Milwaukee is the “beer garden capitol”– view the 2025 schedule here

MILWAUKEE — Beer lovers can now mark their calendars for the 12th annual Milwaukee County Parks Traveling Beer Garden.

The tour kicks off May 14 with a new stop at Wilson Park. A couple of things are back by popular demand: a stop at Lake Park and a commemorative pint glass featuring the schedule printed on it. Visitors who reuse the glass or bring their own pint glass can enjoy the refill price.

Mobile beer trucks — restored fire trucks converted to travel with taps — will serve craft beers, gourmet sodas, brats, hotdogs and soft pretzels from the Milwaukee Pretzel Company at eight stops through Sept. 1. On the first day of each stop, they’ll be serving up free beer and root beer for the first 20 minutes.

“It’s about bringing the community together,” Milwaukee County Parks Assistant Director of Business Services Joe Mrozinski told Wisconsin’s Midday News. “It’s people scheduling family reunions, neighborhood gatherings. They bring their kids, they bring their dogs.”

Beer gardens also generate revenue for the county parks system. According to Mrozinski, they contributed over $3 million to cost recovery last year.

“We are probably the best parks system in the country as far as cost recovery goes,” Mrozinski told WTMJ. “We’re at about 50%. . . most parks systems are at 5 to 15%.”

The traveling beer gardens have also led to permanent ones, including the Whitnall Beer Garden and Juneau Beer Garden.

Milwaukee County Parks is still looking for seasonal workers— the parks system hires about 1,000 part-time workers every summer, including beer garden employees.

2025 Traveling Beer Garden schedule