Oktoberfest in Ohio 2024
Oktoberfest starts at the end of August in Ohio. By September and October 2024, Ohio residents will be enjoying German beer, bratwurst and the chicken dance at German festivals throughout the Buckeye State, including large celebrations in Cleveland, Columbus and Cincinnati. With numerous cities boasting more than 70% German heritage, even small towns will have the sound of music and the smell of German cuisine. Let’s take a look at the wonderful places available to enjoy an Ohio Oktoberfest.
Last Major Update:2024 was a great year for Oktoberfest! We'll be back with more next year.
Looks like plenty of great 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
While Ohio is home to some of the largest Oktoberfests in the country, if you exhaust the list and want to check out nearby events, you can head to Indiana, Kentucky, Michigan, Pennsylvania, and West Virginia.
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Past Events
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 Ohio in fall:
Ohio Festivals
Ohio Corn Mazes
Ohio Ghost Tours
Haunted Houses in Ohio
Ohio Pumpkin Patches.
Could you please update Germania Society Website for this years.
Just wanted to let you know that the Germania Society’s Oktoberfest in Cincinnati is August 23, 24 and 25th in 2013. Hope to see you there!
The original Oktoberfest is a traditional harvest fair held in Bavaria, perhaps not surprisingly, during the first week of October since 1810. Why then is there not a single immitation of this festival in all of Ohio that is held during the first week in October. If we are going to replicate it why not replicate it at the same time of the year? In fact most of these are not even close being held in early Sept. or even August. This isn’t even close to harvest time. Why not hold it in July? Why not in January if we want to be really different? I don’t accept that it has to be that way because of the weather. Are people in Ohio going to melt if they have to go outside during the first week of October? I find that hard to believe. It’s often sunny and in the 70 to 85 degree range in early October in Ohio. How much more agreeeable does it need to be? I go to outdoor fesitvals in winter in colder climates when it is 0 degrees farenheit. It makes no difference. You dress appropriately no matter when it is heald. Can it possibly be any warmer and clearer in Bavaria in October Then Ohio? It’s not. They are at a higher latitude, higher altitude and further inland making weather actually more unpredictable. If we are going to replicate a Bavarian holiday fair why not replicate accurately. This seems as rediculous as having a German Christmas holiday in July. It’s a harvest festival at the end of the harvest, afterall. Why would you not have it at the end of the harvest time? I would think that at least one celebration could have the authenticity to actually have the holiday on the actual holiday. Do we have to rush everything?
First: You wrote “It’s a harvest festival at the end of the harvest” Not so, Munich Oktoberfest has nothing to do with the harvest.
Second: Again “during the first week of October since 1810” Wrong, it usually runs from late September to the FIRST WEEKEND in October.
Third the origin of the Oktoberfest: Crown Prince Ludwig, later to become King Ludwig I, was married to Princess Therese of Saxe-Hildburghausen on October 12, 1810. The citizens of Munich were invited to attend the festivities held on the fields in front of the city gates to celebrate the happy royal event.
Fourth: the 2015 Munich Oktoberfest is from September 19 to October 4, better book now…
LAKE COUNTY OKTOBERFEST/PIG ROAST AND POLKA FESTIVAL
HARRY’S HAUFBRAU-8500 STATIONS STREET-MENTOR-440.255.0400 will be hosting the areas 1st Annual Oktoberfest September 17-20, 2015. Harry’s Haufbrau will be pouring imported HB Oktoberfest Beer from Munich, Germany. Local Polka Bands will be performing live in the Polka tent. The air will be filled with Roasting pig, bratwurst, Slovenian sausages, schnitzel and more…The gates opens at 4pm on Thursday and Friday; 12pm Saturday and 11am Sunday. https://www.harryshofbraumentor.com/
THURSDAY 17TH-4PM-9PM
with Joey Tomsick & the Shotski’s 5-9
FRIDAY 18TH-4PM-11PM
with Polka Revolution 6-10
SATURDAY 19TH-12PM-11PM
with Bob Kravos 3-6
with Polka Revolution 7-10
SUNDAY 20TH -11AM-6PM
with Patty C & the Guys 1-5
No admission – Free Parking – Live Entertainment – All Ages
Minster’s Oktoberfest is 3 days September 30th to October 2nd.
I need some information on the October fest in the organ District
Need to know when it is and if it will cost anything.
Thank you