Harlem Walking Tour: Mount Morris Park Historic District w/ Lunch

The history of Harlem is diverse, having housed many cultures. It has more to offer than some may realize, and our guide, Carolyn, a native Harlemite, knows some hidden histories about this area. She was friendly and easy to talk with. I am a New Yorker who has lived here for many years, and I thought my sister from Ohio would enjoy the tour. We both had a great time!

Amazing tour that started at Mt Olive BC. Jonathan was very nice and knowledgeable about the Harlem area and history.

Interesting tour by an entertaining and well informed guide, Jonathan. Started with a vibrant gospel concert in the church, then a tasty generous brunch with a detailed briefing about the history of Harlem and then a walking tour of the neighbourhood.

Tour was advertised as being “immersive” but was anything but. Not as described. Avoid. Our guide was friendly, but had little to no knowledge of the area that we were visiting. The tour description promised a deeper insight into Harlem,NY, but we got nothing of the sort. In fact, the guide spent the majority of her time looking information up on her mobile! Why were we paying $$ for someone advertised as being well versed in the locations, information and history of Harlem who clearly did not have this knowledge. Instead it basically was what WE could have looked up on our own. We were quite literally watching the guide on her phone looking everything up! We hired and paid so we could learn, not stand on corners while guide looked up things on her mobile. (From their listing): This tour was described as being “a captivating journey through the heart of Harlem's cultural heritage, led by a local guide”. The description went on to say “Step into the world of literary giant Langston Hughes at his historic home, gaining insight into his profound impact on American literature.” (The guide had ever even heard of Langston Hughes) And: “Explore the cultural reservoirs of the Schomburg Center and the National Jazz Museum” (we did not make it to either of these places) Finally the description says: “This guided tour promises an immersive and enlightening experience, offering a deeper understanding of Harlem's rich tapestry of culture and heritage” No, there was nothing immersive OR enlightening about this. I can’t stress enough that the guide was looking everything up real time. Literally, this was ridiculous. Tour guide was friendly enough, but that is definitely NOT enough to make up for the misleading advertising. Get Your Guide should do a better job vetting new vendors. Their company’s guides seem to work primarily in Europe so perhaps that explains the lack of expertise here? However this doesn’t make up for my paying (x2 people) for this. When I shared this experience with get your guide, they refunded me 25% of the total. This was shocking to me that they would not stand behind the customer when the experience was clearly not as described. So the bottom line is: We didn’t get what was advertised, and after alerting the company they did not provide a refund or appear in any way interesting in the issue. Harlem is a beautiful place. I wish we had gotten more of what was promised.

The tour guide was very knowledgeable about Harlem. It was a solo adventure for me- with a group of four; however, they all made me feel apart of the group ! It was an amazing experience for me.

The local knowledge of the tour operators as people who have lived in the neighborhood their whole lives.

We loved Doris’s knowledge of Harlem. We saw and heard so much. It was very slow, but quite enjoyable.

Our tour guide, Mrs. Doris, was fabulous. She has been a local guide for the past 25 years and is incredibly knowledgeable. She shared captivating stories about the history of Harlem, the significance of its brownstones, and the vibrant music scene surrounding its artists.

Unfortunately this was just okay. The tour guide was very knowledgeable and VERY considerate, but the tour moved VERY slowly, lasting an hour longer than expected. We were out 4 hours but did not cover very much ground. The lunch spot staff were very considerate of our group. They clearly have a very good relationship with the tour group. The food was okay. I’m from GA and was raised on soul food. So I’m used to good soul food. Thanks for taking good care of me and my family including my 88 year old grandmother.

I would most definitely recommend this walking tour, excellent value for money with some gorgeous ‘Soul Food’ and delicious cake + a hot dog. I was lucky enough to the tour alone with the utterly charming Doris, who is obviously a Harlem Legend and deservedly so. I learned so many interesting and valued things on the area. Keep On Keeping On - Doris