As 49 visitors to Austin streamed into the SPAM Museum, they looked more like they were about to cook a meal, not eat one.

The tourists were each given a cooking apron to wear throughout their tour of Austin Wednesday. Those who forgot to wear them were fined a nickel.

The navy blue aprons, which said "SPAM. So good, it's gone." were part of their Magical Memories Mystery Tour, arranged by their hometown banks in North Dakota.

"We've never had a group appear in aprons before," said Nel Zellar, SPAM Museum tour guide. "This is a novelty, but I love it!"

The tourists first stop at the SPAM museum was the SPAM diner for -- what else? -- SPAM burgers.

Each summer, First State Bank and Goose River Bank in North Dakota arrange a mystery tour for members of their banks. The participants are given clues about where they're going and how long the trip will take. But when they got on the bus, they don't know where they'll end up.

"They had no idea," said Vicki Evenson, marketing officer for Magical Memory Tours.

But Janice Sand of Mayville, N.D., guessed Austin with the clues and with some help from the Internet.

"I did know one of the clues," Sand said. "In 1937 a cultural icon came to be. It was SPAM."

Besides the SPAM Museum, the tourists saw the Spamettes, the Jay C. Hormel Nature Center, Al Batt at the Paramount Theatre and the Hormel Historic Home.

Sand's favorite was Hormel Nature Center Director Larry Dolphin's presentation on snakes. Her friend, Miyoko Smestad, wasn't so sure.

"I have a phobia of snakes!" she said.

Smestad's husband, Maurice, liked Batt's dialogue at the theatre and enjoy the Spamettes' music.

"They could make pretty good money writing all those lyrics," he said.

And what about those SPAM burgers?

"It's kinda tasty, you know," Smestad said.

Wednesday's tour group was just one of about 10 touring Austin this week, said Holly Drennan, director of the Austin Convention and Visitor's Bureau. About 160 groups are booked to tour the town to date.

"It'll probably be 200 by the end of the year," Drennan said.

Cari Quam can be reached at 434-2235 or by e-mail at cari.quam@austindailyherald.com