Oktoberfest Amsterdam 2026
20 minutes by train: Veerplas, Haarlem
Final tickets only
Is there an Oktoberfest in Amsterdam in 2026?
Amsterdam has no large Oktoberfest in its own festival tent. What the city does have are separate Oktoberfest parties in bars, clubs and on boats: fun, but indoors and for a few hundred people. The real Wiesn experience, a tent full of long tables, brass music and thousands of people on the benches at once, is not there.
Twenty minutes away by train it is. On Saturday 19 September 2026, Haarlems Oktoberfest takes over the Veerplas in Haarlem: the largest Oktoberfest in North Holland. A festival tent of 64 by 35 metres, room for 5,000 visitors, eight live acts, two big bars and our own Oktoberfest beer.
You step off the train and walk into the tent. Haarlem Spaarnwoude station is within walking distance of the grounds. From Amsterdam Centraal you are there in under 20 minutes, from Amsterdam Sloterdijk in roughly 7. No parking hassle, no taxi home.
Last updated: . Beer tables are sold out; only final tickets remain.
What is Oktoberfest exactly?
Oktoberfest is the Bavarian folk festival that has been held in Munich since 1810. It started as the wedding celebration of Crown Prince Ludwig and Princess Therese of Saxe-Hildburghausen, with a horse race on a meadow outside the city. That meadow has been called the Theresienwiese ever since, and the party kept coming back. Today it draws around six million visitors a year, and Bavarians simply call it "die Wiesn".
The fixed ingredients
- Tents. Not a bar and not a hall, but enormous tents with long wooden tables, where you sit down next to strangers and end up singing with them half an hour later.
- Beer by the litre. In Munich it is poured into a one-litre Maßkrug, from the six breweries inside the city limits.
- Brass bands and singalongs. Oompah during the day, and in the evening the songs that get the whole tent up on the benches.
- Bratwurst and Brezeln. Sausage off the grill, salt crystals on a fresh pretzel, and enough to get you through the night.
- Lederhosen and Dirndl. The Bavarian traditional dress, worn in Munich by almost everyone, including people who never wear it otherwise.
- The opening. The mayor taps the first barrel and shouts "O'zapft is!", and the festival is open.
Why is it called Oktoberfest if it starts in September?
The very first Oktoberfest was held on 12 October 1810. It was later moved forward, simply because the weather in September is better, but the name stuck. The official Oktoberfest in Munich runs from 19 September to 4 October 2026.
Haarlems Oktoberfest deliberately picks the same opening day: Saturday 19 September 2026. That way the season starts alongside Bavaria. And September in the Netherlands tends to be kinder than October, which helps when you walk back to the station at night.
From Amsterdam to Oktoberfest in 20 minutes
The Veerplas sits on the eastern edge of Haarlem, with Haarlem Spaarnwoude station within walking distance of the grounds. From Amsterdam it is one sprinter, no transfer, no hunting for a parking space.
Amsterdam Centraal
< 20 min
Direct sprinter towards Haarlem, get off at Haarlem Spaarnwoude.
Amsterdam Sloterdijk
± 7 min
Even closer. Same sprinter, two stops down the line.
Station → tent
On foot
Haarlem Spaarnwoude is within walking distance of the Veerplas.
Coming from another Amsterdam station? Change at Amsterdam Sloterdijk or Amsterdam Centraal. The festival runs until 23:00 and trains back towards Amsterdam still run afterwards. Check your exact times in the NS app for Saturday 19 September 2026.
Driving is possible, but parking around the Veerplas is limited. From Amsterdam the train is simply faster, and nobody has to be the designated driver.
Mind the last entry: after 20:00 you can no longer enter the grounds, so leave the city in good time.
A real tent, not a bar night
Haarlems Oktoberfest is not a beer festival with a band attached, and not a pub night in German dress. It is a party in a giant tent, where the classic Oktoberfest atmosphere meets a large dance floor, a catwalk and live entertainment. Made by two people from Haarlem for their own city, and for anyone who can be there in twenty minutes.
64 by 35 metres
A festival tent with room for 5,000 party-goers, two large bars so you never wait long, a big dance floor and a catwalk.
8 live acts
A mix of Dutch-language hits, party music and Oktoberfest classics. From singalongs to full-on bangers, from 15:00 until 23:00.
Party alarm every hour
Every hour the party alarm goes off and we pull random visitors on stage for a game with prizes. There is also a prize for the best dressed visitor.
Bratwurst and Brezeln
Food trucks next to the tent, with the food that belongs at an Oktoberfest. You pay with tokens, bought on site by card or cash.
No table needed
The beer tables are sold out, but you are not missing out. An entry ticket puts you on the dance floor, at both bars and in front of the stage.
For everyone
18+ with ID, wheelchair accessible, alcohol-free beer on tap and prices deliberately kept low. The atmosphere is made together, not from behind a table.
- Line-up 2026: Sven Versteeg, Otto Wunderbar, Zware Jongens, Wolfgang Saufi, Bernardo, Papa Lauda, Robin Razz and Christa Kerdijk.
- Dress up: Lederhosen and Dirndl are not required, but they are half the fun. See yourself in Lederhosen with our selfie generator.
- Coming with your Amsterdam team? Business tickets with payment by invoice are on the page for companies.
Our own Haarlems Oktoberfest beer
Where an Oktoberfest party in the city pours whatever the bar happens to have on tap, we brew our own. Together with De Hollandse Pilsener Fabriek in Halfweg, with our own label, in three varieties. Their pilsener won gold at the Dutch Beer Challenge 2026.
Pilsener
Crisp and light, exactly what you want after an hour on the dance floor. Brewed by the brewery that won gold at the Dutch Beer Challenge 2026.
Weizen
Full, fruity and cloudy. The German wheat beer no Oktoberfest can do without, not even one just outside Amsterdam.
Alcohol-free
You drink along without the alcohol. Same glass, same atmosphere, and you can hop on the train home without a second thought.
Practical information: Oktoberfest near Amsterdam 2026
| Date | Saturday 19 September 2026 |
|---|---|
| Time | 15:00 to 23:00 |
| Last entry | 20:00 |
| Location | Veerplas, Haarlem (North Holland) |
| From Amsterdam | Under 20 minutes by train from Amsterdam Centraal, get off at Haarlem Spaarnwoude |
| Capacity | 5,000 visitors, in a tent of 64 by 35 metres |
| Age | 18+, valid ID required |
| Tickets | Final tickets only, through the official ticket shop |
| Beer tables | Sold out (and not needed, an entry ticket gives full access) |
| Paying on site | With tokens. €3.50 per token online in presale, slightly more at the event. Tokens are bought on site by card or cash |
| Food | Food trucks with Bratwurst, Brezeln and more |
| Beer | Our own Haarlems Oktoberfest beer: Pilsener, Weizen and alcohol-free |
| Dress code | Not required. Lederhosen and Dirndl recommended, with a prize for the best dressed visitor |
| Accessibility | Grounds and tent are wheelchair accessible |
| Organiser | Haarlems Oktoberfest BV, founded by father Eelco and son Marvin Visser |
Haarlems Oktoberfest next to Oktoberfest Munich
If you searched for "Oktoberfest Amsterdam" because you want the Munich feeling without flying to Bavaria, this comparison helps:
| Oktoberfest Munich | Haarlems Oktoberfest | |
|---|---|---|
| When | 19 September to 4 October 2026 | Saturday 19 September 2026, the same opening day |
| Where | Theresienwiese, Munich | Veerplas, Haarlem |
| From Amsterdam | A flight, or over ten hours by train | Under 20 minutes on the sprinter |
| Setting | Multiple tents, millions of visitors combined | One tent of 64 by 35 metres, 5,000 visitors |
| Music | Brass bands and German singalongs | Oktoberfest classics, party music and Dutch-language hits |
| Beer | Six Munich breweries, served in a Maßkrug | Our own Oktoberfest beer from Halfweg: Pilsener, Weizen and alcohol-free |
| Clothing | Lederhosen and Dirndl | Lederhosen and Dirndl, with a prize for the best dressed visitor |
| Getting home | Book a hotel or a flight | Walk to Haarlem Spaarnwoude, train to Amsterdam |
Tickets for the Oktoberfest near Amsterdam
Final tickets only
All beer tables are sold out and of the regular entry tickets only the final tickets remain. That is all you need: an entry ticket puts you on the dance floor, at both bars and in front of the stage, with every performance and the party alarm included.
Please note: our ticket shop is in Dutch only.
Booking for your company? Pay by invoice. Click here.
You will be taken to our official ticket shop
Orders are handled by our ticketing partner Weeztix.