1. London: Jack The Ripper and Sherlock Holmes Bus Tour
Step aboard a luxury air-conditioned bus, and journey through the haunted streets of London after dark. Along the way, hear stories about the legends buried at Westminster Abbey, and see the banqueting house where Charles I was beheaded. A guide will explain how the public executioner would often raise a severed head to the crowd to show it still twitching for several seconds after the brutal blows. Continue to the Old Bailey, where numerous public hangings once took place. Pass the Royal London Hospital where the “Elephant Man” once lived. Be spooked by tales of Mrs. Lovett’s pie fillings, which she sold from her shop next to a butcherous barber. Then, walk through a deserted Smithfield Market, looking for the William Wallace plaque where Braveheart was tortured. Learn about the 19th-century body snatchers that dug up local cemeteries “in the interests of science.” Listen out for the scratching of the Cock Lane ghost, Fanny Lynes, and hear her story of sex, loan sharks, arsenic poisoning, and séances. As the shadows lengthen, drive into London's East End, a hotbed of crime and vice in the 19th century. Relive the days of Jack the Ripper, when he came out of the fog and dimly lit alleys to stalk and butcher 5 victims. Stroll the path of his death trail to the murder sites, deciphering the evidence of the still-unsolved crimes. End in the warmth of the Sherlock Holmes Pub, where a wide collection of Holmes memorabilia is on display. The pub also serves an extensive menu of food, including a traditional fish and chip supper, which you can order from the bar.
