Munich opens 191st Oktoberfest with new mayor and tighter security
Munich begins the 191st Oktoberfest on Saturday as Lord Mayor Dominik Krause taps the first barrel, opening 16 days of festivities on the Theresienwiese under upgraded crowd-control and policing measures.
Opening at the Theresienwiese
Munich begins the 191st Oktoberfest at 12:00 on Saturday with the traditional barrel tapping on the Theresienwiese. Lord Mayor Dominik Krause, representing the Green Party, performs the opening ritual for the first time in office, aiming to tap the keg in two to three strikes. By tradition, Krause will hand the first liter of beer to Bavarian Minister-President Markus Söder of the CSU. Gun salutes fired at the same moment allow beer service to commence across all festival tents. Forecasts for the opening day indicate clear skies and temperatures reaching 24 degrees Celsius. Wiesn director Christian Scharpf commented on the weather conditions ahead of the launch.
One could not wish for more.
Security and surveillance upgrades
The festival runs for 16 days through 4 October, with organizers expecting the usual attendance of more than 6 million visitors. City authorities modified the security plan following severe overcrowding on the second Saturday of the previous year. A new coordination and observation center operates with artificial intelligence cameras designed to spot crowd density and allow rapid intervention, alongside a dedicated crowd manager on high-traffic days.
Around 600 police officers are deployed around the grounds, supported by the Bavarian Riot Police, specialized pickpocket investigators, and officers from eight other countries. Authorities enforce a flight ban for drones over the site, maintain a knife ban across the festival and its immediate surroundings, and conduct entrance bag checks. Large bags and cannabis consumption remain strictly prohibited on the festival grounds.
