clearing out all the non-reserved riffraff (including me) shortly after I arrived. From there I ended up in the Haufbrau tent, a new one for me, with a crew of Aussies.
Employing the old tactics I was able to score some beers. The funny thing about Oktoberfest is that you have to order your beer at the table. You can stand at or near the tables drinking- or walk around with your beer under most circumstances, however, you cannot walk up to a beer station and order one.
Not having a table we bounced around until we finally found a place at one of the outdoor seating areas where we joined a group of Germans and Brits. For the life of me I couldn't tell you what we were talking about or how long we were there (presumably until the end). Again, the beer sneaks up on you and then, suddenly, Oktoberfest has you.
It's also worth noting the attire of most of the patrons at Oktoberfest. You might think only a handful of people would wear the traditional lederhosen (for men) and drindls (for women), and you would be dead wrong. It's probably 70-80% of people wearing the traditional Bavarian clothes (or at least some variation thereof) to the remainder in casual clothes.
At some point in the evening (or likely early morning) I found myself back at the hotel bar mixing it up with some other travelers where various further antics ensued. Day 2: victory.
Needless to say when I awoke at 8:30am to prepare myself for the early session on day 3, I was in what some might call poor shape, and what others may consider "on-the-cusp-of-deathish." But, it being my last day and the finish line so clearly in sight, I collected myself and pressed on.
For my final effort I decided to try a new tent, the Augustiner-Festhalle. I'm a big fan of Augustiner's dunkelweiss back home so I figured if I'm going to have to start so early I might as well test out their Oktoberfest brew. In line for the doors to open I met a heap of other Americans; we teamed up and with our powers combined were able to secure a very favorable table. At 10:30am, the first round of beers hit the table.
I'll be honest, choking down that first beer on the morning of day 3 at Oktoberfest is one of the most challenging feats of drinking I've ever encountered. I remember sitting at the Hofbrau House 3 years back with buddies Mark and Pado struggling with exact same dilemma. And here, despite probably a slightly better beer, it was like drinking glass. But the good news is, and there is always good news when drinking beer, once you have that first one down, you feel remarkably better and the festivities can resume. Emboldened, some even go overboard:
By around 1pm the Augustiner-Festhalle was already rocking and the band was in full swing. We ended up switching seats back and forth with some Swiss guys who were at the table behind us. Then I was at another table with some Brits, then found some Canadians; it was chaos. Augustiner ranks highly on my list of tents now.
One other phenomenon at Oktoberfest that was especially prevalent at this tent- if, upon receiving a fresh beer, you are challenged to chug it, you must stand on the bench toast the entire crowd and down the mug in one go. One of the guys from California, who I called Teddy because he looks like Teddy from the Hangover 2, was challenged by the Swiss. He was up for the challenge.
And finished it like a boss!
Sometime towards the end of the afternoon I went outside for a bit of fresh air. Upon emerging into daylight my body in it's current state decided that it was finished with Oktoberfest 2012.
Without my command, it marched me back to the hotel where I promptly collapsed into slumber. Perhaps not the blowout ending to Oktoberfest that you, or even I, was expecting but considering the five days that led up to it and the 3 days of the festival themselves, an unplanned crash out seems almost inevitable in hindsight. Just like before, and even as a solo traveler on a budget, Oktoberfest was a blast. And just like in 2009, that morning train ride out was an absolute disaster. It was the best of times, it was the worst of times.
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