The End of Free Albuquerque Walking Tours

All good things must come to an end.

It’s been an incredible few months for my walking tours experiment but it’s almost time to close it out.

When I first wrote publicly on this blog about pursuing this passion project and launching my walking tours, it was a leap of faith and I truly did not know how it would go. I set a start date of June 17th and was thrilled when nearly a dozen guests showed up that Saturday morning—even if about half were related to me in some way. With the support of my family, the first Then & Now Downtown Albuquerque Walking Tour was a grand success.

The second week was also successful. Then the third week came around and… nobody showed up.

Not to be deterred by one slow weekend, I kept it up for a fourth Saturday and more guests showed up. Word started spreading through social media mostly and the momentum built up enough that I eventually expanded to include a Sunday tour. The Rails & Tales Albuquerque Rail Yards Tour has been a popular 30-minute tour for shoppers at the Rail Yards Market to get to know the rich history behind the iconic glass and steel structures in the Barelas neighborhood.

It’s all been incredibly rewarding.

Over the course of nearly three months, nearly a hundred guests have joined my free tour experiences. Some have completed both a Saturday and a Sunday tour which I take as a major compliment since these super guests enjoyed their initial experience enough to come back for more.

So why am I choosing to end tours that have been such a success?

Both the Downtown Growers’ Market and Rail Yards Market have been incredibly kind partners supportive of this whole walking tours idea. I doubt I would have had anywhere near the level of success so far without these organizations. It’s really only because these markets are already doing the heavy lifting of bringing life to our downtown parks and historic sites that I can continue to provide my walking tours on a weekly basis.

That’s why I’ll be choosing to stop the walking tours when these markets close for the 2023 season.

This isn’t the end for me. It’s simply an opportunity to pause and regroup through the winter season to figure out how to come back even better than before. I fully expect to restart walking tours in 2024 but I still haven’t quite finalized how it will look next year.

As of now, I plan to finish strong through the end of each market season. For my Rails & Tales Tour, that means ending when the Rail Yards Market wraps up with a final market day on Sunday, October 29th. The Downtown Growers’ Market doesn’t until until the following week so the last Then & Now Tour will be Saturday, November 4th.

A special note: There will be no Rails & Tales Tour on Sunday, October 1st as I will be out of town that day.

That means there are a limited number of opportunities for you to join a tour! If you’ve been waiting for cooler weather, now’s your time.

SIGN UP NOW!

Remember:

• Final Rails & Tales Tour: Sunday, October 29th
• Final Then & Now Tour: Saturday, November 4th

To those of you who have already joined a tour, THANK YOU for your support. I hope to see the rest of your faces soon!

Hasta pronto!

Eric

A Second Tour? Follow Eric Walking Tours is Expanding!

Follow Eric Walking Tours is expanding with the addition of a second weekly tour!

Building on the success of the Then & Now Downtown Walking Tour, I am thrilled to announce I’ll be adding a second free tour to the weekend lineup starting this week—which happens to be National Farmers Market Week.

I’ve enjoyed a great working relationship with growers’ markets here in Albuquerque. I couldn’t ask for a better starting point for my downtown tours than the Downtown Growers’ Market, where I kick off each Saturday at 9 am from right next to the info booth. I’ve also been working with another excellent market in town—the Rail Yards Market.

A few weeks ago, I offered a free walking tour on site in support of Rail Yards History Day. There was a healthy turnout and the feedback was overwhelmingly positive. A few of you have since reached out to see if I would be offering another Rail Yards tour and I have good news for you.

This week, I am introducing a new regular offering: the Rails & Tales Rail Yards Walking Tour

This tour, like its downtown counterpart, is completely free to join with an option to tip at the end what you feel the experience is worth and to support future tours.

Rail Yards Tours start Sunday at 10 am, repeating weekly through remainder of the Rail Yards Market season which lasts through October.

Here’s the description and details:

RAILS & TALES ALBUQUERQUE RAIL YARDS TOUR

Discover the rich history of Albuquerque’s Rail Yards in just 30 minutes, the perfect way to enhance your market day!

• When: Sundays at 10 am

• Duration: 30 minutes

• Meeting Point: Meet at the Rail Yards Market in front of the Growers’ Grove—the building to the west with the large gray facade.

Curious about the history of the iconic steel and concrete structures now home to the Rail Yards Market? This tour offers a glimpse into life in the first half of the 20th century when the Rail Yards employed a quarter of the city’s workforce, serviced 40 locomotives every month, and made Albuquerque a major hub along the Atchison, Topeka and Santa Fe Railway.

Together, we’ll get an up close look at the buildings, most built between 1914 and 1924, and learn about their original purpose and what has happened to these facilities over the years. Whether you're a history buff or a market lover, this brief yet enriching walking tour is the ideal way to deepen your connection to Albuquerque's past while immersing yourself in its vibrant present, and a perfect start to your visit to the Rail Yards Market.

I hope you’ll make plans to join me for this tour. In fact, you can sign up right now to reserve your spot on one of the August dates.

SIGN UP NOW

Thank you all for your support of Follow Eric Walking Tours. I appreciate every like and share on Facebook and Instagram and every vote you cast in Albuquerque the Magazine’s Best of the City Awards and a very special thanks to each of you who have made it out on one of my walking tours.  It’s because of you all that I’ve been able to keep this passion project going.

If you haven’t made it on a tour, I hope to see you on one soon.

Hasta pronto!

Eric

Help make Follow Eric Walking Tours the Best New Business Idea in Albuquerque

 My walking tours are off to a strong start and I have you to thank.

Each of you who have shared the tour and sent encouraging notes have kept me motivated as I continue offering my Then & Now Downtown Albuquerque Walking Tour and start to take steps to grow this idea into more.

And I especially want to thank each of you who have joined a tour in person. Your feedback and encouragement have been the fuel keeping this idea moving forward.

Which brings me to ask you for something big. I need your vote.

Every year, Albuquerque the Magazine gives out its Best of the City Awards. I was lucky enough to win a Top 5 award for Best Blogger back in 2012 and could use your help going after a new category.

This year I would love to see the award for Best New Business Idea go to a fledgling venture that celebrates and honors the city I love: Follow Eric Walking Tours.

Here’s how you can help:

• Visit abqthemag.com
• Enter your name, email, and age range (required fields)
• Scroll to the very bottom to Best New Business Idea and type: “Follow Eric Walking Tours”

Please also cast your vote for other deserving businesses and local personalities and do so quickly— voting ends soon on August 1st.

Will you go vote right now?

Thank you for your consideration and I’ll be sure to keep you updated on how it goes!

CAST YOUR VOTE NOW