What do people wear to the Strong Beer Festival?

Now, a short answer to this question would be: “dirndl, lederhosen”. A German-speaker might simply say Tracht, Bavarian regional costume.

Then again, the Bavarians wear their dirndl and lederhosen to lots of events, everything from fairgrounds to marriages and, of course, the Oktoberfest. As such, there’s a more detailed answer regarding their sartorial habits at the Strong Beer Festival.

For him

For guys, of course the core piece is your lederhosen. The Starkbierfest is a great place to wear yours, too, but you’ll see a lot of Bavarian men in long leather trousers, not just breeches. After all, especially if Easter falls early, the Strong Beer Season can end up starting in late February, at which time half of Germany might be covered in snow. Here’s a great selection of longer lederhosen if you want to be equipped for every eventuality.

Alpine knitwear also plays a bigger role than at the late-summer Oktoberfest, especially if it’s a cold year. You’ll see plenty of traditional long-sleeve woollen cardigans that are chunky enough to replace a proper coat if necessary. Also, speaking of coats, the strong beer festival is a great event at which to play spot-the-eyewateringly-expensive deerskin overcoat – and there are some absolute beauties out there!

Now, the usual Haferschuhe shoes that Germans wear with lederhosen are pretty robust ad can handle a good layer of snow, but you will see a wider variety of traditional Bavarian boots which go over the ankle and offer a little more by way of protection from the elements. If you’re going and don’t want to take big boots, though, your usual lederhosen shoes with some nice thick socks will be enough to keep out the chill.

For her

Women’s Starkbierfest fashion is also influenced by the fact that it can very well be a little chilly. Dirndls tend to get longer, with girls who like a nice short 50cm number often going down to midi length, while midi dirndl wearers move onto 70cm-length and so on. The aprons, too, can get heavier, and of course a couple of petticoats extra never did any harm – especially the ones with nice heat-trapping frills. Meanwhile, tights often get thicker, or give way entirely to proper stockings.

Finally, in terms of shoes, ballerinas are less in evidence in cold years, with higher pumps or bootlets being far more practical. By the same token, even if the weather is nice and warm, the Starkbiefest is a great opportunity to try out high heels with dirndls if you generally prefer the comfort of low shoes: after all, there’s not as much walking around as at the Oktoberfest. All footwear should be suitable for dancing on benches, mind… Our selection here.