Frequently Asked Questions:

Most events at Oktoberfest are free. Families and individuals of all ages are welcome to attend concerts at the Bandstand and St. Mary Church at no cost.  This includes the street dances on Friday and Saturday evening at the Bandstand. Just show up to be part of the fun!  The Kindergarten has no admission and the activities and rides are all free, compliments of Mount Angel Oktoberfest and our Kindergarten sponsors, including K & E Excavating, PGE, and Wilco Farm Stores. The rides are offered by MADJEK Inc. The Cruz'n Car Shows on Saturday and Sunday are open to all comers to check out the wheels. Wiener dog racing on Saturday has no cost view the races.
    Only 3 of the venues have a cover charge. With purchase of a wristband admission is allowed to all 3. There is never a charge for persons under 21 years old, but there are restricted hours in the Biergarten and Weingarten. Please check the venues for details.
    Venue pricing changes by day and time.
    Day Passes: Day passes are available for each day of the festival and are used for unlimited entry and reentry to the 3 venues on that day only. A pass purchased before 4:00 pm is good through the remainder of the day – no additional evening charge. A different colored wristband will be used for each day of the festival.
    All Festival Pass: The All Festival Pass a single purchase good for all days and all times of the Mt Angel Oktoberfest. Once this wristband is on your arm, you are free to display the wristband at any entry gate and gain admission every day of the festival at any time.
    Pass pricing: *Friday is our Saluting Our Armed Forces Day – a $5 discount is offered to those who are serving or have served in our Military. Sponsored by Les Schwab Tires and Mount Angel Oktoberfest. Not valid with other discounts.
    Food and nonalcoholic beverages are available in the streets at the food booths, pricing varies by items.  Beer may be purchased in the three premium venues or at three other small biergartens in the downtown area with no cover charges.
    Oktoberfest is celebrated throughout the downtown area of Mount Angel which lies approximately 40 miles south of Portland and 17 miles north of Salem.
    • GPS device use address: 5 Garfield St. Mount Angel, Oregon, 97362
    • from I-5 North – exit: 282A toward Canby/Hubbard through Woodburn and follow the signs to Mount Angel
    • from I-5 South– take exit 260 toward Keizer and follow signs. Proceed east on Chemawa Road and Hazel Green Road following the signs to Mount Angel.
    The Mount Angel Police Department manages the Lost and Found services for Oktoberfest after the festival closes. Please contact them at 503-845-9294. If you find that you have lost an item during Oktoberfest, return to the venue that you believe you lost the item at, and ask at the admission gate. If you were in the downtown area, please go to the Information Booth near the Harvest Monument.
    Thursday is Senior Day at Oktoberfest. Entry to the entertainment venues is only $10.00 for the whole day. Seniors really love this day at Oktoberfest. There are many comfortable park benches and picnic tables in the festival area. All venues are handicap accessible including many toilet facilities.
    There are many good websites that sell Bavarian clothing (trachten). Many local people purchase most of their traditional Bavarian clothing from: Touch of Bavaria: 503-586-8126; www.TouchofBavaria.com – available at Oktoberfest, in the old Blacksmith Shop corner Church and Sheridan Streets Debbie Grassman: 503-845-6204; seamstress specializes in dirndls – available at Oktoberfest in the Arts and Crafts
    We have several free handicap parking lots at Oktoberfest. Please display your DMV Handicap card and follow the directions of our traffic control people. The most convenient lot is at St. Mary Church, only two blocks from the bandstand. You may drop off your handicapped person near the bandstand, while the driver parks the vehicle at the church. All venues are wheelchair accessible and have handicap accessible toilets. There are ramps for entrance into the church.
    Credit cards and debit cards are welcome in the venues and can be used to access ATM machines throughout the downtown area. The ATMs locations can be found at on our map inside the Official Guide. Most of the food booths don’t have internet access during the festival and prefer cash. You are most welcome to get extra cash while in the venues, or you may find the cash machines at US Bank.
    Families are welcome. We have two care stations sponsored by Small Town Pediatrics. At these locations, there is a place to change a baby, allow for breastfeeding and an electricity for a breast pump. There is one right next to the Information Booth and Harvest Monument with spare diapers. The other is located in the Biergarten near the Restrooms on the north end inside. It is a family restroom, with a fold down for a changing table and also has an outlet for breast pumps if needed. Children are welcome everywhere at Oktoberfest. The only restriction is after 9:00 pm they will be asked to leave the Biergarten and Weingarten. They are allowed in the Alpinegarten until close.
    Pets are certainly welcome at Oktoberfest. Pets are allowed on leash. However, they are not permitted in the Venues. The loud music and very tight crowds, particularly on Friday and Saturday nights would be torture for an animal. Kindergarten, Car Show, Downtown, Bandstand areas are dog friendly. If crowds make your furry friend nervous – we suggest Friday mornings.
    There are a couple of widely accepted versions of why Oktoberfest is celebrated in September. Even in Munich the bulk of the festival occurs in September. Oktoberfest has come to mean a celebration of German Culture in the Fall season. Most fall festivals come at the end of the harvest when the crops are in and everything sits in the lager house. It is time to celebrate the year’s hard work and praise the Creator’s bounty with a grand harvest festival. Few harvest festivals in Germany are called OKTOBERFEST. In Mount Angel, Oktoberfest always starts the second Thursday after Labor Day – about when the hop harvest is in. Another reason for celebrating Oktoberfest in September is that the weather tends to be more cooperative. We can attest to that in Mount Angel.
    Oktoberfest is very pleased to have a recycling program in place. The water and soda bottles from the Food Chalets are recyclable, watch for the blue recycle containers with clear plastic bags collecting the recyclable plastic bottles. Please do your best to sort the garbage such as napkins and plastic dining utensils from the recyclable bottles. We hope to develop methods to recycle these other items in the future. Recycling at Oktoberfest has been under development for several years as our Down Town Operations and Streets Teams have tried to find an effective method to collect what can be recycled and processed quickly and efficiently. The recycle bins for soda and water bottles you see on the streets are the results of a couple trial and error attempts. Next on the list – paper products and food utensils. Oktoberfest appreciates all those who take a moment to sort and recycle.
    Following Oktoberfest when all our bills are paid, we set aside a portion of excess revenue to start up next year’s festival and pay for needed infrastructure improvements. The remainder of the revenue is distributed to worthy organizations – churches, schools and service groups in our region. Oktoberfest has distributed over $3,500,000 to other non-profits since its inception. This distribution does not include the money earned each year by our 50 non-profit food booths. For most of these organizations, Oktoberfest is their most important money raising event of the year.
      • Oktoberfest 2023 will be held September 14, 15, 16, and 17. Theme: Mt Angel Oktoberfest, a Touch of Bavaria
      • Oktoberfest 2024 will be held September 12, 13, 14, and 15. Theme: Family and Friends, Eat, Drink, Polka!
      • Oktoberfest 2025 will be held September 11, 12, 13, and 14.
    Oktoberfest in Mount Angel begins the second weekend after Labor Day.
    Mount Angel celebrates it’s German/Bavarian Heritage year-round. The community welcomes many visitors even between Oktoberfests. Check out out Mount Angel Attraction page to help plan a visit. Looking for more German Fests? Check out the Maifest, Volksfest, and Hazelnut Fest. The village is quiet and peaceful most of the year, a relaxing experience with much to offer.