Shanghai Tunnel Ghost Tours

06/21/09

Tour of a basement

by Flores

It is obvious that all of the people not close friends or part of this tour operation have a clear unified unbiased opinion of this tour. You cannot have a shanghai tunnel tour without tunnels. Was it really necessary to take us into a stuffy basement to tell us the history of Portland. I would have been just as content reading a book or watching a documentary.

I am not saying this as a personal attack on the people who run this tour. i know they are passionate about what they do and have the best intentions. They claim this is not a business, but they were willing to take our money and should feel obligated to provide some value for it. Create a museum of artifacts, and or a documentary. This tour really does nothing to help there cause and the sooner they realize it and change it the better off they wil be.

• Pros: I only feel cheated 12 dollars
• Cons: That there were no tunnels

02/22/08

If you go, don't say you weren't warned and enjoy!

by dominojones

I was introduced to the Shanghai Tunnel Tour by my mother. A group of her coworkers were going on a tour and she invited me along. All I knew going into it was that it was supposed to be a walking tour of Portland's underground.

We started off the evening at Hobo's. The courtyard was awesome and we got a laugh when one of the girls game out of the restroom with toilet paper on BOTH feet. The wait for the tour to begin took a little longer than expected. But with a drink in hand it was alright.

The tour itself was lacking. As many reviews have said the walking tour takes place in the basement of two adjoining restaurants. There isn't much walking to be done, more of a shuffling tour for 40 people. The place was miserably hot and with all the shuffling it was hard to breath because of the dirt circulating around. The stories were long winded for being so hot and uncomfortable. It was hard to pay attention to the story teller because of people losing interest and talking amongst themselves. The one cool part that I remember was sticking my hand through the...optical illusion bars.

All in all I would not recommend the tour for somebody who is just looking for something different to do. This tour is more for the history buff. I feel my money would have been better spent buying a book from Powell's on the subject.

The operators of the Tour might get better reviews if they spend their time making a mini-documentary or slide show and presenting it in the comfort of Hobo's where participants can eat drink and be merry. Then follow it up with a much shorter tour of the tunnels to see the sites in person.

The Tour is not something that I am going to be shouting about from the rooftops but it is something that is going to be interesting to some people. If you go, don't say your weren't warned and enjoy!

• Pros: Pre-Tour drinks at Hobo's
• Cons: Lack of walking, too hot and stuffy, too long

11/25/07

Average

by nikki1305

I went on the tunnel tour before Halloween this year. I was expecting a longer walk, but we ended up only shuffling around under Boiler Room and Hobos. It would've been more fun if we had climbed into a short bus and drove around the city to other tunnels and Haunted places. The Shanghai tour was very interesting and entailed a lot of information. Mike and the other volunteer did a GREAT job, but it was just too boring to only walk around in 1 block.

• Pros: Mucho information and great tour guides
• Cons: Only walk one block walk...too short