Food: ★★
Activities and Attractions: ★★★★★
Logistical Ease: ★★★★
Value for Cost: ★★
Safety: ★★★★★
Overall Rating: ★★★
Must-Do Activity
Oktoberfest Ferris Wheel / Heineken Experience
Must-Eat Restaurant
Hans im gluck / Kantjil & De Tijger
Must-Visit Bar
The Original Haufbrahaus
I went to Oktoberfest with three of my best friends, a mix of college and childhood, and then one of them came with me to Amsterdam afterwards. Oktoberfest was one of those bucket list items that we had set out to cross off and the drinking it requires seemed appropriate for a year out of college. Although the overall rating for this trip is average, I think a lot of that can be attributed to our own less than stellar decision making for the Oktoberfest part of the trip and not in the trip structure inherently. Regardless, I will definitely be returning to Amsterdam in the future.
Timeline: 5 days, 6 nights
Total Cost: ~$2,100 + flight cost on points
Dates: September 29th - October 6th, 2023
Number of People: 4
PTO Days: 5
Places to Eat:
Berlin
Hans im gluck -- solid burger spot
Doughnut Time
Wiener Feinbacker Heberer
Calice D'Oro -- Italian restaurant
Kimchi Princess - KBBQ
Munich
Heimwerk -- solid burger spot
Haufbrahaus -- original beerhouse
Amsterdam
Kantjil de Tigjer -- Indonesian restaurant
ZeroZero -- sandwiches
Van Stapele Koekmakerij -- viral cookies
Van Wonderen Stroopwafels -- viral stroopwaffle
Fabel Friet Runstraat -- viral french fries
Useful Links:
Words of Advice:
We flew into Berlin to visit two cities in Germany while we were there -- in our opinion, Berlin was not anything special and could be replaced for a different German city
I do want to return to Berlin once to go out and see the rave/club culture, but since we only had one night there, we did not do that this time around
The Berlin TV Tower is not worth visiting
Renting lederhosen from Bavaria Outfitters was a great decision -- very easy to use, clean, authentic clothing and the process was very simple
We spent an entire day at Oktoberfest and were pretty tired by the time it hit sunset, so we did not get to experience what it would be like to be there for the post-7pm vibes -- would recommend either leaving one night for this or starting later if you go for one day
Oktoberfest's opening and closing ceremonies are considered its best days to visit -- we were there for the closing ceremony and it was cool, but would not bother structuring a trip just to make it to that ceremony
Germany does not have much variety when it comes to food; we ate mostly chicken, pretzels, and burgers for a few days straight, so be prepared for that
Definitely rent a bicycle in Amsterdam and spend a day just seeing the city on wheels
The canal cruise is a great activity and very laid back way to explore a lot of Amsterdam via boat
Bring an umbrella or a jacket that can withstand rain for Amsterdam; it gets wet since it is close to the water all the time
Day 1: Inbound Flight + Evening in Berlin
Take an inbound flight from JFK to BER and arrive by 3 PM, leaving stuff behind at the hotel
Explore the streets of Berlin, checking out nearby landmarks and making your way to the East Side Gallery
see the Berlin Wall with the famous murals and walk along it/the water for a bit
see the Mercedes Benz stadium that hosts a lot of sporting events
Eat dinner at Hans im gluck -- great spot with interesting vibes with all the bamboo decorations
Uber to the TV Tower to see the Berlin skyline and views in the dark
Honestly, not worth it -- coming from NYC and seeing tall buildings regularly, the view is nothing special
Head back to hotel and chill
Day 2: Explore Berlin + Train to Munich
Grab breakfast around the corner and head to the Brandenburg Gate to start the day of exploration:
Reichstag Building
Memorial to the Jews
Museum Island -- 5 different museums, hop as desired, tickets are free on the first Sunday of each month
Flea Market near Museum Island
Eat dinner at Kimchi Princess -- needs a reservation, but good KBBQ
Take a train from Berlin to Munich after dinner
Head to hotel to sleep early in preparation for a full day at Oktoberfest
Day 3: Oktoberfest
Head to Bavaria Outfitters to pick up lederhosen outfits that were rented beforehand
Definitely rent in advance if you go this route to avoid showing up in regular clothes
Walk to the Oktoberfest grounds and begin your day
Do the carnival rides and games first before drinking or eating to prevent throwing up
Go to one tent and start there by ordering your first liter and eating some chicken and pretzels
Tent hop the rest of the tents since each one has a different theme
End the day with a ride on the Ferris wheel at sunset to take all the views
Head back to the hotel to shower and relax after a long day of drinking
Day 4: Explore Munich
Head back to Bavaria Outfitters to return the lederhosen
Return to the grounds of Oktoberfest to watch the closing ceremony and buy merch and souvenirs
Explore the city of Munich throughout the afternoon:
Marienplatz/Neues Rathaus -- definitely stick around to see the performance of the little characters on the tower
St. Peter's Church -- take the stairs to the top of the tower and get a rooftop view of the whole city
Munich Residenz -- formal royal palace
Eat lunch at Heimwerk
Go to the original Haufbrahaus beer garden and drink/eat the rest of the night
Day 5: Travel to Amsterdam
Sleep in a little and head to the mall near the airport to kill time before a flight to Amsterdam
Take a Lufthansa flight at 1:30 and reach Amsterdam hotel by 5, leaving the bags behind
Walk through the streets of Amsterdam towards the canal cruise location
Great tour with unlimited drinks and shows a lot of Amsterdam's history through the water
Head to Kantjil de Tigjer for a great Indonesian restaurant dinner
Walk through the Red Light District before heading back
Day 6: Amsterdam Day 2
Explore Amsterdam's streets throughout the day, seeing all of the following:
Jordaan district -- has Anne Frank house and the drunken houses
Cheese Museum -- can do a quick stop by to see the inside since it is also a shop
Floating Flower Market -- very pretty and has lots of stalls to spend time at with trinkets
Amsterdam has a lot of fun food that is worth trying as well, most of which is media famous
Van Stapele Koekmakerij -- viral cookies
Van Wonderen Stroopwafels -- viral stroopwaffle
Fabel Friet Runstraat -- viral french fries
Head to the Rijksmuseum to spend a couple hours -- nice museum with history and pretty exhibits
Bike around VondelPark
Visit the Heineken Museum -- lots of interactive activities and tons of beer included with it
The rooftop view from here of Amsterdam is also gorgeous
Day 7: Fly back to JFK