10 Dec 2021
I've never been to Austin before so I thought this would be a great way to explore some great cocktail spots and learn a bit about Texas history. The bars were great and I never would have discovered them on my own. The cocktails were amazing and I never would have ordered them myself but I loved all of them. Our tour guide, Mary, was very friendly and knowledgeable about Texas history. This tour was great for helping me discover some interesting watering holes and cocktails.
However, the tour took a very deep dive into Texas history (going back 400 years or so) and it was probably a bit much for a tour that had you drinking 4 cocktails in 2 hours. I would have liked to have heard some more history about Austin specifically (we only touched on a wee bit of Austin history) and more history about the bars we went to and the cocktails we were drinking. When we went to the Driskill Hotel Mary mentioned that there was a gunfight in the lobby and the picture hanging in the lobby had been damaged in the duel. I would have like to hear more random bits of trivia like that.
Also, the last 2 bars we went to were more crowded so it was harder to find a place to sit and to hear the guide. My husband and I were the only ones on our Saturday night tour so I would think that it would be harder for larger groups to find a place to sit together. The first bar seemed to have a dedicated space for the tour groups but we were on our own on the other stops.
Mary mentioned that the company was developing a rooftop bar tour which sounded interesting so I would give it a another shot if I return but this tour was a bit heavy on the ancient history, so to speak.