Business visitors get the best seats at the Oktoberfest, courtesy of The Charles Hotel

As a venue for a corporate event, it doesn’t get much more entertaining than Munich during Oktoberfest (September 17-October 4). This year, to celebrate the festival’s 200th anniversary, The Charles Hotel is providing privileged access to the live shows, as part of a package for its business visitors.

The hotel has been in collaboration with Schottenhamel, a Bavarian brewery, to secure seats at one of the best tables in the Oktoberfest Tent. These are virtually impossible to reserve, but The Charles can provide this privileged access as part of a package for business visitors which includes rent for the conference room and audio-visual equipment, two coffee breaks, a lunch buffet, drinks and a table in the Schottenhamel Tent.

The Oktoberfest itself is a cross-cultural, multi-generational gathering with a history that dates back to October 1810 when a horse race was organised to celebrate the marriage of Crown Prince Ludwig (later King Ludwig I) and Princess Therese of Saxe-Hildburghausen (after whom the Theresienwiese festival grounds are named). The race became the cornerstone of the Oktoberfest for many years, and will be resurrected this year for the 200th festival. Some six million people are expected to attend, and they will enjoy live music, colourful traditional costumes, fairground fun rides, ale-supping in huge beer tents constructed on the Theresienwiese which hold up to 10,000 visitors, and the good-natured bonhomie that goes with the event.

The Charles Hotel, perfectly situated in the centre of Munich in the Old Botanical Gardens, close to the Konigsplatz, the old town and the superb shopping area, is one of the finest hotels in this cosmopolitan city. Custom built to suit both business and leisure visitors, it has up-to-date corporate facilities and an excellent health club. The design was overseen by Olga Polizzi, The Rocco Forte Collection’s Director of Design, and reflects its location with the use of original paintings by Munich’s celebrated 19th-century artist Franz von Lenbach.

The Oktoberfest conference package starts at €125 per person (minimum ten people, maximum 20 people).

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For more information and/or images, please contact:
Ilse van Steen
The Rocco Forte Collection
Tel: 020 7766 3137
Email: ivansteen@roccofortecollection.com

Notes to Editors: The Rocco Forte Collection
The Rocco Forte Collection was established in 1996 as a group of luxury hotels in Europe. The hotels have individual styles, each reflecting its nationality and location, but all share The Rocco Forte Collection’s trademark attention to detail, high quality and immaculate service.

The Rocco Forte Collection comprises: Hotel de Russie, Rome; Hotel Savoy, Florence; The Balmoral, Edinburgh; The Lowry Hotel, Manchester; Hotel Astoria, St Petersburg; Hotel Amigo, Brussels; Brown’s Hotel, London; Villa Kennedy, Frankfurt; Hotel de Rome, Berlin; The Charles Hotel, Munich: The Augustine, Prague; Verdura Golf & Spa Resort, Sicily. Future openings: Marrakech 2010, Abu Dhabi 2010; Jeddah 2010; Cairo 2012.

www.roccofortecollection.com