Cheers to Germany! The Munich Oktoberfest is expected to draw 6 million revelers.

By MOOK Travel Life Network, Li Xinyi, compiled and reported

The Munich Oktoberfest (Oktoberfest München), which has a history of over 200 years, is about to kick off from September 22 to October 7. Every year, more than 6 million tourists join in the festivities. This year, the Munich Oktoberfest will feature 14 large tents and 21 smaller ones. The weekend opening hours are from 9 am, while weekdays start at 10 am, and all tents stay open until 11:30 pm. Although no prior reservation is needed to enter the tents, some popular beer tents fill up very quickly. Just how popular are they? Statistics show that each year, 5 million liters of beer and 500,000 chickens are consumed in the traditional beer tents alone!

German beer is famous, but many may not know that brewing techniques in Germany were not always refined. It wasn’t until the introduction of the German Beer Purity Law in 1516—regulating brewing ingredients—that the craft became more stable. In Munich, the beer capital, there are several major breweries, including the long-established Augustiner, Paulaner, Spaten, Hacker-Pschorr, Löwenbräu, and Hofbräu.

Besides the massive beer tents, there are also dazzling amusement rides, traditional Bavarian food, and live music performances. Everyone enjoys hearty meals, drinks beer with gusto, and the lively atmosphere fills the entire venue. This year’s Oktoberfest will even feature seven spooky rooms for adventurous visitors, such as a haunted bathroom. In the past, broken glass bottles caused many injuries, so this year, the sale of glass-bottled beer will be prohibited.

It’s hard to imagine that such a huge venue—with all the food, fun, drinks, and shopping—is only temporary. Once the closing time arrives, everything must come down: lights out, tents dismantled, just like Cinderella’s carriage turning back into a pumpkin at midnight. But as long as people’s love for beer, excitement, and celebrations remains unchanged, the Munich Oktoberfest will return faithfully every autumn. For more details, please visit: www.oktoberfest.de.

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Drinking alcohol in excess is harmful to health.