The tour was very informational but it was a struggle to hear and understand his narratives.

Freedom Trail Tour with Mr Johnnie Brown. The Best Tour I've Ever Taken! Family of Four Nov 2024 Our tour group was 2 senior citizens (60+), one thirty year old and one four year old child. This might be the best black history tour l've ever taken in any city! Mr. Johnnie Brown was an amazing host and the level of knowledge that he has is incredible. At one point, I kept checking his hands while he was talking to see if he was reading off his phone but no, he had TONS of facts and details committed to memory which tells me that he does this often and loves what he does! We also saw people greeting him around the city as we went through the tour, which tells me he is a well known and respected member of the community. As for the tour itself, it started on time and there was plenty of parking for us to safely leave our car at the Savannah Visitor's Center. We boarded the comfortable bus and spent two hours learning more about Savannah's history of black people (and even Haitian people- which is great because my husband is Haitian) than l'd ever learned before! We also got to tour some pretty amazing sites like The First African Baptist Church and the Beach Institute. I would 1000% recommend this tour! Thank you, Mr Johnnie Brown. read more

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The Freedom Tour was a good concept - but the experience was ruined by the tour guide Mr. Johnnie Brown. He was totally ineffectiveness as the tour guide. The tour guide walked too fast and was not able to communicate in a clear understandable fashion. I have been on many of these types of tour and I can honestly say I learned very little from this tour. He walked too fast and talked too fast and had no consideration for the elderly who could not keep up with his fast walking pace. As he said "someone will tell you about it when we get back on the bus." He had individual tour participants reading all of the identified education display plaques aloud to the group rather then giving us the information himself. I got the impression he was illerate and could not read. He was there only for the money and not the tour. He had all participants pay at the end of the tour as we were getting off the bus in a rushed fashion with our credit cards with a reader that promoted leaving a tip before you can start the payment. For me the Freedom Trail Tour was a $40+ money grab and not worth the time or effort. We (all passengers included) were left with the feeling that we need to take another tour from another company to get what we should have gotten on the Freedom Trail Tour. I do not recommend this tour. Don't waste your money... read more

This was an informative tour. Very eye opening and allows you to see Savannah from a different perspective. Jonnie is Excellent and I appreciate the time spent on the tour. read more

Went to Savannah for the Juneteenth Weekend (birthday, anniversary & Father's Day) and had a great time! The tour guide was excellent and very knowledgeable about Black History in Savannah! I recommend this tour for anyone! read more

Johnnie Brow from The Freedom Trail Tours is amazing! I highly recommend this tour. My Family and I went on a tour with Mr. Brown, it is an on and off tour of black history. We visited a number of places including First Africian Baptist Church. Mr.Brown is very knowledgeable of SavaNoah's rich history. read more

While in Hilton Head Island, we took the tour with Mr. Campbell, who is a lifelong resident. Mr. Campbell was knowledgeable about the history of the island, as well as comfortable relaying stories about happenings. At the end of the tour, we were referred to the gift shop for many homemade crafts and other items. Our group thoroughly enjoyed the tour. read more

Would not recommend-I'd take another tour of this type if you can! I want to start by saying I took my mom on this same tour-Johnny Brown was our guide- several years ago. It was a great tour at that time-we really enjoyed, and it was informative! Fast forward, this recent Savannah tour that ended up not happening left myself and 2 girlfriends completely dismayed, and in disbelief . We were in Savannah 6/7-6/10 for a girls trip. Had planned to go on the Freedom Trail Tour based on my prior experience and suggestion. This was to be one of the highlights of our trip. I reached out to Johnny on 2 occasions prior to our trip, after speaking with someone at the Savannah Visitor's Center (SVC). I spoke with him as I knew we had a planned itinerary and wanted to ensure we would get on the tour, didn't need a reservation, what the procedure was etc. He advised to come to the SVC 15 min prior to the tour, wait out front and he would pull up. We had planned to take the tour on Saturday 6/8 at 1:00pm. We arrived at the SVC and confirmed with one of the staff members on site Johnny would pull up out front. About 5 minutes after 1p, I called Johnny. He said the air conditioning on the bus was being fixed and won't be fixed for this tour. He said he was working on getting a replacement bus and asked if we could come at 3pm. We were not able to come back at 3pm as we had other plans. After some discussion-during which he constantly interrupted us- we tried to express our disappointment and how I had followed up on a few occasions prior to the trip to make sure the tour would be available. He said a few times "don't worry, I got you". We finally agreed to push it out to the next day (Sunday) at 3 pm.(There wasn't a 1p tour this day) He did agree to give us $5 off our tickets for the next day for our inconvenience. Johnny called Sunday am (first time he called me and not vice versa) and said his bus still wasn't fixed, but he had a replacement. He also informed he had air conditioning in the "middle of the bus". I was concerned as to how do you have air in "the middle" and not the entire bus. Again, "don't worry, I got you, it will be fine. I will also have cold water". He suggested we come at 2:45pm and see for ourselves and decide. We didn't have a good feeling about the air on the bus but nonetheless we arrived at the visitor's center on Sunday at 2:45p. At 3Pm we did not see him. I called his phone but he didn't answer. I went back to the Visitors Center desk. The clerk came out and showed me where he would be parked. We did see a bus, no markings on the side that were readable, and others getting on the bus. We walked over, saw Johnny and got on. It was 95 degrees this day and the bus felt like 120. It was oppressive! Hot air was blowing from the vents, and the small windows were open. I asked Johnny about the air conditioning, and he brushed it off saying "it would be fine". I told him only hot air was blowing. I asked, if the bus has air, why are the windows open? To which he did not reply. We exited the bus a few minutes later along with the other patrons as we couldn't take the heat and didn't want to tour on a bus with no air. Johnny clearly misled us as he said he had "air conditioning on the middle of the bus". When trying to express our disappointment, he talked over us, and never once apologized for all the inconvenience he caused us. We felt like Johnny had no regard for customer service and the comfort of his patrons. We felt he knew the air conditioning was not working on the bus, but was planning to tour anyway. He was very unprofessional in the way he misled us. He talked over us, and cut us off multiple times during conversation. We felt we were being hustled. read more

Amazing tour!!! The guide was extremely knowledgeable and open to questions. Very personable and professional. I will never view Savannah the same!!! Must see tour, especially for African Americans. read more

A humbling an informative tour that left me awestruck of the rich history of Savannah. Owner/tour guide has a thick local/regional accent that is a little difficult to understand but he doesn't mind repeating or re-explaining. He's very personable and has a clean mini-bus. I highly recommend this tour if you visit Savannah! read more

This is a wonderful tour of Savannah's Black history. If you're in the city, DO the tourist thing and take this ride down the Freedom Trail. You won't be disappointed...and you'll learn that 'government is not a person'. read more

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One of our favorite tours, period!! So glad our hotel's concierge knew of it. We learned a great deal and left with better understanding. Johnnie is very knowledgeable and thorough and led us to a variety of museums and locations that we otherwise would not have found ourselves. Tour bus was very comfortable and clean. Highly highly recommend! read more

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This is great tour especially if you are interested in black history of Savannah.. The tour guide (Mr. Johnnie Brown ) was very knowledgeable and interesting. This is a "Do not miss " tour.. read more

Great tour! Really teaches you a lot about Black History. Every now and then the tour guide had a few slip ups (i.e. stating Carrollton, GA is located SW of Atlanta) but overall the history lesson was great and very informative. I would highly recommend this tour to anyone interested in Black History and when I return to Savannah, I will definitely go on it again because I would love for those I'm traveling with to get the same great experience that I did! This is the best Black History tour I've taken thus far! read more

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If you need reliability, cleanliness, and safety, pick Johnnie Brown and his company. We called them with a party of 35, midnight the night before. We needed to be at our destination (Amtrak) at 5:30 in the morning. This company brought a beautiful clean bus, and a private SUV. they were extremely professional, handled all of our luggage, they were quick and efficient, and the vehicles were spotlessly clean. Moreover, the price was fair and they did not try and haggle with us. Savannah has many private taxis that can be shady and dirty. Don't risk your trip to anything like that. Just call this company and you will be in excellent hands. We were a large group of elementary students from out of state and we couldn't have felt safer. read more

I like going on Black history tours in American cities to get a local, counter narrative of sanitized history. This tour does not disappoint, where you visit stops on the Underground Railroad. Powerful lesson. read more

Freedom Trail Tour - Tour guide spills all the history in Savannah. - Tours Near Me

Savannah's Black History Tour (Freedom Trail Tours) is conducted by a very knowledgeable Johnnie Brown. Unfortunately, there is so much information, Johnnie rushes through to get it all in the 2-hour tour. He is funny and full of local and personal anecdotes. Sites were pointed out as he drove and people's homes were discussed. (Passed the First African Baptist Church; he did not mention the wonderful tour conducted by the church - not competition to him, he was remiss in not telling those on tour). We also drove through the slave burial grounds - Laurel Grove South cemetery. Though Johnnie pointed out various burials and monuments and spoke about them; we were not offered a chance to get out to read some of the markers. A stop at the Ralph Mark Gilbert Civil Rights Museum was a bit hurried as there is so much to hear, see, and read. We were impressed by his personal knowledge and our trip through Savannah to see so many sites. His quick speech pattern was not expected and took a moment to adjust. He has so much information that a breath between would help! I realize that there are business expenses that must be met and each person taking a seat should pay. His pricing is not outrageous for a single person. However, I feel he could adjust the price for young couples and families. For a family of 4, pricing approaches $90 for the 2-hour tour. A little slower would be good; but then how do you impart so much knowledge? Hoping Johnnie finds a way as his tour is an important part of the History of Black Savannah! read more

Overrated!!!! Cemetery tour was good. Spent too much time in the Civil Rights Museum (about 45 mins). No stop at the church where there was the Underground Railroad. Said there was no time to stop. Not worth the 28bucks. read more

A fascinating and informative tour. I really did not know what to expect. This was a mix of savannah history, Johnny Browns personal story as a mentee of www law the founder of the freedom trail tour and black history activist, and a ride through the neighborhoods where people of color found their freedom and still currently abide. The nameless (or at best first name only) slave cemetery located on a former plantation along with a whipping tree (marked with lashes) was quite moving. And we had to celebrate the red doors on homes signifying the residents had paid their mortgage. Definitely worth doing. read more

This was an awesome tour myself, my mom, and best friend took as we visited Savannah for the first time; for my moms birthday. The tour guide was on time and the van was cool and comfy. We stopped at many historical site, ie. First african church, Beach institute. Unfortunately we weren't able to get into the Beach Institute which was a little dissapointing. One recommendation would be to have a separate driver and narrator; instead of driving while narratating. The tour guide was extremely knowledgeable, but we would have been able to understand him better if he was not driving while narrating. If you are interested in black history I would highly recommend this tour, pls wear sneakers. Also, merchandise would be an excellent addition to the freedom trail tour; as there wasn't any at the savannah visitor's center. read more