A Guide to Oktoberfest Celebrations in Southern California

Fall in Southern California brings a variety of harvest and fall activities but none are as eagerly anticipated by beer connoisseurs as the annual Oktoberfest Celebrations in Torrance, Huntington Beach and Big Bear, California. All three cities offer very popular Oktoberfest events with a variety of activities for young and old alike.

Alpine Village in Torrance is billed as the largest and longest Oktoberfest in Southern California running from September 12, 2009 through October 25, 2009. Celebrating its 42nd year Alpine Villages Oktoberfest was billed as one of the best Oktoberfest celebrations in the World by USA Today. This event features an authentic Omp Pah- Pah Brass Band from Germany and lots of traditional dancers. It takes place in an outdoor beer garden which is ideal for enjoying the Southern California weather. There are lots of fun and silly contests like yodeling, pretzel eating, cow milking, wood sawing and beer stein holding offered and enjoyed by all.

Traditional German beer as well as local offerings are on tap in the beer garden and you’ll find plenty of German food to tantalize your taste buds, Want to take a break from all the celebrating? Alpine Village offers 22 cozy shops to visit. You’ll find everything from German sausage and pastries to works of art available for purchase.

You can find out for information about this annual event on their website at alpinevillage.net.

The annual Oktoberfest Celebration in Huntington Beach, California is held at Old World Village and will take place from September 6, 2009 to November 1, 2009.

The Oktoberfest is held at Old World Restaurant, which is in the middle of a miniature Bavarian Village. Its red cobblestone streets, quaint shops and murals depicting different European Regions will have you believing you’ve entered another country. German is regularly spoken in the village so don’t be surprised if you are greeted with a hearty Gut en Tag.Old Village offers German bands playing the finest Omp Pah- Pah music, dancing, including the famous chicken dance, the best German beers and tasty German foods from bratwurst to apple strudel.

On Sundays those wearing a dirndl skirt or lederhosen will get free admission. Otherwise see their website for days and pricing information: oldworld.ws

if you have children stop by on a Sunday from 2:00 – 7:30 pm for Kinderfest, an Oktoberfest Celebration geared to the whole family. Enjoy dachshund ( wiener dog) races, carnival games and Bobo the Chicken. If visiting on the weekend makes sure and arrive early to get parking and assure yourself of finding a table to sit at, as weekends can get quite busy.

If your up for a bit of mountain driving then the annual Oktoberfest in Big Bear California is for you. In its 39th season this event takes place weekends from September 19, 2009 through October 31, 2009. Big Bears Oktoberfest is packed full of entertainment, games and activity and definitely offers something for everyone. Polka dancers, musicians, yodelers and cloggers round out the entertainment and everyone enjoys clucking away to the Chicken Dance on the big dance floor or seeing how low they can go in the limbo contest.

If friendly competition is your thing then try your hand competing in one of the many game offerings at the celebration. From O’Douls non alcoholic drinking contests, to stein holding, log sawing, yodeling, stein carrying and the sausage eating contests you’ll be sure to find something to challenge your skills. There are even games for the kids to enjoy like pretzel eating contests, mini mug holding contests and Midway carnival-style games.

If you need a break from all the activity you can take a leisurely stroll through the Budenstrasse ( avenue of booths) where you can visit a variety of craft booths, exhibitors and a large petting zoo right underneath the mountain pines.

Because of its location high up in the mountains you may want to arrange to stay over. Big Bear offers a variety of lodging options from hotels and bed and breakfasts to private homes and cabins.The following site offers a complete listing of the options available for Oktoberfest revelers who would rather spend the night bigbear.com.

For more information about Oktoberfest in Big Bear you can visit their site at bigbear.com.

Whether you chose to celebrate Oktoberfest by the beach , in the city or up in the mountains, Southern California offers some great Celebrations that everyone can enjoy and participate in and you don’t even have to be a beer drinker.