What’s the deal with the St. Patrick’s Day pub crawl?
St. Patrick’s Day is my favorite holiday. It’s better than Christmas because I don’t have to buy anything for anyone. It’s better than Halloween because it’s not creepy. It’s also my favorite because it’s the one time a year I can whip out my Irish dance moves (true story: I used to do this).
You don’t have to go to Ireland in March to celebrate St. Patrick’s Day properly. As a matter of fact, you don’t have to leave Charlotte, because for the 15th year in a row, Rich Saner and Jeff Bennett are working with Charlotte bars to turn Uptown green. Really green.
St. Patrick’s Day is on March 17th, a Tuesday this year, but Rich and Bennett’s 15th Annual St. Patrick’s Day Pub Crawl will be happening a few days earlier, on Saturday, March 14th. What does this mean?
Well, this means you need to cancel any plans you have this weekend and invite your friends to Charlotte, because it will be the biggest pub crawl ever (it also means you need to have zero plans on Sunday because of hangovers and such).
5 things you need to know about Rich and Bennett’s 15th Annual St. Patrick’s Day Pub Crawl:
(1) This is the world’s largest pub crawl. They have done research, and no other “world’s largest” pub crawl comes near their record of 19,108 (!!!) crawlers last year. In 2009, Travel Channel validated Rich and Bennett’s claim, and it’s only gotten bigger.
(2) You can buy tickets at a pre-pay event ($20) or online ($25). Details here. The cost covers the t-shirt, which gets you into participating bars without having to pay a cover (hint: don’t waste your time on the math, just do it).
(3) Specials throughout the day: $4 Shamrock aluminum 16oz Bud Light bottles, $4 Sky, $5 Tullamore Dew.
(4) Largely because of this event, Charlotte sells more green aluminum Bud Light bottles annually than any city other than New York City. Although we’re #2 yet again, it’s a great list to be on.
(5) Who are Rich and Bennett? Well, they’re just two guys who started a pub crawl 15 years ago with friends and never expected anything like this. Not kidding.
Other details:
- Official Hashtag: #worldslargestpubcrawl
- Twitter, IG & Facebook: @richandbennett
- FAQ’s here.
- Be on the lookout for any communication from Uber or Lyft regarding St. Patrick’s Day promos or general announcements. Be smart. Take a cab.
This story was originally published March 2, 2015 at 12:40 AM with the headline "What’s the deal with the St. Patrick’s Day pub crawl?."