OktoberfestWiesn tents open: visitors storm onto the festival grounds
September 19, 2026, 9:17 am
The first Oktoberfest fans are already lining up hours before entry. For the first time, a green mayor will be tapping at midday - not the only premiere that day.
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
Paramedics report their first operations before the Oktoberfest starts
The barrel is rolling for Dominik Krause
That's how high the bar is when it comes to tapping
The “Wiesn-Run” starts with a delay in some places
The main entrance opens ten minutes late and the Oktoberfest ultras, some of whom have been queuing there since yesterday afternoon, are racing to get a good table. The Bavaria opened a few minutes earlier, so hurry up now. The most popular thing today is a table in the Schottenhamel festival tent. It will be tapped there in three hours. The first Oktoberfest guests in 2026 will have to wait for their first mass.
Welcome to the Oktoberfest live blog
Good morning on this tapping Saturday,
The 191st Oktoberfest begins today in Munich and we will accompany you throughout the day in this live blog. Our reporters ride on the Oktoberfest carriage as the innkeepers move in, stand in front of the tap, which is being tapped for the first time this year by a Green mayor, and report on the meeting between CSU Prime Minister Markus Söder and Dominik Krause and the political reactions to it. And of course from the surroundings on the festival grounds and from numerous celebrities who are celebrating at the Oktoberfest that day.
The view goes to the Munich sky before the festival grounds open. There are currently no rain clouds in sight. The weather forecast for this first Oktoberfest weekend is: lots of sunshine and mild temperatures. Today the meteorologists expect temperatures beyond 20 degrees.
The most important events this Saturday:
The festival area opens at 9 a.m. and the masses run to the festival tents to get a free table.
The Oktoberfest hosts move in at around 10:35 a.m. Dominik Krause then drives in a carriage towards Theresienwiese.
At 12 o'clock sharp, the traditional tapping follows in the Schottenhamel festival tent, for the first time by a green mayor.
And if you are new to Oktoberfest and planning a visit, here are the most important tips for a visit.
The pictures from the “Wiesn Run”
Impressive every year: the rush to open the festival grounds. This year, the crowd was repeatedly held back briefly at the entrance, reports the dpa news agency. The rush was much more relaxed because not all Oktoberfest fans flocked to the grounds at once.
Waited at the entrance since Friday, 4 p.m. – now rewarded
Tom Friemer, 18, lined up at the Bavaria entrance yesterday at 4 p.m. He was replaced in between, slept for a few hours, then was back at his place at midnight. How did they pass the time? With playing cards, giving interviews and of course, a drink or two. And the effort was worth it: With 17 people, they now have two tables behind the stage in the Schottenhamel festival tent. Will they last the whole day? “It will be difficult, but you try everything you can,” says Friemer.
Tom Friemer (second from left) and his friends in the Schottenhamel festival tent. . Jacqueline Long
Krause wants to ride a roller coaster with Söder
Krause and Söder are meeting each other today while tapping, and the mayor of Munich has his way. It shouldn't stay that way. Because next weekend the decision will be made about the German candidate for an Olympic bid for the years 2036, 2040 and 2044. Of course, Krause is hoping for a contract for Munich - and in this case wants to ride the “Olympia Looping” roller coaster at the Oktoberfest together with Prime Minister Markus Söder (CSU).
"My favorite ride is the Ferris wheel, but I also like to ride the 'Olympia Looping'. And I would ideally like to ride it next Sunday after the decision on the Olympics has been made, in the best case positive, and then together with the Prime Minister," Krause told the dpa during the traditional tour at the Oktoberfest.
Oktoberfest boss Christian Scharpf and Dominik Krause during the press tour of the Oktoberfest. Stefan M Prager/Imago
The first visitors arrive in the Schottenhamel tent
A few minutes late, the area opens and the big race begins. In the Schottenhamel festival tent, a few people had already made it into the tent via side entrances and secured the best seats. The joy of those who got a place is audibly great.
Jacqueline Long
Paramedics report their first operations before the Oktoberfest starts
When the festival grounds are opened to visitors at 9 a.m., the Oktoberfest medical station at the Aicher Ambulance will also open. But even before the actual start, a spokesman for Aicher reported the first operations. 27 treatments have already been carried out - mainly on slightly injured Oktoberfest staff and in the course of the Oktoberfest construction work.
The barrel is rolling for Dominik Krause
It's not in its place yet, but there it is, the beer barrel, which a green mayor, Dominik Krause, will tap for the first time this year at 12 o'clock sharp. It can't be seen yet, but the press is already in their seats. As always, Spaten is served in the Schottenhamel festival tent; the measure here costs 15.80 euros this year.
Jacqueline Long
That's how high the bar is when it comes to tapping
The question of all questions this Saturday is: How many strokes does Munich's new mayor Dominik Krause (Greens) need when tapping the first keg at the Oktoberfest? After all, an audience of millions will be watching today when he swings the mallet for the first time at 12 p.m. in the Schottenhamel tent. For his predecessor Dieter Reiter (SPD) this was the “most important official act”.
How Krause prepared for the tapping, how his predecessors fared - and what myths and curiosities surround the ritual. A chronology.
U3 and U6 will run again during the Oktoberfest
A nice good morning from Munich-Sendling! Anyone making their way to Theresienwiese from here can use the U3 and U6 again during Oktoberfest. Both lines between Implerstraße and Sendlinger Tor have been interrupted since mid-May. Even after the Oktoberfest, passengers must expect further restrictions. However, trains will run regularly for the next two weeks.
However, not too many passengers seem to have noticed this. Maybe after the past few months they have also considered alternatives. Or they are all already standing in front of the entrances to the festival grounds. In any case, there is hardly anything going on at Harras.
Final touches on the festival grounds
When you arrive at the site you can see waitresses rushing to their tents, but also a sniffer dog that sniffs everything again and even the freefall tower that goes up and down empty. The very last preparations are underway in the last few minutes before the site opens. The mood here is peaceful but busy when the sun is shining. At least the peace and quiet will probably be over in a good three quarters of an hour.
The first ones have been waiting for hours
Looking at the queue that has formed in front of the entrance to Oktoberfest - some have been waiting since the early hours of the morning to secure a place in the tent at 9 a.m. There is no doubt: Munich is keen on the Oktoberfest. However, they still have to be patient a little, first all the waitresses have to go onto the premises and the last cars have to go down.
Jacqueline Long
Three new rides and new Oktoberfest tents
The allocation of tents was a particularly controversial topic this year. You can read the exact details here. The end of the song so far: Alexander Egger, the landlord of the “Münchner Stubn”, gave up at short notice. Now someone else has a short-term chance: Klaus Bartl, who actually runs a campsite in Thalkirchen. He and his business partners created “Bartl's Flößerstadl” in a record time of just over ten weeks. One of the 21 smaller Oktoberfest tents. A completely new wooden tent was also created for “Bodo's Cafézelt”, new innkeepers have taken over in the “Schützenlisl” at the Oidn Wiesn and a new but well-known innkeeper has also started in the Paulaner festival tent, one of the 14 large Wiesn tents: Lorenz Stiftl. In case you've lost track of all the small, large and unbuilt tents, here's a map showing what festival halls there are at the Oktoberfest.
There are three new rides this year. The “Shake & Roll”, a further development of the classic “Break Dance”. In “The Fischerman's Place” obstacles such as wobbly floors, rolling barrels and a water course await you on three floors. And in the “Chaos Pendulum” you are whirled through the air at a height of up to 47 meters and at 90 kilometers per hour. Maybe at least the latter is better before visiting the festival tent.
