Beautiful Blue Skies for the 14th Annual Oktoberfest!
Bethlehem, Lehigh Valley, PA., October 16, 2024 – This year’s Oktoberfest presented by Lehigh Valley International Airport (ABE) was met with a warm welcome from Mother Nature with clear skies and beautiful weather for both weekends of the festival.
Oktoberfest 2024 welcomed approximately 48,000 attendees during the two-weekend festival, an increase from last year’s attendance of 38,500. Patrons of all ages enjoyed the traditional German faire, four biergartens with 38 varieties of lagers, ales, IPAs and more for the 21+ crowd to enjoy in their mugs, competing in games like Kong Pong and the first ever Human Foosball Tournament, listening to live traditional and rock music and more.
“It’s hard to believe Oktoberfest has already come and gone, and with the help of Mother Nature, it was a fantastic two weekends of Oktoberfestivities!” says ArtsQuest President and CEO, Kassie Hilgert. “We introduced some tremendous new programming this year with the Bratwurst Toss, the Human Foosball Tournament and the Yuengling Beer Dinner along with crowd favorites like the Wiener dog races and Steinholding competitions.”
Competition Results
The stands at the Wiener dog races and parade were filled to capacity and with a big screen TV located outside the arena, everyone had an opportunity to watch the action! There were 10 races and over 140 puppy participants over the two Oktoberfest weekends.
The Bratwurst Eating Competition welcomed four competitors that ate as many brats as they could, but it was Bryant Grimm who won with 10 bratwursts in 6 minutes and 21 seconds!
Rob Meyers of Eight-Legged Brewing’s Pumpkin Funnel Cake won Best Homebrew at the Lehigh Valley Brewers Guild Brewers’ Village.
There were close to 1,183 participants at this year’s Yuengling Oktoberfest 5k in partnership with Run Lehigh Valley; Human Foosball welcomed 10 teams and 27 individuals competed in the Pennsylvania State Stein Hoisting Championship in partnership with the U.S. Stein Hoisting Association.
Pennsylvania State Stein Hoisting winners are:
Women’s Competition:
Jill Matthews – Bethlehem Oktoberfest – 3:52
Rebecca Hokiem – Groove Brewing – 3:35
Shareen Bachma – Yergey Brewing – 3:12
Men’s Competition:
James Thompson – Rural City Beer Co. – 13:57
Jeff Wishmyer – Market Cross Pub & Brewery – 12:01
Kevin Oliver – Groove Brewing – 11:00
Food and Fun
When it came to beer and spirits, Oktoberfest did not disappoint. Not only was food and beverage revenue up by 68% compared to 2023, but there were also fabulous tasting opportunities, like A Taste of Austria and the Yuengling Beer Dinner. A Taste of Austria, partnered with Levy Restaurants and Easton-based Imported Enrichment, provided a four-course tasting cuisine along with liquor and wine imported directly from Austria. The first Yuengling Beer Dinner provided a four-course tasting cuisine with 6oz pours of four different Yuengling beers.
Festivalgoers enjoyed live performances from 53 bands during both Oktoberfest weekends. Fan favorites included Polkadelphia, The Wonton Soups, Life After Dead: Grateful Dead Tribute and Almrausch Altoona Schuplattlers.
Aside from Karl Ehmer Quality Meats (crowd favorite), MMG Concessions, Heaven on a Bun, Food Stuff, Heidi’s Strudel, Bacon on a Stick, The Taste Smokers, Take a Taco, Island Expressions and Dinky’s Ice Cream kept everyone well fed in between all the festivities and competitions.
“This year was a huge success!” says Director of Festival and Event Operations, Eric Bauder. “Thank you to the community for coming out and supporting to make this year’s Oktoberfest truly brew-tiful.”
About ArtsQuest
ArtsQuest’s mission is to provide access to exceptional artistic, cultural and educational experiences using arts and culture as key elements of economic development for our urban communities. ArtsQuest™ supports this mission via the presentation of performing and visual arts, film, arts education classes and outreach, youth programming and cultural events. Through festivals such as its flagship event, Musikfest; the Banana Factory Arts Center; and the ArtsQuest Center at SteelStacks arts and cultural campus, ArtsQuest’s programming reaches more than 1.9 million people annually. The organization’s programs and events, of which nearly 50% are free to attend, have a combined economic impact of more than $136 million annually in the region.
