True Crime Philadelphia and History Tour
Recommended by 99% of travelers
Badge of Excellence
Philadelphia, USA
- 2 hours 30 minutes (approx.)
- Mobile ticket
- Offered in: English
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Overview
Uncover Philadelphia’s dark past, and visit some of its most famous landmarks besides, on this macabre, small-group walking tour of Center City. Meet your guide (a college professor or trained historian), and set off to sights ranging from Betsy Ross House and Elfreth’s Alley to Christ Church and beyond. As you go, listen to ghost stories, legends about famous serial killers, and other spooky tales.
- A small-group tour lets you get up close and personal with the sights
- See many of Philadelphia’s famous landmarks in a single tour
- Learn more about the city’s dark past from your trained historian guide
- True-Crime mixed with historic sightseeing
What's Included
- Serial Killer Tales AND Historic Sightseeing in One
- Betsy Ross House, Christ Church, Elfreth's Alley, Benjamin Franklin's Grave Sites will be Visited
- History Teacher Tour Guide
- Gratuities
- Food and drinks
- Hotel pickup and drop-off
Meeting and Pickup
Meeting point
- Independence Visitor Center599 Market St, Philadelphia, PA 19106, USA
Across the street from Independence Hall and The Liberty Bell. "Outside" the Market Street doors of the Independence Visitor Center.
End point
- Old City, Philadelphia, PA, USA
Inside a cultural tavern for a complimentary beverage or sampling.
Operating hours.2:00 pm
Itinerary
1
Betsy Ross House
15 minutes • Admission Ticket Free
2
Benjamin Franklin's Grave
20 minutes • Admission Ticket Free
Independence Hall (Pass By)
3
Elfreth's Alley
15 minutes • Admission Ticket Free
4
Christ Church
15 minutes • Admission Ticket Free
5
Arch Street Meeting House
15 minutes • Admission Ticket Free
The President's House (Pass By)
6
Arch Street Meeting House
15 minutes • Admission Ticket Free
Grim Philly Twilight Tours (Pass By)
7
Christ Church Burial Ground
25 minutes • Admission Ticket Free
Additional Info
- Confirmation will be received at time of booking
- Wheelchair accessible
- Stroller accessible
- Service animals allowed
- Near public transportation
- Infant seats available
- Transportation is wheelchair accessible
- Surfaces are wheelchair accessible
- Most travelers can participate
- Children should be accompanied by an adult due to adult content on the tour
- Saturdays are adults only
- This tour/activity will have a maximum of 30 travelers
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Cancellation Policy
You can cancel up to 24 hours in advance of the experience for a full refund.
Traveler Photos
Reviews
4.9
based on 419 reviews
Myranda_M, Aug 2025
Ted was fantastic. He was knowledgeable and fun. The sight and stories were interesting. A fun time!
Levent_A, Aug 2025
Ted made Philly’s crime history unforgettable. He managed to make tales of serial killers both fascinating and even humorous without ever losing the edge of the story. A natural teacher and storyteller—he kept us laughing, learning, and totally engaged. Don’t miss this tour with Ted!
Sandra_L, Nov 2024
Very cool tour! We loved it. Our guide Ted was excellent…..knowledgeable and funny! Highly recommend!
Joseph_B, Nov 2024
Excellent tour, I enjoyed our tour guide, Joe. The itinerary was excellent. He was very engaging and knowledgeable. I would come back again with friends and more family. The tour guide at Christ's Church cemetery where Ben Franklin is buried was also hysterical and super enjoyable. He made the tour memorable as well.
Siobhan_C, Oct 2024
Joseph was really informative and entertaining. He obviously knew a lot about what he was talking about and his passion for the topic came through in the information he gave out. I learnt a lot about Philadelphia and can’t wait to check out some of the places that Joseph recommended. 10/10, credit to your tour company!
Kimberly_W, Oct 2024
Ted was a great story teller, giving awesome details. He was very engaging! Great choice if you find yourself in Philly and want to learn come "fun facts"!
Chasity_P, Oct 2024
Ted was great! Informative and fun! The walk was leisurely and nice. We did the sexy Philly history before. Both are great!
Steven_M, Oct 2024
Joseph was an amazing guide. Our tour ended up being only my Wife and I but Joseph held our attention with awesome stories and history and even knew an old Quaker story which happened in our home town of Burlington NJ. Bravo, 100% will do again.
Joshua_V, Oct 2024
The tour was so good I’m thinking about becoming a serial killer. Either that or going again. I haven’t decided. (Jumping front kick and scurry’s off)
Christopher_A, Aug 2024
Our guide Joseph was incredibly knowledgeable, with a deep understanding of local history. He told us about riots, infamous crimes, unsolved murders, and past religious conflicts. His storytelling brought to life the buildings and areas we passed. The tour gave many examples of how history keeps repeating itself, and how lessons from the past can be used in the present and in the future.
Paul_M, Jul 2024
Great tour & tour guide. I’m fairly knowledgeable of Philly history & notorious killers, but learned a lot.
Mario_A, Jun 2024
Ted, The Guide, gave us a lot of important information. Very profissional and funny. I really enjoy the tour.
Wayne_V, May 2024
Good tour. Joseph Spurlock, the tour guide was very knowledgeable and easy to talk to. It is a fairly new tour and I believe will get better and better over time but is definitely worth taking.
Kevin_C, Apr 2024
Very good experience!!! We loved it!! Would for sure go back for another tour!! Very knowledgeable and we loved the mix of history, history of the city and serial killers!! 10 out of 10!!
Linda_G, Oct 2023
Ted was super knowledgeable and fun. We had a great time on the tour and learned a lot about the creepier side of Philly.
Laura_D, Feb 2023
Loved the stories! Great guide. After the tour though, the spam to get us to fill out a review is very annoying. In fact it looks like there's a minimum character count, so here are all my thoughts :)
Fabian_M, Jul 2022
Ted was a great guide truly, it was a fun, interesting, and informative time. Already recommended it to friends and plan on going back for other tours
Kathleen_R, Jun 2022
This was a well organized tour. Ted is very knowledgeable. I appreciated his detailed information about the historic areas of Philly and the serial killers of Philly. The best part of the tour was the burial ground tour where the information was entertaining and highly related to the specific location. The Lizzy Borden side story, personal stories and excessive use of the f-bomb were distracting.
Courtney_G, Jun 2022
We did two tours with Grim Philly on our trip (this one and a Dark Philly adults only night tour). Ted was our guide for both of them. He was a great tour guide. Very knowledgeable and easy to get along with. He also tweaked the tour to our interests when possible. My husband is interested in history and I’m into the macabre and these tours fit the bill to keep us both entertained. I’d recommend these tours to anyone who is interested in the darker side of history and isn’t offended easily. My only complaint is a minor one but the tours did not end where they started. But like
I said that was just a minor inconvenience. Still good to know before you book which is why I’m including it. Looking forward to checking out their podcast and so glad we found these tours to check out.
Mark_V, May 2022
Tour guides were very knowledgeable, friendly, and entertaining. We learned a lot and had a lot of fun.
Sarah_P, Nov 2021
Ted gave a really great tour. Very knowledgeable and interesting. He knew the answers to most questions and when he did not, he just said so. The tour ran well over 2 hours and I really felt we all got our money’s worth.
Paula_D, Oct 2021
Ted was amazing. He kept my son interested and had great details. We would love to take another tour with him.
Ami_P, Oct 2021
Ted was great! We had so much fun! Our kids had fun, it was amazing! I learned a lot and all of it was super cool and super gross!
Kara_W, Oct 2021
Loved this tour! It was a really fun mix of serial killer lore and philadelphia history. Our tour guide Ted was incredible and an amazing storyteller. Would absolutely go again. We learned so much and now definitely have a few new favorite serial killers to learn more about.
Victoria_M, Oct 2021
I took this tour with my teenage daughter. It was a fun way to see parts of the city and learn a bit of history and the darker side of the city history.
Emily_S, Sep 2021
This was a great way to see many historical spots and also learn some dark serial killer history. Ted was a wonderful guide. He is witty, knowledgeable, and genuinely interested in the subject matter. Take this tour!
Mike_S, Sep 2021
Great tour with some great history sprinkled in. I would definitely look to do another tour with this group next time in Philly!
Krystie_M, Aug 2021
Yes was fantastic. Really knows his his history and serial killers. I loved the mixture of the stories about major historic landmarks as well as information on serial killers known to the area. It was a great way for us to see major areas of the city while getting some unique stories about the darker side of Philly.
YunKee_C, Jul 2021
Our guide, Ted, was knowledgeable and personable. He is obviously experienced and has a personal interest in both serial killers and history. The actual walk was probably less than one mile while the pace of the "lecture" was brisk. TV-MA so not for the little ones, but my 14 and 18 year old children were fine.
Jason_D, Jul 2021
Really enjoyed the stop at Christ's church. Also enjoyed the cemetary walk. Overall very enjoyable experience
From $44.00
per personup to 24 hours before the experience starts (local time)
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True Crime Philadelphia and History Tour
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