Custom: Oktoberfest in Munich takes place

regional customs
Oktoberfest in Munich takes place

After a two-year Corona break, the Oktoberfest will take place again this year in Munich. This was announced by Munich’s Mayor Dieter Reiter (SPD) on Friday. There should therefore be no access restrictions.

On September 17th, the motto on the Theresienwiese will be: “Ozapft is”. The festival lasts until October 3rd.

The largest folk festival in the world before the pandemic attracted around six million visitors. It was canceled in 2020 and 2021 due to Covid-19. In the more than 200-year history of the folk festival, there were longer breaks only in times of war.

In the meantime, the Corona requirements for folk festivals have been dropped in the Free State. Bavaria’s Prime Minister Markus Söder (CSU) had made it clear that he was convinced that the Oktoberfest had to take place “at least from a legal point of view”. “I think we should do that,” he said. However, the decision as to whether and how folk festivals take place is made by the respective municipalities. So the ball was in the hands of the state capital.

Hosts want to celebrate peacefully

Last year, those responsible in the city expressed their confidence that beer could flow freely on the Theresienwiese again this year. Concepts are being developed as to how the Oktoberfest 2022 can take place and how guests can have fun as safely as possible, said Reiter last September. Wiesn boss Clemens Baumgärtner (CSU) made a similar statement.

For a short time it was considered whether the festival could be brought forward due to the increasing number of infections in autumn. But that was quickly dismissed.

Most recently, after a performance by Kiev Mayor Vitali Klitschko, the Munich City Council debated live on whether it was possible to celebrate happily in view of the war and the suffering of the people. The Wiesn landlords replied that it would help promote international understanding when people from all over the world celebrated peacefully together. It was also argued that a refusal would play into the hands of Kremlin chief Vladimir Putin because it would show his power.

The joy of the Wiesn landlords and showmen is great. “It’s almost impossible to put into words. It’s nice, really,” said Peter Inselkammer, host spokesman and host of the Armbrustschützenzelt, on Bavarian radio. Showman spokeswoman Yvonne Heckl said: “I’m speechless. I still can’t believe it. I could actually cry for joy.”

Bavaria’s Prime Minister Markus Söder also welcomed the decision to hold the Oktoberfest in Munich again after a two-year Corona break. “A good signal, especially in difficult times,” wrote the CSU politician on Twitter on Friday. “I’ll be happy to go and I’m looking forward to the first mass.”

The Cannstatter Volksfest should also take place

The Cannstatter Volksfest in Stuttgart is also to take place this year without access restrictions. “There are currently no requirements and we plan quite normally,” said Jörg Klopfer from the event company in.Stuttgart on request.

The folk festival on the Cannstatter Wasen is the second largest festival of its kind in the world after the Oktoberfest in Munich. Before Corona, the organizers counted around 3.5 to 4 million visitors every year. It had been canceled in the past two years because of the pandemic. From September 23 of this year until October 9, it will be celebrated for the 175th time in its history, provided that there are still no conditions, as Klopfer said.

The traditional Stuttgart spring festival is currently open on the Wasen on the banks of the Neckar, the first in two years. It is celebrated in a slimmed down version. From April 16th to May 8th, more than 230 showmen and market traders will ensure the atmosphere with rollercoasters, a free fall tower and bumper cars. With regard to the pandemic and war, there will be no marquees with party music and no musical fireworks this year.

dpa