Oktoberfest Outfit for Woman

I love dresses but every year I had another excuse to not to spend money for a Dirndl. A really good Dirndl costs over 300 EUR and the cheap ones don't look good. But, this year, I thought that I need to get a souvenir from Munich, before I move to another country and somehow I found a nice Dirndl for a reasonable price.

Oktoberfest Outfit for Woman, Dirndl

Things to know about Dirndl:

Dirndl consists of three parts: the dress, the blouse and the apron. You can buy a complete set or combine them yourself. I am for the second option.
The dress should sit tight but you should be able to breath. :-) Traditional Dirndl falls down to mid-calf. This length looks nice, if you are tall. If not, you should choose a dress which falls around your knees. It looks "cheap", if it is mini.

Dirndl-blouses are famed for their plunging necklines. If you don't like this, it can get really hard to find a blouse with less decollete. I tried at least ten different style to find mine!
Blouses are usually in white. You can find some other colors also, but white gives a fresher look and can be combined with every dress.

The apron is very important. Be careful: where you have your bowknot indicates your status.
On the right: "Taken"
On the left: "Single and/or available"
In the middle: "Virgin"
At the back: "Widow"

As mentioned in the previous post, I don't think that bavarian shoes are nice. Wear one of your existing pumps. As always, low-heels will be more comfortable but high-heels look more stylish. So, it is up to you. I wore my camel color, comfortable high heel pumps.

I bought my Dirndl from the Original Steindl shop in Hettlag in Munich. Original Steindl has many shops, but this one is the most hidden and therefore the least crowded one ;-) Both my dress and apron are wild silk. Be aware that wild silk is dry- clean-only. If you want an easy-care Dirndl, choose one with cotton fabric. Price of my Dirndl: dress: 99 EUR, shirt: 22 EUR, apron: 29 EUR

Oktoberfest Outfit for Man

Oktoberfest Outfit for Man

As buying a Lederhose, you will have many options to choose from. You can choose the color and style according to your personal preferences but make sure that the Lederhose completely covers your knees and ends right under it. And, don't forget that it needs to sit tight. A high quality, robust Lederhose is very expensive. If you don't want to invest too much money, you can still find Lederhose with good quality and reasonable price in some big department stores in Munich.

Wear a long sleeve cotton shirt with your Lederhose. It can be white but a checkered shirt looks nicer. If you have a partner, choose a color matching with the color of the Dirndl.

There are special socks in off-white color to wear with the Lederhose. Wear them as pulled-down.

And the shoes...Well, I personally don't like the traditional bavarian shoes neither for men nor for women and I think, it is a waist of money. If you have already casual leather shoes (not sneakers) matching with the color of your Lederhose, you can just wear them. Or, you choose the color of your Lederhose according to the color of your shoes. My husband wore one of his dark brown, leather casual shoes.

Don't wear a scarf on your neck. It is really an exception that these things look good on someone and I think that only tourists wear them.

Outfit of my husband:
Lederhose: C&A, 99 EUR
Socks: C&A, 13 EUR
Shirt: Original Steindl in Hettlage, 29 EUR

What is Oktoberfest?

Oktoberfest ("Wiesn") is the beer festival celebrated annually in Munich, Germany. With more than 5 million visitors, it is the biggest people's fair in the world.

Oktoberfest view from Statue of Bavaria

Historical background:
The first Oktoberfest took place on the 17th of October 1810 and repeated almost every year ever since. In 1872 the festival start date was moved ahead to September to take advantage of better weather conditions. Oktoberfest was meant to honor the wedding of Crown Prince Ludwig, who later baceme King Ludwig I, and Princess Therese. All the residents of Munich were invited to celebrate this happy occasion on a field in front of the city gates. To the honor of Princess Therese this field has named Theresienwiese (Therese's field). Locals abbreviated the word to the "Wiesn" and have been using it for Oktoberfest.

Duration and dates:
It lasts about 16-18 days and the dates change every year. It starts on the first saturday after the 15th of September and ends on the first sunday of October. If the first sunday in October falls on the 1st or 2nd, then the festival would be extended until the 3rd of October.

Location:
Theresienwiese, Munich.

How to get there:
The easiest way to get to the Oktoberfest is to use the subway. Station: Theresienwiese. U4, U5

What to wear to Oktoberfest?
You don't have to be dressed with traditional bavarian clothes to visit Oktoberfest. But, wearing the traditional dresses adds the festival some more fun. The dress of woman is called "Dirndl". The man wears the "Lederhose" (leather pants) with checkered shirts. For more details, check my other posts about Dirndl and Lederhose.