Germany's second largest beer festival

Attracting more than 5 million visitors every year, the event is a firm favourite with the public.

In terms of size, the Stuttgart Beer Festival is second-only to the Oktoberfest in Munich. It takes place at the end of September every year in the area around the 24 metre high fruit column and originated in 1818 as a harvest festival following a famine.

The festival provides two weeks of fun with oompah bands in traditional costume inside the marquees and fairground attractions such as the Ferris wheel, loop-the-loop rollercoasters and the old-fashioned chairoplane merry-go-rounds outside.

Opening: Friday, Sept., 28 2007 at 3 p.m. (Octoberfest Munich starts Sept. 22. 2007)

You will find attractions like "Alpina-Bahn", "Starfly", "Maxximum" and others. Nine beer and wine tents are waiting with all kind of wine and beer across the region and they say "Cannstatter Wasen" for this festival.

For drivers it's better to use the public U- and S-Bahn. It's esy and you have no problem with the police. Think about it and don't drive with alcohol.

City map "Stuttgart2Go" for a visit tour of Stuttgart at the next day

Stuttgart Marketing offers guests a mobile city guide, a Pocket PC with integrated GPS receiver.

"Stuttgart2Go" is the name of the new digital city guide, which offers tips and orientation aids as well as comprehensive information during a walk through Stuttgart.

With city maps (inner city map as well as full city map) and aerial pictures on which then the respective current location is shown as well as suggestions for interesting city tours, walking and cycling tours, the tour of discovery through the World Cup city can start using the pocket PC. As soon as the guest approaches sights with the digital city guide, via a language report in German and English and a html page, he will receive more information on the respective sight of interest.

The "Stuttgart2Go" PDAs can be loaned out in the tourist information i-Point. The fee for four hours is 5 Euros, for eight hours 8 Euros. The devices can be loaned for a maximum of three days at a time. As a deposit for loaning the devices, you must present a personal idenfitication card (or a copy of this) and leave 100 Euros.

For owners of a PDA, you have the possibility of purchasing a CD Rom with the software for "Stuttgart 2Go" in the i-Punkt, at bookshops or at the city surveying office (Euro 19.90).

Further information: www.stuttgart-tourist.de

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