Unfortunately, the Oktoberfest cannot take place in 2020 due to the spread of Covid-19.
A better question would be: Who isn’t there? Around 9,000 participants join the festive throng in Munich and parade festively through the city in 60 groups. Not only costume wearers take part in the traditional costume and hunters’ parade: costume clubs, hunters and mountain troops, marching bands and musicians from around the world can all sign up for the parade with Festring München e.V.
Every year at the Wiesn, the official Munich mascot, the “Münchner Kindl” comes to life and leads the colorful parade to the festival site on horseback. Originally a male monk, the mascot became increasingly childlike and feminine in many depictions over the years, and is now depicted as a girl. The “Münchner Kindl” has been selected annually by the Festring association since 1972, and must be born in Munich, with parents and grandparents who are also born in Munich. By the way, the first real live “Münchner Kindl” was Ellis Kaut in 1938, author of the German children’s series, Pumuckl — although she was born in Stuttgart!
The Max II monument on Maximilianstraße is the starting point of the festive costume and hunters’ parade at 10 am on the first Sunday of the Wiesn. From there, the parade ambles through Munich city center towards the Theresienwiese.
The exact route of the parade:
Maximilianstraße — Residenzstraße — Odeonsplatz/Feldherrnhalle — Ludwigstraße (as far as Galeriestraße) — Briennerstraße — across the Amiraplatz — Kardinal-Faulhaber-Straße — Promenadeplatz — Pacellistraße — Lenbachplatz — Karlsplatz/Stachus — Sonnenstraße — turn around at Josephspitalstraße — Sonnenstraße — Schwanthalerstraße — Paul-Heyse-Straße — Kaiser-Ludwig-Platz — Schubertstraße — Esperantoplatz
Festring München e.V. not only determines the route that the costume parade takes through the city to the festival site. For spectators who want to experience the action up close, there are stands erected along the route that offer the best view of the parade. Note: It is advisable to arrive early as the seats in the stands are not numbered.
Stand locations:
All the details about the route, stand locations, tickets and prices are available on the website https://www.festring.de/trachten-und-schuetzenzug/kartenvorverkauf/. Tickets are available from München Ticket GmbH as well as from all reputable booking offices.
