Oktoberfest Opens in Munich With a New Mayor, Six Million Visitors and Tight Security
MUNICH — Oktoberfest opens in Munich on Saturday, with organizers expecting about 6 million visitors from around the world at the 191st edition of the festival widely regarded as the largest beer celebration on earth.
Munich’s new mayor, Dominik Krause of the Greens, is set to open the event at midday local time (1000 GMT) on the Theresienwiese festival grounds, tapping the first keg with the traditional Bavarian cry “O’zapft is,” which means “It is tapped.”
One small but closely watched ritual will be how many hammer blows Krause, 36, needs to tap the keg in his first Oktoberfest as mayor. Following custom, he will hand the first liter of beer to Bavarian Premier Markus Söder of the conservative Christian Social Union, despite the frequent political clashes between Söder and the Greens. Only then can beer be served in the festival tents.
For 16 days, through Oct. 4, visitors can enjoy the festival’s beer tents, fairground rides, traditional Bavarian food and live music, with many dressing in dirndls and lederhosen. Opening day is expected to bring ideal weather, with blue skies and temperatures reaching 24 degrees Celsius (75 Fahrenheit).
Known locally as the Wiesn, Oktoberfest has grown into a global symbol of Bavarian culture and a major economic engine for Munich. Its roots date to 1810, when the wedding of Crown Prince Ludwig and Princess Therese sparked celebrations on the field that still carries her name. Today the event draws tourists from dozens of countries and helps fill hotels, restaurants and beer halls across the city.
Its sheer scale also brings security challenges. Authorities have again tightened measures after last year’s second Saturday, when a surge of visitors trying to enter and leave the grounds at the same time forced organizers to briefly close the site because of dangerous overcrowding. Witnesses described scenes of “mass panic,” and officials say the situation could have ended in disaster.
New measures this year include a coordination and monitoring center, while AI-assisted cameras are intended to detect large crowds at an early stage. A knife ban and a no-fly zone, particularly for drones, are in place around the festival grounds. Visitors must pass through entry checks, large bags are banned and cannabis use is prohibited.
Around 600 police officers will be on duty around the festival. The Wiesn police station will be supported by Bavarian riot police, specialist pickpocket investigators and officers from eight countries, reflecting the international scale of the event and the need for multilingual support.
FILE PHOTO - Munich Mayor Dominik Krause reacts during a visit to the editorial office of the German Press Agency (dpa) in the Bavarian capital. Peter Kneffel/dpa
FILE PHOTO: Bavarian Premier Markus Söder sits next to head of the Bavarian State Chancellery and Minister of State for Federal Affairs and Media Florian Herrmann in a beer tent at the traditional Berlin kickoff of the Munich Oktoberfest at the Tipi am Kanzleramt. Annette Riedl/dpa