I do have a suggestion but it will cost ya.

dcAg,

Whats your suggestion? Im about to book an airbrb deal for myself and 1 other friend that is coming with me.

Also, looking through past posts it looks like you have alot of knowledge. Sounded like you had an informational email you sent out? Could you send me an email?

Just wanted to give some more info incase anyone had any suggestions:

Going Sept 26 - 30 with a lady friend who has gone before but not the greatest on organizing.

Any info on reservations? Places to stay? would be greatly appreciated

email: jmedina2010 at google mail

jmed, i assume for reservations you mean for a spot in the tents at the festival? you'll be out of luck there i'm afraid - 99% of reservations are gone and most places will only take them if you have a party of 8-10.

HOWEVER, it's not a big deal at all because reservations don't start until 3:30pm most days. if you get up and go right when the festival opens, you can get a table easily on weekdays (should go 30 minutes to an hour before opening on weekends). then you can sit there and drink and eat for like 6 hours until the reservations kick in... by then you'll be so drunk you probably won't want to stay anyway.

hotels are going to be fully booked or $$$ by now (last year, a hotel we booked for $200 in April was charging my buddy $600 in September and it wasn't even worth the $200). for sure check into airbnb, that will be your best bet.

Thanks for the info jevousvoudrais. I was referring to reservations for tables. But sounds like I should be alright if I go early on friday and saturday.

Is staying after 3:30 not possible?

It depends on each individual tent's policies, but most of them that we visited had reservations starting around 3 or 3:30 pm and very limited non-reservation space.

veterans of oktoberfest: which tent(s) would you recommend?

We went to Augustiner.

i leave in a week!

Also one week until I leave!

ya'll leave some beer for the late arrivals!

i leave day after arkansas game

going on the 24th! let me know if you want to meet up

Went in 2008 and loved it!

Hacker Pschorr is my favorite tent. If it is nice outside go to the Kaefer Wiesn.

AggieDagger, I would be interested in meeting up on thursday?

What happens After oktoberfest, post 9pm? Any good locals bars?

I just got back this morning from Munich. Since TexAgs was such a good resource for planning my week long trip throughout Bavaria and Oktoberfest, I'll be putting together a very detailed thread on my adventures that should answer a lot of questions. Hopefully later today.

But to answer your questions here, I booked through airBnB and stayed in an apartment about 3 blocks from the park. It was about $200/night, but that was months ago. Hotels are not possible. Hostiles and campgrounds may be your only options, but I wouldn't recommend it if you're over about 25. We talked to lots of teenagers & 20-somethings who stayed in a campground somewhere near there. The campground provides dome tents (lined up so close that they're touching) in dozens of rows for as long as you can see. They provide hot dogs all day long, a BBQ social every other night, a warm breakfast daily, free beer 24 hours/day, and the dome tent...all for 50 Euros a night. Lots of drugs, drunks, random hookups, carnies, and very little sleep, but they all said it was safe & fun. There was still lots of room left on Sunday, but I'd only recommend it if you're a poor undergrad.

AirBnb is probably your only option, but it will be very expensive and likely not nearby. But getting around by train/subway/bus is very easy and affordable.

We decided to wait til Sunday for Oktoberfest since we figured it would be too crowded on opening day. We went to the Hippodrom tent (one of the Spaten tents). We waited in line about an hour or so before they opened but didn't need to. It wasn't actually full until around 11 or 12. You'll find a spot for 4 or less people by noon with no problem. Reservations are only necessary if you have a group of more than about 6 or so. Otherwise, just walk up to a table with some room and ask to sit down. Everybody was cool as hell and would love to have you. Hippodrom is probably middle of the road as far as popularity goes. There are much more rowdy tents, but it certainly wasn't family friendly. By 4 or 5pm, 80% of that tent was shhht-faced.

No fights. No pickpockets. Nothing scary like you'd see in America with that many drunks in one place. Just a bunch of fun people loving the chance to get hammered and become best friends with strangers from all over the world for 4 or 5 hours. We did see one guy outside with a bloody nose getting arrested for stealing though. We're pretty sure the cops did it to him. So don't steal.

It costs nothing to get in to the park or into a tent. Beers are only sold by the liter. Most tents only serve 1 flavor of beer. Ours was basically a light beer, but was stronger than the pisswater we'd get over here as a light beer. Beers cost 10 Euros (including tip)...which sounds high until you realize it's a liter which is like 4 beers in America. The food is awesome, and yes there are English menus on request.


There are lots of websites explaining the different tents, how rowdy they are, the beer they serve, and how good the food is. Just google it.

For those of you interested in other entertainment in Munich, there are about 30 beer gardens throughout the city, many of which seat 1000+ people. The outside of some of them don't have waiters or food, so you have to go up to the outdoor bar and get your beer...but not all of them. I don't think they ever close, regardless if Oktoberfest is going on or not. Lots of restaurants throughout Marienplatz serving traditional German food & beer, but most have special menus for Oktoberfest that limit the # of food options and jack up the prices. We typically ate for about 15 Euros per plate before beers on average.

I didn't see many traditional bars, lounges, or dance clubs, but I'm pretty sure they're there. Schillerstrasse which is a street halfway between Oktoberfest and Marienplatz is basically the redlight district. Tons of seedy strip joints if that's your thing for late night fun.

[This message has been edited by taint98 (edited 9/24/2013 10:12a).]

thanks for the write up!

i leave in the morning!

232 days and counting...

Just around the corner. Who is going?

Me and a buddy will be there 9/28 - 10/02, staying at the Le Meridian. I have been to Munich for one night before but not Oktoberfest. Looking forward to reading helpful info on this thread and hopefully seeing some other ags there.

Me and 4 others going. Bouncing around Bavaria/Austria for 10 days then finishing up the trip in Munich the first week of Oktoberfest. My 3rd time.

It will be my 7th time...

I will be there in 2015.

Who all are going this year?

I wish.

We were in Bavaria for three days recently. My favorite hotel was about 20 minutes outside of Munich in the Aufkirchen/Berg area right by Starnberger See. Here's the website: http://post-aufkirchen.de/

If you get tired of the crowds in Munich and you want a place in the country with a biergarten and a great view of the rolling farmland and Alps in the distance, this is your place! We booked the cheapest double room on booking.com, but they upgraded us to a really fantastic room.

I fly to Munich on the 24th and fly back to the US on Oktober 4.

May be in Berlin for a few days around September 21. Contemplating visiting Munich for a day/night to check out Octoberfest for the first time. If any fellow Ags were there, even better.

[This message has been edited by BusAg (edited 8/8/2014 4:35p).]

To anyone that does make it there.

I live in Munich would very much like to meetup with some good ol ags for a couple of beers. Believe it or not I don't see too many of them around here.
To anyone that would like some tips and advice, I would be glad to help.

Oh and BusAg, the 21 of October is much to late! It end on the 5th this year. I know its a little misleading but it actually starts last week of September and goes for two weeks. Hope that saves you some heartache, happens to a ton of people actually.


[This message has been edited by chunks (edited 8/8/2014 8:30a).]

last year was a lot of fun. Can't wait to go back in a couple years!

Great fun last year,, definitely want to go back again some day. First timers: don't try to overdo it. The beer is strong and the glasses are big

the beer isn't that strong (i drink a lot of craft beer though), but you are typically drinking it by the liter.

hmm,,, per wiki they're typically 6%, which isn't that strong, you're right. perhaps i'm just a lightweight

Even the Bavarians all talk about how strong the beer at Oktoberfest is. But your right normally you are not drinking it by the liter! Whats even worse is Starkbierfest, in March. It is a small beer festival in Munich held by Paulaner and they only serve Salvator, a Doppelbock. Man that was an interesting day.

6% is def on the high side if you typically drink bud light or something, which I drink a lot during football season. However, most the time time I'm drinking stuff that is 6-10%+, so I guess I didn't notice it as much. Still, drinking them by the litre or half litre still adds up quickly.

regardless, we can all agree its a great time.