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Famous for Oktoberfest

Oktoberfest 2026 in Forest Park

Oktoberfest gives Forest Park a night out. Beer festivals and beer gardens bring live music, giant steins and dancing, and the polka has never been compulsory. Come with people and the eating starts on its own, bratwurst and pretzels going round the long tables all evening. If a good beer with friends is the whole idea, keep it. Browse Oktoberfest 2026 events and parties across Forest Park, find one that fits, and book your tickets before they're taken.

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Next up in Forest Park

NICAR | HRO | NSBAR Oktoberfest

Tue, Oct 27 · 4:30 PM · Station 34, Mount Prospect

$44.52 – $60.54

Starts in

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Every listing

Oktoberfest events in Forest Park

On now

Tue, Oct 27Station 34, Mount Prospect

NICAR | HRO | NSBAR Oktoberfest

Historic Site Tour and Networking Benefit Event 🎃 2nd Annual NICAR Oktoberfest FUNdraiser Join NICAR, HRO & NSBA

4:30 PM

$44.52 – $60.54

Thu, Oct 29Six Flags Great America, Gurnee

Retrospect @ Six Flags Great America Oktoberfest - Yukon Stage

Get ready to party! 🎃 Retrospect is thrilled to bring the ultimate Oktoberfest celebration back to Six Flags Great America in Gurnee! Catch us live on the Yukon Stage, dropping non-stop hits from classic Motown to today’s biggest chart-toppers—plus a few

6:30 PM

Fri, Oct 30325 Raymond St, Gilberts

Rutland Township GOP Oktoberfest

Please join the Rutland Township Republicans for our first fundraiser! Our Oktoberfest fundraiser will be different from your traditional fundraiser. Friday, October 30th 7:00 PM Fraternal Order of Eagles Club 325 Raymond Dr. Gilberts, IL 60136 Tickets

7:00 PM

Get the look

Dress up, raise a stein, throw your own

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.

Before you go

Know before you go in Forest Park

Tickets, timing, what to wear, and whether the kids can come.

Tickets and money

Every organiser sets its own prices, and entry, food and drink are often sold separately. Check what a ticket covers before you buy.

In Forest Park: Paid tickets from $44.52 to $60.54.

When to go

Forest Park starts between 4:30 PM and 7:00 PM.

Weekend afternoons fill up first. Go early if you want a table.

What to wear

Dirndl or Lederhosen are welcome, never required. In Bavaria they are everyday clothes, not a costume.

Bow tied leftsingle
Bow tied righttaken

Traditionally said, from the wearer's side. A custom, not a rule.

With kids

Festivals in parks and streets are usually all ages; events in bars are often 21+. The listing says which.

Eat and drink

What to order at Oktoberfest

Same word, two beers: Munich pours a pale lager, North America an amber one.

What Munich pours

Festbier

Colour
Pale gold
Malt
Lighter, bready
Finish
Smooth and easy-drinking
Strength
Around 6%

What North America calls Oktoberfest

Märzen

Colour
Amber
Malt
Rich, toasty, bready
Finish
Fuller, with a dry finish
Strength
Varies by brewer
A horse-drawn brewery wagon carrying six barrels

Ask for these on tap

Only these six Munich breweries may pour at the Wiesn. Their festival beers are the real thing.

  1. Augustiner
  2. Hacker-Pschorr
  3. Hofbräu
  4. Löwenbräu
  5. Paulaner
  6. Spaten
A one-litre Maß beside a US pint glass and a 330 ml bottle

Pace yourself

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.

Three glasses: lager with lemonade, wheat beer with lemonade, and cola with orange soda

Driving? Ask for these

  • Radler Beer and lemonade, about half the strength.
  • Russ Wheat beer and lemonade.
  • Spezi Cola and orange soda. No alcohol.

On the plate

  • Most eaten

    Hendl

    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

  • Vegetarian

    Käsespätzle

    Cheesy egg noodles

  • Kartoffelpuffer

    Crisp potato pancakes

  • Radi

    Spiral-cut salted radish

For afters

  • 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

What happens at an Oktoberfest

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.

The songs everyone sings

Most bands play these, loudly, more than once.

  1. Take Me Home, Country RoadsJohn Denver
  2. Sweet CarolineNeil Diamond
  3. FliegerliedThe arm-flapping one
  4. Skandal im SperrbezirkSpider Murphy Gang
  5. HulapaluAndreas Gabalier

How the games work

  • Masskrugstemmen

    Stein hoisting

    Hold a full litre at arm's length, elbow locked. Last arm up wins.

  • Keg bowling

    Kegs for balls, pins at the end of the lane, against the clock.

  • Stein race

    Carry full steins to the line. Fastest run with least beer spilled wins.

  • Bratwurst eating

    Ten brats, no buns, one clock.

  • Dachshund racing

    America's own: sausage dogs sprinting for their owners.

  • Costume contest

    Best dirndl, best lederhosen, judged by applause.

Words you will hear

Prost!prohst
Cheers. Look the other person in the eye when you clink.
O'zapft is!oh-TSAPFT iss
“It's tapped!” Shouted as the first keg is opened.
Maßmahss
The one-litre stein. Order one and you are holding two pints.
Gemütlichkeitge-MYOOT-lish-kite
Warmth and good company. The toast song is named after it.
Die Wiesndee VEE-zn
What Munich calls Oktoberfest, after its meadow.
Trachttrakht
Traditional dress: dirndl and lederhosen together.
BreznBRAY-tsn
The giant soft pretzel.
RadlerRAHD-ler
Beer and lemonade, for a lighter glass.

Since 1810

Why it is called Oktoberfest when it happens in September

A horse race on a Munich meadow in 1810, watched by a royal couple and a cheering crowd

It is a festival with an anniversary: 12 October 1810, when Crown Prince Ludwig of Bavaria married Princess Therese. Munich marked the wedding with a horse race five days later on the meadow now called the Theresienwiese, die Wiesn to locals. The celebration became an annual event, and its opening was moved into September so the festival could enjoy better weather.

Munich's 2026 Wiesn ran from September 19 to October 4.

Asked and answered

Oktoberfest in Forest Park: the basics

When is Oktoberfest in Forest Park in 2026?

Oktoberfest events in Forest Park run from Oct 27 to Oct 30, 2026: 3 events.

Is there an Oktoberfest event in Forest Park this weekend?

Yes: one event is on for Oct 30 – Nov 1, including Rutland Township GOP Oktoberfest.

How much are Oktoberfest tickets in Forest Park?

Tickets run from $44.52 to $60.54, set by each organiser, so check what yours includes before you book. None of the 3 events listed right now is free to get into.

Where is Oktoberfest held in Forest Park?

At 3 venues, including Station 34 and Six Flags Great America.

What are the best Oktoberfest events in Forest Park?

The most popular on AllEvents right now are NICAR | HRO | NSBAR Oktoberfest at Station 34 (Tue, Oct 27), Rutland Township GOP Oktoberfest (Fri, Oct 30) and Retrospect @ Six Flags Great America Oktoberfest - Yukon Stage (Thu, Oct 29).

When is Oktoberfest in Munich in 2026?

Munich's 2026 Oktoberfest ran from September 19 to October 4, 2026, 16 days on the Theresienwiese.

What is Oktoberfest, and why is it in September?

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.

What do you wear to Oktoberfest?

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.

What is Oktoberfest beer?

In Munich it is Festbier: a pale, smooth lager of around 6% brewed for the festival by six Munich breweries. In North America, "Oktoberfest" almost always means Märzen, which is darker, amber and maltier. Same word, two different beers.

Worth the trip

Cities famous for Oktoberfest

Where the season is the whole city's business, from Munich's meadow to a Bavarian village in the Cascades.

Keep exploring

More to do around Forest Park

Cities near Forest Park