Things To Know Before Starting Your First Bar Crawl
A bar crawl can be a great way to explore a city or just try out several places in one night. For many people, the bar crawl is considered a rite of passage. According to Annapolis Tours & Crawls, the "pub crawl" was born in England. With so many small bars, pubs, and taverns in close proximity, people could easily walk from place to place over the course of an evening. However, after sampling the libations at each place, some patrons were crawling instead.
Bar crawls eventually spread to the U.S. — and they're for more than just you and a few friends. Companies have sprung up from coast to coast offering official pub tour events. In 2013, the Crawl for Cancer was recognized by Guinness World Records when 4,885 people completed a 10-pub Kansas City crawl. There are even scientific models for how to optimize a bar crawl for the best experience (via Neos Guide).
If you're considering going on a pub crawl, the most important thing is to prepare for it. As noted in a pilot study published by PLoS One, when a large drinking event goes wrong, the problems can go far beyond just a hangover.
With that in mind, here are 12 tips to make your first bar crawl a success. We've covered everything you need to know so you remember it for all the right reasons.
1. Have a Plan
While some people enjoy deciding spur-of-the-moment which bars to go, the most fun to be had is when you plan a bar crawl in advance. Planning isn't just for work projects or date nights. Lumen Learning notes some of the benefits of planning include defining goals, having a guide to accomplish those goals, and providing motivation — all of which can help you get more out of bar-hopping.
Your plan should start with deciding what places you want to visit. From there, use Google Maps or another mapping service to figure out the best route to hit all those spots. If that route requires driving, you'll need to recruit designated drivers. You should also call the venues in advance to make sure they're open on the date you're looking at and willing and able to accommodate a large group (if you plan to do this with a group of friends). There's nothing worse than being turned away because you didn't do your bar crawl homework.
Want someone to do the planning for you? Sign up for an organized bar crawl. While the scope can vary, according to The Great British Pub Crawl, a typical guided bar crawl involves visiting 5 to 6 places over a 2 to 3-hour span. That's a great way to get your feet wet. If you want to go big, directories, such as the World's Best Pub Crawls, will help you find noteworthy bar tours.
2. Be Willing to Improvise
So once you've made a bar crawl plan, you should stick to it no matter what, right? Not necessarily. It's inevitable that something won't go according to the plan — a bar may be unexpectedly crowded or someone in the party might have one beer too many.
But don't let one bump in the road ruin your night. Thinking on the fly is important for a successful bar crawl. Some improvisation can even benefit your experience — according to Exploring Your Mind, short-term improvisation helps people stay in the moment, feel more emotion, and "get out of your comfort zone."
Furthermore, Lumen Learning says that planning too rigidly can prevent you from being flexible or thinking creatively. That can mean missing potential opportunities during a bar crawl. If there's a cool band unexpectedly playing at a bar or you see another patron you want to chat with, you don't want to blow them off just because it's not part of the plan.
So, make sure you have a backup option in case something goes wrong. Or if something is going better than you thought, be willing to go off-script and wing it. You'll be able to relax and enjoy the experience instead of stressing.
3. Get Some Rest
Even a bar crawl that only lasts a few hours will require a lot of energy — especially if you have a long walking route. Make sure you're well-rested for the busy afternoon or night ahead. The Office of Disease Prevention and Health Promotion notes that getting enough sleep means you'll have more energy, be less stressed, and make better decisions.
It's a good move to get at least 7 to 8 hours of sleep the night before your pub crawl. If it's an evening crawl, try to squeeze in a nap that afternoon. You'll be fully charged for the adventure ahead — and since adequate sleep also improves your mood, you'll get along better with your crawl-mates.
Resting before a bar crawl is even more important when you consider how alcohol affects your sleep afterward. As noted by a study in the Korean Journal of Family Medicine, it is widely known that alcohol works as a sedative. You don't want to already be tired before consuming something that will make you drowsy.
Despite its relaxing effects, alcohol also can hurt your ability to sleep the following night. WebMD details a review of more than 25 studies that show that, while alcohol helps you fall asleep faster, the sleep you get is much lower quality. So get your rest on the eve of the pub tour — because you probably won't be getting much post-crawl.
4. Eat Before and During Your Bar Crawl
In addition to being well-rested, you should be well-fed before bar hopping — and make sure there are food options along the route. There are several reasons for this, one of which is fairly obvious: Your body needs fuel to function. According to the University of Louisville Health Sciences Center, skipping even one meal can cause you to be tired and weak, overeat when you do finally eat, and lower the body's metabolism. You don't want to start a bar crawl already feeling sluggish and irritable.
The second reason is that, according to Healthline, drinking on an empty stomach means your body will absorb the alcohol faster. This can quickly inhibit your ability to think, move, and act properly. Having food in your stomach slows the alcohol absorption rate so its effects aren't as sudden. Healthline recommends eating a meal at least one hour in advance if you plan to consume multiple drinks.
There's one other thing to keep in mind: As discussed in Current Opinion in Clinical Nutrition & Metabolic Care, even moderate drinking causes people to eat more food in the short term. And Alcohol Think Again notes that alcohol consumption can make people crave foods containing lots of fat, sugar, and salt. So when you eat before a bar crawl, try to focus on foods that have protein, complex carbohydrates, and other good energy sources (via WebMD).
5. Stay Hydrated
Beer and liquor shouldn't be the only thing you drink on a bar crawl; make sure you're taking in plenty of water, too. As Healthline observes, alcohol is a known diuretic that pulls water out of your system, especially when consumed in high amounts. Some experts estimate that consuming 200 milliliters of a standard 5% alcohol-by-volume beer can cause you to expel 320 milliliters of urine (via ABC Science). That's 60% more water than you drank! If you're drinking heavier beers, wine, or spirits with a higher alcohol content, the effect will be even more pronounced.
So make sure to drink water throughout your bar crawl. Healthline suggests one 16-ounce glass of water for every 12-ounce beer. While you might need to visit the bathroom a lot, it's better than the hangovers, muscle cramps, cognitive issues, and other symptoms of being dehydrated. Drinking lighter beers when possible is also helpful since they have less of a diuretic effect (via Alcohol and Alcoholism).
Looking for lighter drinks doesn't just apply to the alcohol content, either. Dark, distilled beverages like bourbon are filled with minor compounds called congeners, and a 2010 study in Current Drug Abuse Reviews found that they can make dehydration and hangovers worse. A combination of water consumption and smart beverage choices will keep you from waking up bone-dry.
6. Manage Your Money
While you should expect to spend some money when visiting several bars in an outing, you shouldn't need to take out a second mortgage to do it. But the cost of a bar crawl can add up fast if you're not careful.
According to the World Beer Index 2021 by Expensivity, the average price for a pint of beer in the U.S is $4.75. This varies based on your location — for example, BlackTailNYC notes 16 ounces of brew in a local Los Angeles pub can set you back $8. Even if you're buying by the pitcher, which is roughly 3.75 pints, that will run you anywhere from $15 to $30 (via CraftJacks.com). Beer prices also tend to be higher during the summer because there's more demand at that time of year.
So, be smart when planning your bar crawl. Look for specials happening at the bars you're going to and go in with an idea of how much you're willing to spend. Partaking in an organized bar crawl through an event company often includes drink tickets, discounts, and even food specials (via DoTheCrawl.com).
One last note: Make sure to bring some cash along with your credit and debit cards. As noted by Inverse, many bars are still cash-only. Be prepared for whatever payment method a bar might accept so you're not stuck on the sidelines.
7. Choose a Theme That's Fun and Easy
You can get a few friends together and go bar-hopping with no set rhyme or reason, but adding a theme for your bar crawl separates it from an ordinary outing. Themes typically involve the types of bars you visit or the outfit you wear. For example, Bar Crawl USA offers pub crawl themes such as the Boozy Brunch Crawl and the Ugly Sweater Crawl. And if you really want to amp things up, there are historical bar crawls, Disney-themed bar crawls, and even the SantaCon Bar Crawl.
There are benefits to having a bar crawl theme, too. Calaméo notes that party themes help set the mood, encourage participation, give you a concept to organize around, and offer a fun change of pace. In the end, a bar crawl is basically a mobile party.
Here are a few simple theme tips to follow. Choose something that fellow crawlers actually want to do so people will be excited. If the theme involves dressing up, make doing so relatively easy and inexpensive so it's more accessible to everyone, especially since you're already spending money on drinks. Even something as simple as matching shirts can add to the fun — and they'll also help you keep track of everyone.
8. Dress Comfortably
Whether or not you're doing a bar crawl theme, you should put some thought into how you dress. Since you're probably going to be walking from place to place, you want to wear clothes that are comfortable and don't restrict movement. Best Pub Crawl observes you should also consider the weather as well as if the venues you're planning to stop at have a dress code. Also, unless it's part of a theme, avoid bright colors and other items that make you stick out.
Good footwear for a bar crawl is also a must; the main reason is so your feet have proper support. Countless studies show that good footwear reduces the risk of pain and injury while also helping you move better (via BioMed Central). By extension, you should steer clear of heels, tight dress shoes, or anything else that would be uncomfortable to stand and walk in — or that you would fret about if a beer is accidentally spilled on it.
The right footwear will also protect you from germs. Cleanlink notes that the floors and restrooms are two of the dirtiest areas in every restaurant — and you'll be spending plenty of time in contact with each. Because of this, you should refrain from wearing open-toed footwear at all costs. Also, wear shoes that have a good grip, as more than 1 million food service guests are injured each year by slipping and falling (via ISSA).
9. Don't Overdo It
You want to spend the morning after a bar crawl talking about what a great time you had, not nursing a hangover or injury. Knowing your limits and sticking to them is essential. If you're not sure what your limits are, a good rule of thumb is that the average person can process about one standard drink per hour (via California Department of Alcoholic Beverage Control). A "standard drink" is considered one 12-ounce beer with 5% ABV. Of course, this varies depending on a person's size, age, and metabolism.
The biggest thing is resisting peer pressure. A 2019 survey by Drinkaware, a British alcoholic education charity, found that 35% of Brits have drunk more than they planned because others pressured them to do so. Moreover, 29% of respondents said they have drunk more than planned in order to "keep up" with their friends or coworkers.
Just because a couple of friends start chugging drinks doesn't mean you have to. It's best to limit yourself to one drink per stop, as DoTheCrawl.com recommends, and keep the larger view of wanting to enjoy every pub. You don't even have to get a drink at each bar; if there are a lot of stops on the itinerary, make a few of them water or food stops to give yourself a break.
10. Keep Track of Your Belongings
You don't want to get halfway through a bar crawl — or worse, to the next day — and discover you lost something valuable along the way. Even in the best of times, keeping track of items is a problem for almost everyone. A 2017 survey by Pixie Technology Inc. found the typical American spends 2.5 days per year searching for things they've lost or misplaced. And as a country, we shell out more than $2.7 billion a year replacing the items we weren't able to find.
The odds of losing something during a pub tour or other large drinking event are even higher. The National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism notes that alcohol consumption hinders a person's ability to recall memories and form new ones. In other words, when you're drinking, you're less likely to remember if you still have your wallet, keys, phone, ID, and other belongings.
Before you even leave the house, make a checklist of the items you're bringing. Then prior to leaving each stop, do a self-check or pat-down to make sure you have those things. You might also designate a non-drinking friend to remind people to do their self-check. Also, don't bring unnecessary items that could easily be lost. Think long and hard about whether you really need those expensive sunglasses, flashy rings, or large handbags along for the ride.
11. Look Out for Each Other
Part of being a good friend is keeping an eye out for everyone's well-being. This is especially true during a bar crawl as consuming alcohol can significantly affect some people's personalities. As noted in the Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, alcohol impairs one's ability to process information and this can cause a person to behave more extremely in high-conflict situations — i.e. they become more aggressive. This "drunken excess" can also make someone more impulsive, less inhibited, and more likely to self-disclose personal information.
From start to finish, monitor the group to see if anyone is getting out of line or misbehaving. If they are, step in before the situation escalates. Not surprisingly, the federal study "Alcohol and Bar Violence" found that overconsumption of the former is heavily correlated to the latter — and you don't want your bar crawl to become a bar brawl.
You also need to make sure everyone has a place to stay or a designated driver after the crawl is over. In 2020 alone, the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration reports that nearly 12,000 people were killed in drunk driving crashes. Providing a couch to sleep on, having a sober friend be a DD, or hiring a professional driving service are easy ways to reduce that number. It may add money to the bar tour budget, but getting home safely is priceless.
12. Enjoy the Vibe
Remember: The main reason you're going on a bar crawl is to have fun and savor a new experience, and part of that adventure may be something totally unexpected. So don't get bogged down in just hanging out with your friend group and getting to the next stop. As Science of People writes, bars are a social environment and can still be a great place to meet new people. They even list bar crawls as a way to be more sociable. Keep an open mind to approaching a new group or being approached — and put the phone away unless you're taking a picture. You might even find someone to join you for the next stop.
Don't limit your adventurous spirit to just trying new bar drinks, either. "The New Nightlife" report by SevenRooms details how a growing number of Americans are drawn to "eatertainment" venues where other activities are combined with food and drink. They might just be up your alley, too. So, have a couple of stops where you start a game of billiards, sing some karaoke, play a couple of arcade games, or check out an open mic. As Boulders on Broadway says, "fun is everywhere" at a bar. Let yourself find that fun or let it come to you for an unforgettable pub crawl.