Around about this time of year - as the cold sets in, the days get shorter and Halloween approaches - we can't resist a good spine-tingling story. There's something about ghosts haunting dark corners and grim tales of crime and murder that are utterly intriguing and there's no better place to satisfy that appetite for horror than in England's capital city.

London is said to have one of the densest concentrations of paranormal phenomena out of the world’s major cities, with streets once walked by Jack the Ripper and 300-year-old haunted pubs. 

GetYourGuide.co.uk, a website for sightseeing activities, has compiled a list of tours to help you spot all the ghosts haunting our capital and hear fascinating stories of murder, crime and disease from London's past. From a 19th century private funeral bus service to detailed walking tours, we list six of the best below.

Guided London ghost walk

On this 2.5 hour walking tour of London's most haunted places you'll visit a park, a forgotten plague pit, the site of a 17th-century duel, the most haunted house in London and hear chilling tales of ghosts along the way. 

You'll be told about the murky mystery behind the death at St. James's Palace, a modern-day haunting of what is said to be screaming nuns at the Royal Academy and at Westminster Abbey your guide will tell you about ghostly monks and the execution of King Charles I. But the highlight of the tour is the story about the woman in black at the All Hallows Church superstar ghost and St. Magnus the Martyr, the ghost of the man who gave us the first English Bible.

£9 per person, book the tour here

London ghost bus tour

Travel through the West End, south of the river, and the heart of the city on an original Necrobus (a 19th century private funeral bus service). On this 75-minute ride, a rather creepy conductor will share spooky facts about the most famous sights in the capital, and on-board actors and technical trickery combine to make for the scariest commute in town.

£17 per person, book the tour here

Grim reapers of London walking tour

This walking tour takes you back in time to the dark days of the 15th century when Jack the Ripper walked the streets of London. As well retracing the bloody trail the notorious murderer left behind, you learn why the Ripper was never caught and see the world’s first psychiatric hospital, plague pits, the Bloody Tower and Traitor’s Gate. The 2.5 hour tour is the most interesting and gripping way to spend Halloween. 

£12 per person, book tickets here.

Insider London's Death and Debauchery Tour

Stand in the same street as the beginning of the plague and hear about the ghosts that still walk among us in this 2 hour tour of  London's gruesome, fascinating and gripping history. The guide will delve into key stories such as grave-robbing and the bubonic plague, as well as tales of murders you might not know of.

£24.50 per person, buy tickets here.

Private 3-Hour Jack The Ripper Walking Tour

Want to get a group of friends together this Halloween. Why not try this 3 hour walking tour of all things Jack The Ripper. You will walk the same cobblestone streets of Whitechapel that Jack the Ripper once walk, go to the sites of five murders, learn how Jack evaded the police, and the misconceptions they had as to what he was like. After the tour, you can visit part of a medical museum to see some of the Victorian instruments used on Jack's victims.

£40 per person, buy tickets here.

London Ghost Tour by Black Taxi Cab

If walking around haunted streets doesn't appeal to you, why not try a tour of London's most sinister sights from the comfort of your own private black cab? En route you'll hear tales of lifeless corpses, headless beings and the undead. You will have the opportunity to leave the safety of your taxi to creep down alleyways and will be told to look out for The Man in Grey, Kasper the Cat, The Phantom Landlord, The Murdered Actor, Percy the Poltergeist, Scratching Fanny, and more.

You'll also be taken to the most haunted house in London, the most secretive pub and the most sinister church. The tour will end with a muchneeded stiff drink in a 300-year-old haunted pub, of course.

£199 for a group of 5, buy tickets here.

Ghosts of London: Private Chauffeur-Driven Tour

Haunted pubs, haunted houses and the Tower of London’s execution site are just three of London's most haunted sites this chauffeured tour will take you to. Hear about the woman in black, the All Hallows Church superstar ghost; St.Magnus the Martyr, the ghost of the man who gave us the first English Bible, and Jack The Ripper's ghost. 

£90 per person, buy tickets here