Overview Highlands Oktoberfest and Market closes West 32nd Avenue in North Denver's Highland Square for one free Saturday in September and runs it as a street Oktoberfest, with two stages, a Dachshund Dash and a stein-hoisting contest between the beer tents and a long market of local vendors. Entry and music are free; food, beer and spirits are sold on the street. Team Player Productions, a Colorado festival producer with events in Colorado, Utah and Montana, runs it. On site The festival runs 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. along 32nd from Julian to Perry. The Osceola Stage carries the music - in 2026 that meant Jim Ehrlich, Tanzkapelle, Austrian Connection and the Guerrilla Fanfare Brass Band - after an opening ceremony. The Lowell Stage runs the contests: a costume contest, keg bowling twice a day, stein hoisting and the GTSV Alpen Auerhahn dancers. Kidtoberfest runs all day with face painting, balloon animals and pretzel necklaces. Food ranges from Bavarian fare to neighborhood restaurants and food trucks, and a merchandise tent at 32nd and Lowell sells a limited run of 300 ceramic commemorative steins plus vintage ones. Water refill stations replace bottled water, and there are no plastic bags. Audience The festival asks people to walk or bike in, with designated bike parking on the street. Families come for Kidtoberfest, and leashed dogs are allowed; the dachshund race has a slot on the main schedule. The same block holds the Highland Farmers Market on Sundays through the season. Brand presence In 2026 the festival added the Highlands Bierfest, a 2:30-to-5:30 tasting in the middle of the day where ticket holders get a 12-sample punch card for brewery tents; Molly's Spirits sponsored it, and the brewery list included Odell, Breckenridge, Cerebral, Prost, Goldspot and New Terrain. Program pieces carry partner names, as the 2026 Dachshund Dash did for Sploot Vets. Sponsorship is sold at presenting, gold, silver and community levels, and on-street vending, sampling and petitioning are limited to approved partners.