bmi regional, a UK-based airline, is to provide services from Bristol to the cities with two of the biggest beer festivals in Germany, Munich and Hanover.
The service is intended to provide British revellers with access to Oktoberfest, a festival that despite its name actually starts this weekend and runs into October.
The 180th Munich Oktoberfest (www.oktoberfest.de) will start this Saturday, September 21, and it will run until October 6. Munich Oktoberfest is entertainment packed, with traditional live music from Bavarian bands, costume parades and child discounts on fairground rides and performances on Tuesdays. The Festival features 14 large ‘tents’ serving beers. The tents are huge, with some housing almost 6,000 inside seats, in addition to over 1,000 standing spots.
Extending from September 21 to 0ctober 6, all tents at Munich Oktoberfest open at either 9am or 10am and close at 11:30pm, with last orders at 10:30pm.
Considered the world’s second largest beer festival, the 16-day Hannover Oktoberfest (www.oktoberfest-hannover.de) starts ten days after the Munich Festival and runs until October 13.
Two large tents have a seating capacity for a thousand beer drinkers. The tents will remain open from 2pm until 11pm, Monday to Thursday, and until midnight, Friday to Sunday. Wednesdays – October 2 and 9 – are family days featuring children’s discos and entertainment. On September 27, October 4 and 11 at 9.45 pm, the night skies across the city centre will be lit up by fireworks.
bmi regional has flights from Bristol to Munich from only £79 per person one way, and from Bristol to Hannover from only £70 per person one way. All adult one-way flight prices include 20kg checked baggage and complimentary in-flight food and bar service. A 30-minute check-in facility is intended to help beer fans to maximise their time at the festivals.
