Does anyone know any 2026 Oktoberfest near Munich in smaller towns?! They can be small tents, but I just didn’t know if there was any festivals nearby, quiet towns that we don’t hear of! And not in October, but during the weekend that we could stay for a night around attending Munich!?
Posted by
Green Bay
22942 posts
Not in a small town, but the Cannstatter Volksfest in Stuttgart, is roughly concurrent with Oktoberfest and a bit lower key.
Posted by
9508 posts
We lived in Augsburg (50 miles west of Munich) from 1989-1991. Augsburg had beer fests during the Summer and early fall, don't remember the dates.
Many cities in Bavaria and nearby states have fests as well. I remember a good one in Nuremberg. Also, Stuttgart had a large one that was the second largest in Germany. However, I believe the Munich Oktoberfest is the last one of the year.
Posted by
Paradise
7842 posts
And not in October, but during the weekend that we could stay for a
night around attending Munich!?
I do not understand what weekend/month you are talking about. Do you have dates? Are you planning to stay in Munich?
Posted by
OP
15 posts
Sunday September 20, 2026! Just for one night! We are driving to Munich from France! Last year we did Salzburg the night before, but would love to stay in Germany!
Posted by
Paradise
7842 posts
1) Germany's biggest wine festival - the Wurstmarkt (sausage market) - takes place on that weekend in the small town of Bad Dürkheim, which lies some distance to the north of a Paris > Munich driving route:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KWcdZtKQLSg&t=17s
2) South of the city of Ulm is a small Swabian town called Burgrieden (pop. 4,000) where a medieval festival is scheduled for that September weekend. This location would not be hard to include on a drive to Munich. Burgrieden is located on the Upper Swabian Baroque Route, a scenic driving route that is largely unknown to tourists outside Germany.
The venue is the "Riffelhof." The festival, known as the Riffelhof-Spektakulum, includes music, a craftsmen's market, jugglers, a birds-of-prey demonstration, battle re-enactments, etc.
The Riffelhof website shows the dates: http://riffelhof.de/maerkte-konzerte/
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yE_uD3kB1iY
There might be a dozen or more similar small-town festivals in Southern Germany on that weekend. It's a very popular time of year for Germans to get outdoors and party.