I've spent years working in the world of wine.

As a result, I've met a lot of wine tourists. Most are wonderful. Some are eccentric. A few can identify obscure grape varieties from three counties away while blindfolded and standing on one leg. It's an impressive skill, although I'm still not entirely sure when it becomes useful.

Then I started spending more time around craft beer tourists.

And I noticed something.

Craft beer tourists are different.

Not better people, necessarily. Let's not start a civil war between beer and wine. But they do seem to approach travel with a particular combination of curiosity, enthusiasm and complete willingness to follow a local recommendation into what appears to be an abandoned warehouse.

This is how some of the best adventures begin.

Craft Beer Tourists Will Travel Anywhere

One thing I admire about craft beer travellers is their complete disregard for geography.

Most tourists visit famous cities because they're famous. Craft beer tourists will happily fly halfway around the world because somebody on the internet described a brewery as "pretty good."

I've met people who planned entire holidays around a taproom.

Not a city.

Not a region.

A taproom.

What's remarkable is that they're usually right.

Some of the best travel experiences I've had started with a brewery recommendation in a place I'd never previously considered visiting. A small town suddenly becomes a destination. A forgotten industrial district becomes the highlight of the trip.

Beer has a habit of pulling people off the obvious path.

Travel is usually better when that happens.

They Are Naturally Curious

The best craft beer tourists aren't really interested in beer.

At least, not exclusively.

They're interested in stories.

Walk into a brewery and you'll find people asking questions. How did the brewery start? Why is this style popular here? What's the history of the building? Where should we eat afterwards?

That curiosity quickly expands beyond the beer itself. One minute they're discussing hops. The next they're exploring local history, discovering neighbourhood restaurants and chatting to people they'd never otherwise have met.

That's why craft beer tourism works so well. Beer is often the excuse. The real attraction is everything around it.

Nobody Becomes A Craft Beer Tourist By Accident

Think about it.

Nobody wakes up one morning and accidentally develops an interest in visiting breweries across different countries. It requires effort.

You have to enjoy discovering new places. You need a certain level of curiosity. You must possess at least a mild appreciation for the idea that a former factory might contain excellent beer. These are generally positive personality traits.

Over the years I've noticed that craft beer travellers tend to be open-minded and adventurous. They're usually willing to try unfamiliar food, explore unusual neighbourhoods and visit destinations that don't appear on every top-ten list. They're rarely looking for the safest option. They're looking for the most interesting one.

The Best Breweries Are Never Where You Expect

One of the joys of craft beer tourism is that breweries seem determined to occupy unexpected locations.

I've visited breweries in old churches, warehouses, train depots, industrial estates and buildings that appeared abandoned until somebody opened the door and handed me an IPA. Craft beer tourists love this. Normal tourists often spend their holidays looking for famous landmarks. Craft beer tourists spend theirs looking for a brewery hidden behind a tyre shop. Strangely enough, the brewery is often more memorable.

This is particularly true in America. Some of the best brewery experiences I've ever had happened in places that would never appear in traditional guidebooks. That's one reason we created tours like Hops & Homicide, where fantastic breweries and fascinating stories combine into something far more interesting than a standard sightseeing itinerary.

They Understand That Good Travel Requires Flexibility

One thing that separates great travellers from average travellers is flexibility. Craft beer tourists tend to understand this instinctively. They know plans change. They know local recommendations matter. They know that sometimes the brewery you weren't planning to visit becomes the highlight of the day.

I've watched beer enthusiasts happily abandon carefully prepared schedules because somebody suggested a better option down the road. More often than not, they're rewarded.

Travel rarely goes exactly to plan but the best experiences often happen when it doesn't.

Beer Creates Better Conversations

This may be controversial. Wine lovers, please remain calm. But craft beer has an unusual ability to start conversations. Perhaps it's because breweries tend to be relaxed environments. Perhaps it's because people are already in a sociable mood. Whatever the reason, conversations seem to happen naturally.

I've lost count of the number of times I've watched complete strangers start discussing beer and end up sharing travel recommendations, life stories and local tips. By the end of the evening, they're sitting together as though they've known each other for years.

Travel is largely about people. Beer just speeds up the introductions.

They Appreciate The Weird Stuff

This is where craft beer tourists really shine. Many travellers want famous attractions. Craft beer tourists are perfectly happy with unusual attractions.

Tell them there's a giant roadside attraction nearby and they'll probably visit it. Mention a bizarre local legend and they'll want to hear the full story. Suggest a Soviet-era monument, a haunted hotel or a museum dedicated to something deeply specific and they're suddenly interested.

This overlap between beer and curiosity explains why so many of our tours work. Whether it's exploring Transnistria in a Soviet Lada, discovering strange corners of Florida or hunting down unusual American stories on Hops & Homicide, the same type of traveller keeps appearing.

They're curious. And curiosity makes travel more fun.

Craft Beer Tourists Tend To Find Each Other

Another thing I've noticed is that beer enthusiasts seem remarkably good at making friends. Walk into a brewery alone and there's a decent chance you'll leave having spoken to somebody new. Visit enough breweries and you start recognising familiar faces, swapping recommendations and exchanging stories. The community aspect is one of the reasons craft beer tourism has grown so quickly.

People enjoy the beer. They also enjoy the people.

That combination creates a very welcoming atmosphere for solo travellers, couples and groups alike. Some of the strongest friendships I've seen on tours have formed over a shared appreciation for local breweries and questionable travel decisions.

Both are surprisingly effective icebreakers.

Why We Love Beer Travellers At Tipple Tours

At Tipple Tours, we've discovered that craft beer travellers tend to be exactly the sort of people we enjoy travelling with.

They're adventurous without being reckless. Curious without being pretentious. They're happy to explore somewhere unusual if they think they'll discover a good story, a great drink or an interesting experience.

Most importantly, they understand that travel isn't really about ticking boxes.

It's about collecting stories.

That's why our beer tours are rarely just about beer. They're about places, people, culture, history and occasionally finding yourself somewhere you never expected to be. The beer simply provides a very enjoyable route through those experiences.

So, Are Craft Beer Tourists More Fun?

After years of observation, I believe the answer is yes.

Not because they drink craft beer.

It's due to the fact that the sort of person who becomes a craft beer tourist is usually curious about the world. They enjoy discovering new things, talking to interesting people and taking the occasional detour simply because it sounds promising.

Those qualities tend to produce good travellers.

And good travellers tend to produce good stories.

The truth is that the best holidays aren't always the most luxurious or the most expensive. They're the ones where something unexpected happens, somebody tells you about a hidden gem and you decide to see where the day takes you.

Craft beer tourists seem to understand that instinctively.

Which is probably why they're having so much fun.