The Gäubodenvolksfest in

Straubing Straubing (; Central Bavarian: ''Strauwing'') is an independent city in Lower Bavaria, southern Germany. It is seat of the Districts of Germany, district of Straubing-Bogen. Annually in August the Gäubodenvolksfest, the second largest fair in Ba ...

is one of the largest

Volksfest A ( ; German for "people's festival")Cognate of "folk festival" in English is a large event in German-speaking countries which usually combines a beer festival or wine festival and a travelling funfair. Attractions may include amusement rides, g ...

s (

beer festival A beer festival is an event at which a variety of beers are available for purchase. There may be a theme, for instance beers from a particular area, or a particular brewing style such as winter ales. Asia China *Qingdao International Beer Fes ...

and

travelling funfair A traveling carnival (American English), usually simply called a carnival, travelling funfair or travelling show (British English), is an amusement show that may be made up of amusement rides, food vendors, merchandise vendors, games of chan ...

) in the

German German(s) may refer to: * Germany, the country of the Germans and German things **Germania (Roman era) * Germans, citizens of Germany, people of German ancestry, or native speakers of the German language ** For citizenship in Germany, see also Ge ...

state of

Bavaria Bavaria, officially the Free State of Bavaria, is a States of Germany, state in the southeast of Germany. With an area of , it is the list of German states by area, largest German state by land area, comprising approximately 1/5 of the total l ...

. It is an annual event, spanning eleven days mid-August.

History

The Gäubodenvolksfest was founded in the year 1812 by Maximilian I Joseph, King of Bavaria, as an agricultural festival to foster an annual gathering of the people in the

Danube The Danube ( ; see also #Names and etymology, other names) is the List of rivers of Europe#Longest rivers, second-longest river in Europe, after the Volga in Russia. It flows through Central and Southeastern Europe, from the Black Forest sou ...

region. The festival went on hiatus in 1915–1918, 1940–1945, and 2020–2021.

Description

The Gäubodenvolksfest is a modern and family-friendly festival with several attractions, including carousels and

roller coasters A roller coaster is a type of amusement ride employing a form of elevated railroad track that carries passengers on a train through tight turns, steep slopes, and other elements, usually designed to produce a thrilling experience, though some r ...

. There are also several large

beer tent A pole marquee or pole tent is a variety of large tent often used to shelter summer events such as shows, festivals, and weddings. They are particularly associated with typical English country garden weddings and village fetes. The basic desi ...

s that span a 100,000 m² area. The event has maintained the historic character of Bavarian festivals, and attracts approximately 1.4 million visitors every year. Many visitors wear traditional Bavarian clothing (''

Tracht ''Tracht'' () refers to traditional garments in German-speaking countries and regions. Although the word is most often associated with Bavarian, Austrian, South Tyrolean and Trentino garments, including lederhosen and dirndls, many other Germa ...

'') for the occasion. The festival combines Bavarian tradition with progress and vitality. It is one of Bavaria's oldest and most popular festivals and it has increased to one of the biggest events in

Germany Germany, officially the Federal Republic of Germany, is a country in Central Europe. It lies between the Baltic Sea and the North Sea to the north and the Alps to the south. Its sixteen States of Germany, constituent states have a total popu ...

Beer Beer is an alcoholic beverage produced by the brewing and fermentation of starches from cereal grain—most commonly malted barley, although wheat, maize (corn), rice, and oats are also used. The grain is mashed to convert starch in the ...

plays a central role in the fair. The beer is specially brewed, and only breweries from

or the district

Straubing-Bogen Straubing-Bogen is a Districts of Germany, ''Landkreis'' (district) in the eastern part of Bavaria, Germany. Neighboring districts are (from the north clockwise) Cham (district), Cham, Regen (district), Regen, Deggendorf (district), Deggendorf, Din ...

are allowed to serve beer there. On the first day of the festival there is a "Bierprobe", which means "

beer tasting Beer tasting is the experience of sampling beer. Depending on how the tasting is designed, it can be a way to learn more about the history, ingredients and production of beer as well as different beer styles, hops, yeast and beer presentation. A co ...

," followed by a parade consisting of people wearing Bavarian native attire walking on foot, riding horses, or in horse carriages. On the second day there is the official opening with a representative of the

n or German government. The festival is held every year in the middle of August and lasts 11 days. The festival is celebrated by the whole city as a "fifth season", and many companies are closed down during this time. Combined with the Gäubodenvolksfest is the Ostbayernschau, the biggest trade show of eastern Bavaria."Ostbayernschau"
ausstellungsgmbh.de, downloaded 11 December 2014.

Statistics (2017)

* Number of visitors: 1.35 million * Beer: 730,000 litre * Breweries: 7 with 26,400 seats * Length: 2,500 metres * Price of a one-liter mug of beer (

Maß ' (pronounced ) or ' ( Swiss and Bavarian spelling, elsewhere used for dialectal ) is the German word describing the amount of beer in a regulation mug, in modern times exactly . is also a common abbreviation for ', the handled drinking vess ...

): €9,15

Main Attractions/Festival Events

Olympia Looping
(appears once every two or three years) * Star World (appears once every two or three years) * Wilde Maus * Feuer und Eis (Fire and Ice) * Free fall tower * Chairoplane * Bumper cars * Transformer * Bavarian Big Wheel * Whitewater channel * Horse riding * Children and family friendly carousels * Revues and shows * Bavarian and international food and beverages * A parade with Bavarian and international folklore and beer carriages * A romantic parade with boats, swimmers, and torches on the

* A boxing match and other sport events * Two fireworks displays * The beer tents with Bavarian folk music and mood music

Dates of Previous/ Upcoming Events

* 2020: 7 to 17 August (not held,

COVID-19 pandemic The COVID-19 pandemic (also known as the coronavirus pandemic and COVID pandemic), caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2), began with an disease outbreak, outbreak of COVID-19 in Wuhan, China, in December ...

) * 2021: 13 to 23 August (not held) * 2022: 12 to 22 August * 2023: 11 to 21 August * 2024: 9 to 19 August

Beer tents

;Weckmann Brewery:, Röhrl

;Krönner Brewery: Irlbacher, Irlbach ;Lechner Brewery: Irlbacher, Irlbach ;Nothaft Brewery: Karmeliten,

;Reisinger Brewery:

Arcobräu Arcobräu is a brewery located in the Lower Bavarian municipality of Moos, Bavaria, Moos, Germany. The brewery has been owned by the family Arco-Zinneberg for 450 years. With an annual production volume of about , it is among the larger brewerie ...

, Moos ;Wenisch Brewery: Erl-Bräu, Geiselhöring ;Greindl Brewery: Karmeliten,

References

External links

Official Website of the Gäubodenvolksfest

Information in English about Gäubodenvolksfest

A lot of pictures about the people, the fun, the beer tents, the nice atmosphere, the ostbayernschau-fair, the rides and so on ...

gäubodenvolksfest.de

Lechners Schmankerlzelt

Wenisch

Reisinger

Krönner

Nothaft

Röhrlbräu
{{DEFAULTSORT:Gaubodenvolksfest Beer festivals in Germany Culture of Altbayern Tourist attractions in Bavaria 1812 establishments in Bavaria Annual events in Germany Festivals established in 1812 Straubing