Oktoberfest has begun.
Mayor Dieter Reiter officially kicked off Oktoberfest at noon Saturday by popping the tap on the first keg of beer, signalling the start of the festival's 189th edition. Thousands of beer lovers celebrated the first clinking of mugs at Munich's fairgrounds during the world's largest folk festival.
Munich will open its first keg in 2024, but Oktoberfest's original festival beer will only be found in the U.S.
Staffers quickly began rolling out trays, each holding up to eight glass mugs, and attendees began clinking mugs and chugging beer in the muggy heat of the tent.
The celebrations will run until October 6th in 18 large tents covering the Theresienwiese fairgrounds.
This year's festival is beefing up security following a deadly knife attack in the city of Solingen, about 470 kilometers (290 miles) northwest of Munich, on Aug. 23 that left three people dead and eight more injured and was claimed by the Islamic State without citing evidence. As a result, organizers added metal detectors to security guards for the first time in Oktoberfest history, but said there had been no specific threats.
A festival-goer reaches for his first glass of beer during the first day of the 189th Oktoberfest beer festival in Munich, Germany, Saturday, September 21, 2024. (AP Photo/Matthias Schroeder)
Tens of thousands of people lined the streets early Saturday morning to watch the opening parade, while others fought for tables inside tents. People wandered the grounds to chat, play cards and check out food options and amusement rides to kill time before starting to drink.
At 9 a.m., as soon as the doors opened, participants ran through the venue, despite security guards trying to keep the queue in order. Participants laughed despite the chill of the morning, and then someone was heard yelling, “Why are you running?”, before running off to get in line again, this time to be the first to enter the tent.
Around six million visitors are expected over the 16-day festival, with up to 600,000 visitors per day. Prices for a one-liter mug (33 fluid ounces) of beer are expected to range from 13.60 to 15.30 euros ($15.12 to $17.01), about 3.87% higher this year than in 2023.
Michael Caselitz, 24, was born and raised in Munich and has been attending Oktoberfest for years. He said everyone should travel to the Munich festival at least once in their lifetime.
“It can get really crowded and uncomfortable when people puke on the side of the road,” he joked, “but overall it's a really fun experience.”
Ollie Standen woke up at 6 a.m. to queue early for Oktoberfest, where beer is served from noon. The 21-year-old British man is in Munich this year on a university exchange program and was told by a local friend that he should attend the festival. Standen said he was looking forward to trying the different German beers that aren't often seen in Britain.
“This is a great German tradition and I'm excited to be here,” he said.
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The event was canceled in 2020 and 2021 as authorities grappled with COVID-19 prevention measures, but returned in 2022.
The first Oktoberfest was held on October 17, 1810, to celebrate the marriage of Crown Prince Ludwig of Bavaria and Crown Princess Theresa of Saxony. At the time, the venue was a meadow outside Munich and was called “Theresienwiese” in honour of the bride. The name remains, but the date has been moved forward to September, when temperatures are warmer than usual in Bavaria.
