:''This article is about Oktoberfest celebrations around the world. For the original festival in Munich, see
Oktoberfest.''
The
Oktoberfest is a two-week festival held each year in
Munich,
Germany during late September and early October. It is attended by six million people each year and has inspired numerous similar events using the name ''Oktoberfest'' in Germany and around the world, many of which were founded by German immigrants or their descendants.
Oktoberfest Hannover
An entrance arch to Oktoberfest Hannover in 2005
The Oktoberfest Hannover is a fair which takes place every year at he end of September/beginning of October in
Hanover,
Germany. It usually lasts 16 days and features 160 rides and inns, two large beer tents seating more than thousand people each, and numerous stands offering refreshments. With more than 1 Mio. visitors each year it is the second largest Oktoberfest in the world.
Oktoberfest around the world
The largest Oktoberfest outside of Germany is the
Kitchener-Waterloo Oktoberfest in the twin cities of
Kitchener and Waterloo,
Ontario,
Canada (700,000+ visitors
[1]). Other cities claiming to be the largest Oktoberfests outside of Germany include
Blumenau,
Brazil (600,000+ visitors
[2]) and
Cincinnati,
Ohio,
United States (500,000+ visitors,
[Cincinnati Oktoberfest]).
United States
In the United States, there are major celebrations at The Delaware Saengerbund in Newark, Delaware (www.delawaresaengerbund.org)
Big Bear City, California;
Campbell, California; Alpine Village in
Torrance, California;
Denver, Colorado;
Helen, Georgia;
Hermann, Missouri;
Irondequoit, New York;
Hickory, North Carolina;
Tulsa, Oklahoma;
Mt. Angel, Oregon;
Newport, Rhode Island;
Addison, Texas;
Boerne, Texas;
Fredericksburg, Texas;
Galveston, Texas;
Muenster, Texas (their version is called "Germanfest" and is held in April);
New Braunfels, Texas (called Wurstfest);
Shiner, Texas;
the Fremont neighborhood in Seattle, WA;
Appleton, Wisconsin;
La Crosse, Wisconsin; and
Milwaukee, Wisconsin, among many. Minster, Ohio, also has an Oktoberfest, as do at least 11 Texas towns beyond those mentioned
[3].
Brazil
In
Brazil, several southern cities, populated by
German people in the 19th and 20th centuries, have their own Oktoberfest, the largest being in the aforementioned
Blumenau,
Santa Catarina. While in
Argentina it is celebrated in
Villa General Belgrano in the
Province of Córdoba. In
Chile bierfests are celebrated both
in Valdivia and
Llanquihue.
Hong Kong
The
Oktoberfest was started in
Hong Kong in
1992. It is celebrated in late October and early November (dry season in Hong Kong) and is hosted by
Marco Polo Hong Kong Hotel in
Tsim Sha Tsui,
Hong Kong, just next to the
Star Ferry pier.
For the festival, the Marco Polo Hotel sets up a traditional tent with long wooden tables and benches with capacity for approximately 1,500 persons to create an Oktoberfest atmosphere. The German Band ''
Die Notenhobler'' from
Ulm,
Germany entertains the approximately 85% Chinese audience. Their program starts at 19:30 every night and comprise of three parts: traditional German music, games and competitions, party music.
The hotels caters traditional Southern German foods, such as pork knuckle, sausages with
sauerkraut and
apple strudel together with
beer (past beer sponsors were 1991-1999
Löwenbräu; 2000-2002
Veltins; 2003
Jever; 2004-2005
Löwenbräu).
In
2005 the festival was held from October 14 to November 3 with some additional dates for private functions, which is popular for staff parties of large corporations.
Australia
In
Australia, the
universities are notorious in their celebrations of Oktoberfest every year, and as students graduate and move on, this has rolled over into pubs and restaurants in the university areas.
See also
★
Beer festival
External links
North America
Canada
★
Kitchener - Waterloo, ON
United States
★
List of Oktoberfests in North America
★
Campbell, California
★
Denver, Colorado
★
Helen, Georgia
★
Seymour, Indiana
★
Amana, Iowa
★
Timonium, Maryland
★
Harvard Square, Cambridge, Massachusetts
★
Hickory, North Carolina
★
Irondequit, New York
★
Cincinnati, Ohio
★
Cleveland, Ohio
★
Tulsa, Oklahoma
★
Mt. Angel, Oregon
★
Newport, Rhode Island
★
Fredericksburg, Texas
★
Plantersville, Texas (first weekend of Texas Renaissance Festival)
★
San Antonio, Texas
★
Snowbird, Utah
★
Leavenworth, Washington
★
Fremont, Seattle, Washington
★
Appleton, Wisconsin
★
La Crosse, Wisconsin
★
Glendale, Wisconsin
Mexico
★
Mexico City, Mexico
Oceania
★
Brisbane, Australia
★
University of NSW, Sydney, Australia
★
Hay, NSW, Australia
★
University of WA, Australia
★
Fairfield, NSW, Australia
Asia
★
Singapore
South America
Argentina
★
Villa General Belgrano, Córdoba, Argentina
Brazil
★
Blumenau, Brazil
★
Santa Cruz do Sul, Brazil
★
Igrejinha, Brazil
Notes
1. Kitchener-Waterloo Oktoberfest
2. Blumenau Oktoberfest
3. "German-Texans," ''Texas Almanac 1996-1997''
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