Spirits With The Spirits, Haunted Pub Crawl

Ghost stories taste better with a local drink. Spirits With The Spirits pairs Flagstaff history with three historic downtown pubs, giving you a lively way to hear about robberies, murders, suicides, and the strange characters tied to the city’s early years. I like the walk through the preserved downtown district, and I like that the route includes landmarks such as the Weatherford Hotel, Orpheum Theatre, train depot, and Hotel Monte Vista. The main consideration is simple: this is a 21-and-over walking tour, and the $50 price does not clearly state that drinks are included, so budget for beverages separately.

The guide is a major part of the experience. Steve receives especially strong praise for bringing old and recent ghost stories to life, with his Flagstaff history making the two-hour-plus tour pass quickly. You should also expect an eccentric, southwestern gothic presentation rather than a dry lecture. That mood fits the subject nicely, though anyone wanting a strictly factual history walk may find the spooky storytelling a little theatrical.

Key points to know before booking

• Three historic downtown pubs: You stop at three bars during the walk, with time to enjoy a drink and hear more stories.
• The Weatherford Hotel and Zane Gray Bar: One of Flagstaff’s signature historic buildings is a central stop on the route.
• Flagstaff stories with real stakes: The tales include robberies, murders, suicides, and the tragic story of Marie Walkup and her children.
• Historic sights between drinks: The route passes the Orpheum Theatre, 1926 train depot, Hotel Monte Vista, and Dr. Raymond’s former home and offices.
• A guide-led evening walk: Steve is praised for his storytelling and command of local history.
• Practical details: The tour lasts 2.5 hours, costs $50 per person, requires identification, and begins and ends beside the train station.

Starting beside Flagstaff’s 1926 train depot

The meeting point is on the south side of the Flagstaff train station, on the track side. Look for the guide in southwestern gothic clothing. That detail matters, since a downtown station can have several approaches and plenty of foot traffic. Arriving with your passport or ID card ready is wise, as the activity is limited to people age 21 and over.

The station itself helps set the tone. Flagstaff began as a sleepy railroad settlement at the foot of Mount Humphreys, and the 1926 depot remains part of the city’s historic core. You are not being sent to a distant attraction or placed on a bus. The tour starts right in the old center, where the buildings and streets provide the backdrop for the stories.

The route lasts about 2.5 hours. That is long enough to cover several locations without turning the night into a full evening commitment. You should expect to walk between bars and buildings, so comfortable shoes are sensible. The exact starting time varies by date, and you need to check availability before booking.

The group returns to the same meeting point at the end. That makes the outing easy to fit into a night downtown. You can also leave your evening flexible afterward rather than arranging a ride from an unfamiliar part of town.

The Weatherford Hotel and Zane Gray Bar

The Weatherford Hotel is one of the main anchors of the tour. Built from the imagination of John Weatherford, the hotel shares its historic setting with the nearby Orpheum Theatre. Together, the two buildings show how early Flagstaff’s commercial center developed around lodging, entertainment, and railroad traffic.

The stop includes time at the historic Zane Gray Bar. You can enjoy a drink while the guide connects the building to Flagstaff’s more unusual past. The setting gives the stories a useful sense of place. Instead of hearing about old hotels from a sidewalk with no connection to the subject, you are inside one of the city’s historic gathering places.

This is also where the tour’s balance becomes clear. You are not simply moving from one ghost story to the next. You get a pub crawl, but the pubs are part of the history lesson. The drink gives you a pause, while the guide adds the human drama behind the walls.

Do keep your expectations sensible. The experience does not promise a staged paranormal show, special effects, or proof of ghosts. Its appeal comes from old buildings, local stories, and the possibility that a familiar bar feels different once you know what happened there.

Three pubs, three chances to hear the past

The crawl includes stops at three different historic downtown pubs. At each one, you can sit with a drink while the guide tells stories about the people and events connected to Flagstaff. One stop includes outdoor patio seating, where you can sip something cold and listen to the more seedy tales of the town’s past.

That variety helps the 2.5-hour schedule. A long walking tour can become tiring if it is all pavement and narration. The pub stops break up the route and give you time to sit down. They also make this a social evening rather than a standard historical walk.

The supplied details do not say which drinks are included in the $50 fee. I would treat the price as covering the guided tour and plan to pay for beverages separately unless the booking information for your date says otherwise. This is an important value point. If you order at all three stops, your total cost can rise well above the advertised price.

You also need to be comfortable with an adult bar setting. This is not a family activity, and no one under 21 may participate. The pub format suits couples, friends, and adults who prefer history with a drink in hand. It is less suitable if you want a quiet museum visit or a tour built around children.

The Orpheum Theatre and John Weatherford’s vision

The Orpheum Theatre sits beside the Weatherford Hotel, and both buildings grew from John Weatherford’s imagination. Even without entering every building, walking past them gives you a strong sense of Flagstaff’s early downtown ambitions.

The Orpheum matters because it adds a public entertainment space to the route. The Weatherford supplied lodging and social life, while the theatre offered another reason to gather downtown. On a haunted walk, the pairing also gives the guide two distinctive settings for stories about the city’s old residents and businesses.

I like this part of the experience because it lets you see Flagstaff as more than a collection of pretty old facades. The buildings represent the work, risks, and personalities that shaped the town. The guide’s job is to connect those visible structures with the less polished stories of crime, loss, and eccentric behavior.

You will likely get more from this stop if you pay attention to the architecture and street layout, not only the ghostly details. The tour is at its best when the supernatural material opens a door into ordinary local history.

Dr. Raymond’s home and offices on Leroux Street

The route also includes Dr. Raymond’s former home and offices on Leroux Street. He is described as a beloved but eccentric town physician. That combination gives the tour a different kind of character story, one based less on a single crime and more on a memorable person who became part of Flagstaff’s identity.

Dr. Raymond’s presence helps show how small-town history is often shaped by individuals who do several jobs at once. A doctor’s home and office were not just private spaces. They were tied to the needs of the entire community, which made the person who worked there familiar to many residents.

This stop should appeal to you if you enjoy unusual local characters as much as haunted buildings. It also gives the evening a break from stories focused only on violence. The guide can place the stranger tales beside accounts of work, service, and daily life.

The information provided does not promise entry into the home or offices. Expect to view the location from the route and hear its story rather than treat it as a house museum visit.

The train depot and Hotel Monte Vista

The 1926 train depot and Hotel Monte Vista are both noted as supernatural hotspots. Their presence broadens the route beyond the Weatherford and the bars, giving you two more major pieces of Flagstaff’s built history.

The train depot links directly to the town’s railroad beginnings. That connection gives the ghost stories a wider context. Rail towns brought in workers, business owners, drifters, families, and people passing through. Such movement helped towns grow, but it also created the mix of personalities and hard events that later became local legend.

Hotel Monte Vista adds another historic lodging site to the crawl. Like the Weatherford, a hotel is a natural setting for stories about people arriving, staying, leaving, and sometimes meeting unhappy ends. Hearing about it while walking through the downtown district makes the past feel connected rather than scattered.

Again, the tour does not claim that you will witness paranormal activity. The phrase supernatural hotspot sets an expectation of ghost lore, not a guaranteed encounter. Go for the stories and the atmosphere. If something eerie happens, consider it a bonus.

Marie Walkup and the darker side of Flagstaff

Not every story on this crawl is amusing. The tragic account of Marie Walkup and her murdered children is set in 1930s Flagstaff, and it serves as a harsh reminder that the city’s past included real suffering.

This part of the evening may be difficult for some people. The tour combines colorful characters and seedy anecdotes with crimes and deaths, so the emotional tone can change quickly. That contrast is part of the experience, but you should know about it before booking if you prefer light ghost stories.

I appreciate that the route does not reduce the past to harmless spooky entertainment. Stories of murder and suicide need some care, and the account of Marie Walkup adds a serious human cost to the evening. The subject may also stay with you longer than a playful tale about a haunted hotel.

If you are sensitive to stories involving children or violent crime, ask yourself if this is the right kind of night out. The activity is designed for adults, but age alone does not make every subject comfortable for every person.

Steve’s storytelling and the value of a live guide

The strongest praise centers on Steve. He is described as an excellent guide who brings both ancient and more recent Flagstaff ghost stories to life. His command of local history is also singled out, with the full two hours said to pass quickly.

That tells you something useful about the tour. The guide is not a minor addition to the route. The quality of the evening depends heavily on how well the stories are told, how the locations are connected, and how the tone is handled inside the pubs.

Steve’s style appears to suit people who enjoy an eccentric presentation. The advertised southwestern gothic clothing sets the mood before the first story begins. That kind of character-led guiding can make familiar downtown buildings feel new, though it may not appeal to someone seeking a formal academic lecture.

The tour is conducted in English. If you follow spoken English comfortably, a live guide gives you the chance to hear the tales with timing, humor, and local color that a printed guide cannot provide.

Is $50 a fair price for 2.5 hours?

At $50 per person, the tour is not the cheapest way to walk around downtown. Its value depends on how much you want the guide, the stories, and the pub access to shape the evening.

I think the price is reasonable if you would otherwise pay for a separate bar outing and a historical walk. You receive a guided route lasting 2.5 hours, visits to three historic pubs, and background on several important Flagstaff locations. The tour also saves you the work of finding the historic buildings and learning which stories belong to each one.

The value is weaker if you plan to skip the drinks or prefer to explore independently. Since the supplied details do not confirm that drinks are included, add beverage costs to your budget. You are paying primarily for the live storytelling and organized route.

A 4.5 rating from four submitted scores gives the experience a positive but limited record. The praise is especially clear about Steve’s storytelling and local history. I would put more weight on those specific comments than on the number alone, since the sample is small.

Who should book this Flagstaff ghost tour?

This outing suits you if you:

• Enjoy history told through personal stories and local legends
• Want an adult evening in downtown Flagstaff
• Like combining walking with stops for drinks
• Prefer a guide with an unusual personality
• Are comfortable hearing about murder, suicide, robbery, and tragic loss
• Want to see historic buildings without spending the whole night in a museum

It may not suit you if you need a child-friendly activity, avoid alcohol-centered settings, or want guaranteed paranormal events. It is also not the best pick for anyone who dislikes walking between stops or prefers a strictly documented history presentation.

The tour is wheelchair accessible, which makes the route available to a wider range of visitors. Since it moves through downtown pubs and historic buildings, you may still want to confirm current route details when booking if you have specific mobility needs.

Practical booking advice for your evening

Bring a passport or ID card. The activity is for people age 21 and over, and having identification with you avoids a needless problem at the start or at the pubs.

Meet on the track side, at the south side of the train station. Look for the guide’s southwestern gothic clothing. The activity ends at the same meeting point, so you can plan dinner, drinks, or another downtown stop afterward without arranging transportation across town.

You can cancel up to 24 hours in advance for a full refund. The reserve-now, pay-later option also lets you hold a place without paying immediately, which is useful if your Flagstaff schedule depends on weather or other plans.

Starting times vary, so check the date you want rather than assuming an evening departure. The supplied details do not give a fixed group size or specify that food is served. Plan on drinks and stories, not a meal.

Should you book Spirits With The Spirits?

Book it if you want Flagstaff history with a spooky adult twist, especially if a lively guide matters as much to you as the buildings themselves. Steve’s praised storytelling, the three historic pub stops, and the route through the Weatherford Hotel area make this more substantial than a quick ghost-story stroll.

Skip it if you want a family activity, a low-cost sightseeing walk, or proof of paranormal activity. Also price in your drinks before deciding if $50 fits your evening budget. For adults who enjoy local legends, historic bars, and stories that can turn from funny to grim, this is a well-focused way to spend 2.5 hours in downtown Flagstaff.

FAQ

How long does Spirits With The Spirits last?

The haunted pub crawl lasts 2.5 hours. Starting times vary, so check availability for your preferred date.

Where does the tour begin?

Meet your guide on the south side of the Flagstaff train station, on the track side. The guide wears southwestern gothic attire.

Where does the tour end?

The activity ends back at the meeting point beside the train station.

Is the tour available in English?

Yes. The live tour guide conducts the experience in English.

Can people under 21 join?

No. The activity is not suitable for anyone under 21 years old. Bring a passport or ID card.

Can I cancel the booking?

Yes. You can cancel up to 24 hours in advance for a full refund. A reserve-now, pay-later option is also available.