Top Milwaukee How to Get Around

Milwaukee is known for its beer, brats, baseball, and lakefront scenery, but it offers much more than most travelers realize. Learn about the city through the eyes of a resident guide on this Milwaukee sightseeing tour, see famous attractions, trendy neighborhoods, an art-filled alley, and so much more—including a bronze statue of the Fonz of “Happy Days” fame.

Unveil the dark history of Brew City with this ghost tour of the city’s most haunted locations. Meet your guide for a ghoul-fueled stroll through the heart of Milwaukee to take in spirit-infested historic hotels, theaters, and even skyscrapers. Be entertained by bone-chilling ghost stories and tales of paranormal activity as you delve into Milwaukee’s ghoulish past.

Milwaukee is a city shaped by its waterways, its waves of immigrants, and its bold spirit-famous for its German heritage, its brewing traditions, and its knack for reinvention over nearly two centuries. Our journey today starts at Wisconsin Historical Marker three three three, which marks the heart of old Kilbourntown, walk through stories of rivalry, resilience, and remarkable change, all the way to the bustling Milwaukee Public Market in the Historic Third Ward. Go at your own pace. The tour never expires. This is a hand free experience, press play and put your phone in your pocket. The tour is location aware, and plays as you walk. It never expires.

Kick off your morning with a guided e-bike tour around Milwaukee. Covering about 15 miles, you’ll ride through historic neighborhoods and scenic parks, with stops including the North Point Lighthouse and Villa Terrace Museum and Gardens. Capped at eight for a personalized experience, this tour is a fun, active way to pack in plenty of sightseeing. Hear facts and insights from your guide along the way.

As seen on BBC, NBC, and featured on Netflix’s Dark Tourist, this is one of the most talked-about true crime tours in the world. The Cream City Cannibal Tour explores one of Milwaukee’s most infamous criminal cases—walking through the exact neighborhood where multiple events connected to a notorious serial killer took place. This is not a casual history tour. Through guided storytelling, guests are led through the psychological, cultural, and real-world impact of the case, offering insight into how it unfolded and why it continues to be studied today. The tour has even been referenced in academic settings, including university psychology and criminal justice programs. Expect a deeper, more intense experience—focused on understanding, not sensationalizing. Outdoor tour. Rain or shine. Not recommended for those sensitive to true crime content.

The Milwaukee Downtown ride takes you on a on an exhilarating helicopter journey down the Milwaukee Bay where you can witness Downtown Milwaukee like never before! This ride offers a truly unique perspective, soaring directly over the heart of the city. You’ll be treated to sweeping views of the Milwaukee River, the iconic Hoan Bridge, and the majestic Milwaukee Art Museum. But that’s not all – this ride encompasses the entire cityscape, ensuring you don’t miss a single landmark.

Forward Outdoor offers one of the most unique ways to experience Milwaukee. Located directly on the waterfront at Discovery World, our rental location provides immediate access to calm, protected harbor waters with stunning views of the city skyline, Lake Michigan, Lakeshore State Park, and the Summerfest grounds. Unlike many paddling experiences that require transportation, lengthy instructions, or advanced skills, guests can get on the water quickly and explore at their own pace. We offer a variety of watercraft—including kayaks, paddleboards, hydro bikes, and paddle boats—making it easy for families, couples, solo travelers, and groups to find the perfect adventure. As a locally owned Milwaukee business, we're passionate about helping people connect with the outdoors and discover the city from a perspective most visitors never experience.

Our unique immersive adventures are one of a kind. We provide your very own remote, interactive, live host to assist and encourage you along through your phone. We are an Austin, TX-based global custom event design company offering scavenger hunts and other events in 300+ cities in North America and beyond. Our specially hand-crafted adventures are equal parts tour, creative challenge, detective hunt, and social experiment! Guests get to discover in an alternate reality our favorite hidden gems off the beaten trail and creatively interpret fun art, history, and culture clues - for points! They get to enjoy fame and glory while appearing on our website’s international leaderboard, no matter what their score. They get to essentially race other teams in other cities, even if they don’t have competitors who have signed up in their city that day. Get ready to discover unusual oddities, laugh out loud, and make the experience your own!

Explore Milwaukee’s criminal underworld on the Mobsters and Mafia Tour, a guided walking experience that uncovers the rise and fall of the Milwaukee Mob and the powerful Balistrieri crime family. Visit historic locations while discovering how organized crime, political influence, and underground enterprises shaped the city throughout the 20th century. Hear captivating stories of power, loyalty, corruption, and betrayal as your guide reveals the real people and events behind one of Milwaukee’s most fascinating chapters. While the tour touches on the city’s Prohibition-era roots, its primary focus is the Milwaukee Mob and the figures who dominated the city’s underworld from the 1960s through the 1980s. Perfect for history enthusiasts, true crime fans, and curious travelers seeking a side of Milwaukee few visitors ever discover.

Step back into Milwaukee’s Prohibition era and uncover a world of speakeasies, madams, gangsters, corruption, and scandal. The Whorin’ 20s Walking Tour explores the city’s notorious vice district during the Roaring Twenties, when bootleggers, brothel owners, politicians, and organized crime figures helped shape Milwaukee’s nightlife and underground economy. Led by expert storytellers, this entertaining and historically grounded walking tour reveals the hidden stories behind the city’s most colorful characters and forgotten locations. Along the way, guests will discover how Prohibition transformed Milwaukee and why the era continues to captivate visitors nearly a century later. Perfect for history enthusiasts, groups, couples, bachelorette parties, and anyone looking for a different side of Milwaukee beyond breweries and ballgames. Bride goes free with qualifying bachelorette party reservations.

This experience is for the budget friendly travelers. This bus tour has a minimum 8 guest requirement to operate. A 90-120 minute Tour Times: 10am. Embark with fellow guests on an unforgettable journey through the heart of Milwaukee, where history, culture, and vibrant energy converge to create an experience like no other. From the shores of Lake Michigan to the iconic Harley-Davidson Museum, immerse yourself in the rich tapestry of this dynamic city. Explore the historic Third Ward, where cobblestone streets lead to artisan boutiques and eclectic galleries. Indulge in the delights of the city's diverse neighborhoods from the viewpoint of a local, showcasing the best of local flavors. Discover the marvels of Milwaukee's skyline, including the stunning Milwaukee Art Museum with its iconic wings. Whether you're a history buff, a restaurant lover, or an art aficionado, this Milwaukee tour promises to captivate your senses and leave you longing to uncover more of its hidden treasures.

Get to know one of Milwaukee‘s most haunted neighborhoods, Westown, and discover why Marquette University is considered one of the nation‘s most haunted schools. On this self-guided walking tour, you‘ll visit eleven haunted locations and hear some of Milwaukee‘s most spook-tacular tales! Starting in front of the Milwaukee Public Museum, you‘ll stroll around Marquette Campus and along Wisconsin Ave to Straz Tower, where our tour ends. Along the way, you‘ll meet some of Milwaukee‘s most famous ghosts, including a professor who continues to report to work, and a home-proud beer baron. You‘ll also see the site of one of the city‘s most notorious murders. Lace up your shoes and join me in discovering the haunted side of this historic neighborhood. This family-friendly hour-long walk does contain content that may be disturbing, including details of murders, mentions of suicide and accidental deaths. Please use caution when selecting this tour for very young or sensitive audiences.

See more of Milwaukee in less time—and give your feet a rest—on this exciting E-bike tour. After getting settled on your bike and joining a small group, cruise around the city to sights including Walker Square, Milwaukee Pierhead Lighthouse, Bradford Beach, and more. Cover more ground than you could on foot as you zip between top landmarks, enjoying a fun and effortless way to experience the city.

Explore the Immigrant, Labor, and Civil Rights History of Bay View through a gentle walk in this charming neighborhood of Milwaukee. Emeritus History Professor Tim Thering will transport you back to three different time periods that dramatically shaped the Bay View neighborhood, the city of Milwaukee, and the nation. You will learn about the Bay View Massacre that tragically ended Milwaukee’s immigrant workers’ struggle for the 8-hour day. You will hear about how Anarchist Italian immigrants in the neighborhood battled with local authorities during World War I. Finally, you will discover how the son of Bay View grocers, Father James Groppi, helped to lead the Milwaukee Civil Rights movement of the 1960s. The tour includes visiting several iconic businesses in this tightly packed corner of Bay View, Milwaukee. Food and most drinks are included in the price.

An immersive clue-solving adventure around RiverWalk Milwaukee. Search for real-world clues, solve puzzles, and discover the neighborhood with an experience you'll never forget! Reschedule anytime with no fees. It's a scavenger hunt, escape room, and urban crawl all-in-one. Follow the storyline around town as you find clues and use them to crack codes. Then enter solutions on the app to find out where to go next. Clues can be anywhere - murals, statues, landmarks, and more! Plan on about two hours of playtime, depending on your experience level and how much time you spend exploring along the way. Difficulty level is adjustable - take as many or as few hints as you’d like! PLEASE NOTE: Bookings made less than 7 days before your play date will be scheduled for local pickup. For bookings made 7+ days in advance, our team will contact you to arrange shipping.

The Midwestern city of Milwaukee is known for its beer and cheese and this walking food tour gives you a taste of the best. Join a small group and enjoy a walk through "Brew City" to sample a number of beers and regional snacks. Learn about the 19th-century Germanic population that immigrated to the area and its influence on today's local cuisine.

Get to know some of the darker corners of Milwaukee’s history on this small-group walking tour of the city’s downtown. You’ll enjoy hearing haunting tales associated with famous Milwaukee landmarks like the Pfister Hotel, City Hall, and the Pabst Theater as your guide leads you through the Cream City evening.

The Historic Third Ward was the first stop for many of Milwaukee's European immigrants, particularly the Irish and later the Italians. Close to cheap housing and available jobs, these new arrivals created close-knit communities. Like most major industrial cities, the Third Ward had a significant and destructive fire in 1892, which reshaped the landscape to much of what you see today. In the 1970s, this area experienced a resurgence that transformed factories and warehouses into condos and mixed adaptive reuse. On this tour, learn about the neighborhood landscape as well as the Irish and Italian immigrants as well as the impact of the LGBTQ+ community and other residents. Stops include the Milwaukee Public Market (2005), Milwaukee Institute of Art and Design (MIAD) (1974), and Commission Row (1894). This walking tour is 1 mile in length. Travelers are recommended to bring (weather permitting): good walking shoes, water, sunscreen, and/or umbrella.

Experience the sweeter side of Milwaukee on this fun and family-friendly walking tour through one of Wisconsin's most vibrant cities. Along the way, you'll enjoy a delicious assortment of donuts, pastries, locally inspired sweet treats, and freshly brewed coffee from some of Milwaukee's favorite bakeries and cafés. As you explore downtown, your guide will share fascinating stories about the city's rich history, impressive architecture, thriving arts scene, and unique local culture. You'll discover iconic landmarks, hidden gems, and neighborhood favorites while enjoying some of the best sweet treats Milwaukee has to offer. Whether you're visiting for the first time or are a lifelong local, this tour is the perfect blend of delicious food, local history, and unforgettable memories.

Downtown Milwaukee's growth began around the intersection of N. Water St. and E. Wisconsin Ave. but expanded quickly as the small settlement became a large city. If you are looking for an introduction to Milwaukee's history, this is the best place to start. The tour will explore this commercial district from the earliest beginnings at the river's edge all the way to the modern office buildings along Lake Michigan's shore. Stops on the tour include a variety of architectural styles including Alexander Eschweiler's Art Deco Gas Light Building (1930), the Richardsonian Romanesque style Federal Building (1892), and Northwestern Mutual's Neoclassical Headquarters (1914). This walking tour is 1 mile in length. We recommend that travelers bring (weather permitting): good walking shoes, water, sunscreen, and/or umbrella.

Milwaukee is called many names; Brew City, City of Festivals, and Cream City, but it is most recognized as the place for great beer and cheese in the Upper Midwest. The large 19th century Germanic population continue to influence our local food products and dishes while some of the best restaurants from the historic Third Ward to East Town Downtown. When booking our winter exclusive Skywalk Food Tour you'll get to experience and enjoy all the best we have to offer from a warm second-story perspective. You'll get to experience and enjoy all the best we have when you book our Secret Food Tour: Milwaukee. As a private tour, everything works around you! Our start times are much more easy going, dates can open up. It's a much more intimate and cozy experience. No need to shout over other tourists, you will have every question answered, and leave feeling like a native yourself!

Explore Sheboygan’s highlights in a fun way, on a Segway, on this small-group excursion. Cruise along the Sheboygan River and Lake Michigan shoreline to see the lighthouse, shipwreck sites, schooner remains, and the John Michael Kohler Arts Center. If you’d like, you can upgrade to a private tour for a more personalized experience.

Our guided City Skyline Kayak Tours are 1.5–2 hours long and follow the Milwaukee River up towards downtown Milwaukee. We do not make any stops along the way for this tour, but we do provide details about Milwaukee's history and attractions along the river. Our knowledgeable guides will provide you with any kayaking instruction you may need and ensure you feel safe and comfortable on this beginner-level tour.