Oktoberfest 2019: when is it, why it's celebrated and the biggest events around Scotland

By Ross Mcindoe
Published 19th Sep 2019, 14:05 BST
Traditional German dress and beer by arm-load is in order at Oktoberfest. Picture: Edinburgh Oktoberfest.Traditional German dress and beer by arm-load is in order at Oktoberfest. Picture: Edinburgh Oktoberfest.
Traditional German dress and beer by arm-load is in order at Oktoberfest. Picture: Edinburgh Oktoberfest.
Barmaids with arms full of foam-topped steins. Men in lederhosen belting out songs. Brass bands playing in the background and bratwurst sizzling away on top of grill.

It can only be Oktoberfest.

The celebration of Bavarian culture has become a global phenomenon, with party-goers across the world flocking to their local beer tents to take in the sights, sounds and tastes of Germany.

Scotland is no exception, and the festival has become more popular across the nation year after year.

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Glasgow has already said its final "prost!" for 2019 but there's plenty of drinking left to do elsewhere. Picture: Glasgow Oktoberfest.Glasgow has already said its final "prost!" for 2019 but there's plenty of drinking left to do elsewhere. Picture: Glasgow Oktoberfest.
Glasgow has already said its final "prost!" for 2019 but there's plenty of drinking left to do elsewhere. Picture: Glasgow Oktoberfest.

Here's everything you need to know ahead of Oktoberfest 2019.

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What is Oktoberfest?

In the October of 1810, a huge festival was arranged in Munich to celebrate the marriage of Bavaria's King Ludwig I to Princess Therese of Saxe-Hildburghausen. There was horse-racing, music and all kinds of festivities, all in honour of the newlyweds.

Celebrated each year around the anniversary of the wedding, the modern Oktoberfest is one of the biggest events on the German cultural calendar, as well as being the most high-profile beer festival to be found anywhere in the world.

Where is it celebrated?

Beer, music and hearty home-cooking – Oktoberfest is a pitch you could sell just about anywhere in the world. Unsurprisingly then, the festival has now spread across the globe, with large-scale celebrations taking place all over the place each year.

Come October, people can be found raising steins and yelling "prost" everywhere from Moscow' Red Square to Hong Kong, Hanoi, Zambia and Chile. True to form, Australia's Oktoberfest celebrations have been known to get so wild that its universities banned them back in 2012.

The largest Oktoberfest celebration outside of Germany, taking place in Ontario, averages around 700,000 visitors each year, while Blumenau in Brazil isn't far behind.

When is this year's festival?

The festival lasts a little over two weeks between and usually takes place some time between the end of September and the start of October.

This year's official Oktoberf