It is a fact that the first and true Oktoberfest is celebrated annually in Munich and as the time draws near many cities, clubs and other organizations try to cash in on it’s popularity.

The day is October 17. 1810, a banker sponsored a major horse race on a meadow (Wiese) outside the walls of Munich to honor the October 12th wedding of Crown Prince Ludwig to Princess Theresa. The Bavarian Royal Court, to the joy of all the inhabitants of Munich, liked this occasion so much, that it was decided to re-stage the race again the following year. This is the short version of how it all started.

Crown Prince Ludwig of Bavaria	Princess Theresa

The Oktoberfest in Munich grew to be the most known festival and is now also the largest beer bash in the world.

More on the history at Wikipedia

As the October weather is usually kind of chilly already, the festival was shifted to the end of September with the last hurray on the first weekend in October.

What is amazing that in the 14 official big “Tents” there is a seating capacity of 77,763 inside and 26,572 outside, which brings the total up to over 104 thousand seats for thirsty souls at any time. This does not include the seats in the 21 small “Tents”.

Also notable is that you should/must get reservations to visit the tents. More information can be found at the official Oktoberfest website or for reservation information click here.