Covers London, Edinburgh, Dublin and Central Europe, where the ghost walks are old and the summer nights are short.
Updated
This page carries dated prices, start times or seasonal openings checked on the date above, and that window has now passed. Re-check the sources at the foot of the page before you book.
A pub crawl is a guided night out. Someone who knows the bars walks a group between three to seven of them, gets you in, sometimes pours you a shot, and keeps the evening moving. That's it.
We scored 38 in 25 cities, and they come in three flavours. Party crawls, built around free shots and club entry, mostly in Europe. Ghost walks with bar stops, mostly in the American South. And a smaller group of crawls with an actual subject: Irish literature, Prohibition, Revolutionary Boston, the tiny bars of Golden Gai.
One thing about the scores. Almost every crawl gets a 6 on our after-dark factor, because a bar is a bar at any hour and nobody is selling you the dark. So the ranking comes down to rating, reviews and price. Read the price carefully, though, because on most crawls the ticket doesn't include the drinks.
Ranked by Night Score, three per city at most. How it works.
At a glance
Best overall
Budapest Ruin Bars Pub Crawl, 7.7, $4.49 (€4) on sale
Best with a point
MagicalTrip's Shinjuku bar hop to Golden Gai, dinner and drinks included
Best ghost pub walk
Nightly Spirits' Booze and Boos in Charleston, 14 people max
Best for culture
Dublin Literary Pub Crawl, actors between four pubs
Skip
Crawls with 50 to 150 people, unless that's the point
Real cost
Ticket plus drinks: a New York speakeasy cocktail runs $18 to $25 (€16.10 to €22)
On this page
The 12 best pub crawls and bar tours, ranked
Ranked by Night Score across every city we cover, with no more than three from one place. Night Score = 30% rating, 10% review count, 20% price per hour, 40% how much the night is the point. How we score
The cheapest ticket on this site: $4.49 (€4) on sale, down from $9 (€8), for a five-hour crawl. That maxes the value score, and a 4.9 from 1,477 reviews does the rest. Budapest Nightlife Tours takes you through three or four ruin bars in the old Jewish Quarter with welcome shots, then skip-the-line entry to a club. Everything after the free shots is on you, so the real cost is your bar bill. Strictly 18+. The meeting bar depends on the option you book. See our Budapest page.
How the score breaks down, and the fine print
Rated by travelersData · 30%8.4
Review countData · 10%8.2
Price per hourData · 20%10.0
After darkEditors · 40%6.0
What it is: Budapest Nightlife Tours leads an English-language crawl through three or four ruin bars with welcome shots, ending at a club with skip-the-line entry.
Good to know: $4.49 is a sale price (was $9); drinks beyond the free shots are on you. The meeting bar depends on the option booked; 18+ only.
After dark: Budapest's ruin bars in the old Jewish Quarter only come alive at night.
Rating, review count and from-price as shown on GetYourGuide on October 26, 2026. The price changes with the date.
The best crawl we scored, if you ask me, and the one with the most reviews: 4.9 from 4,053. MagicalTrip goes from the black pillar at the Omoide Yokocho entrance through Kabukicho to Shinjuku Golden Gai, most of which is shut by day. A full dinner, free-flow drinks at the second bar and drinks at the other two are included, which is rare. It's $109 (€97), so the value score is middling. Capped at 7. Twenty and over only, Japan's drinking age. Our Tokyo page has more.
How the score breaks down, and the fine print
Rated by travelersData · 30%8.8
Review countData · 10%9.7
Price per hourData · 20%5.7
After darkEditors · 40%7.0
What it is: MagicalTrip leads a three-bar crawl from Omoide Yokocho through Kabukicho to Shinjuku Golden Gai, with a full dinner and free-flow drinks at the second bar.
Good to know: Full dinner, two drinks at the first bar, all-you-can-drink at the second and one drink at the last, a guide and photos are included. Meets at the black pillar at the Omoide Yokocho entrance, ends at a Golden Gai bar, capped at 7, 20 and over only; private option from 245.61.
After dark: Omoide Yokocho's smoky lanes and Golden Gai's tiny bars are night places: most of Golden Gai is shut by day.
Rating, review count and from-price as shown on Viator on October 26, 2026. The price changes with the date.
The best of the ghost pub walks. Nightly Spirits sends a costumed guide on two and a half hours of ghost stories between historic bars, checking in outside Henry's at 54 N Market Street and ending on Vendue Range. Rated 4.9 from 1,635 reviews, $39 (€35), gratuities included. Twenty-one and up with ID, 14 people max. Drinks appear in the inclusions, but the overview says cocktails are on you, so bring money. This is Charleston's top night tour overall; see our Charleston page.
How the score breaks down, and the fine print
Rated by travelersData · 30%8.5
Review countData · 10%8.3
Price per hourData · 20%8.9
After darkEditors · 40%6.0
What it is: A 2.5-hour costumed-guide ghost walk with bar stops by Nightly Spirits, checking in outside Henry's, 54 N Market Street.
Good to know: 21 and up with ID; maximum 14. Gratuities included; the overview says cocktails are at your own expense even though drinks appear in the inclusions.
After dark: A night of ghost stories between historic bars, ending on Vendue Range.
Rating, review count and from-price as shown on Viator on October 26, 2026. The price changes with the date.
A three-stop izakaya and sake bar hop through Udagawacho and Center-gai, ending at a hidden bar near the Shibuya Scramble Crossing. MagicalTrip again, 4.9 from 1,097 reviews, capped at 8. The catch, and it's a big one for the score: the $39 (€35) covers the guide and photos only. The page says to plan on about $38 (€34; ¥6,000) in cash for food and drinks, split at each venue. So its maxed value score flatters it. No vegetarian or vegan option, and some venues allow smoking.
How the score breaks down, and the fine print
Rated by travelersData · 30%8.2
Review countData · 10%7.7
Price per hourData · 20%10.0
After darkEditors · 40%6.0
What it is: MagicalTrip leads a three-stop izakaya and sake bar hop through Udagawacho and Center-gai, ending near the Shibuya Scramble Crossing at a hidden bar.
Good to know: The fee covers the guide and photos only: plan on about 6,000 yen in cash for food and drinks, split at each venue (a 5-course meal and drink, shared dishes with 2 drinks, then sake). Meets at FamilyMart Shibuya Orchard Road, capped at 8; no vegetarian or vegan option and some venues allow smoking.
After dark: Shibuya's izakaya alleys and the lit Scramble Crossing are at their busiest after dark, but the core is a guided bar hop.
Rating, review count and from-price as shown on Viator on October 26, 2026. The price changes with the date.
Same company and format as Charleston's, with four pub stops over two and a half hours. It starts at Tandem Coffee and Spirits, 225 E Bay Street (Sundays from Savannah Taphouse on Broughton Street), and ends near River Street. Rated 4.9 from 1,274 reviews, $40 (€36), up to 16 people, 21 and up with ID. The page lists drinks as included without saying how many, so budget for your own. Savannah's to-go cup rules make this easier than most crawls; our Savannah page explains them.
How the score breaks down, and the fine print
Rated by travelersData · 30%8.3
Review countData · 10%7.9
Price per hourData · 20%8.9
After darkEditors · 40%6.0
What it is: A 2.5-hour ghost walk with four pub stops by Nightly Spirits, from Tandem Coffee and Spirits, 225 E Bay Street (Sundays from Savannah Taphouse on Broughton Street).
Good to know: 21 and up with ID, maximum 16. The page lists alcoholic beverages and gratuities as included without saying how many drinks; budget for your own.
After dark: Four historic bars and a costumed guide, a night-only format that ends near River Street.
Rating, review count and from-price as shown on Viator on October 26, 2026. The price changes with the date.
The one I'd book first in Europe. Actors perform Irish literature between four pubs for 2 hours 15 minutes, with a quiz, from upstairs at The Duke on Duke Street to Davy Byrnes. $26 (€23), which maxes the value score, and 1,777 reviews. A 4.8 rating is what keeps it sixth. Drinks aren't provided, whatever the "food and drinks" line says. Minimum age 16, and no more than four people per booking. More on Dublin's evenings on our Dublin page.
How the score breaks down, and the fine print
Rated by travelersData · 30%6.8
Review countData · 10%8.4
Price per hourData · 20%10.0
After darkEditors · 40%6.0
What it is: A 2 hour 15 minute walk between four pubs with actors and a literary quiz, from upstairs at The Duke on Duke Street to Davy Byrnes.
Good to know: Minimum age 16. Drinks are not provided despite a 'food and drinks' line on the page. Maximum four people per booking.
After dark: Actors perform Irish literature between four pubs; the evening setting suits it but the dark is not the draw.
Rating, review count and from-price as shown on Viator on October 26, 2026. The price changes with the date.
Lisbon's best party crawl, and the one that actually includes drinks: an hour of unlimited beer and sangria, two shots and skip-the-line club entry. The Purple Lisbon PubCrawl starts at the Miradouro de São Pedro de Alcântara, works Bairro Alto's street-drinking scene and ends in the clubs of Cais do Sodré. Five hours, $22 (€19.70) on sale from $37 (€33). Rated 4.8 from 1,518 reviews. It's 18+, and the clubs refuse sportswear and flip-flops.
How the score breaks down, and the fine print
Rated by travelersData · 30%6.8
Review countData · 10%8.2
Price per hourData · 20%10.0
After darkEditors · 40%6.0
What it is: The Purple Lisbon PubCrawl: a guided crawl from Bairro Alto to Cais do Sodré with an hour of unlimited beer and sangria and club entry.
Good to know: Sale price of $22 (was $37). Includes 1 hour of all-you-can-drink beer and sangria, 2 shots and skip-the-line club entry. 18+; clubs refuse sportswear and flip-flops.
After dark: Bairro Alto fills its streets after dark, and the crawl ends in the late clubs of Cais do Sodré.
Rating, review count and from-price as shown on GetYourGuide on October 26, 2026. The price changes with the date.
History between pints. Boston Crawling starts at the Sam Adams statue at Faneuil Hall and visits historic pubs near the Freedom Trail with a guide who knows the Revolutionary story. Rated 4.9 from 1,053 reviews, 12 people max, 21 and up. At $60 (€54) for 2 hours 15 minutes, with every drink bought at the bar, the value score sinks. Three daily start times and the page doesn't say which are evening, so pick the latest. Food isn't included.
How the score breaks down, and the fine print
Rated by travelersData · 30%8.2
Review countData · 10%7.6
Price per hourData · 20%6.9
After darkEditors · 40%6.0
What it is: Boston Crawling's guided crawl of historic pubs near Faneuil Hall with Revolutionary history between pints.
Good to know: 21+ with ID; maximum 12; drinks bought at each bar, food not included. The page does not say which of the three daily start times are evening.
After dark: Revolutionary-era taverns along the Freedom Trail are at their liveliest in the evening.
Rating, review count and from-price as shown on Viator on October 26, 2026. The price changes with the date.
Carpe Diem's Tipsy Tour works Monti's bars with drinking games and karaoke, and finishes, nicely, at the Julius Caesar statue on Via dei Fori Imperiali with the floodlit Forums behind you. Wine, spritz, sambuca and limoncello are included, though the page gives no count. Rated 4.9 from 873 reviews. $74 (€66) for three hours is steep, which is why it's ninth. Up to 22 people. Karaoke isn't for everyone; you've been warned.
How the score breaks down, and the fine print
Rated by travelersData · 30%8.0
Review countData · 10%7.4
Price per hourData · 20%7.2
After darkEditors · 40%6.0
What it is: A Carpe Diem Tours (Tipsy Tour) guided bar crawl through Monti with local drinks, drinking games and karaoke, finishing on Via dei Fori Imperiali.
Good to know: Up to 22 people; wine, spritz, sambuca and limoncello are included but the page gives no drink count. Ends at the Julius Caesar statue near Piazza Venezia.
After dark: Monti's bars only come alive at night, and the crawl ends at the floodlit Forums and Piazza Venezia.
Rating, review count and from-price as shown on Viator on October 26, 2026. The price changes with the date.
Three Midtown speakeasies in three hours with Prohibition stories and preferred entry, from One Worldwide Plaza on Eighth Avenue. NiteTables charges $40 (€36) for the guide. Drinks are extra, and the page is upfront: about $10 to $14 (€8.90 to €12.50) for a beer, $18 to $25 (€16.10 to €22) for wine or a cocktail. Rated 4.8 from 580 reviews. Twenty-one and up with photo ID (a passport for non-US visitors) and a smart dress code: no sandals, no sleeveless shirts.
How the score breaks down, and the fine print
Rated by travelersData · 30%6.2
Review countData · 10%6.7
Price per hourData · 20%9.6
After darkEditors · 40%6.0
What it is: NiteTables Experiences' three-hour walk to three Midtown speakeasies with Prohibition storytelling and preferred entry.
Good to know: 21+ with photo ID (passport for non-US visitors). Drinks are not included: the page quotes about $10 to $14 for beer and $18 to $25 for wine or cocktails. Smart dress code, no sandals or sleeveless shirts.
After dark: Hidden bars are a night-time thing, and getting in with a guide beats queueing at a door with no sign.
Rating, review count and from-price as shown on GetYourGuide on October 26, 2026. The price changes with the date.
Nightly Spirits in Lincoln Park: a costumed guide, about a mile on foot and three old saloons, from Glascott's Groggery at 2158 N Halsted St to Lilly's Bar. Rated 4.9, on only 333 reviews, which is the drag. $36 (€32) for two and a half hours, gratuities included, drinks extra. Capped at 12, with a minimum of two adults per booking, 21 and up. In winter it's one of the few Chicago night tours still worth doing.
How the score breaks down, and the fine print
Rated by travelersData · 30%6.8
Review countData · 10%5.9
Price per hourData · 20%9.3
After darkEditors · 40%6.0
What it is: Nightly Spirits' costumed-guide ghost walk with three Lincoln Park bar stops, from Glascott's Groggery to Lilly's Bar.
Good to know: 21+; maximum 12; minimum two adults per booking; gratuities included, drinks extra. About a mile on foot.
After dark: Lincoln Park's old saloons and their ghost stories work best as a night out.
Rating, review count and from-price as shown on Viator on October 26, 2026. The price changes with the date.
Ghost stories and three French Quarter bars, starting inside Unique NOLA Tours' shop at 815 Toulouse Street and ending somewhere else. Two hours, $37 (€33), with gratuities and taxes included and drinks at your own expense. Rated 4.8 from 901 reviews. Over-21s only, 15 people max, earlier and later evening departures. In a city where you can carry a drink down the street, it's the most natural crawl format there is.
How the score breaks down, and the fine print
Rated by travelersData · 30%6.5
Review countData · 10%7.4
Price per hourData · 20%8.3
After darkEditors · 40%6.0
What it is: An over-21 small-group ghost-story walk with three bar stops by Unique NOLA Tours, starting inside their shop at 815 Toulouse Street.
Good to know: Drinks at the three bars are at your own expense; gratuities and taxes are included. Maximum 15, ends at a different location from the start; senior discount.
After dark: Ghost stories between three French Quarter bars only work at night, when the bars are the point.
Rating, review count and from-price as shown on Viator on October 26, 2026. The price changes with the date.
Reserve links go to GetYourGuide or Viator. Booking through them can earn us a commission at no cost to you; it never changes a score or a rank. How we make money
Three kinds of crawl
The party crawl. Shots at each bar, a club at the end, a lot of strangers. Budapest, Lisbon, Berlin, Prague, Vienna, London, Edinburgh, Barcelona, Tokyo's Roppongi. Cheap tickets, big groups: Bingo in Budapest takes up to 50, Ultimate Crawl in Las Vegas up to 100, the Tokyo Pub Crawl up to 150. You go for the people.
The ghost pub walk. An American format. A costumed guide, ghost stories, two to four historic bars, 21 and up. Nightly Spirits alone runs a Booze and Boos tour in six of our cities: Charleston, Savannah, Chicago, Boston, Washington, DC and St. Augustine. Groups are small, 10 to 16.
The crawl with a subject. Dublin's literary crawl and its trad music crawl, Edinburgh's literary pub tour, Boston's Freedom Trail crawl, New York's speakeasies, the Golden Gai bar hop. These are the ones I'd pick. You come away knowing something.
What separates a good one from a dud
Read what's actually included. This is the big one. Page after page lists "alcoholic beverages" or "food and drinks" in the inclusions and then says, further down, that drinks are at your own expense. The Dublin Literary crawl, Ludwig's in Amsterdam, Salem's Booze and Brews and several Nightly Spirits tours all do it. Assume you pay unless the page names a number of drinks, as the Purple Lisbon crawl and the Shinjuku bar hop do.
Count the bars. Reviewers of Gettysburg's Boos and Booze crawl report only one to three actual pub stops for groups of up to 50. Spooky Savannah's bar stops last 5 to 10 minutes.
Group size. A ghost story in a loud bar is hard to hear with 30 people. DC reviewers say so even with 10.
Does the group stay together? Recent reviewers of the Las Vegas club crawl report groups split at boarding and long waits outside. On Halloween night in Salem one reviewer never found the guide.
Where pub crawls are best
Tokyo, for Golden Gai and the Shibuya izakaya. You'd struggle to get through those doors on your own. Budapest, for the ruin bars, cheaply. Dublin, for the literary crawl. Charleston and Savannah for ghost pub walks, and Lisbon for a Bairro Alto party night that starts at a viewpoint.
Weaker than you'd expect: London's only qualifying crawl is a five-venue bar and club night rated 4.4, and Amsterdam's and Vienna's are 4.4 too. Prague's unlimited-drinks crawls rated 4.1 to 4.2 and missed our bar. Paris, Florence, Venice, Singapore and Mexico City have nothing qualifying.
In Dublin, by the way, three good traditional pub walks didn't make it only because their pages don't say when they run.
What a pub crawl really costs
Tickets run from $4.49 (€4) in Budapest to $109 (€97) in Shinjuku. Plenty cost $20 to $40 (€17.90 to €36), but that's no rule. The ticket is the small part.
On a party crawl the ticket buys entry, a few shots and a club wristband. Vienna's $11 (€9.80) crawl includes club entry and nothing to drink. London's says entry to its five venues saves up to $67 (€60; £50). On a ghost or history walk the ticket pays the guide, and you pay at each bar. In New York that's $18 to $25 (€16.10 to €22) a cocktail.
The honest comparison is the all-in ones: the Shinjuku bar hop with dinner and free-flow drinks, Lisbon's hour of open bar, Rome's crawl with drinks included. They look expensive and often aren't.
Age limits, ID and dress codes
Kids, no. Every crawl here is for adults, and the limits follow local drinking law:
US: 21 and up with ID on every American crawl we ranked.
Japan and Thailand: 20. Bangkok's tuk-tuk bar hop lets over-16s come along but serves only over-20s.
Europe: mostly 18. Dublin's Generation crawl is 19; the Dublin Literary crawl takes 16-year-olds; Edinburgh's literary pub tour is 18+ because Scottish licensing law keeps under-18s out of the pubs.
Bring photo ID even if you look 40. New York's speakeasy tour asks non-US visitors for a passport. Lisbon's clubs turn away sportswear and flip-flops, and New York's speakeasies turn away sandals and sleeveless shirts.
Getting home, and when not to bother
Plan the ride back before the first shot. Party crawls run five or six hours, and Prague's lists a nine-hour maximum, so you'll finish after the last metro in most cities. Check the night buses or trams on the city page and read our night tour safety guide.
When not to bother: if you just want a drink, go to a bar. A crawl earns its price when it gets you somewhere hard to find, like Golden Gai, or gives the evening a story. A wristband and a club queue you can do yourself.
Every other pub crawls and bar tour we scored
The rest of the 38 pub crawls and bar tours we scored, best first. They cleared our bar but lost out on score, or on the three-per-city cap.
Usually not, or only a few shots. Many pages list drinks under inclusions and then say they're at your own expense. The exceptions name an amount: Lisbon's Purple crawl includes an hour of unlimited beer and sangria, and Tokyo's Shinjuku bar hop includes dinner and free-flow drinks.
What is the best pub crawl?
By our Night Score, the Budapest Ruin Bars Pub Crawl (7.7), largely because the ticket was $4.49 (€4) today. For the best night out with something to it, MagicalTrip's Shinjuku bar hop to Golden Gai, rated 4.9 from 4,053 reviews.
How old do you have to be for a pub crawl?
It follows the local drinking age: 21 in the US, 20 in Japan and Thailand, 18 in most of Europe. A few set their own limits, like Dublin's Generation crawl at 19 and the Dublin Literary crawl at 16.
What is a Booze and Boos tour?
Nightly Spirits' ghost walk with bar stops: a costumed guide, two to four historic bars and ghost stories, 21 and up, in groups of 10 to 16. It runs in Charleston, Savannah, Chicago, Boston, Washington, DC and St. Augustine, and the Charleston one ranks third here.
Is a pub crawl worth it?
Worth it if it gets you into places you'd miss alone, like Golden Gai or a Midtown speakeasy, or if you're traveling solo and want company. Not worth it if you only want to drink; the ticket rarely covers the drinks.
