Oktoberfest officially opens in Munich

With all eyes on him, it took the recently-elected Mayor Reiter four hits with a wooden hammer to tap the first barrel of beer and ceremonially open Munich's 181st Oktoberfest on Saturday.

"Ozapft is!" he said, employing the traditional phrase which is used to open each Oktoberfest and roughly translates to "It is tapped", before wishing guests a peaceful celebration.

Despite sunny skies in the days leading up to Munich's biggest annual event, there was persistent rain on Saturday morning, as thousands of eager attendees queued to get into the beer tents. Many accessorized their traditional outfits of "dirndl" and "lederhosen" with raincoats and umbrellas.

Due to overcrowding, some tents had to be closed off to new arrivals before the festivities had even officially started.

An estimated 6 million people from all over the world are expected to attend the beer festival, known locally as the "Weisn", which runs until October 5.

se/ksb (dpa, AP, AFP)