Not all of the illicit, naughty, bawdy, corrupt and shady activities happened below street level, but all were underground and hidden. On this walk you'll be exposed to the socially underground and the subterranean underground. This walk is a treat for lovers of all things sinister – crime, scandal and controversial characters – this tour winds through the Old Town and Chinatown, exposing the city’s sordid side. It's a no-holds-barred excursion into the worst Portland has to offer.

After walking the streets for about ¾ of the tour, we’ll hand out the flashlights before we conclude subterranean under Old Town Pizza in an area which once led to the legendary ‘Shanghai Tunnels’ where we'll explore another activity from Portland's scandalous past. If you want the true, inside stories behind crimping (the real name of what is now called shanghaiing), you've come to the right place. Even though shanghaiing is what makes the TV, we'll surprise you with an unscripted commentary of all of the other screwed up and scandalous things that have happened in Portland - both socially underground and physically underground.

This tour is rated PG-13 and is certainly not for the faint of heart. If you want the haunted side of life, click here to check out a tour that is Beyond Bizarre.

Tour Dates & Times

In March: Friday, Saturday, & Sunday, at 2 p.m.
April through November: Daily at 2 p.m.

Starting Location:

Meet your guide OUTSIDE of Old Town Pizza at 226 NW Davis St (between 2nd & 3rd Aves) in Old Town/Chinatown.

Tour duration:

Under 2 ½ hours
Less than 1 ½ miles (no hills, limited stairs)

• $19 Adults
• $15 Senior (65 & up) and Youth (11-17)
• $5 Child (5-10)
• $0 Tots

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• The last remains of the hundreds of cast-iron buildings that once graced this city until they were ripped out to build a highway.
• Locations of the Simpsons-Portland connections, including the polluted river where the Simpsons TV show originated Blinky the Three-Eyed Fish
• A 24 hour doughnut shop and wedding chapel
• A journey into the bowels of the city to view entrances that once led to the legendary “Shanghai Tunnels” and understand the facts from below the floorboards of neighborhood landmark Old Town Pizza
• Obscure shops selling Chinese medicines and herbs that even today face hassles from the government and from skeptics
• The site of a famous riot instigator called the "the most arrested man in the Northwest"
• Storied sites and buildings, once host to illicit deals and doings, that survived countless floods and remain today as some of our treasured restaurants, clubs, bars and office spaces
• The somber monuments and plaza remembering local and nationwide efforts to isolate and evict more than 120,000 Japanese Americans during World War II

These are the things you'll discover with us:

• Shanghaiing - Come learn the bare truth. We pride ourselves in that there are no legends, folklore, myths, or rumors in this tour.
• Tunnels - Why were there really tunnels under the city - Flooding? Moving Goods? Shanghaiing?
• Crime, Corruption, and Scandals - from bawdy brothels, gambling rings, murder, mischief and the police pay-off system that kept the city’s squeaky wheels silent.
• Portland's subcultures - They just don't come out at night.
• Present Day Issues - From homelessness to the sex industry, we leave no stone unturned.
• Social Justice - or injustice as you'll find out

"Underground Portland walking tour explores the seamy underside of Portland's past--think "shanghai tunnels," brothels and gambling dens."

- San Francisco Chronicle

"It’s fun to poke around in the basements of old buildings and out under the sidewalks."

- Slabtown Chronicle Blog

"The Portland Underground Tour is just one of many reasons to make a getaway to the City of Roses."

- Seattle Traveler Blog

"Underground Portland tours have always been historical and factual."

- Just Out Magazine, Portland, Oregon USA

"...very enthusiastic and knowledgeable guide."

- Grace Koh, Merritt, B.C. Canada

"The tour was awesome. I'm a native, but I had no idea our city was full of so many interesting stories."

- Gregory Haines, Portland, Oregon USA