Beer in Bavaria

They came with children. They came with friends and families, and even office colleagues to Munich. The young folks in droves arrived too, all to enjoy the beer, food, weather and more for the jamboree called Oktoberfest. And the half time report on the most popular European beer festival says that around 3.3 million guests have already made their way to the gala, higher than last year's three million.

Towns to fests

It isn't uncommon to see Indians visiting Bavaria for the most European festival but what is interesting is many of these travellers have always been regular.

However, this time as many enthusiasts from smaller towns too headed to party in Bavaria. "What is interesting is that the demand is not restricted to the metro cities but equally from mini-metros and Tier-II cities such as Pune, Chandigarh, Jaipur, Aurangabad, Nagpur and Ahmedabad. Oktoberfest is seeing significant uptake from adhoc groups of friends; also MICE (Meetings, Incentives, Conferences and Events) corporate groups," said Rajee Kale, president and country head, leisure travel and MICE, Thomas Cook India. The travel agency said that their queries for the festival went up this year by 27% compared to 2017.

The experience of heading to the beer capital of the world, combined with local marketing strategies have helped increase interest in Oktoberfest. "What has made this event in Germany popular is that back home in India, restaurants and bars organise their own Oktoberfest-themed parties. This has aroused curiosity amongst Indians. And they want to travel closer to get the real experience. It's all about being part of the fun," says Karan Anand, head of relationships at Cox & Kings.

The season for the fest starts September and ends in early October. According to Anand, the demand has gone up by 20%. "As the dates for 2019 is already out, people have started preparing for the next year's event as well," he said.

A large global party

Apart from wanderlust and love for beer and partying, there is something else that is pulling Indians to head to Munich. According to Nikhil Merchant, food writer and gourmet consultant, food and beer is a key attraction, but the experience is not about that.

"People from all over the world come to Munich. Those who travel during this time meet people from many countries and experience a lot of cultures with a varied cosmopolitan crowd. That's what pushes a lot of people to go there during the festival," says Merchant.

When people are in good company, combined with of beer and food, it provides a 360-degree experience to revellers. Added to that, alcohol connoisseurs enjoy the variety that is served there, as they get to sample hundreds of types of beer right from local manufacturers to larger companies.

In festive form

Indians have taken to global festivals alike. The combination of a festival with sightseeing, is making them plan their holidays around these times. Music carnivals, literary fiestas apart from global-scale parties are making Indian set sail to far off lands. "The need to experiment has encouraged Indians to try out new aspects of a vacation. The Montreax Jazz Festival, the Woodstock Music and Art Fair are amongst the most common," says Anand.

High networth Indians form a key part of this market, though youngsters who save up for a vacation also plan it during these times. According to Daniel D'souza- head of sales, India and NRI markets and e-commerce SOTC Travel, the UK version of Oktoberfest is also turning equally popular.

"International Music carnivals such as TomorrowLand, Burning Man, and closer home names, including Ziro, NH7 and Sunburn/Supersonic have seen strong demand from Indians. So have events like La Tomatina, Mardi Gras, the Rio Carnival, Venice Carnival and Glastonbury; also Jazz festivals of New Orleans, Montreux, and Montreal," says Kale.

PROST TIME IN THE BEER CAPITAL

• Growing interest in Bavaria combined with local marketing strategies has caught people’s fancy 
   
• The combination of a festival and sightseeing lures Indians to plan their holidays around these times