Tours/Charleston/Bay Street Bastards Pub Crawl Shared Tour in Charleston
Bay Street Bastards Pub Crawl Shared Tour in Charleston
4.4(34)Charleston1 hour
VIATOR4.3(15)TRIPADVISOR4.5(19)
+18 photos
Description
History never tasted so wicked! A bone-chilling dive into the criminal heart of Charleston—a city steeped in elegance, drenched in secrets, and soaked in blood. From the cobblestones of colonial corruption to the courtrooms of a sensational modern-day murder, this tour serves up centuries of true crime with a twist of lime and a shot of audacity.
Led by our fearless guides, you’ll prowl the streets where con men, killers, and crooked aristocrats once ruled, stopping at some of Charleston’s finest bars to sip your way through its most scandalous chapters. You’ll uncover tales that Charleston would rather leave buried— tabloid-worthy tragedies that still echo through the alleyways.
Thirsty? Good. You’ll need a strong drink for what you’re about to hear. Cocktails are available for purchase at every stop—because dark stories go down better with a stiff pour.
If you have 7 or more guests in one group, please get in touch with our the private & group sales coordinator.
Tour Options
7:30 PM
Itinerary
30 min
Meet your guide and set off on a tour that discusses some of the most notorious criminal cases in SC history, from piracy to famous highway robberies to the brutal homicide of a local newspaper editor, in full view of witnesses. This tour mixes unforgettable, grisly tales with an exploration of Charleston’s most satiating cocktails.
30 min
What pushes a man to the point of murder? Is the killer’s past primarily responsible for his evil deeds, or does some innate impulse sit latent in him like a lion crouched and waiting for the right trigger to spring forth? Like Norman Bates said, “We all go a little mad sometimes.” But is that true?
30 min
Beneath Charleston’s stately Old Exchange lies a dark and chilling past. The Provost Dungeon once held pirates, smugglers, and colonial criminals, including members of Blackbeard’s crew and other infamous outlaws of the high seas. Shackled in damp, shadowy cells, prisoners awaited justice—or the gallows. Today, the dungeon stands as a haunting reminder of Charleston’s gritty underworld, where crime, punishment, and piracy collided beneath the city’s elegant surface.
30 min
Once a hidden speakeasy during Prohibition, The Blind Tiger in Charleston earned its name from the era’s secret bars and the lawbreakers who ran them. Behind its historic walls, whispers of bootlegging, bribery, and backroom deals still linger. Today, it’s a popular tavern with a rich—and rowdy—past, where crime and cocktails once flowed hand in hand. Step inside and sip where Charleston’s outlaws once defied the law, one drink at a time.
Highlights
One of Charleston's BEST Tour Guides
What's included
Included
One of Charleston's BEST Tour Guides
Not included
Alcoholic Beverages
Gratuities
Only for guests age 21+
Traveller Ratings
4.4
34 reviews
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26
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Important Information
Wheelchair accessible
Suitable for all physical fitness levels
Only for ages 21+
Reviews(34)
J
Jen_S
September 1, 2026
👎🏻👎🏻 rating
Our guide never showed up for our tour. We contacted the company who tried to contact our guide with no response. We ended up canceling our tour. The customer service representative was very helpful and assured us we would be issued a refund, but that will take up to 5-7 days.
Operator response
Thank you for sharing your experience. We’re very sorry your guide did not arrive and that you were unable to take the tour as planned. We’re glad our Customer Service team was able to assist and confirm your refund, but we understand how disappointing it is to have your evening disrupted this way. This is not the experience we want for our guests, and we’ll be reviewing what happened with our team.
T
Terra_P
February 22, 2026
We recommend
Good stories, great choices in bars and good drinks.
I don’t know what else to say but they require more words.
D
David_p
October 7, 2025
Super Fun
Lots of fun! Great stories and the establishments we visited were very unique! Jacob was a wonderful host!
S
Steve_G
August 21, 2025
Fun, but not what I expected.
Very pleasant guide, good bars on the tour. But the the history topics not that interesting. Neat thing about pub crawls is visiting with interesting fellow tourists on the tour with you. But we were the only ones on the tour (4).
Operator response
Thank you for sharing your feedback. We’re glad to hear you enjoyed your guide and the bar selections, though we’re sorry the history pieces didn’t feel as engaging and that your group was smaller than expected. Your comments help us improve the balance of storytelling and ensure each tour feels lively and memorable.
J
jessicahA4554OX
July 8, 2025
Fantastic tour and guide!
What wonderful tour! We had a terrific tour guide who happened to be giving his very first tour—you would never have known. He was outstanding.
As a Tour Guide myself, I know how important it is to be engaging, friendly, informative, and professional. He was all of those things and more. The stories he told were fascinating, and the bars he took us to were excellent! An actor by trade, you could totally tell he loved what he was doing.
Operator response
Thank you for your feedback! We’re thrilled to hear that we made your tour unforgettable!
D
Dawn_C
April 24, 2024
AWESOME!!!
Alex was an AWESOME guide!!!!! He catering his stories to his audience and was very entertaining. Would definitely recommend this tour.
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Natalia_P
April 8, 2024
Great bars and stories!
We had such a fun time on this tour with Abby!! Abby was super gracious even though a few members of our party were a little late. She told us some really interesting stories about historical true crime in Charleston, from the 1600s through the 1980s. We also went to some cool bars and learned some Charleston history along the way. Def recommend this tour with her!
D
Donna_S
April 7, 2024
Bay Street Bastards Pub Crawl
The bars that we visited were interesting. The storytelling was lacking. On a side note we only visited 3 bars when 4 bars were advertised. It was over all just an okay experience.
A
amyholtzman
December 31, 2023
No famous watering holes, bad and inaccurate true crime stories, not at all as described
Our tour was oversold, the guide was not a good storyteller whatsoever, we didn’t go to a single famous watering hole - hotel bar, then weird chain Mexican restaurant, and I couldn’t tell you the last stop because there was no effort to keep any kind of time and so we left at 9:30, which was supposed to be the end time, but we were still sitting in the weird Mexican place (stop 2) listening to the tour guide ramble about the Murdaugh murders.
I also expected infamous, OLD, historic Charleston true crime, but we barely got any of that and instead were subjected to a very bad version of the Murdaugh murders that wasn’t linear, nor accurate.
Save your money and do a different tour.
1 people found this helpful
Operator response
Thanks for your feedback. As a True Crime tour of Charleston, we cover a wide variety of topics throughout history old and new which have greatly affected the citizens and climate of the city. We are sorry to hear the tour did not live up to your expectations. If you'd like to try a different experience, please reach out to our customer support team. We'd like a chance to make it right.
S
Seashell7718
October 27, 2023
Only told stories while walking- no drinks included
Our tour guide was kind, personable and knowledgeable about Charleston and the history of crime/pirates etc. However, over the 2 hour tour we were only told crime/pirate stories when walking in between the bars. We stopped at 3 bars and the time spent in the bars was not conversation related to the crime/tour we paid for.
We had a nice time and enjoyed all the places we were taken, but for the price- we would not recommend.
1 people found this helpful
Operator response
We are sorry to hear the tour did not meet your expectation. It is often difficult to tell the stories inside the bars due to crowd noise and music. We want all of our guests to be able to hear the tales and soak in the sights and sounds of Charleston, while stopping in between for quick refreshment.
