Whether you call it a pub crawl or a bar crawl, whether you're a pub crawl virgin or have lost count of the number of crawls you've done, whether you like to party hard or party soft, you'll know that one thing the
best pub crawls promise is an eventful night. Here are the 22 stages of doing a pub crawl!
- Finding your way to the first bar & meeting point – cue you and some other pub crawl-bound backpackers over-complicating a relatively short journey from your hostel, taking turns trying to decipher street names, holding the map at different angles, and appealing to locals for directions – before one of you realises you’re in the 21st century and uses their phone to guide you all.
- You arrive, get your wristband, and mentally prepare yourself for your entry into the pub – the all-important first impression! In your mind you’ll strut in, John Travolta Saturday Night Fever style, your theme tune playing, slow motion, there’s lights, the crowd parts, and people stare in awe at your presence. In reality, you push when the door says pull, and walk in relatively unnoticed, try not to trip, and rush straight to the bar to get your free welcome drink.
- Praying to all the Gods you’ll be able for the local poison – “yay, free shots” you say, while your internal voice groans.
- The Relief when you actually start having fun (‘the craic’ if you’re on our pub crawl in Dublin) almost instantly as you meet fellow crawler’s from other hostels in the city – it’s gonna be a fun night!
- The sheer intensity of flip-cup; This is real - “Team AusUKgentina vs the rest of the world 2017 will go down in the flip-cup history books!”
- The relief & egoboost of the first-time-flip….or the absolute panic as your sweaty, clumpy, sausage fingers send your cup spiralling off course…..along with your team’s hopes of victory
- Ruling at Beer Pong….or avoiding that big angry looking dude you kept hitting with your consistently stray ping-pong balls.
- “Shit, more free shots…..”
- Asking yourself “am I tipsy?”, “no, I’m just happy…but I’ll have a sneaky pint of water in secret”.
- Falling in love with a (or many of your) fellow crawler(s) – cue awkward chat up lines...
- A moment of panic when you think the entire group has already left without you while you were in the washroom...before realising they are all right where they were a minute ago before you went into the washroom.
- Not really listening to what the guide said at the stop between bars and frantically asking fellow crawlers who were wise enough to listen, “what are the drink discounts and specials here? When are we leaving this bar??" etc.
- Telling the guide for the third time that they have the best job in the world…”you mean, you get paid to party?!”
- Falling in love with the guide.
- Asking yourself “am I drunk?”, “no I’m just happy….but I might just go have a sneaky puke in secret".
- Telling your fellow crawlers & drinkin’ buddies, who you first met just 4 hours ago, that you love them. All of them.
- Trying to straighten up and fly right and look as sober as can be expected by now, while feeling real smug about skipping the line to the club. V.I.P baby!
- Not being able to hear a word anyone is saying but feeling too awkward to ask “what?” a third time so you just say “haha, yeah, I know right!” and look into the distance, while shuffling away…
- The absolute fear when you realise you’re unwittingly and suddenly in a dance-circle; people are taking turns jumping into the centre and busting out epic moves….you know it’s gonna be your turn in a few short seconds….too late to back out now….just going for it, throwing caution to the wind and not giving a shit if you dance like your uncle at a wedding…you’re buzzing, there’s cheers and whistles and clapping...you will dance forevermore!
- The disappointment when the music stops and the lights come on, where did those 6+ hours go to? Never mind, you and some of your new-found friends follow your noses to the nearest street food, kebab hut, or pizza parlour and proceed to eat everything using only your face.
- Navigating your way back to your hostel while all the streets on your map blur into one….until that one hero in the group remembers the way back. Cue 20 minutes of talking the ears off of the friendly, yet sober, hostel night-shift crew before doing your best to quietly tip-toe to bed while bumping into every bump-intoable thing in the dorm, and instantly regretting that you chose a top bunk.
- The morning (or afternoon) after….the fear, the surprisingly yet suspiciously tame initial hangover, the thanking all the Gods you had food last night, the joy at realising you still have a fair bit of money left in your pocket, and the delight at remembering you can do it all again tonight for free with your wristband.
The Backpacker Pub Crawl is the biggest and longest-running Pub Crawl in Europe, operating in Dublin, Budapest, Berlin, Prague, and Barcelona.
Book online now to guarantee your spot and make sure you have an unbeatable night out in any of these wonderful cities.
Can you relate to this list, dear crawlers? What other stages of doing a pub crawl could we have included? Tell us in the comments.
