Costumes for Oktoberfest – the Bavarian beer festival which is rapidly gaining popularity across Europe – have been making headlines in the national press recently after a number of cultural leaders have criticised current Oktoberfest fashions.
‘Sexy’ versions of the famous Bavarian Dirndl dress, featuring low-cut necklines and short skirts, are increasingly being worn by tipsy tourists as they attend the hundreds of other Oktoberfest celebrations which are taking place throughout Europe in the coming weeks.
The original Munich festival attracts six million people annually, with celebrations starting on 22 September this year.
The discussion began when a Munich-based crime author claimed the event has become synonymous with drunk tourists in outrageous outfits rather than a celebration of Bavarian culture. He said: ‘With the young women it often looks like porno dresses, short and low-cut and cheap material. It has nothing to do with identity.”
Other cultural commentors have since weighed in on the debate, with local folk expert Franz Thalhammer stating that the costume bares no resemblance to the real thing.
“A dirndl is something nice, it can make almost anyone pretty. But some of the dresses you see these days are crazy. You go in a tent and it’s full of paralytic Australians and Italians and they’ve forked out €250 [£224] for a complete Bavarian outfit and think they’re Bavarians. It’s as if I’d walk around half-naked and say I’m Australian.”
British revellers are among the top ten nationalities to visit the annual event, which has been running since the 1800s.
