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Dress and Tracht

What to wear to the Kocherlball

Dirndl, Lederhose or your good Sunday clothes: what suits a July morning at six, what the servants' clothing recalls, and why the shoes matter most.

The principle

Welcome, not required

There are few places in Munich where you will see so much Tracht at once as on this morning, and yet nobody prescribes it. No one is inspected at the entrance. There is not even an entrance.

Hardly anyone comes in jeans, all the same. Dirndl, Lederhose, Janker or one's good Sunday clothes belong to this morning as much as the brass band does. The finest dressed are those who take their cue from the servants who gave the ball its name: a plain skirt, an apron, a bonnet, a linen shirt, a waistcoat. It is not a costume. It is a bow.

In practice

What has stood the test

For her

  • A Dirndl with apron, preferably the plain cotton one rather than the festive one.
  • In the manner of the servants: ankle-length skirt, blouse, apron, bonnet or headscarf.
  • Flat, firm shoes, since the dancing is on gravel.
  • A cardigan or shawl against the chill before sunrise.

For him

  • Lederhose with Haferlschuhe, shirt, waistcoat or Janker.
  • In the manner of the servants: linen shirt, waistcoat, work jacket, hat.
  • No Tracht? Dark trousers and a light shirt. That is enough.
  • A jacket for the first hours. It comes off soon enough.
The morning begins cool and ends in summer. Layers are wiser than a perfect outfit, and comfortable shoes are wiser than anything. Where the festival comes from is told in the chapter on the tradition.

Questions about dress

In brief

What do you wear to the Kocherlball?
Tracht is welcome but not required: Dirndl, Lederhose, Janker or your good Sunday clothes. Dress after the fashion of the old servants and you come closest to the spirit of the day.
Do I have to wear a Dirndl or Lederhose?
No. Nobody is turned away. If you have no Tracht, come neatly dressed and you are just as welcome.
Which shoes work best?
Firm shoes, well worn in. The dancing is on gravel and grass, and every heel loses there.
How cold is it at 6 am?
Cooler than you expect in July. A cardigan, a Janker or a shawl belongs in the basket; by mid-morning it is warm.

Clothes laid out? Then all that is missing is the day.

Third Sunday in July, six in the morning.

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