Oktoberfest: Munich’s hoteliers brew up business

For 180 years in downtown Munich, Oktoberfest has celebrated German beer with connoisseurs from all over the world. Attendance to the international event naturally enlivened the city’s hotel sector, advancing as compared to the same period last year, as shown by the data collected by MKG Hospitality.

The 2013 edition of the largest beer festival in Germany has, according to event organizers, gathered some 6.4 million beer-lovers who spent about 400 million euro at the event between September 21st and October 6th.

Attendance and international visibility at Oktoberfest naturally had a leverage effect on hotel performance in Munich. Over the 16 days of festivities, attendance to establishments in the city rose to an 87% occupancy rate, peaking at more than 90% on some days. This influx affected average daily rates which surpassed 200 euro over the period. The combination of these two activity indices allowed hoteliers to achieve an average room turnover of more than 180 euro per available room over the course of the event.

The data collected by MKG Hospitality show an advance in hotel performances achieved over the course of Oktoberfest from season to season. Between 2012 and 2013, establishments in Munich were able to improve their turnover by 2.3%, thanks to the increase in attendance and average daily rates, by 0.7 point and 1.5% respectively, even while 2012 had already been on an excellent track.

"The success of Oktoberfest is explained particularly by the fact that more and more duplicates of the event exist internationally today and that the participants of these beer festivals want to experience the original, that of Munich. The growing impact of Oktoberfest also lets surrounding cities profit from the crowds at the event, such as Augsburg, Ingolstadt and Garmisch-Partenkirchen", explains Dehoga Bayern, the region's hotel union.