Greenwood Black Wall Street Tour: The Best 2 Hour Tour in America

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Admittedly, like most people living in the United States of America, I did not know the history of the Greenwood neighborhood in Tulsa, Oklahoma. In fact, I didn’t know anything about Oklahoma at all. But I had heard of Black Wall Street before. Even as an adult, the Black Wall Street Tour blew everything I once thought (or didn’t think!) out of the water.

But I’m getting ahead of myself.

I didn’t learn about Black Wall Street from school. I barely learned the capitals of all the US states, okay? Growing up in hoods of Southern California, talks of Black Wall Street within the Black community was more of a dreamy fable. Something that would come up every once in a while in passing and honestly sounded too good to be true. The closest equivalences we had were stories of local rappers and celebrities giving back to their community, our community, which was incredible and inspiring – but the way Black Wall Street sounded in my head, I did not possess the ability to imagine a place like Greenwood.

So yeah, I’ve heard of Black Wall Street (or at least the whispers of it), but it wasn’t until my friend Francesca from One Girl One World did a travel press trip to Tulsa, Oklahoma. Along with a bunch of other great tips, she mentioned taking a tour of Greenwood, aka a Black Wall Street tour. I’m actually not sure if Francesca did a guided tour or a self-led tour, but she did plant the seed since I was planning to visit Tulsa the next month.

Now, I won’t give you ALL the good juice from the Black Wall Street Tour I had the IMMENSE honor of experiencing. But, I will give you a taste because the REAL Black Wall Street tour is literally the absolute BEST city tour in the entire country.

No cap.

Aight I feel like I’ve hyped it enough. Let me SHOW you.

The Basics

So when you start planning your trip to Tulsa and exploring Greenwood, you can either do a self-led walking tour, or go with a guided tour. If you go with the self-led option, you should start at the Greenwood Cultural Center and I thiiiiiiink there’s like a lil map or something you can pick up. Maybe it’s an app?

Honestly, I don’t really know. But if you go and ask, they can help you out.

If you have the timeee – I highly recommend doing a guided tour. There might be a few floating around, either on the internet or on Airbnb Experiences, but the guided tour you need to book is the REAL Black Wall Street Tour. By doing the guided Greenwood Black Wall Street tour, you get all of the deeper insight and personal connection. So if you’re hesitating on the guided tour because you don’t usually like group tours or going at someone else’s pace – let me tell ya.

As someone who hates both group things with strangers AND going at someone else’s pace, the guided tour was AMAZING.

In fact, the only reason I’d recommend the self-guided over the guided Black Wall Street tour is if you’re literally 20 minutes until you need to get to the airport and you truly just gotta zoom by to wet your palette until you can come back.

Otherwise. Do the guided Black Walk Street tour.

Time and Costs

If you opt for the self-led tour – congratulations! That one is free and you are…basically done with this post. Feel free to like, subscribe, comment, save for later blah blah blah.

Everyone else, we press on!

There are two options for the guided tour. One is a purely walking tour that’s about an hour and 15 minutes, and the other is the COMPLETE tour which is at least two hours, more depending on the group and how many questions you ask.

I asked a lot of questions.

I’ll briefly note the differences below and you can decide which one fits your itinerary best, but if you haven’t concluded based on my above excitement, you’re gonna want the complete tour.

Option 1: The Walking Black Wall Street Tour

1 hour 15 minutes

$15 USD

This one is a full tour on its own, you won’t be missing anything so you should feel confident if this option ends up being best for you. Basically this tour will take you through the streets of Greenwood, pointing out historical markers, covering all of the deep background of how Greenwood got started in the first place, and explaining the Tulsa Race Massacre from the context of Greenwood residents. If you are short on time or have a strict budget, this is a great option and you will walk away feeling more informed and educated.

Option 2: The Complete Black Wall Street Tour

2 hours (and then some, depending on discussions)

$30

The complete tour is everything that is in option 1, but then the tour gets mobile! You get in a car (either your own, with the guide, or someone in the group) and continue the tour all across Tulsa, because the history of Greenwood does not stop within the perimeter of the neighborhood. With the complete tour, you begin to understand the country-wide impact the small (but powerful) Greenwood had, and the real reason Black Wall Street HAD to burn.

The tour guide’s words, not mine. You’ll understand when you take the tour.

This tour will also go past the past (no pun intended), and dip into the present AND the future of Greenwood. The present…is a doozy, but I’ll get into that later.

Which Tour to Choose

There isn’t really a wrong answer. If you have dinner plans, option 2 might cut into them. But honestly I would willingly skip dinner every single time to go with option two. Don’t worry if you don’t have a your own car for option 2, you can definitely get a ride and be dropped off back in Greenwood when it’s over.

Overall, I felt the walking portion was accessible for wheelchairs, strollers, walkers, and other mobility devices. There was only one spot where we stood on grass (in the beginning), but there was pavement right next to it.

So pick whichever fits your itinerary best (psst do option 2!!!).

How to Book

Ready to book? Great! They have recently launched their own website (congrats!!) and you can now book the REAL Black Wall Street tour directly from the website! Previously, the booking system was through facebook.

Then you will select a day or time. Since it is a small business, they are pretty flexible on dates and times (tours usually avoid the hottest part of the day though) and have a lot of options. Just make sure to book in advance so your preferred slot doesn’t sell out.

NOTE: WHEN YOU BOOK THE TOUR, YOU ARE NOT PAYING FOR IT AT THAT TIME!

It is just a headcount and to reserve your space in the tour. Especially during the summer, their hours are more limited due to heat, and if the heat index is too hot (100F – trust, it gets that hot), they will cancel the tour for everyone’s safety.

After booking, they will reply via messenger to confirm your spot. If you don’t get any kind of response, just reach out to them as it may have gotten buried in their notifications or something. They’re super nice and will reply right away. You’ll also get the address on where to meet to start the tour.

Spoiler, it’s outside of the Greenwood Cultural Center.

Payment Options

Okay, last little logistical thing before I dive into my personal experience. You pay at the end of the tour, either in cash or via CashApp. Super simple, super easy. Not only are the Black Wall Street tour options both affordable, it really is a significant bang for your buck.

My Experience

Woohooo now for the fun bulk of the post. What was taking the Greenwood Black Wall Street tour ACTUALLY like? By now you should probably know I had an incredible experience and cannot recommend it enough – but why?

Let’s get into it.

Before the Tour

Per usual, I was running a tad late (like two minutes). Luckily, I had stopped by Greenwood earlier in the day and had already popped into the Greenwood Cultural Center. If you plan to do it all at the same time, I’d suggest heading there at least thirty minutes before your tour so you can roam around the cultural center beforehand. There is a…wildly eye-opening mini-documentary about the Tulsa Race Massacre, as well as newspaper clippings from the event.

It isn’t shocking, but at the same time, it is VERY shocking just how…blatantly white supremacy is the basis of how the United States of America functions. From journalists declaring the calculated attack on Greenwood a “chaotic and random riot” to the banks refusing to pay residents of Greenwood their rightful insurance claims…there’s a lot of layers.

And Greenwood is just one neighborhood.

The Walking Portion

Anywho, I hopped out of the car two minutes late and meet the group at the placard in front of the Greenwood Cultural Center. I was the last person (orz), but the guide was super nice about it and we did a mini round of introductions.

I believeee there is only one guide (don’t quote me), and his name is Chief. Some of his family had actually grown up and lived in Greenwood, survived the Tulsa Race Massacre, and (understandably) moved thereafter. After looking into his lineage, Chief moved back to Greenwood and dived deeper into Greenwood’s activism scene and fight for justice. The personal connection to Greenwood made his accounts and anecdotes even more powerful during the Black Wall Street tour.

Plus, he’s fun and hilarious hahah.

During the walking portion of the Black Wall Street tour, you will learn first and foremost why and how Greenwood became known as “Black Wall Street,” as well as the conditions that made it possible for its creation in the first place.

I’ll give you a hint, it starts with the displacement of Indigenous people, a chance of freedom and independence for Freedmen, and the construction of a railroad.

I can’t really say the walking portion of the Black Wall Street tour was my favorite part – BECAUSE I LOVED IT ALL – but it definitely really sets the stage for unraveling the truth behind the Tulsa Race Massacre. It was both inspiring and heart-breaking to see the markers of where famous Black owned businesses once stood, and to walk the streets that fostered an environment where Black children didn’t even know evil existed.

Stop and imagine that for a second.

It still gives me chills.

If you opted for just the walking tour, this is where the Black Wall Street tour will end for you. The walking portion is amazing all on its own, but will definitely have left you hungry for more! That’s where the driving portion comes in.

Tip: This section is outside, so dress accordingly. There is also little shade (my tour started at 3:30pm – the sun was still going strong!!) so wear sunscreen (yes, even if you’re Black) or a wide-brimmed hat. Preferably both. Also wear comfortable shoes! I recommend picking up a pair from RockDeep, a Black-owned shoe and apparel company. Seriously the most comfortable walking shoes I’ve ever had!

The Driving Portion

If you’re reading this far, congratulations. You’ve decided to do the complete Black Wall Street tour. Good decision.

Or, yanno, you just want to finish the blog post. I’m cool with either.

The walking portion ends back at the start – the Greenwood Cultural Center. It’s then that you set off in cars and see Greenwood’s history from the Tulsa perspective. Aka the angry, violent, bitter, entitled white mob perspective. Though, to call them a mob isn’t accurate, because the Tulsa Race Massacre, and the events leading up to it, was very – very – calculated.

It was a city-sanctioned attack on the residents of Greenwood.

But I won’t spoil anything for you.

Chief will take you all around Tulsa, pointing out points of interest that relate to the Tulsa Race Massacre as well as buildings historically owned (or STILL owned) by families who either participated or benefited from the burning of Greenwood. So much rich discussion comes from this part of the Black Wall Street tour, and really shows just how embedded white supremacy is across America. It really gets you thinking about your own city as well.

Even a lifelong resident of Tulsa didn’t know half of the facts dropped on this portion, so you can imagine how deep the rabbit hole went.

Seriously, our tour went WAY over the 2 hour mark, hahah.

If you don’t have a car, Chief has plenty of room or you can tag along in a carpool with others in the Black Wall Street tour. After an hour of walking around Greenwood together, you get familiar with each other quickly.

Tip: If you’re driving your own car, I highly recommend you have some gas in the tank before starting the Black Wall Street tour. Or…at least don’t be on empty. There’s really not that much driving, but our gas light turned on and each stop was like Russian Roulette lol.

See, if I could make it through the driving portion on -literal- “E”, then it’s not too much driving at all. But still, why stress haha.

Overall Thoughts

My overall thoughts of the Greenwood Black Wall Street tour is that…it’s simply the best city tour I’ve ever done. Ever. Anywhere. Location and history aside, the tour was well organized, accessible, affordable, and most importantly, thought-provoking.

I, and everyone else, walked away from the Black Wall Street tour passionate and asking “What can WE do? How can I help?” And that’s exactly the call of action you want from a tour like this.

To top it all off, Chief is so personable and enjoyable to be around, with a great sense of humor and an even greater sense of wit. Plus, he has an entire encyclopedia of knowledge around Greenwood, Tulsa, and how white supremacy operates to continuously and systemically stunt the progress of Black Americans.

But still we rise.

I could not ask for a better Black Wall Street tour guide than Chief.

While we were visiting, there was actually ongoing protests for recently discovered victims of the massacre that the current mayor was actively trying to downplay. It has been 100 years since the Tulsa Race Massacre and the burning of Greenwood, and yet the hand of white supremacy are still at play.

But sure, thank you for the Black Lives Matter signs on your front lawn.

Even if I would have done NOTHING else in Tulsa, taking the REAL Black Wall Street tour with Chief would have made the entire trip worth it. In fact, I would say the Black Wall Street tour is worth a trip to the state ALL ON ITS OWN. You can go home after. It’s THAT good.

The Real Black Wall Street Tour: Conclusion

Well, hopefully you are convinced to add this Black Wall Street tour to your Tulsa/Oklahoma itinerary. In between drinking at all of the wonderful coffee shops in Tulsa, you’ll want to enrich your intellectual taste buds as well.

If you’ve ever been to Tulsa, or are from there, have you taking the Black Wall Street Tour? If not – WHAT ARE YOU WAITING FOR?!?!?!?

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