I assume you’re attending some kind of an Oktoberfest party and you’re wanting to know about Oktoberfest costumes for men and in particular the German lederhosen costume which has become the costume of choice. Well i’m going to tell you about a range of cool German party costumes to wear for Oktoberfest and then we’ll talk a little bit more about everybody’s favorite, lederhosen.

One thing i’ll say first though is that it’s very important to make a big effort with your costume. Everybody else will be and so you don’t want to be left out.

Oktoberfest Costumes For Men

There are a few great Oktoberfest costumes for men which aren’t the typical lederhosen costume, so you should consider the others which i’ll list below:

1. Hansel – The guy from Hansel and Gretel who left bread crumbs to find his way home! This is from the classic fairy tale that we all know and love. If you have a partner then you should both go together as Hansel and Gretel. You need to ensure you have a wicker hand basket filled with bread crumbs, this will make a cool conversation starter and you’ll be able to nibble on them all night long, feed the dog or otherwise have a method of finding your way home.

2. Tracht – Tracht is a traditional German and Austrian outfit typically worn by farmers and peasants. Tracht tends to be bright blue, a highly decorated blazer. The decorations were a measure of a mans wealth and therefore his eligibility.

3. Lederhosen – And now for what you’ve been waiting for, German lederhosen. We all know and love it, so now lets look into how you can make your own lederhosen.

German Lederhosen Costumes

There are many awesome lederhosen costumes you can get great deals on! Of course part of the joy of Oktoberfest is dressing up in a lederhosen costume and so for the guys, i really would go with this otherwise things just wouldn’t be the same. If you don’t dress in lederhosen then you’re simply not going to fit in with the rest of the guys.

If you’d like to create your own lederhosen costume then there’s a good chance that you already have many of the things needed at home. You may need to purchase a few things to make your costume even better though. Let’s see what you need to make your own lederhosen costume:

1. The lederhosen itself actually refers primarily to the leather breeches which should cover your waist and extend down to the knees or above! These are actually specialist items but you can buy them for a surprisingly low cost.

2. They should be held up by suspenders. Go for suspenders the same color as your lederhosen whether they be brown or black.

3. Wear a white shirt underneath the suspenders.

4. Leather shoes – Try and make sure your lederhosen, suspenders and shoes are the same shade of brown or black!

5. White socks, pulled all the way up almost to the knee!

6. You can also get a traditional Bavarian hat!

7. If you’d like an accessory to carry then how about some of the following comedy items: beer stein, bratwursts, ginger bread or a brass instrument. Getting accessories will give you things to talk about and they make for great photos too.

Oktoberfest is a huge fair that happens every year in Bavaria. It lasts for 2 weeks at the end of September and the beginning of October. Around 6 million people travel from all over the world every year to Bavaria to take part in Oktoberfest where the only requirement is to drink, drink and drink whilst wearing traditional German costumes.

If you can’t travel to Bavaria then you should throw your own Oktoberfest theme party at home. Our dedicated Oktoberfest party ideas page provides many ideas at throwing an awesome Oktoberfest party.

As mentioned above, it is very important to wear traditional German costumes for your Oktoberfest party. The most popular by far is the German beer girl costume and as you can see they come in many shapes, styles, sizes and colors.

So let’s take a look at some of the other Oktoberfest costumes for women. You can make your own costumes or buy them it’s up to you. What you can do as a compromise is purchase the costume and then create your own accessories as described in more detail below:

Oktoberfest Costumes For Women

1. Gretel – If you’re going to the party as a couple then Hansel and Gretel would be a great idea! Don’t forget to take your breadcrumbs, perhaps in a little basket and maybe even some candy you’ve stolen from the evil witch’s house!

2. Milk Maid / Swiss Alpine Girl – You know the look! The girl has long blond pig-tails with a light blue dress and white stockings pulled all the way up. The Alpine Girl is sweet and pleasant to everyone. She likes to milk cows, so bring one along with you.

3. German Beer Girl – This is the classic Oktoberfest outfit they’ll all be dressed in, in Bavaria. Where the guys have the lederhosen, the girls have Beer Girl! Beer girl comes in many guises and we’ll talk about that below:

German Beer Girl Costumes

Beer girl costumes have long been worn by bar maids in beer halls across Germany, Bavaria in particular! The beer girl costume really is the traditional look for the ladies at Oktoberfest and I urge you to make your best effort with this costume!

You can either purchase the beer girl costume in full or you can make your own, if you go for the latter then here are a few tips:

1. You need a white Swiss alpine blouse! If you look up some of these you can see that there are many styles of white alpine blouse you could use. You probably already have something suitable in your wardrobe.

2. Choose the color for your skirt; green or brown are best! What ever color you go for then your accessories should ideally be the same color.

3. Black high heeled shoes.

4. White socks pulled all the way up to the knee. You can use white stockings of course, they will work equally as well.

5. Dye your hair blond or get a blond wig and tie your hair in pig-tails.

6. You should also have a lace up corset to go over your blouse, this should be the same color as your skirt.

7. For accessories, how about a beer stein!

If you have any German beer girl costume ideas, or would like to add anything about Oktoberfest costumes for women then please leave a comment below.

Oktoberfest is the worlds largest fair and has taken place in Munich for 16 days at the end of September, beginning of October every year since 1810. Up to 6 million people attend from Bavaria, all over Germany and indeed the world over!

However, you can hold your own Oktoberfest party with our Oktoberfest party ideas, bringing a bit of Bavarian culture to your own town!

Because of Oktoberfest, the world has got to know many of the German stereotypes and I suggest that these stereotypes be taken advantage of during your Oktoberfest theme party.

 Oktoberfest Party Invitations

There are plenty of things you could do for your invitations! Get some card and cut out invitations in the shape of lederhosen, a beer glass, a beer keg, beer goggles, beer stein or some bratwurst.

State clearly that it is expected that everybody must dress up, or they will be charged an admittance fee!

For an Oktoberfest party, it’s imperative you create your own Facebook event page and use it to invite all your guests. Put up nice pictures of beer and other German stereotypes. Get everyone excited and keep them informed of progress this way! Once your Oktoberfest party is over, you’ll all be able to upload your photos and video footage to your page as a permanent reminder of your awesome party.

Oktoberfest Party Costumes

Oktoberfest Party Costumes are fairly obvious. The guys have to wear full lederhosen, meaning leather trousers, which actually only go as far as the knee to be even more ridiculous. You also need suspenders to hold them up, even though i’m sure they’re probably tight enough already! You also need a feathered Alpine hat and knee height socks. Pray you’re not the only one dressing up!For more information on this then see our dedicated page on German lederhosen costumes.

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The ladies should go for an Alpine peasant girl look with lacy blouse and tight bodice. If you wish, you can dye your hair blonde and tie it up in pig tails! The girls should see this page for German beer girl costumes!

Oktoberfest Party Decorations

There’s only one real place you can go for cheap Oktoberfest Party Decorations! If you’re on a budget then simply pick and choose from the list below.

1. The colors of the Bavarian flag are blue and white. So get plenty of balloons in these colors, tie them together and…you know what to do!

2. Try and make your venue look like a traditional German beer keller or brau haus! The best thing to have would be 1 long wooden table stretching all the way across the room! You could fix several smaller ones together of course.

3. Hang German things from the ceiling! Either cardboard cut outs or the real thing! Steins (German beer mugs), bratwurst, gingerbread men, Wellington boots (actually a British invention but you get the idea), a pair of lederhosen and beer kegs etc.

4. It may be painful, but you can hang the hideous German flag on the walls and put mini versions on the tables!

5. Get features such as an accordion, beer keg or large novelty beer glass to put around your venue and on the tables!

Oktoberfest Party Music

Hire out a brass band to play traditional German music as long as its in your budget. Otherwise a single accordion player will be much cheaper.

Or you could play German beer hall music. I have found This for you!

Oktoberfest Party Food

There are plenty of delicious and traditional German food that can be served at your Oktoberfest theme party. Consider hiring a chef if you have a budget or otherwise find some recipes for some of the following which I recommend:

Starters: Pretzels, Wiener Schnitzel, Potato Salad, Garlic Bread, Sausage Stuffed Mushrooms.

Main: Bratwurst, Nuremburgers, Meatloaf, Sauerkraut.

Dessert: Apple Strudel, Gingerbread Men, Stollen, Black Forest Cake.

Oktoberfest Party Drink

You don’t need me to tell you that your Oktoberfest theme party would be nothing without the drink. So lets get to it!

Germany is known for making the best beer in the world! Take advantage of this fact and buy in only German beers. Get plenty of different varieties as your guests will be drinking lots and will be wanting to experiment trying many different beers.  Some German beer is made especially for Oktoberfest every year! You should try and get in some dark beers with their full bodied flavor.

If you have given plenty of time to prepare for Oktoberfest, you could even Make Your Own Beer which will save you a lot of money especially if you’re planning on hosting a large party.

Just as important as the beer is what you are serving it in. I highly suggest you have plenty of German steins and beer glasses.

An alternative to beer would be Kirschwass (cherry brandy in a way).

For the non-alcoholics, ensure you’ve all the usual soft drinks and of course plentiful hot chocolate which is of course very popular in Germany.