Philly, are you ready for the Erin Express 2018?
Whether it’s your first year attending or you plan to hit the 2018 Erin Express even harder than you hit last year’s, there are some things you need to know to prep before you party.
Wait, what is the Erin Express?
First of all, did you just move to Philly? Erin Express is a St. Patty’s Day tradition in Philadelphia, and the bar crawl has been going on for over 30 years now. Owners of Cavanaugh’s and Smokey Joes are the brains behind the event, deciding to hit the bars in the area hard on two consecutive weekends leading up to St. Patrick’s Day — and they want you to come along. That’s right, they get buses together to take revelers between 10 or more bars to celebrate the Emerald Isle.
When is the Erin Express 2018?
The Erin Express 2018 kicked off March 3 with the Warm Up Walk, which was a walking bar crawl. But if you’re more interested in buses because you plan on kicking back more than a few pints of Guinness, you’re going to want to jot down the two upcoming dates.
The buses will run for the first of the two consecutive weekends, the official warm up crawl, on Saturday, March 10. Although you’re welcome to hop on the buses at any time, you’ll have to coordinate you and your crew being at the bar where the buses are stopping unless you start from the beginning. Buses run bright and early starting at 11 a.m. and the first pickup is 39th and Sansom.
The bus start time and location will be the same on the Official Erin Express 2018 Pub Crawl, which kicks off at 11 a.m. on Saturday, March 17 — which also happens to be St. Patrick’s Day 2018. On both dates, the buses will stop at each bar about every 15 minutes, so you’ll have plenty of opportunity to switch locations. The free rides end, however, at 6 p.m. sharp.
How much is the Erin Express 2018?
The bus service is free. Yes, that’s right. The organizers of the Erin Express even remind you on their site not to “be fooled by imitations” because the Erin Express “has and always will be a free event.” (Except they posted the reminder in all caps.)
Make sure that you bring cash for the drinks and snacks at each of the bars, though. And make sure a couple bucks go toward tipping your bartender at each location you hit to leave a good impression. After all, you want to enjoy the Erin Express again next year, right?
What do I need to bring for the Erin Express?
You’ll need cash for the bars and an ID to prove you’re 21. Other than that, some extra bucks for tipping (we’re going to keep reminding you), some friends to toast with and a designated driver for getting back home when you’re done hitting all the stops along the Erin Express.
What bars will you hit on the Erin Express 2018?
Check out the map below to see every stop along the Erin Express 2018.
And, in case you feel like kicking off your own celebration early on foot, some of the locations will open their doors even before the buses start running. “On the 10th & 17th Wahoo’s Tacos is opening at 7am, Cavanaugh’s University City, New Deck Tavern and Slainte will open at 9am,” according to a post on the event’s official Facebook page. Check out the Facebook event page for more details, and get ready to toast to Erin.
