At the first Oktoberfest after the corona-related forced break, visitors have to dig much deeper into their pockets for the beer. The price is between 12.60 euros and 13.80 euros (average: 13.37 euros), as the city announced on Thursday.
Compared to the previous Wiesn 2019, the price has increased by an average of 15.77 percent. At that time, a beer cost 10.80 to 11.80 euros (average 11.55 euros). The festival was canceled twice due to the pandemic.
“It’s good that the sound limit of 14 euros has not been broken,” said Munich economics officer and Wiesn boss Clemens Baumgärtner (CSU). “Nevertheless, the beer prices are quite high. In the future we will have to make sure that the Wiesn remains affordable.” However, the innkeepers would have higher costs; the increase should also be seen in relative terms given the period of more than three years.
The landlords cite inflation, a 15 percent rise in personnel costs and sharply increased energy prices as reasons for the jump in prices. “We didn’t make it easy for ourselves, but we Oktoberfest hosts cannot detach ourselves from the general price trend either,” said the spokesman for the Oktoberfest hosts, Peter Inselkammer.
A large item are also material and craftsman costs when setting up the tent, said Inselkammer. “This is a huge position for us.” It is still unclear what repairs will be necessary. The long storage could have damaged the cloth.
The hosts are still looking for staff. Because of the long break, construction on the Theresienwiese will begin on June 20 this year so that any damage can be identified and repaired in good time after the break, as Baumgärtner announced.
The beer price at the Wiesn has always been a political issue in Munich – and of course it was always too high. In previous years, Baumgärtner and his predecessor Josef Schmid (CSU) had tried to persuade the innkeepers to a zero round, but without success.
Of course, that wasn’t an issue this year. “It is more likely that the Wiesn will take place than that the price of beer will fall,” said Prime Minister Markus Söder (CSU) last year as an outlook on a then uncertain Oktoberfest 2022. Those who drink water will get away a little cheaper. The liter costs 9.67 euros on average, which is 80 cents more than in 2019.
