Nashville's Prohibition Crimes, Retold Bar by Bar From Printer's Alley
From a neon sign in Printer's Alley, a guide leads you through three downtown bars and Nashville's Prohibition-era crime stories.
The guide meets the group under the neon Climax Saloon sign at 210 Printer's Alley, then leads it to three downtown bars, about 30 minutes at each, telling the true crime stories the listing ties to Nashville's Prohibition past.
The tour runs two hours. Everyone needs government photo ID showing 21 or older, and on the standard ticket every drink is bought at the bar.
Four options sit behind the card below. The standard tour covers three bars. VIP adds a fourth stop, with a personal escort and a password at the door. VIP Golf Cart swaps the walk for a cart ride to more bars, and the All Inclusive Golf Cart is a private cart with drinks covered, the one option where drinks come with the booking. A full refund needs at least 24 hours' notice.
Nashville's Speakeasy Secrets: Murder True Crime Cocktail CrawlNashville Tours - Ghost Tours and Pub Crawls · Two hours · Starts at 210 Printer's Alley · Ages 21+www.viator.comThree Bars, All Entered From Church Street
The listing's text keeps the stops unnamed, but its map pins point to three bars, all entered from Church Street. Hidden Bar sits below the Noelle hotel, down a staircase from the Lona restaurant entrance, and the hotel's own page places it behind a storage door, with no reservations and a 21-and-over rule. The Hitchcock is at 530 Church Street. The Ariston, at 508 Church Street, serves cocktails and premium cigars, and the listing describes its stop as a private upstairs lounge.
Reviewers in July, August and September 2026 all warned that the cigar stop is smoky. The listing marks every stop as subject to the bar's own hours, and the lineup can shift on a given night.
The VIP Stop and the Golf Cart Options
The VIP upgrade adds one stop to the walk. The listing describes a personal escort to a secret location with a password required to enter, and the operator pitches it as access to one of Nashville's most popular speakeasies. Reviewers in June and August 2026 said their evenings ended at a bar entered through a red phone booth, one of them on the VIP option.
The two golf cart options trade the walk for a ride. Golf cart bookings moved within 24 hours of the start carry a USD 100 rescheduling fee, per the listing. A guest on the VIP Golf Cart in October 2026 said the evening still ran two hours.
Stories First, Drinks on Your Own Tab
Most reviews praise the guides and the cocktails, and five-star reviews this year mostly name the guide. The low-rated ones from 2025 and 2026 return to the same three points: the stops felt like bars open to the public rather than hidden speakeasies, drinks cost extra on top of the ticket, and big groups meant waits at the bar. The listing sells up to 50 places on one shared departure.
Go in expecting a guided evening of stories between working cocktail bars, with a separate tab at each one.
Collars, ID and a Fair Amount of Walking
Men need collared shirts and closed-toe shoes, with no athletic wear or cargo shorts, and the operator's FAQ adds no flip-flops, sliders or severely distressed clothing on its pub crawls. The listing lets the guide turn away anyone not dressed to code or too spirited, with no refund. Government photo ID showing 21 or older is required, with no exceptions and no refunds.
The listing rates the tour suitable for all fitness levels and not recommended during pregnancy. The operator's FAQ is more specific: its tours involve a fair amount of walking and are not wheelchair accessible, citing stairs, uneven sidewalks and narrow entrances in the historic bars. The tour runs rain or shine and is postponed only under severe weather warnings.
📍 The guide waits under the neon Climax Saloon sign at 210 Printer's Alley, and the listing places the finish back in Printer's Alley. As of October 19, 2026, the booking calendar lists 4:30 PM and 7:30 PM starts on most days through the end of December.
The operator's FAQ says parking is free in the numbered spots around the Tennessee State Capitol after 6 PM on weekdays and all weekend. Street parking on 3rd and 4th Avenues and Deaderick Street costs USD 2.25 an hour with a two-hour minimum, and the listing notes public transportation nearby. Pack an umbrella when rain is forecast; the walk goes ahead in the wet.