Dirndl Shopping

Don't know about Austria or Germany, but my daughter and granddaughter tried on some beautiful ones in a department store in Luzern, Switzerland.

Most of the department stores will have decent quality Oktoberfest garb during the fest. Check out C&A or H&M for mid quality stuff(locations in the city center).

DJ

All of the dept. stores sell these: Galleria Kaufhof, C&A, Karstadt. You may even find some 2nd hand stores wandering around the cities.

google "trachten clothing", I got several hits.

I just ordered a beautiful one off Amazon - all in probably $130. Have some really pretty options...

Try auktion on eBay.de. You can find older traditional seldom worn tracht. Ask if they will ship to the US or maybe your hotel? Modern tracht has turned into costumes in many cases.

I would suggest picking one up in a department store before you get to Munich. While there will be a ton of places selling them there, you should find much cheaper options outside the city.

What are you looking for? I suspect that any Tracht in a department store would just be a generic representation of Trachts (Trachten), in general. In fact, every town in Germany had it's own Tracht, specific to that town. Even the embroidered patterns were specific. I once belonged to a Trachten Erhaltungs Verein (club for the preservation of traditional attire) in Denver, and the club tried valiantly to adhere to the actual construction and pattern of the Tracht of the town they were representing.

Lee, I doubt the OP is into dirndls at such a detailed level. Let’s not even get started with the different meanings of how you tie your dirndl. He just wants a nice, affordable one. But how cool you are such an expert and got a chance to share!

Anyway, 200 Euro will get you a mid to lower end dirndl at an outlet or second hand shop or a department store. Vienna has many tractenmode outlets as does Salzburg and Innsbruck. Google trachtenmode Wien.

And for people new to this specialised clothing, remember that a Dirndl is not just one piece of clothing. Special shoes, special hose, the skirt, the underskirt, the blouse, the vest (or dress), the apron, and all the accessories make up the kit, that's why a good one is so expensive.

This piece by Happytowander (https://happytowander.com/oktoberfest-clothing-guide/) calls out a large selection of shops in Munich that may be suitable including Angermaier (https://www.trachten-angermaier.de/) and Trachten Rausch (http://www.trachtenrausch.com/).

Frankonia Jagd. Google it. You can shop online or find what you want before you hit the stores. They have a store in Munich Old Town (by the west gate). Now's a good time to buy due to sales. You can have them ship it home for you too. They carry top quality stuff.

I love dirndls (will even admit to having a Pinterest page dedicated to them)! But I think it's highly unlikely that you will be able to buy a decent one for 200 Euros. I lived in Munich for almost 7 years and returned for a reunion and really wanted to wear a drindl. I window-shopped on line at a number of the stores that are known for their tracht, thinking I would pick up one in Munich (or Austria), but then I was shocked at the prices. Instead, I purchased a good quality dirndl on Amazon, my sister got hers on Ebay. We spent well under $150. I upgraded my apron. But also you need to have the right dirndl bra - which isn't always easy to find while you're traveling. Again, Amazon saved the day. I did get a choker in Munich that was reasonably priced. Ours were definitely not costume-y. Prosit! Enjoy the Oktoberfest!

I also needed a flouncy slip to get the proper effect - again, Amazon.

Hi all- Just arrived at Munich, and for those interested in what is probably a "costumey" dirndl (who cares after a mass or two of bier) there is a small stand just outside of the south entrance of the Hbf which gets you into the spirit for 50 - 60 Euros. Does not include shoes or stockings but again, who cares...

If you by chance are planing a trip to see Neuschwanstein, my fiancé found several nice shops in Füßen to cross-compare and found a beautiful drindl before heading into Munich for 3 days of Oktoberfest last year.

O'fest is over, but "In Bavaria in 2018, tradition is trendy and custom is cool."
Bavarian Millennials Embrace Tradition (Dirndls, Lederhosen and All)

Hip-hop blared from oversize speakers. Half-finished beer glasses teetered precariously along the bar, and a scrum of teenage bodies writhed on the dimly lit dance floor. It was a regular night out in hip urban Munich.
And everyone was in 19th-century Alpine peasant dress.
In Bavaria in 2018, tradition is trendy and custom is cool. Bavarian teenagers, who once wore jeans and T-shirts in Oktoberfest season, are going clubbing in dirndl and lederhosen.
“Ten years ago, we rarely saw a dirndl in the disco,” said Dierk Beyer, a manager at Neuraum, a popular nightclub near the site of the Oktoberfest. “Now it’s normal.”
After years of edging into the mainstream, they are now all the rage with millennials, who are evolving tradition and folklore into a youth culture that can surprise outsiders.

Alas, all the fests are over. I dirndled up 4 times this year! But regardless in the event that anyone searches for dirndls in the future here's some tips:

Munich is probably the best place in the world to buy a Dirndl due to the wide selection. There is kind of a "tracht row" near the Heiligeistkirche with a variety of shops from the very posh and expensive Angiermaier to second-hand trachtenmode shops. And of course, all the department stores.

The most expensive part of the dirndl is the dress itself. My dirndl is vintage, from the 1970s, very well constructed, traditional (i.e. calf length), and was only 50 euro. You can usually find a decent new dress for a little under or over 100 euro, but of course you can go much more expensive if you want to. New dirndls usually come with an apron, which saves a bit.

The blouses run 25-75 but you can get a perfectly good one for 35. Aprons, if buying alone, can run from 15-60.

The nice thing is, you probably already own suitable shoes. Traditionally, flats or heels are fine. Black is traditional, but if you have shoes that match the color of your outfit, why not? The young women tend to wear Converse or Keds with the shorter modern dirndls.

I'd say beware of overly-trendy dirndls. A couple of years ago, it was very in vogue to wear red dirndl's with a black blouse. Now that look is a bit dated. A classic look of a well-made dirndl is something you can wear for years and years.

And yes avoid costume dirndls (the sort of thing you see at Halloween shops as "beer maiden" costumes) at all costs, they look ridiculous. If you're going to buy a dirndl, buy a real one. And for the love of god wear a blouse, it's so weird to see women wearing them without.

Hats can be cute and tempting but if you're actually planning to fest in a beer tent, the hat will be too hot and you're likely to lose it. I've seen it happen dozens of times. Just saying...