Catacombs by Candlelight in New York

Catacombs by Candlelight is a guided tour of the Basilica of St. Patrick's Old Cathedral on Mulberry Street, run by Tommy's New York with the Basilica and sold on Fever. You check in at 266 Mulberry Street, the old chancery beside the church, at least 15 minutes before your slot. The first half is outdoors, in the two walled cemeteries that are normally closed to the public; the second half is indoors, through the church and down into the catacombs. Fever puts the whole tour at 1 hour 20 minutes, led by a licensed guide.

The history is the point. The ground was bought in 1801 as a cemetery for St. Peter's Church, and the cornerstone of the new cathedral of the Diocese of New York was laid in 1809. The War of 1812 held up the work, and it was dedicated in 1815 to designs by Joseph-François Mangin, one of the architects of City Hall. The Landmarks Preservation Commission calls it the earliest Gothic style church still standing in Manhattan. Its brick wall went up in 1834, and in the anti-Catholic riots of 1844 Bishop John Hughes had it guarded. A fire gutted the church in October 1866 and it was rededicated on 17 March 1868; John McCloskey was invested here as the first American cardinal in 1875. It became a parish church once the Fifth Avenue cathedral opened in 1879, a city landmark on 21 June 1966 and a basilica in 2010.

Under the church, OSV News counted 37 sealed family and group vaults in 2023, mostly with marble fronts, along three corridors of about 120 feet, with walls 30 inches thick. The names are 19th-century Catholic families of Irish, German, French and Spanish descent; amNY names the Delmonico restaurant family, and OSV News describes the vault of General Thomas Eckert, a confidant of Abraham Lincoln, with its original Edison light fittings. The candles are battery LEDs rather than flames, and the tone, OSV News found, is respectful.

Pierre Toussaint, the Haitian-born hairdresser now declared Venerable, was first buried in the cemetery here before his remains were moved to the Fifth Avenue cathedral. The tours began in June 2017, after a 2015 restoration improved the lighting, air and walkways, and amNY described a route that starts in the cemeteries, climbs to the choir loft and ends in a chamber below. This is an active church: Tommy's New York says slots can be cancelled at short notice for weddings or funerals.

It is the only way in. Tommy's New York is the Basilica's exclusive tour partner, and its own site says official tickets are sold only on Fever, so there is one listing and one place to book it. It holds 4.6 from 5,701 reviews on Fever on 29 October 2026, the second most reviewed of the 567 New York listings read on Fever that day, after ARTE MUSEUM, and it runs Thursday to Monday all year, at 10:00, 12:00, 14:00 and 16:00. The operator's site sends buyers to the same Fever page, so booking direct is not cheaper; Expedia and AAA resell the tour at about 32 to 38 dollars, the same as Fever's adult and child prices with fees.

The nearest rival is LUMINISCENCE at St. Patrick's Cathedral on Fifth Avenue, a 360-degree light show inside the newer cathedral, 4.6 from 2,253 reviews and from 35.54 dollars on Fever on 29 October 2026: pick it for spectacle, and this tour for history and access. Fever also lists a Twilight Tour: Death in New York in Lower Manhattan at 38 dollars with no rating yet. Do not confuse this with the Candlelight concerts: those are string quartets playing in churches, and only the candles are shared. For an indoor evening nearby, see our pages on ARTE MUSEUM in Chelsea, the blindfolded Sculpture Without Sight and the Speakeasy, Die Softly murder mystery. citizenM New York Bowery is an 8-minute walk away and Nine Orchard about 18 minutes.