Free walk-in flu and Covid jabs offered at the Wiesn for the first time

The City of Munich is offering a vaccination service at the Wiesn for the first time. Anyone who wants to can be vaccinated against flu and Covid at the Wiesn-Wache, the Oktoberfest station, without booking an appointment. The service runs from 10am to 2pm Monday to Friday and from 9am to 2pm on Saturdays and Sundays. People should bring their vaccination record and their health insurance card.

The city says protection begins shortly after vaccination and builds up fully within about one to two weeks. The start of the respiratory illness season coincides with Oktoberfest, and the risk of infection with influenza, COVID-19 and RSV rises significantly at this time. For healthy people these are often just an unpleasant infection. For at-risk groups, such as people aged 60 and over or those with chronic illnesses, they carry a serious risk of severe illness and lasting damage. The city therefore advises at-risk groups and their close contacts in particular to get vaccinated against influenza and COVID-19 before visiting the festival if possible.

The city's head of health, Beatrix Zurek, said: "We go where the people are, and right now that is the Wiesn. By vaccinating in the mornings, we are offering all staff and visitors, for example those going to the Wiesn at lunchtime, an easy way to get vaccinated. But people who want a vaccination and are not going to the Wiesn are also invited to use our service."

The service is part of the citywide initiative "München impft" (Munich vaccinates), which aims to prevent serious illness and complications such as heart attacks and strokes linked to acute respiratory infections, and to raise vaccination rates in line with the recommendations of the Standing Committee on Vaccination (STIKO). The campaign is under the patronage of Beatrix Zurek and is run by the City of Munich together with the city's two university hospitals, LMU Klinikum (Prof Dr Christian Schulz) and TUM Klinikum (Prof Dr Christoph D. Spinner).

Those who would rather not be vaccinated at the festival grounds can still get their jabs as usual at their GP's surgery or at pharmacies in Munich. At www.muenchen-impft.de/mitmachen, Munich residents, businesses and organisations are invited to share their own social media testimonials and help spread information about vaccination.