Where to Take a Killer Tour…A Serial Killer Tour, That Is

Here at Haunt Jaunts we have a fondness for tours. (The more macabre the better.) That’s why a certain tour caught my eye recently on Twitter.

I re-Tweeted this post from iHorror:

A Jeffrey Dahmer tour? https://t.co/8xI0pUCJdG #TravelTuesday #travel #tourism #WI #MacabreMonday

— Haunt Jaunts (@HauntJaunts) March 14, 2017

Then I shared the link on HJ’s Facebook page, and asked: “Interesting concept for a tour? Or too much?”

My friend Jessica left this comment in response:

An H.H. Holmes tour? Had to check that out.

Because last summer I read a phenomenal book about H.H. Holmes called The Devil in the White City: Murder, Magic, and Madness at the Fair That Changed America.

It was kind of long, and very involved. It simultaneously related how Chicago put on the World’s Columbian Exposition  in 1893 and how H.H. Holmes committed his atrocities.

Holmes’s “Murder Castle” was destroyed so it doesn’t stand today, but I can’t help but wonder if whatever resides there now has any activity from the ghosts of his victims.

Well guess what? Jessica was right. There is a tour that might tell me if there’s any activity reported in the vicinity of where the Holmes Murder Castle once stood.

And that’s how we arrived at this point in the post.

So without further ado, here’s seven places you can take a tour of the serial killer variety:

1. Chicago, Illinois: H.H. Holmes Tours (a.k.a. America’s First Serial Killer)

There are a couple of companies who offer a Devil in the White City tour:

1. Chicago Hauntings – https://www.chicagohauntings.com/
2. Weird Chicago Tours – https://www.weirdchicago.com/

They both claim to be the original tour. Which is about par for the course for Chicago. (In his book, Erik Larson did a fabulous job explaining the psyche of Chicago and her citizens. I think it might be disappointing not to have two tour companies vying for “original” creator of such a tour.)

Also like the book, both tours “delve into the history, mystery, murder and mayhem” of America’s first serial killer, H.H. Holmes, and the World’s Columbia Exposition that Chicago hosted in 1893.

But unlike the book, they physically take you to the places written about. Nice. You get a better idea of what it all looked like, in addition to the layout of the land.

Tours are offered on a limited basis by both companies. (Meaning not every night, and not even every weekend.) So plan ahead accordingly if you’re interested in taking it.

Note: If you’re familiar with Troy Taylor and his American Hauntings, Weird Chicago Tours is him too. In fact, we’ve got his Haunted America Conference listed on our Paracons & Horror Fests page. (Look under “Illinois.”)

You could go to the con and do his Devil in the White City tour potentially! (If there’s a tour offered then, that is.)

2. Hollywood, California & New Orleans, Louisiana – The Museum of Death

I included the Museum of Death in the Vile Vacations guest post I wrote for HorrorAddicts.net. I decided to include it here, because it’s a self-guided tour of the museum’s artifacts, which include “the world’s largest collection of serial murderer artwork, photos of the Charles Manson crime scenes,” as well as videos of serial killers. (I’m presuming videos of interviews with them.)

They have two locations for your jaunting pleasure. For info on their exact locations in each city, vist their website http://www.museumofdeath.net/.

3. London, England – Jack the Ripper Tour

Jack the Ripper is probably one of the most well known, yet also unknown, serial killers in history. There are many theories about his identity, but he took that information with him to his grave. Which left behind one of the most notorious unsolved crimes, and no justice for his five victims: Mary Ann Nichols, Annie Chapman, Elizabeth Stride, Catherine Eddowes, and Mary Jane Kelly.

There are all sorts of Jack the Ripper tours in London. We did a daytime one that was included with our Original London Sightseeing Tour: Hop-on Hop-off. It was phenomenal.

However, there are also just Jack the Ripper tours that aren’t part of other packages. Some are at night. Some are a combined ghost tour/Jack the Ripper tour. There’s a new Jack the Ripper Tour with ‘Ripper-Vision’ that uses “…innovative hand-held projectors help to recreate the atmosphere of Victorian London using spooky images, film clips and moving images.” There’s even a Jack The Ripper Happy Hour Tasting Tour that’s a sort of a pub crawl.

There are so many to mention and I’m lazy. It’s easier for me to recommend that you visit our affiliate, Viator, to see them all. That way you can decide which would work best for you if you ever jaunt to London and want to take a Jack the Ripper tour.

4. Los Angeles, California – The Helter Skelter Tour

Scott Michaels has a documentary on Amazon.com called The Six Degrees of Helter Skelter. (It should also be available on Netflix.)

Scott is widely regarded as a Manson Family Murder expert. He also happens to be the founder of Dearly Departed Tours and is the guide you’ll get for this “…3.5 hour tour which visits the sites of the Legendary Tate-LaBianca murders carried out by the Manson Family. In this multi-media tour [he] reconstruct[s] the lives of both killers and victims in the hours leading up to these horrific crimes, details of which are told by the killers themselves through audio recordings.”

Advanced purchase is required for this tour, and it sells out fast. To book it or get more info, visit Dearly Departed Tours http://dearlydepartedtours.com/.

Note: If you’re fascinated by this, you’ll for sure want to check out our radio show on May 2, 2017. David Oman from the Oman House is going to be our guest. The Oman House was built less than 200 feet from what was 10050 Cielo Drive. a.k.a. The address where Sharon Tate, Wojciech Frykowski, Abigail Folger, Jay Sebring, and Steven Parent were murdered by the Manson Family on August 9, 1969. David has experienced activity from the time he built his house to the present. He even hosts ghost hunt nights where he allows small groups to come investigate.

5. Milwaukee, Wisconsin – The Cream City Cannibal Tour (a.k.a. Jeffrey Dahmer tour)

So come to find out that the Tweet I referenced at the start of this post about this tour? It’s not even for a new tour. It’s been around since like 2012.

Their copy was just too perfect so I have to share it: “This tour is so gruesome, it was banned on Groupon – twice. Walk in the exact footsteps of cannibalistic serial killer Jeffrey Dahmer, where he poached 7 of his 17 victims.”

If you’re ever in Milwaukee and want to take it, look up Hangman Tours https://www.hangmantours.com/.

6. Salt Lake City, Utah – Outer Reaches Tour

Spring through Fall, Grimm Ghost Tours offers a tour that isn’t solely about serial killer Ted Bundy, but does include a portion that’s about him.

The neat thing about the tour is you board a bus to go to the locations and are allowed to investigate too, not just hear ghost stories. Other stops on the Outer Reaches include: The Old Fort Douglas, The Premiere Gentile Gentlemen’s Club in the early history of Salt Lake City, The Old Haunted Library, The Hancock Mansion.

So who knows? Maybe you’ll chance upon Ted Bundy’s ghost on this tour?

For more info, check out Grimm Ghost Tours http://www.grimmghosttours.com/.

7. Seattle, Washington: Capitol Hill True Crime Tour

On this tour you’ll “investigate cases,” both solved and unsolved, of some of Seattle’s most notorious crimes as your travel through Seattle’s Capitol Hill, Madrona  and Madison Park neighborhoods.

This is another tour that jaunts to serial killer Ted Bundy’s stomping grounds. There’s also cases with names like the “Christmas Eve Massacre” and “Devil’s Dip” to explore. You’ll also get to see Kurt Cobain’s former home and where Jimi Hendrix grew up.

Interested? Check out Private Eye on Seattle Ghost & True Crime Tours http://www.privateeyetours.com/.