Oktoberfest

OktOBERfest returns to its Gatlinburg-style roots with 38 days of merrymaking from September 25 through Nov. 2, 2015 as the resort commemorates the 205th anniversary of the popular festival held in Munich, Germany.

The Bavarian Fun Makers Band, in authentic costumes, will perform traditional Bavarian folk dances, schuhplattling, oompah music, sing-a-longs, yodels and more with daily shows and multiple performances every day during Oktoberfest.  Special Oktoberfest Biers will be served along with traditional German wurst, schnitzel, sauerkraut, strudel, pretzels and more.

Oktoberfest was a popular event when the Heidelberg Castle operated its restaurant at Ober Gatlinburg in the 1980s.

The first Oktoberfest was not really a festival at all, but the public celebration of the wedding of Crown Prince Ludwig I and Princess Therese of Bavaria on October 17, 1810. Held on a large meadow named the Theresienwiese in Munich, the party featured a horse race, beer, food, music and dancing.  Anniversary celebrations continues each year, usually starting in late September and ending in the first week of October, with some six million people attending annually.