I'm not aware of pretty useless temperature checks when entering Germany.

Is there a reason why you want to visit specifically this year? Why not leave it for a year or two, when hopefully things will be different and you'll be less stressed about the consequences? The city will be really busy so avoiding being near other people will be hard, especially on public transport. I'm guessing you won't be drinking beer inside the tents, as you'd need to remove your mask, so you're missing that part. Taking hot food that's gone cold outside to eat on a hill in the rain is essentially all my childhood family holidays, which were lovely in their own way, but not something I'd fly intercontinental to do now. Why go to the expense to semi-enjoy a beer festival you could visit another year without the worry?

Actually, no, I was wrong in my deleted post above. You aren't allowed to enter Germany as a tourist at all without a vaccination.

"Entry from any other country for any purpose (including visits and tourism) is only possible for fully vaccinated people."

https://www.auswaertiges-amt.de/en/coronavirus/2317268

I was wondering the same. I am not a big fan of crowds under normal circumstances and have little desire to visit Munich during Oktoberfest. That said, if you really want to experience Oktoberfest in Munich, running into a tent with an N95 mask to grab a beer and fair food to take somewhere else away from the crowds doesn’t strike me as the experience you are looking for.

And as a physician you know better than many what your chances of contracting Covid are. I’d say be prepared to deal with the consequences, and if the cost of getting stuck in a hotel for 5+ days is too great, perhaps that’s another reason to travel elsewhere this year.

For this please use the specific Octoberfest thread https://www.flyertalk.com/forum/germ...ep17-oct3.html

But my two cents. Why do you think people reserve tables at the Octoberfest in the first place? Because it is full and there is never a guaranty you find a spot to sit. Especially on weekends and with good weather it will be very full. In addition the outside area is only open during the day and close later the evening.

Update on entry rules: People’s Republic of China (excluding the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region) is classified as an “area of variants of concern in which a variant of particular concern threatens to emerge”

https://www.rki.de/DE/Content/InfAZ/...ublicationFile

Changes since last amendment As of 0 a.m. (midnight) on 9 January 2023, the People’s Republic of China (excluding the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region) is classified as an “area of variants of concern in which a variant of particular concern threatens to emerge” (see below for information regarding corresponding obligations to furnish proof before entry and/or obligations for random testing after entry into Germany). On account of the dynamic development of infection rates, short-notice changes to classification are possible at any time.

Note: As of 0 a.m. (midnight) on 7 January 2023, with the entry into force of the “Eighth Ordinance amending the Coronavirus Entry Regulations”, the previous category of “areas of variants of concern” (an area of variants of concern in which a variant of particular concern already exists) is complemented by an additional, new category:

An area of variants of concern in which a “variant of particular concern threatens to emerge”. Classifying an area as such is associated with an obligation to furnish proof upon entry into Germany (through proof of testing using a nucleic acid test (PCR) or PoC antigen test).

To help detect potential newly emerging or re-emerging particularly dangerous virus variants, the newly introduced section 5a of the Ordinance on Coronavirus Entry Regulations enables the competent authorities to require additional random testing after entry into Germany from areas of variants of concern.

There is no obligation to register before entry into Germany.

An obligation to quarantine (“obligation to self-isolate”) upon entry into Germany or a “ban on carriage” still only applies for regions classified as areas of variants of concern, in which a variant of particular concern already exists. The criterion for distinction is therefore whether a variant of particular concern already exists or (only) threatens to emerge.

The mask mandate on long-distance trains (and buses) will end on Feb. 1.
Berlin will also end its public transport mask mandate on this date: https://www.berlin.de/en/news/corona...-febru.en.html

Almost all restrictions were lifted today. The only ones remaining are mask mandates in healthcare facilities (hospitals, doctors' offices...) and nursing homes.
Isolation requirements are also a thing of the past now, as are any entry restrictions with the exception of visitors from China who need to show a negative test result upon entry.

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Quite interesting as everyone who is proofed positive may walk around or sit beside you in the theatre without a mask. This said the lifting of the isolation is the correct step.