🍺 Gäubodenvolksfest in Straubing: dates, travel, tents and prices

Straubing becomes its own city for eleven days. The Gäubodenvolksfest takes place here every year in August: seven beer tents and about 30 rides on the Am Hagen square (as of 09/2026, festival organizer). The next edition is scheduled for August 13-23, 2027 (as of 09/2026, Straubing city calendar).

There is one challenge. The city is small, and more than a million visitors arrive, so rooms are booked months in advance, and trains to Straubing regularly face track work and replacement buses.

Below is a step-by-step breakdown: when the festival runs, how to get there, how much a mass of beer costs, what is open on the square, where to stay, and what to see in the city.

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The festival in numbers and dates

💡 In short:

The festival runs every year in August, eleven days in a row, and entry to the grounds is free.
The next edition: August 13-23, 2027, with the program published by the organizer in the spring.
The grounds are open from 11:30 to 0:30, and music stops at 23:30 or 23:45.
A mass of beer in the 2026 season cost 13.30-13.35 €, budget for rides separately.
Dates, prices, and opening hours: as of 09/2026, verified on the organizer's website.

The Gäubodenvolksfest is called the second-largest folk festival in Bavaria after Oktoberfest (as of 09/2026, festival page on straubing.de). The Am Hagen square covers about 100,000 square meters. For eleven days, a city grows here with tents, a stage, a market, and an amusement park.

The festival is tied to mid-August and always opens on a Friday. The dates are known well in advance, and the organizer announces the program in the spring. It is convenient to plan a trip several months ahead. For reference: the 2026 edition ran from August 7 to 17 and drew 1.25 million visitors (as of 09/2026, results in Merkur).

Unlike Munich, the crowd here is mostly local. Families come to Straubing from Lower Bavaria and neighboring districts, so the festival remains more of a hometown event than a tourist one. You will hear Bavarian speech and familiar faces in the tents right away.

The history begins in 1812. That year, King Maximilian I Joseph allowed Straubing to hold an agricultural exhibition, and over two centuries it grew into the current Volksfest (as of 09/2026, festival program).

The festival is organized by Straubinger Ausstellungs- und Veranstaltungs GmbH, a subsidiary of the city. It is also responsible for the schedule and order on the grounds during the festival days.

Opening and the grand parade

The first Friday of the festival opens with the Auszug: about 3,500 participants walk from the city center to the festival grounds, and the center is closed to cars during the parade (as of 09/2026, schedule from the organizer). Come half an hour early if you want a front-row spot.

The procession includes Trachtenvereine, Spielmannszüge, Musikkapellen, and dozens of local clubs. Behind them come Festwägen and Pferdegespanne, and the beer wagons of Lower Bavarian breweries are pulled by six or eight horses. You can watch the parade for free from any street along the route.

On opening day, the program starts in the afternoon; on other days the grounds are open from 11:30 to 0:30 (as of 09/2026, festival page). The official opening takes place in one of the large tents, and the first mass is traditionally tapped by an invited politician or city representative.

Seven beer tents and prices

The seven large tents hold around 27,500 seats, and the beer is poured by Lower Bavarian breweries (as of 09/2026, city data on tent capacity). Don't look for Munich brands here: the local varieties taste noticeably different, and that's one of the reasons to come here specifically.

More than 80 Blaskapellen and party bands play on the tent stages. The program ranges from traditional Blasmusik to modern dance music, and once during the festival all seven tent bands give a joint Blasmusikkonzert. For a weekend evening, it's best to book a table through the tent's website in advance.

For food, the tents stick to Bavarian classics: Brathendl, Schweinshaxn, Steckerlfisch, Obatzda.

Who it's for: those who want a local crowd and Lower Bavarian beer instead of Munich brands.
Not for: those who come for world-famous beer brands and international cuisine.
Mass of beer (1 L): 13.30-13.35 € in the 2026 season, a year earlier 12.90 € (as of 09/2026, beer price). The organizer announces the new season's price a few weeks before opening.
Music and beer service: until 11:30 PM on weekdays, until 11:45 PM on Saturdays, Sundays, and the eve of August 15 (as of 09/2026, organizer's website).

Historic area with carousels

A separate section of the festival covers about 8,000 square meters. Here you ride restored carousels and examine the mechanics of past decades (as of 09/2026, organizer's page).

The section's permanent classics: Märchenlandexpress, Schleifers Carouselle, and Fahrt ins Paradies. Nearby you'll find the Mondlift and the Frösche springen arcade game.

The section includes a Café- und Proseccostüberl, a fortune teller, a sweets shop, and a Grill-Palast, and on the open stage Trachtengruppen, Schuhplattler dancers, and brass bands perform for free every day. For families with children, this is the quietest corner of the fairground. Come here in the morning, before the big rides have built up lines.

Rides: coasters, water, and a kids' corner

According to the organizer, around 130 vendors operate on the festival grounds, including roughly 30 rides (as of 09/2026, organizer's data). The lineup changes every season: some machines come for a single year, others have been returning for decades.

Kids' rides

There is a full set of rides for children: Kindertraumschleife, Kinder-Sport-Karussell, Kinder-Flug, Racing Coaster, Crazy Time 2, lustige Seewelt, and Montgolfière. Parents with little ones will find it easier to start the day in this corner: lines are shorter than at the adult coasters, and the rides are close together.

Also check the family days. The organizer schedules two Kinder- und Familientage per festival, usually on Tuesday and on the last day, and until 7:00 PM rides run at reduced prices. If you are coming with kids, check the season program and plan around those dates.

Water rides

On hot days, the crowd gathers near the water. Wildwasserbahn and Raftingbahn are set up almost every season, and world premieres of such machines have been shown right here in Straubing: in 2026 these were Verdora Island with dinosaur scenery and Colorado Rafting with fast currents and spins (as of 09/2026, festival organizer).

Nearby you will usually find Auto-Skooter and Geister Palast, the largest mobile haunted house according to the organizer: three levels and rotating gondolas. Almost nobody comes off the water rides dry, so pack a spare T-shirt in your backpack ahead of time.

High and high-speed rides

Ride	What it is	Key figure
Alpen Coaster	family coaster with alpine decor	500 meters of track
Fortress Tower	free-fall tower	80 meters high
XXL Racer	inverted loops and spins	up to 120 km/h
Wilde Maus	classic "wild mouse"	sharp turns

These figures describe the 2026 season lineup (as of 09/2026, according to the organizer). In addition, the grounds feature Top Spin No. 1, Riesenrad, and Best XXL No. 1, and among the Rundfahrgeschäfte you will find Roll Over, Happy Monster, Wellenflug, Take Off, Devil Rock, Swing Up, and Mama Caramba.

The Ferris wheel and other large machines are brought in by companies familiar from Theresienwiese: Willenborg, Bausch, Goetzke, Zettl, Distel, Dräger, Klimkeit, Hingerl, and Münch. If you have been to Oktoberfest, you will recognize some of the equipment right away. The organizer announces season novelties on its website in the summer, and after Straubing these rides often head to Munich.

Laufgeschäfte and game pavilions

A Laufgeschäft is a multi-story walk-through pavilion: wobbly bridges, rotating drums, water effects. In 2026, the new addition was The Fisherman's Place, a three-story fishing village (as of 09/2026, city calendar).

The regular Belustigungsgeschäfte lineup is broader: Kristall Palast, Happy Hawaii, XXL Lach Haus, and Big Pictures 2.0. For sporty guests there are Sport Studio, Play Casino, Basketball, Circus-Circus, Tütenangeln, Super-Bowler, Camel-Derby, Bayerisches Ringwerfen, Entenangelei, V.I.P. Party, Bayern-Lukas, Power Games, Gaudi-Alm, Touchdown, and Ballwerfen.

At the shooting galleries you can test your aim: Auf zur Pirsch, Schiesstand München, Schützenkönig, Jäger-Alm, Dschungel-Bogenschießen, Schieß-Sport, and Schiesswagen. The grounds also host raffles: Blumenverlosung Flora, the official Staatliche Lotterieverwaltung lottery, Glücks-Basar, and the Hongkong lottery.

Circus Carlos for kids

Next to the rides, Circus Carlos operates with its own Zirkusschule. Children take part in the program and step into the ring, while adults watch the show. The Kasperl theater and fire show are part of the free program, so this hour costs you nothing.

Historic building on a street in Straubing

Ostbayernschau and evening events

Running parallel to the Volksfest is Ostbayernschau, the region's major consumer trade fair: 16 halls, around 650 exhibitors, 60,000 square meters of open-air space, and more than 17,000 square meters of indoor halls. Admission is free, and the fair is open from 9:00 AM to 6:00 PM (as of 09/2026, fair organizer). The next edition is scheduled for August 14-22, 2027 (as of 09/2026, fair page).

Around 60 cultural and sporting events take place as part of the festival (as of 09/2026, event overview). The main one happens in the evening in the middle of the festival: the Lampionfahrt with Fackelschwimmern, illuminated boats, and a Niederfeuerwerk turn the Danube into a band of light. The Volksfest closes with a grand Prachtfeuerwerk on the final evening.

The comfort on the festival grounds keeps improving year after year: Powerbank-Stationen, free Schließfächer, Trinkwasserbrunnen, and vending machines with hygiene products (as of 09/2026, organizer's page). Find the exact locations of these services on the grounds map in the season program.

Ostbayernschau exhibition halls in Straubing

Getting there: train, bus, car

The Am Hagen grounds are located in 94315 Straubing, a fifteen-minute walk from the center. For your navigation system, enter Am Hagen, Straubing. There are paid and free parking lots around the venue, but on weekends they fill up by evening, so arrive before 4:00 PM or leave your car in the city.

Railway tracks and platforms at Straubing station

By train from Munich, the most convenient route is via Regensburg; from Nuremberg, also via Regensburg; and from Passau, directly along the Danube line. The trip from Regensburg takes under an hour. Important note: the Obertraubling - Passau line has been undergoing renovation for years, and sections are closed for months at a time, with trains replaced by buses (as of 09/2026, Deutsche Bahn). Check your route on bahn.de the day before you travel.

On festival days, the operator adds extra evening services, and after the final fireworks show, additional buses are deployed. Direct shuttle routes usually run along the A3 with a stop at Ursulinengymnasium, from which the grounds are a few minutes' walk.

Tickets: regular transit passes are valid on replacement buses, including the Deutschlandticket at €63 per month (as of 09/2026, bahn.de). Buy and activate your ticket in advance; you cannot do so on board.

If you prefer driving, compare rental options before your trip: compare car rental prices.

Where to stay during the festival

Straubing is a small city, and over eleven days the festival welcomes more than a million visitors. Rooms in the city itself get booked early, so some visitors stay overnight in Regensburg, Deggendorf, or Passau and travel in during the day. Start looking for accommodation as soon as the organizer confirms the season dates.

A practical rule of thumb: in Straubing itself, book six months ahead; in neighboring cities, two or three months ahead. Weekends during the festival are more expensive than weekdays, and a single night from Tuesday to Wednesday often costs noticeably less than from Saturday to Sunday. If you're traveling with a group, look at apartments: in a small city there are fewer of them, but they also get booked later than hotels.

Find available options in Straubing and the surrounding area here: find a hotel on Trip.com.

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What to see in Straubing besides the festival

Spend the daytime hours before the grounds open exploring the old town. The main landmark is the Stadtturm on Stadtplatz: a 68-meter tower with five spires, under construction since 1316 (as of 09/2026, Stadtturm description on straubing.de). Stadtplatz itself is a long square with cafes and a market, not the usual compact plaza.

The second must-see is the Gäubodenmuseum. It houses the Römerschatz, the largest discovered hoard of Roman ceremonial armor: masks, greaves, horse chamfrons, and household items (as of 09/2026, Gäubodenmuseum). Check the museum's website for opening hours and ticket prices, as they vary by season.

If you have half a day left, add the St. Jakob basilica with its stained glass windows, the Karmelitenkirche, and the Danube embankment. A boat trip is also an option: services run from the pier toward Deggendorf and the Niederaltaich monastery. In summer, it's the most relaxing way to escape the heat.

⁉️🤔 Frequently asked questions

When does Gäubodenvolksfest take place?

The festival runs every year in August and lasts eleven days, from Friday through Monday a week and a half later. The next edition is scheduled for August 13-23, 2027 (as of 09/2026, official season dates). The organizer publishes the program, ride lineup, and beer prices in spring and early summer.

How much does it cost to enter the Volksfest?

Entry to the festival grounds is free. You only pay for rides, food, and drinks: a Maß of beer in the 2026 season cost €13.30-13.35, and rides are priced separately by each operator. If you want to save money, come on a weekday: lines are shorter, and on Familientage rides run at reduced prices.

How do I get there from Munich?

Take a train to Regensburg, then a regional line or replacement bus to Straubing. The trip takes about two hours with one transfer. The line to Passau is regularly under construction, so check your route on bahn.de the day before. Standard tickets apply, including the Deutschlandticket, but you need to buy them before boarding.

How much time should I plan for the festival?

One day from morning to evening is enough for the beer tents and main rides, since the grounds are open from 11:30 to 0:30. If you want to cover all three dozen rides, see the Ostbayernschau exhibition, and catch the evening show on the Danube, plan for two days and stay overnight nearby.

When should I book accommodation?

In Straubing itself, start looking as soon as the dates are announced, which is roughly six months in advance. In Regensburg, Deggendorf, and Passau there is more availability: rooms there remain bookable for another two or three months. Weekdays during the festival are cheaper than weekends, and that is the easiest way to cut your trip budget.

Is the festival suitable for children?

Yes, and that is one of its differences from Oktoberfest. There is a dedicated children's ride area, a historical section with old carousels, Circus Carlos with a free program, and two Kinder- und Familientage with reduced prices. Strollers can get through the grounds, but the crowd is dense in the evening hours.

In short: what to book

At the Volksfest there is almost nothing to book: entry is free, and you pay for rides and beer on site. Three things are worth arranging in advance: overnight accommodation, your train route given the construction work, and a table in a tent if you are going with a group on the weekend.

A decision matrix for you: if you are going for one day from Munich, get a Deutschlandticket and take the first morning train via Regensburg. If you are going with children, plan for Familientage and start your day at the historical area. If you are staying overnight, look for a hotel as soon as the season dates are announced.

For hotels in Straubing and nearby towns, see here: check prices on Trip.com.

Gäubodenvolksfest in Straubing: how to plan your trip