Volksfests: Munich area festivals just a train ride away

Munich is of course known for the world famous Oktoberfest, but even in the middle of the summer very similar yet mid-sized festivals are held throughout the Upper Bavaria. Each of these have carnival games, rides, and of course beer tents with what many would say is a more authentic atmosphere than its big brother on the Therisienwiese. Here are a few volksfests coming up in the next couple weeks:

July 12-15 - The small town of Traubing has its volksfest known as the Traubinger Festtage. Traubing is located just west of Feldafing. It takes just 45 minutes by regional train and bus to get there from the Munich Hauptbahnhof (Hbf). For a full schedule of events, please visit their official website. http://www.traubing.de/festtage-2012.html

July 12-23 - Kaufbeuren's volksfest is known as Tänzelfest. Kaufbeuren is one hour Southwest of Munich and easily reachable by regional train every hour from Munich. Information on the events at the Kaufbeuren Tänzelfest can be found on their official website. http://www.taenzelfest.de/

July 13-23 - The Ulmer Volksfest is held on the East side of Ulm. Ulm is two hours west of Munich by Regional Express, with trains every hour. More information on events at the Ulmer volksfest can be found at their website. http://www.ulmer-volksfest.de/

July 14-22 - Right in the heart of Munich, the 54th Magdalenenfest is held at the world's largest beer garden, the Hirschgarten. This is by far the easiest volksfest on this list to get to and yet still remains quite small and hidden from the majority of Münchners.

July 17-22 - The town of Neufahrn, on the S1 line, has its volksfest for only a few days. You can find more information on the town's website. http://www.neufahrn.de

July 19-23 - The town of Poing, accessable from the S2 line, has its volksfest just a few steps from the S-bahn station and a short 30 minute ride from the main train station (Hbf). More information can be found at their official website. http://www.poinger-volksfest.de/