Oktoberfest lost property

Now, while we may spend the whole year thinking about the Oktoberfest, there are some people who work for the festival organisation who actually do spend all year dealing with it. Like the good people in the Oktoberfest lost property office, for example (“Wiesnfundbüro”).

Even once the last of us guests have started off home, even after all of the fairground rides and tents have been dismantled and vacated the Theresienwiese, around three quarters of all of the items of lost property handed in to lost and found are still unclaimed. So what happens to them?

Well, as Stylight’s fun graphic shows, the remaining items are taken down to an all-year storage site in south Munich and, if they haven’t been collected by 1^st February 2014, they’ll be sold if they are of any value. For things like passports, meanwhile, the worldwide search for the owners continues.

So if you’re missing something – or if you’d just like fun statistics from the Oktoberfest lost property office – then do make sure you take a look at Stylight’s graphic. We fell in love with the rendering of our favourite item of Oktoberfest lost property this year, a Bayern Munich gnome who had already got separated from his owner before the halfway mark. We wonder what he’ll raise at auction…?

What’s also interesting in terms of statistics is that you are far more likely to lose your passport or ID than your phone or keys while you’re at the Wiesn. So what would we recommend to reduce lost property at next year’s Oktoberfest? That’s right: sturdy Bavarian clothing with plenty of pockets!