How to Find Cheap Airfare to Oktoberfest

For anyone who’s even remotely fond of giant cultural celebrations that also serve as non-stop parties, the Oktoberfest party in Munich every year should be on your lifetime to-do list. The trouble is that Oktoberfest is on so many people’s lists that it has become over the years an incredibly popular festival for travelers. And any time there’s a popular festival that people are willing to travel for, you can pretty much count on airfare to go up as a result.

There are a few things you can do to make sure you’re getting a better deal on airfare to Oktoberfest, though, so that you’re not stuck paying full price on a plane ticket – you have enormous beers to spend that money on, my friend!

The tips below should help you find cheap airfare to Oktoberfest, and the good news is that many of them will help you find cheap airfare no matter where or when you’re traveling. When you’re going to a popular location or a big festival like Oktoberfest, however, it’s even more important to keep tips like this in mind.

>> Oktoberfest in Munich is from September 22 to October 7 in 2012
>> Don’t miss this guide to Oktoberfest in Munich

Be Flexible

No, Oktoberfest doesn’t involve a limbo contest and it’s not a yoga retreat. When we say “be flexible” here, we mean with your travel plans. If you limit yourself to only searching for flights on one particular day or – even worse – a short window on one day, you’re eliminating the possibility that you’d find one of the lower price times. And that’s not good news if you’re traveling on a budget (or just hate paying too much for airfare).

It’s best if you can start your search for airfare by casting a wide net over several days for both the departure and the arrival. You can do this manually, plugging in various dates and times into an airfare booking site, but the easier way is to utilize the “flexible search” option many booking sites have available. Near where you put in your itinerary information, look for a box that says “flexible dates” or “my dates are flexible” or something like that, and check that box. The system will then search for the cheapest flights over a series of days near the one you put in.

Fly on Cheaper Days & Times

While the price of airfare will trend up or down in generally small increments over time, there are smaller fluctuations in the cost of a ticket that occur naturally throughout each day and each week. Being flexible, as in the above tip, will help you find those lower prices, but knowing which days of the week and times of the day are typically cheaper will help you get to those lower prices more quickly.

It’s not an exact science, and there are ups and downs that fall outside these general rules, but you will often find that flights on Wednesday, Tuesday, and Saturday are cheaper than the other days of the week. Within each day, the earliest flights tend to be cheapest, followed by late-night departures. So if you can start your flight search with those things in mind, you stand a better chance of finding a cheaper fare than if you only looked at Friday flights between 9am and noon.

Check All Area Airports

Depending on where you’re planning to party for Oktoberfest, you might have more than one arrival airport to choose from – and it’s always good to check the cost of flights into all airports. Sometimes one airport is more popular with budget airlines, sometimes one airport charges airlines less money to lease space there – there are a number of reasons why the prices would vary significantly from one airport to another, both within a reasonable trip from your destination.

No matter where you’re going, then, be sure to check all the airports near where you’re planning to start your trip. Most big cities that have multiple airports also have an airport code that covers all airports without having to do multiple searches. London, for instance, has 5 airports in and around the city – but instead of searching for airfare into 5 different airport codes, you can search for flights to the “LON” code and that will deliver results for all 5 airports.

Don’t Overlook Budget Airlines

You may be familiar with the discount airlines that fly into your home airport, but since many budget carriers are really just small regional airlines you probably don’t know the names of all the ones that serve your destination airport. Checking all airports near your destination (as in the tip above) will help you find out about some of the discount airlines that fly there, but not all discount carriers list their fares with big booking sites.

In order to make sure you’re not missing out on a great low fare on a smaller airline, you can check out an airport’s website to see a list of the airlines that fly there. And then when not all of those airlines show up in your search, you’ll know which specific airline websites to look up for fare information. These budget airlines may not fly from your home airport, it’s true – but if you have a layover en route anyway, it’s worth checking whether you can switch to one of those cheap airlines then.

Consider Alternate Destinations

We would never claim that Oktoberfest in any destination other than Munich will do if you’re trying to cross off the genuine Oktoberfest from that big to-do list. But if you can’t make it to Munich this year – or if you’ve already been to Munich’s Oktoberfest and you’re looking to experience the festival in other places – then picking a less popular destination can definitely help you save money on airfare.

Throughout history, whenever people leave a homeland and settle elsewhere they bring their traditions with them – and the Germans are no exception. As a result, you’ll find Oktoberfest celebrations in various countries around the world (some of which you might not think were particularly German). No, it’s not the original Munich Oktoberfest – but it could still be a fun (and cheaper) alternative.

>> If you’re on a budget, be sure to check out these hostels near Oktoberfest in Munich.

photo by Ethan Prater