Bar crawls have long been a popular activity by young adults and college students. People who have just turned the legal drinking age, as well as people in their twenties and sometimes thirties, regard a night of bar crawling as a great way to party hard and explore all of the bars in the area. Before you and your friends set out on your own bar crawl, however, you can enjoy your night and stay safe by using these common sense tips.

Pace Yourself 

When the night starts out, you might be eager to visit as many bars and drink as much as possible. However, you should pace yourself and instead, take your time at each bar that you visit. Pacing yourself and limiting your alcohol consumption prevents you from getting sick during the course of the night. Having to go home early because you drank too much can be a real buzz kill, and having to rush to the hospital for blood-alcohol poisoning can become a serious risk if you drink too much too fast. You also can take time to enjoy appetizers, small entrees, and other food that can help you from getting too drunk. Be aware of how many bars you’ll be going to that night and keep that in mind when deciding how much to drink at each.

Hire a Party Bus

If you are taking friends with you on a bar crawl, do yourself a favor and hire a party bus for the night. This spares you from the hassle of driving to and from each bar you plan to visit, and saves you from having to choose a friend to stay sober as the designated driver. While one of your friends may claim they’re an expert at driving after a bar visit, they may quickly change their mind when you remind them that the group won’t be pitching in for the DUI lawyer should something go wrong, but the group will pitch in for a sober driver. Hiring a bus driver also saves from having to find and pay for parking, which can be pricey, time-consuming, and bring your bar crawl to a premature end.

Have Emergency Contact Numbers in Your Person

You never know when an emergency could arise during your bar crawl. Any member of the party, including you, could get dangerously ill. You also could fall and get hurt, requiring you to go to the hospital. Allergy, intoxication, or injury could incapacitate you, making it essential that you have a way for emergency responders to know who to contact and anything else required to give you the proper care. Numbers for the local police, your friends’ parents, your own parents or siblings, and poison control hopefully will never need to be used. However, it is better to be safe than sorry, which is why you should keep them on your person, especially when drunk.

Stick with Your Friends

Finally, you should stay with your group of friends rather than venturing off by yourself during your bar crawl. You and your friends can watch out for each other. It’s asking a lot to assume the group will remember to tell you when they move off if they’re already buzzed. You also can make sure no one with you gets too drunk or ill to the point of needing medical help. Being drunk can also make you vulnerable to assault, especially if you’re alone. Even if you’re just breaking away for a trip to the bathroom, make sure to maintain the buddy system so that you and your friends stay safe throughout the night. 

Having a night out with a group of friends and trying out the best bars in town is a recipe for an exciting evening. That excitement doesn’t have to come from disaster, however, as long as you take steps at the beginning to ensure that everyone stays safe. Be aware of yours and other’s safety and how that may be affected by your drunken state, and you’ll be able to take the right steps to ensure that everyone has a fun and emergency-free night.