Stray Boots

Me and a friend did the East Village Bar tour this past weekend. It was a very mild night and we enjoyed walking around to all of the sites. We arrived at the first location and of course asked for help from some of the staff. They were unable to assist so we ended up talking to Brian the manager. He advised (after all attempts) that the answer provided was incorrect and that the bar no longer served what the answer said was the correct answer. Bummer… and has a little leary about how this was going to go. We continued on to several of the other sites that were fine. .Until we got to one location that was so small and so packed we couldn’t get in the door. We ended up going to the sister restaurant on the corner (thanks to an employee that was standing out of the location) to get a drink. Mother of Pearl was great and also had the bar tender who worked at the correct location was covering for a sick employee at the right restaurant. He helped us with one of the questions and actually brought us a menu from the bar that held the answer.. Again… wrong. He has worked here for years and knew exactly where to look. Your answer was incorrect. Not ours. All in all the overall concept was great and got us out and about to explore places we have never been. I just think someone needs to do their homework and make corrections to make the game more fun. We were striving to get a perfect score.

Last weekend my date and I did the LES Meatball tour in NYC and we thoroughly enjoyed it. We read about other tours before deciding on this one but we still didn’t quite know what we were signing up for lol. We visited the doughnut plant, Katz deli, a museum, little shops and of course the meatball shop. Along the way, we learned several new facts and got to see many things we haven’t seen before. I like that we could take all the time we wanted and could skip some spots if we weren’t interested in them. The app is designed pretty well so it’s easy to use, it had a map and sharing capabilities too. Unfortunately we started the tour later than it was recommended so a few places were closed, but it was still a good time. Can’t wait to do another one of their tours in NY or elsewhere when I travel.

I completely agree with molac d’s review. We did the Union Square hunt. The first two questions were history related. The rest just took us from a store to a restaurant to a hotel and then to another store. We stopped not even half way through and went to get a bite to eat. Maybe museum scavenger hunts are less commercial… Yet to try.

We did the Chinatown & Little Italy tour. It was fun to explore the area and learn cool historical facts; especially considering that my boyfriend lives on Mott St. and had no idea he lived literally across the street from a Buddhist temple. I had a coupon so this was pretty cheap; i don’t know if I’d pay for this again. I’m sure you could find these types of trivia maps online for free. That being said, it was fun, and I’d probably do it again in a different area if I had another coupon.

I just did a Stray Boots tour of Soho with a group of friends (there were 7 of us in all0); it was so much fun I recommend it to everyone. When I first heard about this kind of thing, I thought it was for 20-​somethings, but my friends and I are in our 40s and 50s and it was perfect for us.
The iPhone app was completely intuitive and easy to use. The challenges were fun and most of them were pretty easy although some were definitely challenging (if Googling the answer was cheating, then we cheated).
Because we were 7 people, we broke into two teams. What I liked about this was that it wasn’t a race, so we didn’t rush through it. As a result, we saw a lot of things we probably wouldn’t have noticed on our own.
Also, I contacted customer service the day before the tour to ask what we needed to do to have two team captains and they were very pleasant and responsive. In fact, the communication between Stray Boots and the users has been great.
It’s inexpensive and convenient because you go it on your own schedule. I would definitely do another tour and have already recommended it on Facebook and to my sister.

Fantastic. I did the MET tour with a few friends, and had a blast. Im not much of a museum person, so this added twist made this a very entertaining day. Perfect for a rainy afternoon.
Love how it is all on the phone, you get to take pictures, do silly things, its really jsut a great time. I would definitely try others.

I’ve done this in Boston and DC and it was so much fun both times. These are both cities I’ve lived in and I learned a lot of new information. On each of these, there was one clue that didn’t add up, but the clues are generally really good. They’re just tricky enough that it feels good when you find the answer. It’s a great idea for a date, and I would definitely recommend this to anyone.

This is a review of the PERFECT DATE scavenger hunt.
So my date and I wanted to do something different and fun rather than just go to a bar for drinks. We found Stray Boots and thought how awfully cliché and fun it would be to go on a scavenger hunt actually called «perfect date». So that’s what we did. And we had a great time. The only trouble is that the scavenger hunt itself was terrible.
The whole point of the Stray Boots hunts is to get you to go into local shops and restaurants and buy stuff from them. So they simply redirect you from one store to another to browse bookshelves, try on vintage clothing, have lunch… the most in your face of this is where they literally say «go to the so and so flower shop and buy your sweetie her favorite flowers». For a first date, this would be awkward at best.
Like I said, my date and I had a blast, but it was in spite of and not because of the hunt. This was not a trivia hunt like some others. This is an advertisement and marketing scheme under the guise of a day out in lower Manhattan. Sneaky. Good business model. But not a scavenger hunt.

Loved Using This!
My hubby & I decided to try this out for our anniversary and we’re glad we did! We did Chinatown/​Little Italy because it had an introductory price. It took us about 3 hours to do. We added a couple of stops for snacks and stuff. We had fun learning some new facts, we are both NYers and we both learned some new stuff! There could be added expenses but that is completely optional! Also follow the times that they suggest, it prevents from encountering closed businesses!

I did the «Perfect New York Date» tour with my boyfriend this weekend.
Pros: I love Greenwich Village /​SoHo so the location was ideal. The photo op suggestions were fun. Went into quite a few boutiques that I never knew about. The tour was well-​timed, we finished it in about 2 hours which is as advertised.
Cons: Not all trivia are created equal. Many were general enough that I liked, but there were some that specifically revolved around a particular store that I didn’t care about, so it was like «Er, ok, why would I ever want to know that?» More general questions would have been better (e.g. about famous people, things, etc, or weird/​interesting facts). Also, it’s a shame that the app doesn’t let me review the tour once I’m done. In the beginning of the tour, I didn’t realize swiping through pictures would show you different bits of information; now I wish I could go back and read the captions in more details but that can’t be done without buying the tour again.

Stray Boots is the best way to get to know the places you love and learn about the places you are visiting. The best part about it? You are getting some awesome facts through a fun, self-​guided, scavenger hunt-​themed tour. What, what?!
The first time I used Stray Boots was in NYC for my 25^th birthday, and we did the Greenwich Village hunt. I also contacted customer service (which was incredibly diligent and thorough in their response) to receive a supplementary list of birthday challenges. How cool is that?! We had a group of eight, and it was an absolute blast! We all grew up in New York, so to get to know things about the city that we never knew before was refreshing, and we were able to discover some really neat places along the way — including ones that were not part of the tour. I used the app for the Droid for this scavenger hunt; it worked really well and came with pictures! Because we made numerous stops along the way, it took us about four hours to finish this tour. We were obviously having a lot of fun!
My second experience was in Los Angeles, specifically the Hollywood Blvd game. My friend and I were visiting the area, but we didn’t know where to get started while exploring Hollywood. I, naturally, turned to Stray Boots. Best.Idea.Ever. Again, we learned so many facts about this area of LA that I never would have learned if we were just aimlessly wandering the area. We had so much fun together doing it, and it allowed us to save a ton of money on a guided tour! The tour brought us throughout Hollywood Blvd, into buildings, museums, hotels… you name it, we were there! It finished with a wonderful view of the Hollywood sign. I used the app for this tour, as well, and it took us about two hours.
My third (and favorite) tour was in San Diego, where we did the Balboa Park game. Unfortunately, this game was not part of the app, so I had to use my web browser. It wasn’t as convenient, but it still got the job done. This tour was so much fun! It brought us (my friend and I) all throughout Balboa Park, which is one of the most beautiful and culturally diverse places to which I have been. The clues were a tad difficult to follow, specifically the walking directions, but we were able to figure it out. We learned so much on this tour that I was able to answer a bunch of trivia questions our trolley driver asked us on the way back to the parking lot. Awesome!
All in all, I am a huge advocate for Stray Boots. I am consistently satisfied with the games that I play and the history that I learn through them. I would suggest using them for a birthday party, a tour of a new area, or even for something to do on a quiet weekend. You will not be disappointed!

I did the SoHo Stray Boots tour with my bf. I was so anxious to do this and was pretty happy when we did.
We started around 3 pm on a Sunday, which was during the ‘Good Times’ to go on the website. This was a good time to be out and it was beautiful, however, we found that scaffolding and some closed shops, prevented us from getting the correct answers to a few of the questions.
I really enjoyed being outside, wandering around and checking out the sites of a neighborhood that I know so well. It was cool to see so many different parts of it and to find random places to go and places to eat along the way.
One other recommendation was that we didn’t realize that you couldn’t just take a picture with your phone camera and then upload it into the hunt, you actually have to use this function.
Next time we do this, we are going to play with a few friends and make it boozy and more competitive. I found myself getting competitive for no reason: p
I also would like to try this in another city as a way to get to know the city. It is a well done game and reasonably priced.

My kids are tweens, and my husband was out of town, needed some fun activity to do with kids. We did the wall street area and kids really enjoyed it. They were leading the tour. Great way for them to learn about the city than following a tour guide.

My boyfriend and I did the TimeOut East Village Bar Tour. We had a blast! We did the tour at our own pace and it took about 4 hours because we made stops along the way. It was a great way to find some fun, new, interesting little bar spots that otherwise we may not have stumbled upon. The app was user friendly and really easy to use.
Overall, It was a great way to explore the city, get some delicious (yet sometimes pricey) drinks, visit some cool bars and spend the evening together. I would definitely do this again!

I did the Wall St. and Old Manhattan Tour with a few friends this Sunday — it was way fun! Took us to some cool places and I am excited to do another tour in the future! Maybe when it isn’t 20 degrees outside… The only issue is that we could not get at one of the answers because it had been closed off due to the Hurricane Damage. Otherwise, was a perfect way to spend a late Sunday afternoon.

Did The Perfect New York Date interactive walking tour and had a blast.
Very interesting concept. It was a combination of a scavenger hunt, and tour blended together. It was a fun game where you get clues, find the location and check in. What I enjoyed the most was that we went at our own pace. Even though we got ½ way through the tour for we started late and it was so cold outside. Once you activate the game, it does not expire until one year. So you have all time to complete the game. Like the concept of going at your own pace with this particular tour. Not crazy about rushing to 5 places in 1 – 2 hours.
Everything is processed through the cell phone. Question with clues are provided, and you type in responses and get points. One gets to take photo ops, and visit hidden places that one would not typically venture to or are even aware of.
Will definitely, sign up for their foodie tour the next time around.

I just did the Met museum scavenger hunt with my boyfriend and we really enjoyed it. We only got through half of the clues because we kept getting sidetracked by all of the wonderful things the Met has to offer, but we’ll be coming back again to do the second half.
Really fun and interesting, great that it’s self-​paced, and I enjoyed engaging in a museum in a different way than usual.
These games/​scavenger hunts aren’t just for visitors to NYC — we live in NY and really enjoyed exploring it in a cool way. We’ll be signing up for more of these Stray Boots adventures.

A friend was in from out of town and we did the financial district one (and old manhattan). It was a BLAST! A lot of cool facts, fun things to see and do. The one downside to this was the area was hit kind of hard by hurricane Sandy and they hadn’t finished cleaning up yet. So there were some things that we couldn’t get to. We could still see it, but we could get near the answer so we had to look them up.
A lot of walking (which is fine for us) and just really a fun time. Something fun to do if you want to see parts of NYC on a budget!
I can’t wait to do another one.

My girlfriends and I spent an afternoon doing the Chinatown/​Little Italy tour, and we had a blast! Chinatown is a favorite hangout of ours, so it was nice to learn a little bit of the back story of one of our hoods. I liked that the game allowed us to move at our own pace, especially since we happened to discover a lot of cool shops and bakeries along the way — we couldn’t help but stop for a tasty treat here and there. Best of all, we got to share some quality time on a budget. Doesn’t get much better than that! I’m looking forward to checking out other games Stray Boots has to offer.

I did the Greenwich Village scavenger hunt for my birthday and it was a fantastic experience! Not only did I get to know NY better (as someone who has loved here for a few years), it was also a great experience for my friends from out of town who got to see a bit of what this city is all about… rather than the touristy parts of Time Square.
The team is really nice and helpful as well, which made the experience even better. I definitely recommend it!