Oktoberfest Gay Sunday takes over Munich TODAY as thousands join LGBTQ+ celebration
Thousands of LGBTQ+ visitors are gathering in Munich today as Oktoberfest’s famous Gay Sunday begins a week of queer events across the festival.
Thousands of LGBTQ+ visitors are gathering at Oktoberfest in Munich today as one of the festival’s biggest LGBTQ+ traditions returns.
Gay Sunday takes place today, Sunday 20 September, at the Bräurosl festival tent, with celebrations beginning from 9am.
The tradition stretches back more than 40 years after being established by Munich’s Münchner Löwen Club, growing into a major LGBTQ+ gathering during the opening weekend of the world-famous German beer festival.
For one day, the Bräurosl becomes a huge meeting point for the LGBTQ+ community, bringing together visitors from Munich, across Germany and around the world.
The general areas of the tent remain open to everyone, although separate arrangements apply to areas reserved by the Münchner Löwen Club.
It creates a distinctive combination of LGBTQ+ culture and Bavarian tradition, with visitors celebrating alongside the beer, live music and traditional clothing that have made Oktoberfest internationally famous.
Gay Sunday is also just the beginning of a much wider programme of LGBTQ+ events planned at Oktoberfest this week.
Rosa Montag follows on Monday 21 September, while Subavaria takes place on Wednesday 23 September. Proud Wiesn then arrives on Sunday 27 September, with other LGBTQ+ gatherings and activities continuing throughout Oktoberfest.
The programme means LGBTQ+ visitors travelling to Munich have far more to discover than a single day at the Bräurosl, with community events becoming an established part of the wider Oktoberfest calendar.
The scale of Gay Sunday is particularly remarkable considering its beginnings more than four decades ago.
What started as a community gathering has developed into an established part of Oktoberfest, giving LGBTQ+ visitors their own place within one of Germany’s biggest cultural celebrations.
For anyone walking into the Bräurosl today, the result is likely to look unmistakably Oktoberfest, but with a very different crowd taking centre stage.
