Oktoberfest in Iowa 2024

I imagine that the fall festivals for Oktoberfest in Iowa are attended by a pretty good chunk of the one million people in the state that claim German heritage – plus one or two that just want to enjoy the good food and beer on a beautiful fall day.

Last Major Update:

Still plenty of Oktoberfest parties running all the way up to November to enjoy, so Prost!

All events showing current dates need to be verified to confirm that changes to the schedule were not made by the organizers after publication here. We do not run these events, and would hate for anyone to go out of their way only to find the event had been canceled after releasing a date. Please click through to the event website to confirm! Be safe and have a great fall!

2024 Events

Amana Oktoberfest - Amana, IA - Oct 4 to Oct 6, 2024
Amana, a national historic landmark built by radical Pietists primarily from Germany, celebrates Oktoberfest with a beer keg tapping (Friday at 2 PM), parade (Saturday), live entertainment, games and activities for both adults (like the keg toss!) and kids (pumpkin toss!). Other contests such as log sawing, brat eating and the timber trek. Sample fudge and caramel at the Chocolatehaus. Free demonstrations at the Woolen Mill. Edelstein Treasures for kids. Festhalle admission is $10 for one day and $15 for two days.

Remsen Oktoberfest - Remsen, IA - Oct 26, 2024
It’s their 40+ annual celebration of the community’s Luxembourg & German heritage. The event historically includes beer keg tapping, all you can eat German feast, and children’s Bavarian costume and dance contest. Always held on the last Saturday in October.

You should also check the lists of nearby states that celebrate Oktoberfest: Illinois, Minnesota, Missouri, Nebraska, South Dakota and Wisconsin.

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Past Events

Burlington Lions Club Oktoberfest - Burlington, IA - Oct 7, 2023
The club’s signature event on the first Saturday in October. German food including bratwurst and sauerkraut. Bavarian musicians. Games including Stein Hoist. Authentic attire contest.

Waverly Oktoberfest - Waverly, IA - Oct 6 to Oct 7, 2023
This family friendly event will features live music, food and beverage gardens including Iowa craft beers, and fun and games for youth and adults. Friday and Saturday in downtown Waverly.

Ottumwa Oktoberfest - Ottumwa, IA - Oct 4 to Oct 7, 2023
Brats and beer, chicken barbecue, parade, and carnival. The annual Rotary Chicken Barbecue kicks off activities with a barbeque. Advance tickets $8. Features a Kiddie Parade, Oktoberfest Parade, and a marching band competition.

Manning Oktoberfest - Manning, IA - Sep 30, 2023
German food, polka music, dance lessons and Hausbarn tours. 5 PM keg tapping with Home Brew contest followed by German music and dancing from 7-10:30 PM.

Northside Oktoberfest - Iowa City, IA - Sep 23, 2023
Includes brewfest, Sodafest, local food venders, live music, beaked chicked dance, adult contests, a stage with children’s entertainment and a harvest market. They indicate tickets for the Brewfest will sell out in advance. Proceeds go to the American Heart Association and the Iowa Children’s Museum.

Des Moines Oktoberfest - Des Moines, IA - Sep 22 to Sep 23, 2023
There’s a ceremonial keg tapping, beer maiden contest, stein holding contest, and polka dancing in Des Moines, in addition to the beer gardens and German food. Prizes for those who dress up! The golden keg is tapped on Friday at 3 PM. The Stein Holding competition and Polka Lessons take place on Saturday. Advance tickets are $7 for a single day or $13 for two-day admission. Entry includes a commemorative mug, access to the Craft Beer Village, Hofbrau Rooftop Bier Garden, entry into Silent Disco DSM and entertainment from 16+ bands and DJs. Price is $10 at the door. Location: 101 4th St, Des Moines, IA

Dubuque Oktoberfest - Dubuque, IA - Sep 17, 2023
Rain or shine under the tri-states’ largest festival tent. Great food and beer plus live music, food, dancing, wiener dog races. Proceeds benefit Camp Albrecht Acres.

Adventureland Oktoberfest - Altoona, IA - Sep 16, 2023
General admission tickets are $45+ each online. Rain or shine event. 21+ only. This is the last day Adventureland is open for the year!

Iowa Oktoberfest Downtown Waterloo - Waterloo, IA - Sep 23 to Sep 24, 2022
Looking for a fun weekend come to Waterloo and check out the Iowa Oktoberfest! Grab a boot from Anton’s Biergarten, a enjoy a beer from the Beer Hall, or swing over to Newton’s for a shot of Jagermeister. Drinks, food, games, contests, and live music begins Friday at 4:00 and the festivities will run through Saturday evening! Have a BEARD? Enter the beard contest or just dress for the occasion and you may win a prize! Lots of FUN planned so bring your friends! For updates and for the event schedule please visit them on Facebook or at www.IowaOktoberfest.com ; Nicht lange schnacken, Kopf in Nacken!

Fort Dodge Oktoberfest - Fort Dodge, IA - Oct 5, 2019
Held at River Hops Brewing

We hope you enjoy these celebrations of Oktoberfest. Let us know below which one you've headed to and which one you like the best!

We have added maps with the locations of each Oktoberfest. We may not have had the exact location for each Oktoberfest so in some instances we have placed the marker in the general vicinity of the Oktoberfest. Be sure to get specific directions from another source and do not solely rely on our map at the moment. We have also noticed that the markers may not show up on some mobile browsers. We will work to sort out this bug in the future.

Please confirm dates, locations and activities available at the Oktoberfest before going. That's one reason that we provide a website address when we find one. We attempt to ensure that the information for each Oktoberfest is accurate but there are bound to be a few errors. If you let us know when you find one, we will fix it. In some cases, we may link to last year's event when information for this year is not yet available. Do not be fooled.

The festivals listed range in size. Some events may have hundreds of thousands of attendees. Others may have only a handful. We're sorry that we don't have more information about attendance numbers at the moment. We will do our best to add this information as time goes on.

Professionalism varies as well. Some Oktoberfests are professional operations with large budgets. Others are local operations run by volunteers. Do your due diligence before making plans to attend so that you know what to expect. We will happily publish information about your experience with any Oktoberfest so that our visitors will be better informed in the future.

Some Oktoberfests are more family friendly than others. If you have small children, look for an Oktoberfest that has activities for kids. Other events start out with family friendly activities and become more adult oriented as it becomes later in the evening.

Not all Oktoberfest celebrations will be authentic German festival experiences. Some may simply be an excuse to drink rather than celebrate German heritage. Some may call themselves Oktoberfest but provide local or seasonal beer rather than authentic German Oktoberfest beer. Be sure to consider the type of celebration that you are looking to attend when you pick your Oktoberfest.

Activities offered at each Oktoberfest varies. Some activities that you may find are parades, keg tapping ceremony, beer gardens, Miss Oktoberfest or costume contests, stein holding contests, bratwurst eating contest, chicken dance, wiener races, keg toss, live German bands and local entertainment, polka dancing and fairground games. Some Oktoberfest events will just have beer and brats.

Please don't drink and drive. We want everyone to get home safe. Use a designated driver or take public transportation. Uber and Lyft often offer ride credits for new users.

We've got some other resources that would help you prepare for Oktoberfest as well. Read about the history of Oktoberfest. Learn about Oktoberfest beer. Find the words to Oktoberfest music. Plan your Oktoberfest outfit. And try cooking some of these Oktoberfest recipes.

Do you run one of the Oktoberfests listed? Feel free to send us additional information and we will add it. We apologize for any errors: send us corrections or updates if you find them! We also love to list new Oktoberfests, and have advertising solutions if you'd like to reach a wider audience.

Find other fun things to do in Iowa in fall:

Iowa Festivals
Iowa Corn Mazes
Iowa Ghost Tours
Haunted Houses in Iowa
Iowa Pumpkin Patches

2 thoughts on “Oktoberfest in Iowa 2024

  1. Ken Nicol says:

    `Ken and Mary Turbo Accordions Express` an accordion duo performing thru out the mid west, Also for
    the Miller brewing Co. Oktoberfest in El Salvador, Central America 2013 and 2014, We have been asked back for 2015. Authentic costumes and sound. `German Accordions` from Ohio, performing around the world. Please see our web info, history and photo pages.
    Thank You
    Vielen dank
    Ken Nicol http://www.kenandmaryaccordions.com

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