Oktoberfest has officially begun, and it’s going to be 3 weeks of beer based debauchery. And loads of belching too, be warned.

If a festival set up is your kind of thing, and if you have an insatiable thirst for some world class beers, pack your bags—Oktoberfest is where you need to head to. Not quite sure?! Well, let us present you with some irrefutable facts then.

1. It’s a freakin’ beer festival.

Be assured, there can be no greater vibe! That should be motivation in itself. Imagine the setting of an international festival with all the works, but the glorious bit being that this one’s planned around beer. Gallons and gallons and gazillion varieties of it—what’s not to love?!

2. It has huge-ass tents dedicated to music.

But keeping in theme with ‘festivals’, and also acknowledging the fact that most serious beer drinkers have seriously good taste in music (as they do in all things in life), Oktoberfest has gigantic tents dedicated to live music acts—so you’ll have bands playing their versions of anything from local German classics to the latest Billboard Top 40s.

3. Paris Hilton is banned from Oktoberfest.

It’s true. You know a festival is no-nonsense when it bans A-list socialites. Paris was apparently banned for showing up at one of the Oktoberfests a few years ago and marketing bottled wine and generally ruining everyone’s mood. Oh, the gal(l)! Anyway, the organisers wouldn’t have any of it, and effectively banned her (and her wine!) from ever showing up at an other Oktoberfest. Good riddance!

4. All. That. Beer.

Ah. Yes. The beautiful, beautiful brews. And it’s not just about the variety. According to tradition, the beers must be served only from one of Munich’s six breweries (local beer represent!) and usually have an upper limit of  6% ABV.
And the the best bit? They’re served in 1 litre mugs. Yes. 1 litre. In a single sitting. (Doing some arm workouts before heading there might be end up being useful.)

Yeah. That’s a freakin’ tent.  Image courtesy: http://travel.gunaxin.com

5. The ‘Beer’ Cosplay.

There are the glorious costumes too. Oktoberfest has its own version of cosplay, in the Lederhosens and Dirndls. (those are costumes for men and women respectively, but we’re not going to indulge in gender appropriation. You do you!)

These delightful looking costumes (which you can dress up in as well!) create a real throwback vibe and add a very special quaintness factor to the festival. (Plus you can take ridiculous photos of your friends and use it as leverage later.)

6. Oh, and the food.

And if we gave you the impression that the festival was only about beer, well, we’ll set that straight. The food at Oktoberfest is almost as eagerly anticipated as the beers themselves. It’s a sausage fest, but of the good kind. And also schnitzels and pretzels and everything typically German that you can imagine.
If you’re a vegetarian, well, we’re very sorry. But oh! You can have gingerbread cookies to your heart’s content.

7. Socialising, and stuff.

We all know how beer can turn us from docile dormice into sleek socialising serpents. (or the drunken equivalent of it, anyway.)
Oktoberfest is the best atmosphere to get out there and meet new people. It’s a festival setting, from all over the world, filled with beer lovers like yourself, with access to as much liquid courage as you’ll ever need—it might just be the ultimate setting for a lifelong friendship, a boozy romance, or a torrid affair. (Take that, Tinder!)

8. Location, location, location.

Finally, the setting. Oktoberfest takes place in Munich, which is a gorgeous city filled with history, and some of the best pubs and little food joints you’ll find too. So, under the unlikely circumstance that you’ve had too much of Oktoberfest, you can venture out and explore the city a little. You will not be disappointed.

We hope that by now your backpacks and suitcases are out, and ready to be loaded. Oh, and don’t forget— O’zapft is!
Which translates to “It is tapped”, which is the official Oktoberfest war cry. Did you actually think we were going to let you go without being fully prepped? Now go forth, and don’t forget to send us photos.