Find out the secrets of the mafia: top 6 crime tours in New York

If you look at the trendy cafes and organic food stores in any New York City neighborhood, you'll find evidence of the city's nefarious legacy. If you know where to look, you can find old mafia hangouts, gang war sites and haunted places scattered throughout the city's five boroughs. Just for this Time-out collected the top 6 crime tours in New York.

Instead of visiting all of New York's major attractions, these walking tours explore the city's secrets—a dark history that some would like to forget. Visit former bootleg warehouses, secret underground tunnels and the final resting places of famous mafia bosses, and you may gain a new perspective on the city.

1. Mafia tour and food tasting

Discover what XNUMXth-century New York mobsters like Lucky Luciano and Carlo Gambino were like by walking through the former East Village houses, alleys, social clubs and funeral homes that played a role in their criminal empires. Enjoy Sicilian cuisine in Little Italy while immersing yourself in history.

2. Greenwich Village Haunted Tour

One of the city's oldest neighborhoods is home to some of its oldest residents—even if they now live here only in spirit. Leave your fears at home for an afternoon of eerie ghost stories in the area, from ancient bogeymen and menacing ghosts to newly minted ghouls.

On the subject: The XNUMX Coolest Walking Tours in New York

3. Private tour “Gangs and Crime of Little Italy”

Discover the truth about New York City's underworld on this tour of two neighborhoods that were once notorious for gang activity. In Little Italy, you'll discover a pizzeria that doubled as a drug den and a bar featured in The Sopranos. Next, in Chinatown, you will visit the “Bloody Corner” and see the secret tunnels used by gangsters hiding from the police.

4. New York City Tour “Gangsters and Ghosts”

The New York District Courthouse sits in the heart of an area once known as Five Points, where five families fought bloody gang wars for decades. Visit historical landmarks: Curb Exchange, a former bootlegging depot, and Old St. Patrick's Church, the city's oldest Catholic church. You'll even see some filming locations from The Godfather trilogy. The main thing during the excursion is to beware of ghouls.

5. Private walking tour of gangster and mafia New York

Don't want to mingle with the public during the tour? Book a private tour for 10 people. You'll visit the site of the infamous "Dead Rabbits" riot, a battlefield between the deadly Tong gangs in Chinatown, and former Mafia hangouts in Little Italy.

6. Private Mafia Tour by Luxury Car

Drive through Manhattan in a luxury car, just like the mobsters once did. On this private tour, you'll visit places frequented by mob bosses like John Gotti. Chic steakhouses, exclusive social clubs and extravagant homes. For an even greater insight into the mob mentality, extend your tour two hours and head to Queens to visit Gotti's former home, high school and final resting place.