For your average Aussie holidaymaker, beer is going to make some kind of appearance on most trips. But why not make your favourite beverage the centrepiece of your travels? If the sight of a frosty glass of amber ale with a nice fluffy head gets your mouth watering, you won't want to miss our list of the ultimate attractions for any beer lover.
Beer baths, near Tarrenz, Austria
Drinking beer is for pansies! Take your lager-loving habits to new heights by
swimming in the stuff. Head to Austria's
Starkenberger Biermythos, a self-proclaimed "beer myth resort" which along with its medieval castle setting and modern brewery, boasts up to seven pools filled with beer
geläger.
A two-hour session, in which you get an entire pool (fitting four people), costs €135 ($211) so it's best to find three friends to come along. And okay, we can't guarantee you'll get drunk on the stuff, but apparently the beery water is excellent for your skin. Reservation is required, so head to their website for more information.
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Sport and Beer Lovers Experience, Melbourne
Sport and beer: for many an Aussie it's a match made in heaven. And now there's a
tour that includes a behind-the-scenes look at Melbourne's top sporting venues, such as the MCG, Flemington and the Melbourne Grand Prix, followed by a tour of Foster's Australia Brewery (including a free tasting).
For those who'd rather skip the sport and get straight to the drinking, there are also plenty of brewery and boutique beer tasting tours on offer around the nation.
Beer bike, Berlin and Amsterdam
Time and time again we're reminded not to drink and drive, but what about drink and
ride? Berlin's "
Bier Bike" is a pretty extraordinary sight: a sixteen-passenger vehicle with one sober company rep leading at the front, a huge wooden keg at the back, and a number of beer-burping peddlers powering the entire thing through the streets of Berlin.
The entire thing will set you back €100 to €130 ($157 to $204) for a two-hour tour, more if you choose to ride for longer, with the beer costing €3.50 ($5.50) per liter. There are also specials listed on their website.
The beer bike is also available in Amsterdam, so head to their website for more information.
Related video: Lunch around the world: from San Fran soups to Berlin's beer bikes
The World Series of Beer Pong, United States
Why not take the Yanks on in their own game: beer pong! This infamous drinking game has long grown out of its humble college frat-house beginnings, and turned into a full-blown "sport" with its own professional
world series. And the best news is that you can
enter!
While the 2011 tournament has come to an end, held early January at the Flamingo Hotel and Casino, Las Vegas, sign-ups have already begun for WSOBP VII. There are also satellite tournaments you can enter held around the year, in several cities across the States.
Drink Duff, Mexico
It's possibly the world's most famous
fictional beer, but now one entrepreneurial Mexican has brought to life Duff, the beer from television show
The Simpsons. Since 2006, Rodrigo Contreras, from Guadalajara has been producing Duff (with seemingly no fear of Fox's legal team) in packaging identical to that of the show: long brown bottle, red-and-white sticker label, with "Duff" in a hand-drawn black font.
The website even adopts the same sound bite as that which accompanies The Simpsons character Duffman. Head to their website for the latest information about stockists and events.
World's oldest brewery, Weihenstephan, Germany
Beer-loving history buffs can take a look into what's believed to be the oldest brewery in the world. Located in Weihenstephan, a small city north of Munich, the Benedictine Weihenstephan Abbey was founded in AD 725 and established their still-operating brewery in AD 1040, run by the resident monks. This makes the brewery an incredible 970 years old!
The Weihenstephan brewery offers guided tours that include a tasting of their international award-winning beer, and a take-home glass that bears the brewery motif. Head to their website for more information.
Oktoberfest, Munich
No beer-themed holiday list would be complete without a mention of the world's premiere beer festival, Oktoberfest. For two weeks, Munich, Germany comes alive with the sound of beer mugs clinking! Be prepared to see loads of lederhosen, chicken schnitzel, sausages, late-night (and early afternoon) parties, fireworks and of course about 7 million litres of beer being chugged by folks from all over the world.
Expect a litre glass of beer, known as a maß, to set you back by up to $13. This year's celebration starts from September 18. Head to the official website for more information.
St Patrick's Day pub crawl, Dublin
There are St Patty's Day celebrations all around the world, but why not make the next one extra special by heading to the day's very heart and home. There it's a public holiday, with loads of
cultural events. But let's face it, we know you'll be licking your lips for that mucky, black stuff — Guinness.
While there are loads of tours on offer, if you want to do your own unofficial pub and brewery crawl on the day, don't forget to visit the Guinness Brewery and Storehouse and poke your head into The Porterhouse in Temple Bar.
