Oktoberfest city of Munich lifts warning for overcrowded Theresienwiese
October 3, 2026, 8:32 p.m
On the final Oktoberfest weekend, the grounds were extremely full. Cell phone data shows a significant increase in visitor numbers.
All developments in the live blog
In addition to our own research, we use material from the dpa news agency for this live blog.
Important updates
City lifts warning, still busy
The SZ reports from Oktoberfest
City warns: There are a lot of people on the site right now
Significant increase in the number of visitors to the Oktoberfest
38-year-old is resuscitated at Oktoberfest camp and dies in hospital
City lifts warning, still busy
The city has now lifted the warning not to come to the festival grounds, but the Oktoberfest is still full. And many people are still waiting in vain to be allowed into the tents and beer gardens. Last Saturday, it seems, many people want to experience the Oktoberfest madness again.
Jacqueline Long
The SZ reports from Oktoberfest
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SZ photographer Johannes Simon has been on the Theresienwiese for two weeks. Of course, you come across all sorts of strange and irritating things. The highlights.
The sun can be seen again at the Oktoberfest finale
After the day started with clouds, the sun can now be seen, just in time for the last reservation change this Saturday. The lucky ones are those who are already in the tent and can watch the hustle and bustle on the festival grounds from one of the balconies.
The crowd spotter is now asking everyone who does not have a reservation not to wait in front of the tent entrances, as entry is currently not possible. However, many continue to skillfully ignore this appeal, with their fingers held up they try to show the securities how many they want to be admitted to.
Jacqueline Long
All entrances open again
The festival management announces that all entrances to the site are now open again. Because the next reservation change is imminent in the first tents and it is still quite full, she still advises you to come to the Oktoberfest later if possible if you don't have a reservation. The tents are still closed and announcements can still be heard.
City warns: There are a lot of people on the site right now
The city is now warning via its channels earlier than last Saturday. There are a lot of visitors at the Oktoberfest right now and we therefore advise: “Please come at a later date.” The first announcements can be heard on the festival grounds: Access to the tents without a reservation is currently not possible.
The crowd spotter also asks people over the loudspeakers not to stop in front of the tents. If you want to stroll, you should go to Schaustellerstrasse. The announcements can first be heard in German and English, and then, with a little delay, in Italian. However, in view of the people who continue to wait in front of the entrances, they only seem to have a limited effect so far.
Meanwhile, the festival management announces that the main entrances are currently closed. "Please use the side entrances."
Anyone who makes it from Wirtsbudenstrasse to Schaustellerstrasse, as recommended, will notice that in fact the crowd is once again only big in front of the tents; in front of the bumper cars, for example, there is still legroom.
Jacqueline Long
Jacqueline Long
Influencer makes racist insult public
A reel has been circulating on social networks for two days in which an influencer films himself being racially insulted by a man at Oktoberfest. As several media outlets are now unanimously reporting, the man is said to be a Tyrolean vegetable farmer who is also said to be active in local politics for the conservative Austrian People's Party (ÖVP).
In the video, the man tells the influencer, who is active on Instagram under the name “c.adaamm,” that he is not “at home” in Germany because of his skin color. According to the Tyrolean daily newspaper, the man is now said to have excused his behavior with too much alcohol: This is not compatible with his values, he works with many people from other countries. The Association of Tyrolean Vegetable Growers, to which the man apparently belongs, has published a statement in which it distances itself from the man's statements in the video, saying that they "contradict the values of our association."
The video now has almost 600,000 views on Instagram alone, and the “services against the right” have also drawn attention to the incident.
Visitors should use side entrances and not stroll along Wirtsbudenstrasse
The weekends are traditionally the busiest Oktoberfest days, and the last Saturday is no exception. The city therefore once again advises via its official social media channels not to necessarily use Wirtsbudenstrasse when strolling today, but rather Schaustellerstrasse, Matthias-Pschorr-Strasse or one of the other side streets. She also appeals to visitors not to use the main entrance, but rather one of the many side entrances to the site.
And one more thing is important to those responsible: During the time when reservations are changed - between 4 p.m. and 6 p.m. - the main entrances to the large tents are usually closed, so without a reservation you hardly have a chance of getting in. “It’s not worth hiring.” On Instagram, among others, the post can be found in three languages: German, English and Italian.
Peaceful Friday
The afternoon and evening on a Friday are usually times when things are particularly busy at the Oktoberfest and around it. And of course, a lot of people had a lot of fun yesterday - and apparently it was largely peaceful. "I don't have any events worth reporting," said a spokeswoman for the Munich police on Saturday morning. The federal police, who are monitoring the situation at the train stations, also have no incidents to report that go beyond trivialities. And there is also little information from the fire department.
Cloudy but dry: That's the weather forecast for the last weekend of the festival
So far, visitors to the Oktoberfest have been spoiled by the weather - with sun and mild temperatures. The last Oktoberfest weekend, on the other hand, got off to a cloudy start. From the foothills of the Alps to northern Swabia, the sky could be overcast for a long time on the holiday, reports the German Weather Service (DWD). The maximum temperature will be around 20 degrees, rain is unlikely.
On Sunday, at the end of the Oktoberfest, after another cloudy start there will be calm autumn weather, with a change of sun and clouds and temperatures again up to 23 degrees. According to the DWD, it is still very mild for the time of year.
Clouds over Oktoberfest (archive image). Felix Hörhager/dpa
Significant increase in the number of visitors to the Oktoberfest
Oktoberfest has been extremely well attended so far this year. Up to and including Wednesday, 5.2 million visitors came, according to anonymized mobile phone data that the companies Telefónica and Invenium Data Insights evaluated for the German Press Agency (dpa). That is around 700,000 more people than in the same period last year. A major reason was probably the good weather throughout the entire Oktoberfest period. In the past two years, visitor numbers have remained largely constant.
If you extrapolate the numbers, the festival could reach the seven million mark this year. The previous record is 7.2 million visitors in 2023 - but back then the Oktoberfest was two days longer than this year. In order to achieve such values this year, exceptionally high visitor numbers would be needed in the last days of the festival. And the weather forecast still promises little or no rain, but it won't be as sunny at the weekend as it has been most of the time.
According to Telefónica, the proportion of international guests is now around 31 percent - six percentage points more than two years ago. The largest group of foreign visitors are Americans - even if they come somewhat less often. They are followed by Italians - on the middle weekend alone, which is also known as the "Italian weekend" in Munich, the analysis counted around 58,000 Oktoberfest visitors from this country.
Overall, the audience is a little older this year. The average is 46 years. The 50 to 59 year olds made up the largest group of visitors with around 23 percent. 18 to 29 year olds came to 21.5 percent - that was 5.1 percentage points less than two years ago. According to the analysis, on average people stayed at the Oktoberfest for a good five and a half hours.
"A solid volume of operations" - daily balance of the medical service
On Friday evening, the medical service at the Oktoberfest published its balance sheet for Thursday. Accordingly, 466 patients were cared for, 405 were being treated, 212 of whom had minor problems. The stretchers were used 107 times and the CT device twelve times. A total of six people had to go to hospital for further treatment. “A solid volume of operations,” is how the Aicher Ambulanz Union sums up this Oktoberfest day.
Many tents closed for reservation changes
Unsurprisingly, at least the main entrances to most tents are closed now that the reservation change is in full swing. However, there isn't too much of a crowd for a Friday evening at the moment.
Jacqueline Long
How male fish are prepared
Male fish, they are simply part of the Oktoberfest. If you've always wanted to know how they are prepared, it's best to stop by Fischer-Vroni: mackerel, salmon trout and char are skewered on wooden sticks and cooked diagonally over open charcoal embers. There are dozens of fish stuck next to each other. If you don't just want to look but also try it, you'll pay between 4.90 and 6.50 euros per 100 grams.
Jacqueline Long
Gray skies on the last Friday of Oktoberfest
This Friday shows how spoiled Munich has been with the weather over the past twelve days: Instead of bright blue, the sky is gray and cloudy - and even if it's not cold, it's still a little cooler than the other days.
This creates a different atmosphere on the festival grounds, albeit perhaps subjectively - and there also seems to be less going on: you can easily get a seat in the beer gardens even in the late afternoon, and waitresses have time to stroll around because they obviously lack customers. But Friday is still young.
Jacqueline Long
51-year-old is said to have hit woman in the head with a jug
A 51-year-old is said to have hit a 38-year-old German woman in the head with a beer mug in the Käfer beer garden on Thursday evening. The woman was slightly injured by the blow, suffering a cut to her head and pain. She received medical attention on site.
According to police findings, the two had previously come into physical contact with each other several times due to the limited space. This is said to have initially developed into a verbal argument before the man became violent.
Since the American does not have a permanent residence in Germany, he was only released after paying a security deposit amounting to a low five-figure amount. The 51-year-old was charged with grievous bodily harm.
