Spooky Things To Do In New Orleans: Must-See Top 5
New Orleans consistently ranks as one of the most haunted places in the United States, and that’s for good reason. From Voodoo, to ghosts, vampires and pirates, the city’s history and troubled past is the reason for all of the hauntings. After visiting NOLA for Halloween multiple times as someone who is very interested in the paranormal, I’ve compiled a list of the top five spooky things to do in New Orleans.
As an added bonus, while you’re exploring the city make sure to take plenty of photos and look over your shoulder! Ghost sightings are very frequent and they tend to show up in photos days and weeks after your trip. And make sure to pay attention to what the stray cats are looking at. 👻
- St Louis Cemetery No 3 Self-Guided Tour
- New Orleans Ghost Tour At Night
- The Apothecary New Orleans
- Most Haunted Hotel In New Orleans
- Pharmacy Museum Tour
St Louis Cemetery No 3 Self-Guided Tour
New Orleans is full of cemeteries, which are nicknamed “cities of the dead” because all of the tombs are above ground. St Louis Cemetery No 3 is my vote for one of the best spooky things to do in New Orleans because you can tour this one all by yourself, as opposed to in a group tour, making it that much scarier. Sometimes there’s even a local nearby that will be selling drinks and food – but don’t count on it. In the hot New Orleans sun, you’ll want to have extra water on you to be safe!
Since this will be a self-guided tour I’ll give you some of the creepy details. Dead bodies (sometimes multiple) are put into these tombs, which then slowly decompose in the heat – sort of like a slow cremation. Talk about ghosts!!!
St Louis Cemetery No 1
St Louis Cemetery No 1 is the famous home of Madame Laveu’s tomb, the Voodoo Queen, along with a tomb for Nicholas Cage and many others. For this one you’ll have to take a tour through Cemetery Tours NOLA, which did take away from the creepiness a bit for us, but it was also great to hear all the spooky facts. Buddy was the absolute best tour guide! I recommend purchasing water bottles in the lobby once you get there and bringing an umbrella if the weather will be very sunny, as it often is in New Orleans, or if rain is in the forecast.
New Orleans Ghost Tour At Night
You can’t visit one of the most haunted cities without doing a New Orleans ghost tour, at night. There are tons to choose from that combine different aspects of the city’s history, like vampires, ghosts, Voodoo and more. I recommend doing a combined tour if you can, or choosing one about the subject you know the least about, and preferably to take the tour on a week night for the highest chance to see ghosts.
New Orleans Ghost Adventure Tours was our favorite and our tour guide gave us tons of spooky stories along the way. A few other great tour companies in the area are Haunted History Tours, Ghost City Tours and Witches Brew Tours. It’s great that there are so many options so you can choose the time that works best for your itinerary.
They even have tours that take you around to different haunted bars, where you can carry your drinks around with you throughout the tour since there are no open container laws in New Orleans. In one of the bars we stopped into my husband and I found this super creepy little Voodoo doll on the ledge when we put down our drinks, and we both started feeling nauseous until we put it down. Eek!!!!
The Apothecary New Orleans
The Apothecary New Orleans is an incredibly unique bar and restaurant, and one of our favorite spooky things to do in New Orleans. It’s vampire themed and has beautiful and spooky decor. The whole place feels very immersive. I’ve never been anywhere like it! The Apothecary is right in the middle of the French Quarter, so you can stop in after your cemetery or ghost tour for a refresher or spooky dinner.
Everything we tried was very high quality, from the color-changing cocktails to the appetizers and our short rib entrees. Make sure to try the Alchemist’s Elixir cocktail or the absinthe, which is a really unique liquor to the area. Cheers!
Secret Vampire Speakeasy New Orleans
We don’t want to give too many secrets away, but there’s a vampire speakeasy owned by The Apothecary New Orleans somewhere in the French Quarter. It’s harder to get in than a normal speakeasy, but it’s well worth the effort. Think spooky wall projections, vampire-esk music and more unique cocktails. I’ve never been to a speakeasy that was actually rewarding to find and get into so this was super cool.
Hint: Visit the Boutique du Vampyre and one of the vampire staff will give you the password and location.
Most Haunted Hotel In New Orleans
If you’re brave enough, book at stay at the most haunted hotel in New Orleans: The Andrew Jackson hotel. There are tons of ghost sightings and activity in the rooms here, most of which are of children because it’s an old orphanage which was burned down in a fire. At least the ghosts will be playful?
For the most intense experience try to stay in room #208. If you’re really looking For the scaredy cats out there just walking in or around the building will suffice. Make sure to take photos to see what might turn up!
Pharmacy Museum Tour
Last up on the list of spooky things to do in New Orleans is the Pharmacy Museum in the French Quarter. It’s a piece of history, as the first ever pharmacy and historic home to the first licensed pharmacist in the United States, Louis J. Dulfilho, Jr. The pharmacy was then sold to a man named Dr. Dupas, who reportedly performed grusome experiments on pregnant slaves. That’s where the ghosts come in!
While there are reported hauntings, this museum also informs you about the beginnings of medicine – which had a very creepy start in a lot of cases. There are tons of historic emblems and medical devices on display, like the leech jar and countless weird surgical instruments. The museum can get crowded, so try to visit during a week day morning to avoid the crowds and plan to spend about 45 minutes or so.
If you’re interested in finding more info on New Orleans, visit my guide to New Orleans for digital nomads blog!
Lauren Kessel
Lauren Kessel is the author of this blog and the creator of the Inspired Backpacker Blog. She is a passionate digital nomad, with the mission to make slow travel a more accessible way of life for everyone. Lauren believes travel is an important means of education and more importantly, a way for people of different cultures to come together and understand each other better. She has a BS in Tourism and has planned countless domestic and international trips for herself, her family and friends, having visited over 12 countries and 30 states so far.
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