Fitzroy True Crime Walking Tour: Explore Melbourne's Historic Crime District with a Historian

Uncover the dark history of Melbourne’s crime district on the Fitzroy True Crime Walking Tour. Explore former brothels, gangland murders, and more with a historian guide.

Duration: 2 hours
Cancellation: 24 hours
Highlights
  • Fitzroy - Historic buildings and lane ways.
What's Included
  • Tour booklet with character photos
Additional Information

Take part in a riveting 2-hour stroll, exploring the bygone crime jurisdictions of Fitzroy, and familiarize yourself with the vibrant individuals who inhabited Melbourne’s notorious crime district a century ago. The enlightening Fitzroy True Crime Walking Tour is exclusively curated and guided by literature enthusiast and historian, Michael Shelford,…

Location
Melbourne Museum
Nicholson Street
We meet at the entrance doors to Melbourne Museum, 9 Nicholson St Carlton. Melbourne Museum is the modern building on the other side of the Royal Exhibition Building when travelling away from the city.
Cancellation Policy

For a full refund, cancel at least 24 hours before the scheduled departure time.

Customer Ratings
5.0
(110 Ratings)
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Lizo_13
Apr 14, 2025
Fitzroy true crime walk - Really interesting. Our guide definitely knew his stuff! He brought the likes of Squizzy Taylor and Snowy Cutmore and their antics to life! Thanks for a terrific experience, Sandra, Mario and Liz
Review provided by Tripadvisor
Vera_d
Mar 30, 2025
Must do for those living in the North of Melbourne! Or really living anywhere in Melbourne! - We are locals, and it was just so fascinating to hear the amazing stories of our own neighbourhood! You will know the infamous names, now you can see where they lived and "worked". A must see!
Review provided by Viator
Amanda_r
Mar 30, 2025
Amazing tour with easy to... - Amazing tour with easy to follow stories from a true history and crime buff! You will really feel like you have a true understanding of the neighborhood back in the day! Michael is amazing and you won’t regret booking this!
Review provided by Viator
Isabelwn8433sw
Mar 21, 2025
Would highly recommend - Michael was an amazing tour guide! His passion to share history in such an entertaining way was remarkable. So many recounts of true history left my dad and I craving more. Would highly recommend
Review provided by Tripadvisor
818martys
Mar 16, 2025
Gangers and Coppers, Oh my! - Listening to Michael share the stories of criminal gangs and all their characters from the gang wars of 1918-19 in Melbourne was a joy. His deeply researched knowledge from the original source material of police files made his stories take on a gritty and realistic bent. His personality was kind and engaging. Our walking tour took us to the gangsters and coppers homes in the Fitzroy area. All in all it was an excellent couple of hours even during the rain. I'm so glad we chose not to cancel due to weather. I would highly recommend anyone spending the time with Michael if you are interested in the gangsters of Melbourne's past.
Review provided by Tripadvisor
Horemhab
Feb 15, 2025
Informative and fun - This is a great neighborhood walk to take if you have some extra time in Melbourne. The guide is a scholar who has done the work to put together an informative, fun, and exciting program centering on a few blocks with a wild history of sculduggery. Houses and building you might walk past every day have a story to tell and a history to bring to life. Highly recommended.
Review provided by Tripadvisor
Jonmegs
Jan 28, 2025
Amazing tour - Michael is an amazing wealth of historical crime information and delivers an awesome incite into the lives of the early 1900’s crime figures that ran the street's and laneways of Fitzroy South. Michael takes you back and brings this area back to life as it was in the early 1900’s. My family and I (6 of us) enjoyed every minute of it. The booklet depicting the pictures and names of the characters that ruled these streets is a fantastic idea. I highly recommend doing this tour. Money well spent.
Review provided by Tripadvisor
Sally_p
Jan 28, 2025
Brilliant! - Fun, interesting, and educational - even as a local we learned a lot in this 2h walk around Fitzroy. Highly recommended!
Review provided by Viator
Globaltraveller0310
Jan 22, 2025
Fascinating insight into Fitzroy's past - We very much enjoyed hearing from Michael about the history of notorious gangsters, brothels and sly grog houses in the Fitzroy area. He really brought the area to life and buildings that we passed everyday now have new significance. The tour was well paced, with great background and photos and based on police records. Highly recommended and wish there were more historical tours like this! thanks Michael
Review provided by Tripadvisor
M8125fljodiep
Jan 22, 2025
Crime tour - Michael has a wealth of knowledge, really interesting, we enjoyed it. Great walking tour. Highly recommend the crime tour
Review provided by Tripadvisor
From $32
up to 15 guests
1 - Adult
Cancellation: Free cancellation up to 24 hours before the start of your experience (local time).