What I noticed when I plunged into a beer festival of 60,000 people—The reality of the world's largest event [Oktoberfest Visit Report ①]
I went to Munich.
It was about 20 times more amazing than I imagined. That's my honest impression.
I knew the statistic that "6.5 million people gather in 16 days" beforehand. But numbers are strange; even if you understand them intellectually, they don't quite sink in. I don't think I truly grasped it until I actually set foot on Theresienwiese.
Over the next few installments, I will share exactly what we, the Schmatz staff, saw and felt on site.
The moment I got off the subway, it was already another world.
Three stops from Munich Central Station (Hauptbahnhof) on the subway. When you get off at Theresienwiese station, the atmosphere changes the moment you pass through the ticket gate.
More accurately, it had already changed the moment I boarded the train. At each station, more and more people dressed in traditional costumes got on. Dirndls in blue dresses, Lederhosen in leather pants. Everyone looked happy, and my mood gradually lifted inside the train.
By the way, it's about a 15-minute walk from Munich Central Station. There are signs, so you don't have to worry about getting lost. However, you'll be walking while being swallowed by a sea of people (laughs).
"So this is what 'spacious' means," I thought.
The total area of the venue is 42 hectares, roughly equivalent to 9 Tokyo Domes.
You might just brush it off as "hmm, okay." We did at first too. But when you actually stand there, it's about 1.2 km from one end to the other. You keep walking and walking, and the feeling that "there's still more" persists.
14 tents, over 110,000 seats in total
Within that vast expanse, 14 large beer tents are lined up. One large tent alone has 6,000 to 10,000 seats. The largest, the Hofbräu-Festzelt, has about 10,000 seats.
In Japan, a venue with 10,000 seats means something like a dome. But here, they're "tents," and there are 14 of them. Including the smaller tents, the total number of seats across the entire venue exceeds 110,000. This scale operates daily for 16 days.
A staggering 6.7 million people visit in 16 days.
The number of visitors in 2024 was 6.7 million (Source: City of Munich official muenchen.de). This averages over 400,000 people per day.
Being there on a weekend afternoon, it's "people, people, people everywhere you look," with your entire field of vision filled with crowds. This breadth and density of crowds are hard to experience at Japanese events.
Into the tent—6,000 people raising their steins at the same time.
As the doors open, a surge of heat, music, and laughter washes over you. Wooden pillars reach to the ceiling, lights sway. Almost everyone is drinking from large, 1-liter steins, called "Maß," held in both hands.
"Ein Prosit!" - Everyone moves at the same time.
After a while, the band stops playing, and someone shouts, "Ein Prosit!" — which means "Cheers!"
Then, 6,000 people simultaneously raise their steins high. Even if you don't understand German, your body naturally moves by watching those around you. We also found ourselves raising our steins, laughing. That sense of unity is simply indescribable.
Securing a seat is the first mission.
One surprisingly challenging aspect inside the tents is securing a seat. Admission is free, but seats are divided into free seating and reserved seating, with free seats being first-come, first-served. By weekend afternoons, they are almost all taken.
If you go with the mindset of "I'm sure it'll be fine," you might end up getting in but having nowhere to sit. Securing a seat is truly the start of Oktoberfest.
I thought Oktoberfest was all about "traditional folk costumes."
Walking through the venue, many people are enjoying themselves in traditional costumes, either Dirndl or Lederhosen.
I thought, "The traditional German costumes that have lasted for centuries have survived as costumes for Oktoberfest," but when I looked into the history, it seems it's actually a bit different.
Wearing traditional costumes is a custom that originated in the 2000s.
Oktoberfest began in 1810, but attendees at the time wore tailcoats and top hats. Dirndls and Lederhosen were "rural work clothes" and not something urban people would wear.
In fact, Lederhosen were even banned by a local church in 1883 as "immoral clothing" (Source: oktoberfest.de). That ban apparently lasted until the 1930s. The custom of coming to Oktoberfest in traditional costumes only became widespread after the 2000s; before that, there was even a perception that they were "uncool."
The current image of a "picturesque traditional festival" has actually developed only in the last 20 to 30 years.
Is it okay for foreigners to wear them?
"It's more fun to wear them" was the answer I got locally. The majority of Germans reacted with "We're happy you're enjoying our culture with us." However, cheap, costume-like outfits are a no-go. Authentic dirndls start around 200 euros, and high-quality deerskin lederhosen can exceed 1,000 euros. Many people even buy them as "lifetime items."
On the way back, I stopped at a gas station and found another surprise.
On the way back from the venue, I made a small detour to a gas station.
"Why?" you might wonder. In fact, this is a very important place for understanding German daily culture.
There are no convenience stores in Germany—Where do you buy beer on Sundays?
In Japan, 24-hour convenience stores are commonplace, but in Germany, there are hardly any. Furthermore, under the "Ladenschlussgesetz" (Shop Closing Law), almost all supermarkets are closed on Sundays and public holidays.
"So what do you do if you run out of beer on Sunday?"—The answer is, a gas station.
As an exception to the law, they are allowed to operate 24 hours a day, making them the only place to get beer on Sundays or late at night. It's perfectly normal behavior to "buy beer at a Tankstelle (gas station)" as a souvenir for a friend's party. In Japan, the only reason you stop at a gas station is usually for fuel, right? Isn't this difference in sensibility interesting?
"Always cold" is a sign of freshness.
Another thing that caught my attention was the quality of the beer at the gas station.
In German supermarkets, bottled beer is often displayed on room-temperature shelves. The style is to take it home and put it in the refrigerator. On the other hand, the refrigerated cases at gas stations are always thoroughly chilled, and the turnover is fast. The German perception that "gas station beer is fresh and delicious" comes from this.
In fact, Schmatz staff sometimes stop at gas stations when buying souvenirs on business trips to Germany. This is to bring back beer in the freshest possible condition.
Next time: The tent I was told to "definitely not miss."
This time, I shared the reality of the entire venue.
Before my visit to Munich, a local told me, "You can try all six tents if you want, but there's one tent you absolutely cannot miss." Why is that tent so special? I'll tell you in the next visit report, part 2.
Why not try authentic Munich beer at home first? Schmatz's online shop offers a selection of German beers. Please take a look!
At our restaurants, you can enjoy authentic German beer and cuisine. Our staff can also guide you in choosing beers, so please feel free to ask.
☑︎ Overview of Oktoberfest here
👉 What is Oktoberfest? A Complete Guide to Its History, Beer, Food, and How to Enjoy the Real Thing
☑︎ For those who want to know more about German beer
