Facts and data

Size

The Oktoberfest is known as the Largest People's Fair in the World. Year after year, about six million people visit the 42 Hectare large Theresienwiese. 72% of the people are from Bavaria. 15% of visitors come from foreign countries like the surrounding EU-countries and other non-European countries like the United States, Japan, and Australia.

Besides the Oktoberfest, there is a second public festival which takes place at the same place in April/May: The Munich Frühlingsfest (Spring Festival), which is also known as "Little Oktoberfest."

After the Oktoberfest the next people fairs in size in Germany are the Rheinkirmes in Düsseldorf (called Largest Fair on the Rhine) and the Freimarkt in Bremen (the oldest fair in Germany, held since 1035, and the biggest fair in Northern Germany) with about 4 million visitors per year each, followed by the Cannstatter Volksfest in Stuttgart with about 3 million visitors each year and the "Schützenfest Hannover", the worlds largest marksmen's Fun Fair in Hanover with about 2 Mio. visitors each year.

Duration

On account of the duration of the festival and the nice weather, the Oktoberfest has begun in September since 1872. It always opens on the third weekend in September, a Saturday and its duration varies depending on the days of the week each year (Approximately 16 days). The festival has traditionally ended on the first Sunday of October, but if this day is the 1st or 2nd day of October, the festival will go on until the October 3rd (German Unity Day).

The Oktoberfest will take place according to the following chart:
Year Dates Special Features 2000 Sep. 16th - Oct. 3rd 18 Days 2001 Sep. 22nd - Oct. 7th 2002 Sep. 21st - Oct. 6th 2003 Sep. 20th - Oct. 5th 2004 Sep. 18th - Oct. 3rd with ZLF* 2005 Sep. 17th - Oct. 3rd 17 Days 2006 Sep. 16th - Oct. 3rd 18 Days 2007 Sep. 22nd - Oct. 7th	Year Dates Special Features 2008 Sep. 20th - Oct. 5th with ZLF* 2009 Sep. 19th - Oct. 4th 2010 Sep. 18th - Oct. 3rd 200 Year Anniversary 2011 Sep. 17th - Oct. 3rd 17 Days 2012 Sep. 22nd - Oct. 7th with ZLF* 2013 Sep. 21st - Oct. 6th 2014 Sep. 20th - Oct. 5th 2015 Sep. 19th - Oct. 4th
*Bayerisches Zentral-Landwirtschaftsfest (Bavarian Central Agriculture Festival)

Oktoberfest numbers

Traditional bavarian style Live-Music

• 12,000 People are employed at the Oktoberfest. Of these, 1600 are waitresses.
• There is available seating for 100,000 people.
• The six Oktoberfest breweries, (Spaten, Augustiner, Paulaner, Hacker-Pschorr, Hofbräu, Löwenbräu) sold 6.1 million mugs of beer in 2006 (2005: 6.0 - 2004: 5.5 million).
• Roasted oxen: 102
• Sausages: 219,443 pairs
• Roast chickens: 459,279
• 60% Of visitors arrive by public transport

Beginning

Oktoberfest is a two-week festival held each year in Munich, Bavaria, Germany during late September and early October. It is one of the most famous events in the city and the world's largest fair, with some six million people attending every year.

The event traditionally takes place during the 16 days up to and including the first Sunday in October. The schedule was changed following German reunification in 1990 so that if the first October Sunday is the 1st or 2nd then the festival will go on until October the 3rd (German Unity Day). Thus, the festival is now 17 days when the 1st Sunday is October 2nd and 18 days when it is October 1st. The festival is held on an area named the Theresienwiese (Field [or meadow] of Therese), often called “d’ Wiesn” or “d'Waasn” for short. Beer plays a central role in the fair, with every festival beginning with a keg of beer tapped by the Mayor of Munich who declares “O'zapft is!” (Bavarian: “It’s tapped!”). A special Oktoberfest beer is brewed for the occasion, which is slightly darker and stronger, in both taste and alcohol. It is served in a one-liter-tankard called Maß. The first mass is served to the Bavarian Minister-President. Only local Munich breweries are allowed to serve this beer in a Bierzelt, a beer tent which is large enough for thousands. Note: the words 'stein' and 'lager' do not mean what many English speakers think they do so instead use 'Mass' or 'Helles' respectively

Visitors also consume large quantities of food, most of it traditional hearty fare such as sausage, hendl (chicken), käsespätzle (cheese noodles), and sauerkraut, along with such Bavarian delicacies as roast ox tails.

Other cities across the world also hold Oktoberfest celebrations, modeled after the Munich event.