The boozy bus tours that take you to the best ‘hidden gem’ pubs in the UK

IF you love a pint but don’t want to get a taxi home, you can instead opt for a boozy bus tour of the best pubs.

Launched in Wales by The Ale Trail Company back in 2009, the experience was created due to the lowering of the drink driving limit, which affected country pubs.

They explained: “It was catastrophic and this shift of behaviour was enough to close hundred of pubs, forever.

“Public transport didn’t take you to the village pub in rural Wales, so there was no chance of getting to and from the pubs. So home and town people stayed.”

Having since transported thousands of people around the countryside, they added: “We try and keep the route on as many small country lanes (without hanging branches), ones that can accommodate a 40ft bus loaded with grown men and women singing their way around the countryside.”

Following its success, the now traverse the UK around rural towns and villages which have amazing pubs.

Passengers buy tickets online and then choose which pub they want to start at.

Then throughout the day, buses arrive every hour, so you can choose how long to stay at each pub.

It runs from 11am to 10pm, although is advised to leave before 8pm to get to the last destination.

And while it’s an ale trail, each pub will serve other drinks, although each also specializes in ales with at least three different types.

The trail will always have at least 50 ales on each trail, and while there can be more than 10 pubs on the route, it’s not easy to try – or advised – to try and visit them all, and instead to enjoy a slower pace through the pubs.

Tickets start from £25 but don’t include any food and drink.

The website states they offer “quirky, off the beaten track and hidden pubs,” adding: “You may well never have heard of [them] or visited before – where real ale and great hospitality is their passion.”

It continued: “The Real Ale Trail is a story about friendship, and how a pint of ale can bring friends together to share in good old belly laughter whilst exploring pubs and ales you’ve never tried before… without the worry of organising the driving.”

There are strict rules – hen dos and stag dos are banned, as are dogs, and you have to be 24-years-old or over.

The next tour to launch in 2024 is to Shropshire on April 20, followed by Vale of Glamorgan on April 27 and Wirral on May 18.

Other destinations to be confirmed include Conwy, Teesside, the Yorkshire Dales, Wyre Forest, Snowdonia, Aberdeen and Cheshire.

One former guest praised the “great bus atmosphere,” adding: “The bus would turn up outside the pub, I’d finish my pint, jumped on to the bus ready for the next pub, chatting and singing along the way.”

If you’re more of a wine drinker, then you can go on a similar experience with Wine Tours of Kent.

Going around the “golden triangle” of Kent which has award-winning vineyards, you can tailor the tours to your favourite wines – all while being driven between venues.

Sun Online Travel recently tried it out – here’s what you can expect.