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Find an Oktoberfest near your base

Of course, not everyone can make it to Deutschland for Oktoberfest’s 200th anniversary, but that doesn’t mean you can’t enjoy good beer and authentic German food and fun. There are now hundreds of Oktoberfests around the U.S., too. Some of the best within shot of major military bases. Numbers correspond to the map in the upper right; click on it to enlarge.

1. Leavenworth, Wash.: Oct. 1-2, 8-9 and 15-16

Nestled in the heart of the Cascade Mountains, Leavenworth was reinvented as a Bavarian village in 1962 to breathe new life into the dying timber town. This is no plastic Disney World version. The city fathers have taken pains to provide an authentic illusion, and it shows in their annual Oktoberfest. The celebration is now spread over four big tent venues and three weekends, and organizers expect 30,000 people to join in this year. The village main street is converted into a kinderplatz area just for kids, with a climbing wall, bouncy toys, games and entertainers.

• Tickets: $10-$15; free for active-duty military and their families.

• Near: Naval Station Everett, 2 hours; Naval Air Station Whidbey Island, 2.5 hours; Joint Base Lewis-McChord, 3 hours; Naval Base Kitsap, 3 hours.

• Website.

2. Ventura County, Calif.: Sept. 25-26

Oktoberfest held under the wings of a fleet of U.S. World War II aircraft is near-perfect irony. This year, Ventura’s 26th annual Oktoberfest is moving to the home of the Air Force Commemorative Museum, which will offer an air show as thousands enjoy beer, brats and bands flown in direct from Bavaria, as well as a wide assortment of local brews and food.

• Tickets: $10; 12 and under get in free.

• Near: Naval Base Ventura County, 30 minutes; Vandenberg Air Force Base, 2 hours; San Diego-area military installations, 3 hours.

• Website.

3. Big Bear Lake, Calif.: weekends, Sept. 18-Oct. 30

The wooded hills of southern California are alive with music. The Big Bear Lake Oktoberfest was first conceived by Hans and Erika Bandows after surviving their first year as new managers of the big lodge in the heart of the San Bernardino National Forest. Forty years later, the fest draws 20,000 visitors every weekend through the end of October.

• Tickets: $6-$12

• Near: Marine Corps Air Ground Combat Center Twentynine Palms, 1.5 hours; Fort Irwin, 2.5 hours; San Diego-area installations, 3 hours; Edwards Air Force Base, 3 hours.

• Website.

4. Fredericksburg, Texas: Oct. 1-3

When the town is founded by a guy named Baron Otfried Hans von Meusebach, you know it’s going to do Oktoberfest right. The event offers beer gardens, craft vendors and plenty of Tex-German food and brew while two separate stages provide a continuous diet of oompah music. While you’re there, check out the tribute to one of Fredericksburg’s favorite hometown heroes: The Admiral Nimitz National Museum of the Pacific War.

• Tickets: Adults, $6; children 6-12, $1; 5 and under, free.

• Near: Fort Hood, 2.5 hours; San Antonio-area military installations, 1.5 hours.

• Website.

5. Cincinnati: Sept. 18-19

Drawing on Ohio’s deep German roots, half a million visitors turn “Oktoberfest Zinzinnati” into the biggest German-American beer bash of the year, stretching across six city blocks. How crazy does it get? Four words: World’s Largest Chicken Dance. In 1994, 48,000 fest-goers made it official when they flapped their way into the record books. And every year since, they’ve tried to top it. Busy that weekend? Catch a “sneak peak” Sept. 16.

• Tickets: Free

• Near: Wright-Patterson Air Force Base, 1 hour.

• Website.

6. Helen, Ga.: Sept. 9-Oct. 31

Another timber town-turned-mock Alpine village, Helen has already started its Oktoberfest celebrations. Outdoing the real Oktoberfest by more than a month, the Helen Oktoberfest’s daily festivities will have you in lederhosen in no time.

• Tickets: Monday-Friday, $7; Saturday, $8; Sunday, free.

• Near: Forts Gillem and McPherson, 2 hours; Fort Gordon, 3 hours; Robins Air Force Base, 3 hours; Fort Benning, 3.5 hours.

• Website.

7. Charlotte, N.C.: Sept. 25

Organized by the Carolina Brewmasters, this 12th annual event will feature 350 brews from across the state and around the world along with big stage entertainment and games of luck and skill at the “Creative Loafing Beerlympic Village.”

• Tickets: $20-$50

• Near: Fort Jackson, S.C., 2 hours; Fort Bragg, 3 hours; Joint Base Charleston, S.C., 3.5 hours.

• Website.

8. Lake Worth, Fla.: Oct. 8-10, 15-17

Hosted by the American German Club of the Palm Beaches, the 38th annual Lake Worth Oktoberfest stretches across 10 acres, with carnival rides, crafts vendors, music and dancing pavilions, and a massive fest tent for beer stein-swinging sing-a-longs.

• Tickets: $7; kids under 12, free.

• Near: Army Garrison Miami, 1.5 hours; Patrick Air Force Base, 2.5 hours; Naval Air Station Key West, 4 hours.

• Website.

9. National Harbor (Oxon Hill, Md.): Sept. 25-26

“Bier ist wunderbar!” proclaim the producers of “Das Best Oktoberfest.” Last year 17,000 revelers agreed. That’s why organizers have added another day as well an extra 50,000 square feet of tent space to pack in all the live music, homebrew contests, microbrew and international tastings, plus plenty of wine, schnapps and schnitzel goodness. The fest turns into a road show with stops at the Timonium Fairgrounds, Md. (Oct. 9) and New York City (Oct. 23 to 24).

• Tickets: $25

• Near: Washington, D.C.-area military installations, 30 minutes.

• Website.

10. Munich, Germany: Sept. 18-Oct. 4

Oktoberfest is more than a big beer bash. It’s also a family-friendly carnival with amusement park rides, food and live music as well as vendors selling everything from souvenirs to quality German crafts. Indeed, no beer or other alcohol is even sold — or allowed — outside the big fest tents.

Children are allowed to visit the beer tents during the day but have to leave by 8 p.m.; when things start to get rowdy. Other annual Oktoberfest highlights include the Costume and Riflemen’s Parade on the first Sunday, the “Böllerschießen” — a handheld canon salute — in front of the Bavaria statue and, special for this year, an agricultural festival. And if beer isn’t your favorite adult beverage, don’t forget the Weinzelt, an entire fest tent dedicated to wine lovers.

• Near: Army Garrison Ansbach, 2 hours; Ramstein Air Base, 4 hours.

• Website.

Related reading

• Oktobeerfests: An ocean of brew and a sea of sights