The largest beer festival in the world, Oktoberfest is a must for your fall semester in Florence. Visit Oktoberfest 2023 with Bus2alps to make sure you have the best festival experience possible. We will help you find the perfect Dindl or Lederhosen before heading to the festival in search of liter steins of beer, tables to sing and dance on, mouthwatering traditional Bavarian food and carnival rides spinning into the night! Staying in a city center hostel close to the Oktoberfest beer tents makes it easy to get to and from the festival.
If it’s more convenient for you, we also offer a trip from Rome 2 Oktoberfest with a Hostel. Or you can choose to Meet Us at Oktoberfest instead!
Travel from Florence to our Oktoberfest accommodation in Munich overnight by private coach
Friday morning we arrive at our accommodations in Munich where you can store your luggage until you check in later in the afternoon. Trip leaders will then be taking groups to the festival* or into the city center to explore Munich. If you are interested in purchasing the traditional dirndl or lederhosen, your trip leaders will let you know where to buy them in town. You also have an option to book the famous Munich Bike Tour that will bring you past the main sights in downtown Munich, through the expansive English Gardens, and make a pit stop for wurst, pretzels, and steins!
The night is yours to explore! Most of the festival beer halls shut down around 22:00. Munich has a diverse nightlife, so if you have the energy, it is worth checking out Munich’s bars and night clubs. If you find yourself in need of a quiet night in, most of the accommodations in Munich have great in-house bars.
*For the September 15th weekend, the festival begins on Saturday, September 17th at noon when the kegs are tapped.
Saturday is the busiest day of Oktoberfest. Bus2alps will organize a departure time for you to accompany your guide to the festival as early as 7:30am. Entry to the tents are first come, first serve so we recommend arriving at the festival grounds early in the morning.
At 9:00am, the doors open and the first beers of the day are served!* You will then be taking part in the largest beer festival in the world, surrounded by people from all over the world and singing the traditional songs of Bavaria. Consult your Bus2alps Trip Leader for which tents are the most popular. If you arrive late and are not able to enter the tents, it is recommended to grab a spot in the outside beer garden until they start allowing more people to enter the tent.
Bus2alps also suggests exploring Munich and going to the Dachau Concentration Camp, Deutsches Museum, BMW Museum, Olympic Park, and Munich Zoo.
*For the September 15th weekend, the festival begins on Saturday, September 17th at noon when the kegs are tapped.
Check out is at 10:00am. You can store your luggage in the hostel’s luggage room, or lock them up in private lockers. Sunday morning is yours to explore Munich, or to head back for one more day of partying at the Theresienwiese. Sunday at the festival is more subdued and obtaining entrance into the beer tents at the Oktoberfest is easier. There is enough time if you wake up early to check out any of Munich’s great museums.
Sunday morning your Bus2alps Trip Leaders will be available to assist people interested in going to to Dachau Concentration Camp. Entrance to Dachau is free as it is now a memorial site for those who lost their lives at the camp, which was the first concentration camp in Germany. Please meet in the hostel lobby at the designated departure time back to Florence as detailed by your Trip Leader. We make one 45 minute stop for dinner.
Munich Bike Tour: Hailed by travelers as the best bike tour in Europe, Mike’s Bike Tour is the ideal way to cover all of the major city sights, be entertained and learn about the city. Stops on the bike tour include Marienplatz, Hofbrauhaus, English Gardens, Chinese Tower, Surfer’s Bridge, and Bavarian Parliament.
Dachau Concentration Camp: Located a 40 minute ride on the train from downtown Munich, this humbling experience brings into perspective the atrocities that occurred during Nazi rule in World War II. Entrance is free to all visitors.
Deutsches Museum: This interactive museum is the largest technological museum of its kind and is known for its historic artifacts that mark important steps in the field of science and technology.
BMW Museum: The museum’s exhibitions, remodeled every few years, takes visitors into the motoring world of yesterday. Almost every vehicle produced by BMW is represented. The section devoted to the present day includes both BMW’s current models as well as demonstrations of modern production methods.
Neuschwanstein Castle Day Trip: Located in the heart of the Bavarian Alps, this beautiful castle became Walt Disney’s inspiration for Sleeping Beauty’s Castle. It is only possible to enter the castle on a guided tour.
