Oktoberfest 200 years on...

If you're looking for a reason to go to Oktoberfest this year, it is a very special year for Munich as it celebrates the 200th anniversary of Oktoberfest.

The beer tents will be returning to the Theresienwiese from September 17 to October 4. This year's festival promises to be bigger and better and already the city officials have extended the festival by a day at opening and closing.

To celebrate Oktoberfest's anniversary year, there'll be an additional programme of culture, entertainment and traditional customs. On September 17, the festival opens with the historic reconstruction of what Oktoberfest was like at the beginning. There'll be a re-enactment of the original horse race in 1810 which was part of the wedding festivities of Crown Prince Ludwig of Bavaria, and from which Oktoberfest was born.

So, alongside the hair-raising rides and heaving beer tents, visitors to the Bavarian capital can expect barrels of fun and entertainment. (Source: Munich Tourist Board)