You would expect that a city with two of America’s most popular Octoberfest beer breweries would put on a pretty good party to celebrate the beers German origins. And you would be right. Enjoy the sixteen Oktoberfest festivals that Boston and the rest of Massachusetts offer.
Harpoon Oktoberfest – Boston, MA – October 4-5, 2013
Oktoberfest has been going strong in fall at Harpoon in Boston for more than two decades. 2013 is Harpoon’s 23rd annual Oktoberfest festival of beer, music, and Fall in New England. The event includes Harpoon beer, German food, Oompah bands, chicken dancing, keg bowling game, and German chocolate cake-eating contest.
Location: 306 Northern Avenue, Boston, MA 02210
Samuel Adams Oktoberfest – Boston, MA
Taste the Samuel Adams Octoberfest or participate in the National Stein Hoisting Competition.
Location: 30 Germania St, Boston, MA 02130
Oktoberfest Der Beehive
Boston, MA – link goes to 2012 event
Enjoy the Harpoon Brewery Octoberfest, German food and a German band at The Beehive, a Bohemian eatery and bar in Boston’s South End.
Location: 541 Tremont Street, Boston, MA
BSV Oktoberfest – Walpole, MA – September 7-8, 2013
Several thousand attend this two day Oktoberfest with German food, beer, games and even a full-contact medieval fighting exhibition.
Location: 8 County St, Walpole, MA 02081
Oktoberfest in Harvard Square – Cambridge, MA
Parade, Sam Adams Beer Garden, 50+ international food vendors, multiple stages of live entertainment and sidewalk vendors.
Location: Harvard Square, Cambridge, Massachusetts 02138
Lansdowne Pub Oktoberfest – Boston, MA
Fall beers, live music and games at this neighborhood bar for Oktoberfest.
Location: 9 Lansdowne Street, Boston, MA 02215
Oktoberfest at Jacob Wirth – Boston, MA
You’ll find various breweries with Oktoberfest beers take over the taps during September and October at Jacob Wirth, a classic European restaurant that offers a menu of German specialties throughout the year.
Location: 31 Stuart St, Boston, MA 02116
Somerville Oktoberfest – Somerville, MA
An outdoor Oktoberfest with beer gardens, bratwurst, brass bands, dancing, and games/contests.
Location: Davis Square at Elm & Chester
Cape Cod Oktoberfest – Sandwich, MA
The Aqua Grille on the Cape Cod Canal hosts this celebration with German food, live band and yodeling contest.
Location: 14 Gallo Road, Sandwich, Massachusetts 02563
Hopedale Oktoberfest – Milford, MA – October 5, 2013
Beer and wine garden with multiple bands. German, Italian and American foods as well as a Chowdah-Fest. Arts & Crafts, car show and more!
Location: 12 Hopedale Street, Hopedale, Massachusetts 01747
Tri-Town Octoberfest – Mansfield, MA – October 1, 2013
An evening food tasting with delicacies from local restaurants and live music to benefit Foxboro, Mansfield & Norton Food Pantries.
Location: 280 School Street, Mansfield, MA
Newburyport Oktoberfest – Newburyport, MA
Location: Bartlett Mall, Newburyport, MA
A fun, family friendly event at Bartlett Mall with traditional German food, music and craft beers in a beer tent.
Rotary Club of Winchester Oktoberfest – Wincester, MA
Beer, wine, music and food at the Winchester Town Hall
Location: 71 Mt Vernon St, Winchester, MA 01890
Douglas Octoberfest – Douglas, MA – October 5, 2013
Douglas’ most popular local event is its Octoberfest street fair. There’s lots of entertainment, rides and games. Proceeds from many food booths, games, and childrens’ activities go to support local community groups.
Location: Main St, Douglas, Massachusetts
Cambridge 5k Oktoberfest – Cambridge, MA – Sunday, October 6, 2013
A German themed road race followed by an Oktoberfest sponsored by Cambridge Brewing.
Location:1 Kendall Square, Cambridge, MA
NB Oktoberfest – New Bedford, MA
It’s a local fundraiser sponsored by the South Coast Business Alliance held at Custom House Square. It features local, seasonal craft brews and live music.
Location: 33 William St, New Bedford, MA 02740
We have just added these 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 the 2012 event when information for 2013 is not 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.
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 when you find them!
Whether you have found a festival to enjoy or you will be celebrating from home, Funtober has some other resources that will help you prepare for Oktoberfest. 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.
Find other fun things to do in Massachusetts in October:
Massachusetts Festivals
Massachusetts Corn Mazes
Massachusetts Ghost Tours
Haunted Houses in Massachusetts
Massachusetts Pumpkin Patches
