Oktoberfest turns up in Golf as autumn sets in. Beer festivals and beer halls start the run with live music and giant steins, dancing takes over, and the polka stays optional. The communal tables do the rest, bratwurst and pretzels arriving steadily and the German food holding it together. One good beer with friends is a night. Check what's happening for Oktoberfest 2026 in Golf, see which one fits, and book your tickets while there's still room.
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On nowBest on a budgetThu, Oct 22The Harding Tavern, Chicago
October’s beer of the month is brought to us from Germany by Paulaner and Hacker-Pschorr, two iconic breweries dominating the Oktoberfest season. $6 pints all month with a special Keep the Pint Night on 10/22, stop by to meet the Hac
Free
Most popularTue, Oct 27Station 34, Mount Prospect
Historic Site Tour and Networking Benefit Event 🎃 2nd Annual NICAR Oktoberfest FUNdraiser Join NICAR, HRO & NSBA
$44.52 – $65.87
Fri, Oct 30325 Raymond St, Gilberts
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
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 Golf, soonest first.
Sat, Oct 24622 E Court St, Elkhorn
Worth the trip
Sat, Oct 24Cathedral of St. Raymond Parish and School, Joliet
Before you go
Tickets, timing, what to wear, and whether the kids can come.
Every listing with a price, cheapest first.
1 listing does not show a price.
Every organiser sets its own prices, and entry, food and drink are often sold separately. Check what a ticket covers before you buy.
In Golf: 1 of 3 free to get in; paid tickets from $44.52 to $65.87.
Weekend afternoons fill up first. Go early if you want a table.
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.
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
Munich locals rarely say Oktoberfest. They say die Wiesn, short for the Theresienwiese, the meadow named after Princess Therese, whose 1810 wedding to Crown Prince Ludwig started it all with a horse race. The festival later moved forward into September to make the most of the warmer weather, which is why a festival called Oktoberfest is mostly over by October.
Munich's 2026 Wiesn ran from September 19 to October 4.
Asked and answered
Oktoberfest events in Golf run from Oct 22 to Oct 30, 2026: 3 events. The busiest weekend is Oct 30 – Nov 1, with 2 events.
Nothing is listed in Golf itself for Oct 23 – Oct 25, but 4 events are on nearby, in Lake Geneva, Elkhorn and Vernon Hills.
Yes: 1 of the 3 listed is free to get into, including 10/22 Paulaner Keep the Pint Night. Paid tickets for the rest run from $44.52 to $65.87. Food and drink are usually paid for on the day.
Yes: 4 more events are listed within reach of Golf, in Lake Geneva, Elkhorn, Vernon Hills and Joliet. The soonest is BEER TASTING @ FallTober Fest in Lake Geneva, on Oct 23–25.
At 3 venues, including The Harding Tavern and Station 34.
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 10/22 Paulaner Keep the Pint Night at The Harding Tavern (Thu, Oct 22).
Munich's 2026 Oktoberfest ran from September 19 to October 4, 2026, 16 days on the Theresienwiese.
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.
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
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
