Oktoberfest is the world's largest Volksfest, featuring a beer festival and a travelling carnival, and is held annually in Munich, Bavaria, from mid- or late-September to the first Sunday in October, with more than six million international and national visitors attending the event. Locally, it is called d'Wiesn, after the colloquial name for the fairgrounds, Theresienwiese. Oktoberfest is an important part of Bavarian culture, having been held since the year 1810. Other cities across the world also hold Oktoberfest celebrations that are modeled after the original Munich event.
Oktoberfest
Horse race at the Oktoberfest in Munich, 1823
Portrait of a girl wearing a Dirndl dress
Bavaria statue above the Theresienwiese
A beer festival is an event at which a variety of beers are available for purchase. There may be a theme, for instance beers from a particular area, or a particular brewing style such as winter ales.
Great British Beer Festival, London
Reading Beer Festival 2009
1975-CAMRA
Costumes at the Czech Beer Festival