Oktoberfest is coming back to Lawrence. The City of Lawrence and Indiana On Tap are welcoming everyone back to Fort Ben Cultural Campus on Saturday, September 19, 2026, for Lagers in Lawrence, the ninth year of what organizers call one of the largest and most popular Oktoberfest celebrations in Indiana, running from 2 p.m. to 6 p.m.
According to the City of Lawrence, Indiana - Government, the afternoon is built around unlimited sample pours of craft beverages, a stein-holding competition, wiener dog races, German dance performances and food trucks. The city describes the event as an afternoon of drinks, food, music and friendly competition, with the whole festival unfolding on the grounds of Fort Ben Cultural Campus. Co-organizer Indiana On Tap is a statewide media, marketing and event management company that hosts dozens of craft beverage festivals across Indiana each year, drawing tens of thousands of attendees, per the event's own Indiana On Tap listing.
Unlimited Pours and a Bring-Your-Own-Stein Tradition
That listing notes attendees can sample more than 150 craft beers, wines and spirits from vendors across the state, and organizers explicitly encourage guests to bring their own beer steins or mugs, which get larger pours than the standard tasting cups handed out at the gate. The bring-your-own-stein custom echoes the mug pours associated with traditional Munich Oktoberfest celebrations, per the same listing.
Advance general admission tickets run $40, with VIP admission at $45, according to Visit Lawrence. Day-of gate admission climbs to $45 general and $50 VIP, and designated drivers can get in for $20. Entry requires proof of age 21 or older for every attendee, including non-drinking designated drivers, a policy consistent with Indiana's strict excise regulations for outdoor alcohol events.
Running of the Wieners Returns for Dachshund Fans
The festival's dachshund race, known as the Running of the Wieners, registers dogs on-site on a first-come, first-served basis. The competition runs through multiple preliminary heats before a championship round, and heat winners take home beer-infused pet shampoo as their prize, according to Spunk 'N' Disorderly Soaps.
German folk dance performances round out the entertainment, with the Fort Wayne Tänzer group among the acts appearing. Founded in 2012, Fort Wayne Tänzer became the first Indiana-based club, or Verein, officially accepted into Gauverband Nordamerika, the national organization dedicated to preserving Bavarian dance and culture, according to the group's own website.
A Venue Built on Fort Benjamin Harrison's Former Grounds
Fort Ben Cultural Campus sits on land that was once Fort Benjamin Harrison, an active U.S. Army post established in 1903 and decommissioned in 1995 before its 2,500 acres were redeveloped into what's now considered a nationally recognized model of military base adaptive reuse, as Hoodline previously reported. The former base grounds now include state park land, commercial districts and civic spaces.
The cultural campus itself was built following a $5.85 million grant awarded in 2019 by Lilly Endowment Inc., which converted former Army base land into a dedicated arts and festival district, according to Montreal design studio Daily Tous Les Jours. The same studio designed the campus's Musical Swings, North America's first permanent set of interactive musical swings, which produce collaborative instrumental music when visitors swing together in rhythm; the swings became a permanent fixture in 2021 after a 2019 trial run.
Festivals Anchor a Fast-Growing Fort Ben Corridor
Lawrence Mayor Deb Whitfield, who delivered her State of the City address in April, has actively promoted cultural events and commercial development along the Fort Ben corridor as part of an effort to transform the city of 49,000 into a regional entertainment destination, according to Mirror Indy. Lagers in Lawrence joins a growing calendar of civic programming at Fort Ben, including the recent BBQ and Blues Festival.
The festival grounds sit directly beside active commercial construction, including The Benjamin, an $80 million, five-story mixed-use complex with more than 230 luxury apartments and 23,000 square feet of retail slated to open this fall. Fort Ben's remaining open parcels continue to be converted into dense residential and retail space as the city leans into festivals like Lagers in Lawrence to help anchor the surrounding development boom.
