Even if you’re a loyal Oktoberfest patron, here are five reasons to consider heading to Holland for an “off the beaten beer path” experience:

1. There’s more (room for) variety.

Face it, a day at Oktoberfest does not mean “tent hopping” from one brewery to the next. It means finding one spot and staying put, which also means drinking the same beer, liter after liter.

That can be a great thing at Oktoberfest, but beer lovers after a mixed mug will appreciate the market style setup at the Bokbier Festival in Amsterdam. The open layout is lined corner to corner with almost 100 small bok beer stands to sample from.

Visitors have surprisingly ample elbowroom to float around from tap to tap. The beers are brought from small and large breweries across the Netherlands, with a considerable cluster from Belgium and a handful of German bok beer classics.

2. It’s (almost) self serve.

Like most beer festivals in the US, the Bokbier Festival has a “bar service style” where patrons approach different stands to be served. There’s no waiting for traditionally dressed barmaids (which can be a disappointment for some); simply find your next appealing bok tap and show your glass to the brewer behind the bar for a refill.

3. BYO grub.

Food here is not amazing, but guests are free to bring in food from outside. Anything goes, from take out boxes to grocery bags full of snacks. Even high tables are available for a sizable spread. Some common Dutch beer snacks include cubes of fresh Gouda cheese with mustard, small smoked sausages, and spicy borrelnootjes peanuts with a thin cracker shell.

4. It’s cheaper than Oktoberfest, sort of.

Oktoberfest beers are hitting the €10 mark per stein. While the number of beers consumed varies from person to person, calculate in the food, candy and carnival rides: It’s easy to drop €50 on a day at Oktoberfest without even trying.

Amsterdam’s Bokbier Festival charges between €10 and €15 for a one-time entry fee that’s good for the three-day period. This includes a sampler glass, which you can take home, and counts as your re-entry ticket.

Sampling the beer is on a token-based pay structure. One token is usually €2, and a six-ounce sample costs one token. One Oktoberfest liter stein equals to about five of these samples, so the price of beer is about the same. The savings is more apparent when you consider all the little extras (or lack thereof). At the Bokbier Festival it’s strictly about the beer.

5. It’s way, way smaller, but still traditional.

Although Amsterdam’s Bokbier Festival is the largest of its kind in the world, it pulls in about 10,000 visitors for its weekend soiree at the downtown venue. In contrast, Oktoberfest welcomes over 4 million in a span of two weeks (with over a dozen tents holding thousands of seats).

Still, the Bokbier Festival has its traditional Dutch drinking music, old beer chants, and farmers dressed in overalls instead of lederhosen. You’ll catch locals wearing authentic wooden clogs, and some women wearing dirndl-like dresses. And above all, the friendly spirit of beer enthusiasm flows freely throughout the weekend, just like a good beer fest should.

More information: Read more about the festival on the Amsterdam tourism website. If you’re heading over, be sure to also check out our Amsterdam guide for recommended cheap hotels and budget tips.

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Fête du Cinéma

Until July 3

The four-day Fête du Cinéma offers reduced priced admission on new releases in theaters around the city. This year’s 29th edition is an even better deal thanks to a new initiative that has all ticket prices at €3.50. (In previous years you had to buy one ticket at full price to get a discount.)

If you missed this year’s event, next year’s will start on the last Sunday of June and continue until the first Wednesday of July. Or if you’re planning to visit in the spring, catch sister festival Printemps du Cinéma, which has taken place every March since 2000.

Paris Cinéma president Charlotte Rampling and actor Vincent Cassel at the festival’s 2011 final showing. Photo: Yann Caradec.

Paris Cinéma

Until July 9

Paris Cinéma International Film Festival is a low-key, offbeat city-wide event that screens more than 300 films including international premieres, retrospectives and tributes, and hosts movie-themed outdoor and special events like a flea market selling movie-related collectibles on July 6 and 7 in front of MK2 Bibliothèque and “Saturday Night Fever”-themed karaoke.

All films are screened in their original versions, many with English subtitles. General admission is a budget-friendly €5.

Cinéma en plein air

July 24-August 18

An outdoor event at the Parc de la Villette that has been a summer highlight for the last 23 years, Cinéma en plein air screens a selection of international films (all in their original versions, with subtitles) every night except Mondays and Tuesdays between July 24 and August 18 starting at nightfall.

It’s free if you want to just park yourself on the grass; to rent a lawn chair and a blanket is €7, or bring along some friends or family and get 5 lawn chairs/blankets for €20. The full program can be found here.

Cinéma au clair de lune

August 1-11

Watching classic movies shot in Paris under the moonlight in movie-set-worthy Parisian settings like the Place des Vosges, the foot of the Butte Montmartre, the Jardins du Trocadéro or the Esplanade des Invalides is a surreal, romantic summer in Paris experience. The 13th edition of the Cinéma au clair de lune, presented by the Forum des Images, is a surefire antidote to the dog days of Paris in August.

Free admission, no reservations and a limited number of complimentary chairs means that it’s a good idea to get there early, and BYOB (booze and blanket). Screenings may be canceled due to rain. For details on films and screening times, go here.

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Today (June 25, 2010) in Stockholm, the sun came up at 3:32 in the morning and will go down at 10:09 p.m. That is a whole lot of daylight.

It is the difference between the summer and winter months that makes Midsummer such a special holiday in Sweden. Celebrating the summer solstice is actually a public holiday in Sweden, although not necessarily on the actual Midsummer day. Instead, the Friday and Saturday of the summer solstice are celebrated, ensuring that every year, everyone gets the day off.

Midsummer celebrations

A small maypole. Photo: DeCyner

Traditionally, the day begins with the dressing and raising of the maypole. This involves collecting shoots, green branches and flowers to decorate the pole before it is finally raised.

If you find yourself at a traditional midsummer celebration, you may notice people wearing what is referred to as folkdräkt, the traditional folk dress. These vary for each area of Sweden and differ between men, women and children. Before the festivities really begin, though, you need to be sure that you have collected enough green (and bendable) twigs and flowers to create a crown to wear while dancing around the pole.

Once your crown is complete, you’ll be ready to celebrate the summer. Dancing around the maypole is surprisingly easy, even for those, like me, who have no rhythm whatsoever. Songs include “Små grodorna” (The Small Frogs) which involves hopping around the maypole like a small frog. Easy enough really. Of course, it’s not always that easy and often times a group of dancers will demonstrate the traditional dances associated with the celebration.

The midsummer meal is also a big part of the celebration and often times (depending on weather, of course) is eaten outside. Various types of sil (pickled herring) and potatoes make up the majority of the menu, followed usually by strawberries and cream. Akvavit, a strong Swedish liquor, flows freely, along with beer.

Skansen in Stockholm

Each year, Skansen, the outdoor living museum in Stockholm, plays host to a three-day Midsummer celebration (minus the midsummer meal with akvavit).

This year, the celebration starts on June 25, 2010 and will be complete with the raising of the maypole, dancing, singing and even traditional folk dress. The event is popular with Swedes and tourists alike and is a great way to experience a traditional Swedish midsummer. Visit the Skansen Midsummer site for the schedule.

Getting there:
Bus: Line 47 from Finland or line 44 from Karlaplan
Ferry: From Slussen to Djurgården

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