Pub crawls boost happiness and trigger a sense of exploration,
If you needed any more of an excuse to get your friends together for a few drinks this weekend, science now has the answer.
Pub crawls can boost happiness, promote exploration, and foster a unique sense of community, according to new research.
This is because these marathon drinking sessions bring people together in a way that is difficult to replicate elsewhere.
Professor Victoria Wells, a researcher from the University of York dubbed the ‘Professor of Pubs’, told MailOnline: ‘For pub crawlers, the benefits go beyond the buzz.
‘Crawls offer a blend of novelty, excitement, and camaraderie, a temporary break from routine that fosters emotional highs and shared rituals.
‘Our research found they can boost individual happiness by creating opportunities for social interaction, promoting a sense of belonging, and encouraging exploration of local areas and perhaps venues they haven’t visited before.
‘With themed events, costumes, and travel between locations, participants can engage in a more immersive, festive, and often unforgettable experience than a night at a single local.’
Professor Wells even says that experiencing a hangover together the next morning can be part of a unique shared experience.
And, with an estimated UK 50 pubs closing every month, the researchers say that pub crawls could help to save the classic British boozer.
Large, organised pub crawls are often rowdy affairs with hundreds of drunk partygoers spilling out onto the streets in the early hours.
This has led many famous pub crawls, such as the Otley Run in West Yorkshire, to receive strong criticism from the local community.
But this new study, published in the International Journal of Hospitality Management, found that a rowdy night on the town is often just what people need.
The key to a pub crawl is that it makes drinking just one part of a bigger social, emotional, and geographic experience.
Co-author Professor Kathryn Arnold, also of the University of York, told MailOnline: ‘What makes a crawl unique is its experience joined with movement and variety.
‘A pub crawl is like the tasting menu of nightlife – it’s not just about one venue but the journey through several, each offering its own atmosphere, crowd, and drink choices.’
As anyone who has been on a big pub crawl will know, different groups moving through the various pubs can form ‘instant communities’ with the people they meet.
‘By moving together through venues, groups form bonds through shared experiences, whether it’s singing on the street, toasting in unison, or navigating a tricky costume,’ says Professor Arnold.
In some cases, traditional pub crawls like the Transpennine Ale trail and Leeds Heritage Pub Tours become local rituals which help create a sense of belonging.
Although this might sound a bit like an excuse for a night on the town, the role that pubs play in our communities is extremely important.
Studies have shown that pubs foster community connections, support local economies, and help to preserve local traditions.
However, pubs are now facing extreme economic pressures which is pushing many into closure.
Around 50 pubs close each month, with the Campaign for Real Ale reporting that 303 pubs closed in the first three months of 2025 alone.
Introducing a new pub crawl can prove ‘transformative’ for local economies and breathe life back into these dying drinking spots.
Pub crawls increase footfall in quiet times, such as the winter, and build hubs of economic activity through collaboration with other venues.
According to their study, investing in pub crawls or pub trails in towns and cities across the country could help protect the one million jobs supported by the drink industry.
Co-author Dr Nadine Waehning told MailOnline: ‘For pubs, crawls can be lucrative in attracting new customers, boosting revenue, and showcasing what makes each venue special. Think of it as a hospitality open house.’
Although big pub crawls often attract criticism for fostering antisocial behaviour, the researchers say that well-managed pub crawls can bring benefits for everyone.
‘It is about working out if a pub crawl is right for the venue and if so what type,’ Dr Waehning said.
‘Done right, a pub crawl can be a real win-win for both patrons and pubs.’
WHEN DID HUMANS START DRINKING BEER?
Humans have had a long history of consuming alcohol.
It is believed the primitive cultures of Mesopotania could have been brewing malted barley scraps as far back as 10,000BC but there are no records of it.
The earliest proof of beer-drinking dates back to Northern China 9,000 years ago.
This ancient brew was made using hawthorn fruit, Chinese wild grapes, rice and honey, and is the oldest known fermented beverage in history – older even than wine.
To make it the corn was milled and moistened in the maker’s mouth to convert starches in the corn into fermentable sugars – before it was ‘spat’ into the beer.
Throughout history, the consumption of alcohol may have helped people become more creative, advancing the development of language, art and religion.
This is because alcohol lowers inhibitions and makes people feel more spiritual.
It is believed the Egyptians started brewing beer around 5,000BC, according to the papyrus scrolls.
They were brewing things like dates, pomegranates and other indigenous herbs.
At around 3150 BC, the Egyptians used industrial-scale breweries to provide beer for the workers who built the pyramids of Giza.
Eventually beer made its way from the Middle East to Europe where an abundance of barley crops provided lots of raw ingredient for brewers.
Experts have now found evidence of brewing in Greece during the Bronze Age.
Researchers believe that these prehistoric people enjoyed getting merry with alcoholic drinks for feasts all year-round and not just when the grapes were ripe.
Not only was it considered nutritional it was also a safe alternative to drinking water.
It was in the Middle Ages that malted barley became the main source of fermented sugar and beer became the beverage we are familiar with today.
