This article describes tourist destinations related to organized crime. See crime for advice on the risks of being victim to crime. Organized crime tourism is a theme within crime and justice tourism, to visit destinations related to gangs and criminal syndicates. In no way does Wikivoyage mean to indicate any approval of organized crime activities. However, many tourist attractions are known for their current or historical ties to organized crime, and this page aims to provide an overview of such destinations.
The history of organized crime in the United States reflects the diversity of origin of the American people. The first groups to come to prominence include the Irish-American mob and the Italian-American mafia, many of whom were to play huge roles in operating speakeasies (secret bars where alcohol was sold) during the Prohibition era (1920-1933), when the sale and consumption of alcohol was illegal in the United States. The immediate Postwar period would see the rise of street gangs in the form of greaser gangs in the white ethnic neighborhoods, largely divided along ethnic lines, as well as African-American and Hispanic street gangs. The greaser gangs would lose prominence following the exodus of much of the white population to the suburbs as a result of redlining and blockbusting, and much of the inner city streets were taken over by African-American gangs, the most famous perhaps being the Bloods and the Crips. Another type of gang that gained prominence in the Postwar period were the outlaw motorcycle clubs, also known as bikie gangs, the most famous of whom are perhaps the Hells Angels. The stereotypical bikie gang member is a racist white man who is shaven bald and with a long, unkempt beard. Many offshoots of Latin American gangs like MS13 have also established a presence in the United States.
Main article: Ned Kelly tourism
Hong Kong is best known for the triads, Chinese gangs with a clear hierarchical structure and code of conduct, and these have played an important role in Hong Kong cinema (for instance, The Departed, the 2006 Oscar winner for Best Picture, was an Americanised remake of the hit Hong Kong film trilogy Infernal Affairs). The Wan Chai area was the historical hub of the triads in Hong Kong, and during the Vietnam War was full of brothels catering to American soldiers on their R&R leaves. The former Kowloon Walled City was a hotbed of triads up till the 1990s, when it was demolished and the current Kowloon Walled City Park built in its place.