Guests begin the tour inside the historic Olympus Hotel building, home to The Forum, in the heart of Tacoma’s original Whiskey Row. Here your guide introduces the frontier story of Tacoma’s founding, when railroad workers, sailors, and lumbermen filled the saloons of this booming port town. Surrounded by the atmosphere of one of Tacoma’s most storied buildings, guests enjoy a classic “beer and a buddy”—a Rainier tall boy paired with a shot of whiskey—echoing the working-class drinking culture of the era. As the experience begins, your guide brings the past to life with dramatic recitations and performances of Robert Service poetry, setting the tone for an evening of history, storytelling, and Tacoma’s rough-and-ready beginnings.

Guests visit a local craft brewery in the heart of downtown Tacoma to explore the city’s deep-rooted brewing history. Here your guide traces Tacoma’s beer culture from early frontier saloons and working-class taverns through Prohibition and into today’s craft revival. You’ll learn how brewing was tied to the daily lives of lumbermen, sailors, and railroad workers who helped shape the city. Guests enjoy an included pint of locally brewed beer while hearing how Tacoma’s brewing traditions have evolved yet still reflect the independent spirit of its past.

The tour concludes inside the historic Elks Temple, a grand 1916 building that now houses multiple bars and hidden spaces. At this final stop, guests visit one of the building’s unique bars while the guide explores Tacoma’s experience during Prohibition—when saloons were forced underground, bootlegging thrived, and the city’s “open” character was tested but never fully disappeared. You’ll hear stories of speakeasies, enforcement efforts, and how Tacoma’s drinking culture adapted during the era. Guests enjoy a final drink while reflecting on how Prohibition reshaped, but never erased, the social life of Whiskey Row.