Oktoberfest in Baltimore spreads out fast. Beer festivals and Bavarian nights arrive with live music and giant steins, and the dancing and the lederhosen are both entirely optional. Come with a group and the food decides for you, bratwurst and pretzels on nearly every menu and long tables near the harbor where you sit down and stay put. If a quiet beer with friends is the goal, that works. Take a look at Oktoberfest 2026 events and parties across Baltimore and book your tickets while there's still room.
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Best for a dateSat, Oct 17The Maryland Zoo in Baltimore
Fall-flavored beer sampling returns to the Zoo with two ways to celebrate! Join us Saturday for the beloved OktoBEARfest tradition, with unlimited sampling of 60+ seasonal brews, plus wine, seltzer, and cider. Enjoy live music, local vendors, and, of cour
Live music
Best with kidsSun, Oct 18Breath Of God Lutheran Church
We'll be honing in on the culinary side of our German heritage this year. We're digging nearly sixty years deep into the St. Paul's Lutheran Church cookbooks to bring out German favorites like sauerbraten, sausage, dumplings, red cabbage, green beans, sal
Family-friendly
Best for groupsSat, Oct 24Sopro
PROST! Soprotoberfest is BACK for the second year in a row! We had so much fun last year, we HAD to do it again. Grab your crew, throw on your lederhosen and get ready for a full day of beer, food, live mus
FreeLive music
Get the look
Outfits, steins and party kit for the season. Check delivery dates before you order.
Links go to Amazon. As an Amazon Associate, AllEvents earns from qualifying purchases.
Dirndl dressBodice, blouse, skirt and apronShop on Amazon 
Men's lederhosenLeather shorts, braces and allShop on Amazon 
Alpine hatGreen felt, with the featherShop on Amazon 
Trachten suspendersThe look for less, over any checked shirtShop on Amazon 
Lidded beer steinCeramic, with a pewter lidShop on Amazon 
Das Boot glassThe boot-shaped party glassShop on Amazon 
Hammerschlagen gameA stump, nails, a hammer: first nail flush winsShop on Amazon 
Bavarian flagBlue-and-white diamonds for the yardShop on Amazon 
Pretzel saltCoarse salt for homemade BreznShop on Amazon 
Baby lederhosenFor the smallest guestShop on Amazon 
Hot-dog dog costumeFor the dachshund racesShop on Amazon Nearby
Worth the trip from Baltimore, soonest first.
Worth the trip
Sat, Oct 3Mount Airy Historic District
Sat, Oct 3District Pier at The Wharf, Washington
$33.85 – $39.19
Sat, Oct 3The Wharf, Washington
Oct 3–4Sauf Haus Bier Hall & Garten, Washington2 days
Sat, Oct 3Frederick Fairgrounds - Home of The Great Frederick Fair, 797 E Patrick St, Frederick, MD 21701, USA
Sat, Oct 10Maryland State Fairgrounds, Lutherville-Timonium
$59.76 – $97.07Live music
Sun, Oct 11Kentlands Blvd, Gaithersburg, MD 20878, United States
Before you go
Tickets, timing, what to wear, and whether the kids can come.
Every organiser sets its own prices, and entry, food and drink are often sold separately. Check what a ticket covers before you buy.
In Baltimore: 1 of 3 free to get in.
Weekend afternoons fill up first. Go early if you want a table.
In Baltimore: Saturday is the big day, with 2 of 3 dates.
Dirndl or Lederhosen are welcome, never required. In Bavaria they are everyday clothes, not a costume.
Traditionally said, from the wearer's side. A custom, not a rule.
Festivals in parks and streets are usually all ages; events in bars are often 21+. The listing says which.
In Baltimore: 1 family-friendly event.
Eat and drink
Same word, two beers: Munich pours a pale lager, North America an amber one.
What Munich pours
What North America calls Oktoberfest
Only these six Munich breweries may pour at the Wiesn. Their festival beers are the real thing.
1 litre
A Maß is more than two US pints of 6% lager. Eat something with it. In Munich in 2026 one costs about €15.61.
Most eatenHendl
Spit-roasted half chicken
Schweinshaxe
Crackling roast pork knuckle
Brezn
The giant salted pretzel
Bratwurst
Grilled sausage in a roll
Weisswurst
Veal sausage, eaten before noon
Obatzda
Beer-garden cheese spread
Steckerlfisch
Whole fish grilled on a stick
VegetarianKäsespätzle
Cheesy egg noodles
Kartoffelpuffer
Crisp potato pancakes
Radi
Spiral-cut salted radish
Kaiserschmarrn
Torn pancake with plum compote
Gebrannte Mandeln
Warm candied almonds
Dampfnudel
Steamed dumpling in vanilla sauce
Apfelstrudel
Apple strudel
Lebkuchenherz
Gingerbread heart, worn not eaten
At the party
So you know what to do when the band stops playing and the whole room stands up.
Every 15 minutes or so
Ein Prosit der Gemütlichkeit
Ein Prosit, ein Prosit
der Gemütlichkeit.
Ein Prosit, ein Prosit
der Gemütlichkeit.
Oans, zwoa, drei — g'suffa!
“A toast to good company.” Stand up, raise your glass, sing it twice, count to three, clink and drink.
Most bands play these, loudly, more than once.
Masskrugstemmen
Hold a full litre at arm's length, elbow locked. Last arm up wins.
Kegs for balls, pins at the end of the lane, against the clock.
Carry full steins to the line. Fastest run with least beer spilled wins.
Ten brats, no buns, one clock.
America's own: sausage dogs sprinting for their owners.
Best dirndl, best lederhosen, judged by applause.
Since 1810
Every stein raised at Oktoberfest in 2026 is, in a roundabout way, a toast to a couple married in 1810. Crown Prince Ludwig and Princess Therese wed that October, and Munich celebrated with a horse race on a meadow outside town, the Theresienwiese. The festival that grew from it now starts in September, moved forward for the better weather.
Munich's 2026 Wiesn is on now: day 14 of 16, until October 4.
Asked and answered
Oktoberfest events in Baltimore run from Oct 17 to Oct 24, 2026: 3 events. The busiest weekend is Oct 16 – Oct 18, with 2 events.
Nothing is listed in Baltimore itself for Oct 2 – Oct 4, but 7 events are on nearby, in Washington, Mount Airy and Frederick.
Yes: 1 of the 3 listed is free to get into, including SOPROTOBERFEST.
Yes: 9 more events are listed within reach of Baltimore, in Washington, Mount Airy, Frederick and Lutherville-Timonium and more. The soonest is 11th Annual Oktoberfest in Washington, on Sat, Oct 3.
At 3 venues, including The Maryland Zoo in Baltimore, Breath Of God Lutheran Church and Sopro.
The most popular on AllEvents right now are OktoBEARfest at The Maryland Zoo in Baltimore (Sat, Oct 17), SOPROTOBERFEST (Sat, Oct 24) and Oktoberfest: Sour Beef & German Beer at Breath Of God Lutheran Church (Sun, Oct 18).
1 listing says it is family-friendly: Oktoberfest: Sour Beef & German Beer. For the rest, check the listing before you go: many events held in bars are 21+.
Munich's Oktoberfest runs from September 19 to October 4, 2026, 16 days on the Theresienwiese. It is on now: today is day 14.
A Bavarian folk festival that began in Munich as a royal wedding party: Crown Prince Ludwig married Princess Therese on 12 October 1810, and the celebrations ended with a horse race on 17 October. Munich later moved the start forward into September, when the weather is warmer, and the festival usually ends on the first Sunday in October.
Traditional dress, a Dirndl or Lederhosen, is welcome but never required, and ordinary clothes are completely normal. In Bavaria, Tracht is everyday clothing for family occasions rather than a costume.
Worth the trip
Where the season is the whole city's business, from Munich's meadow to a Bavarian village in the Cascades.
MunichThe original, since 1810
CincinnatiOktoberfest Zinzinnati
KitchenerCanada's biggest
La Crosse, WIOktoberfest USA
Frankenmuth, MIMichigan's Little Bavaria
Leavenworth, WAA Bavarian mountain village
Fredericksburg, TXHill Country's German town
New Ulm, MNSettled by Germans in 1854
DenverDenver Oktoberfest, since 1969
MilwaukeeBrew City's German roots
ChicagoStreet fests all season
New YorkStone Street and the beer hallsKeep exploring
