Strangely, a question we get asked from time to time is “What exactly is a Jack the Ripper Tour?” Some people think that we are a bit like one of those theme park jump out and scare you attractions.
In fact, our Jack the Ripper tour is a walk that explores the twists and turns of the Jack the Ripper mystery and which takes clients to the major sites associated with one of the World’s greatest murder/mysteries.
As a result, the people who join us tend to be people who have a genuine and real interest in the various historical and forensic aspects of the case and who are looking for an intelligent and thought-proving look at the various aspects of the Jack the Ripper case.
That is why we offer guides who know the case inside out and who have been researching and studying the Whitechapel Murders for many years. Most of our guides are even published authors who have written extensively on the both the case and on East End history in particular.
Why do we think this is important?
Well, put simply, the Jack the Ripper murders are one of the most intensely studied and most widely reported crime sprees in the annals of criminal history.
Our clients tend to be people who have read up on the case and who have much more than just a passing interest in it. They want to be able to discuss various aspects of the mystery, or they want to see and learn about specific locations or suspects. If the guide were someone who has just read a quick synopsis of the mystery – and there are quite a few guides conducting Jack the Ripper Tours who don’t really know that much about the case – then when it comes to being able to interact with our clients, or discuss one of the many twists, turns or contradictions with which the case is littered, then they are not going to be able to do so.
The result?
Our clients would be left disappointed.
But with our guides, you will be shown around by acknowledged authorities on the case who are not only able to answer and discuss questions, and involve you in the process, but who are also happy to do so.
As our clients comment time and time again, it is evident form the moment the tour starts that they are with a guide that is not only knowledgeable about the subject but who is also extremely passionate about it.
That is why, when you join us for a tour of the sites associated with the Jack the Ripper mystery, you will really feel that you are getting a full experience and, on some nights, you will even get snippets of newly unearthed information about Jack the Ripper that your guide may well have only uncovered that very day.
If you think about it, isn’t that a much richer and desirable experience than just listening to a guide who is previously recited from a well honed script?
So, in answer to the question with which I started this article, what is a Jack the Ripper tour? It is a two hour walk through the very streets where the murders occurred, which tells you the story in an intelligent and thought-provoking way and which is guided by some of the World’s greatest authorities on the case who are friendly and approachable and who won’t just invite you to ask questions and discuss the Jack the Ripper mystery, but who will positively encourage you to do so.
In short, it is very much a thinking persons tour experience that does not rely on gimmicks and cheap thrills to engage you and keep you entertained.