Best Ghost Tours in New Orleans: How to Pick the Right One
By America Experiences Editors · Published August 22, 2026 · 9 min read
There are more ghost tours in the French Quarter than there are blocks in it, and most of them cover the same route: Royal, Bourbon, Dauphine, the Lalaurie mansion, a courtyard or two. Choosing between them on the route is impossible. Choosing on format is straightforward.
The four decisions that actually change the evening are group size, whether the tour is adults-only, whether alcohol is permitted, and whether the guide leads with documented history or with theatrics. Every tour makes those choices, and they show up plainly in reviews.
We only shortlist tours with at least 1,000 traveler reviews, which in this category is a meaningful filter: the Quarter is full of new, thinly-reviewed operators running near-identical routes.
Decision guide
Which ghost tour do you want?
Every fact below is taken from the operator's own Viator record, read on 2026-08-25. Where a record does not establish something, it says Not clearly stated — we do not infer a feature from a tour name. Only experiences with 1,000+ traveler reviews are eligible.
What is the difference between a ghost tour and a cemetery tour?
A ghost tour is a street tour: it walks or drives the French Quarter and stops outside haunted addresses. A cemetery tour is defined by getting inside a burial ground, which is governed by the cemetery's owner rather than by the operator. Of the six eligible ghost tours below, exactly one states that it enters a cemetery — and it does not name which one.
Which are history-led and which are entertainment-led?
Two of the six lead with researched history: the haunted-location walk, whose operator states outright that it is not about theatrics, and the adults-only true-crime walk. The most-reviewed option in the city is the ghost, voodoo and vampire walk, and that one is legend and atmosphere by design. The carriage tour sits between the two, and the pub crawl and the EMF bus tour are entertainment formats.
Which are appropriate for families?
Four of the six state no minimum age at all, and two of those — the carriage tour and the haunted-location walk — explicitly accommodate prams and small children. Two are closed to them: the true-crime walk is 17+ and the pub crawl is 21+. No operator in this set markets itself as a children's tour, so treat content, not just the age line, as the decision.
Which actually enter a cemetery, and which only pass one?
One enters: the after-dark bus tour, which states exclusive access to an above-ground cemetery at night. That same tour drives past other cemeteries and views the Katrina memorial cemetery from outside the gates. The other five do not enter a cemetery at all — the carriage tour passes Quarter landmarks, and the walking tours stay on the streets.
Which do not clearly state cemetery access?
The bus tour never names the cemetery it enters, so which burial ground you will stand in is not established by the record. We print that rather than guess it. Anywhere else in the table where an operator does not establish a fact, you will read “Not clearly stated” — we do not infer features from tour names or photographs.
Can a ghost tour take you into St. Louis Cemetery No. 1?
No. New Orleans Catholic Cemeteries, the Archdiocese ministry that owns it, states that tours of St. Louis Cemetery No. 1 are offered only by Cemetery Tours New Orleans. If entering that specific cemetery is your goal, a ghost tour is the wrong product.
Who should skip a ghost tour altogether?
Anyone whose real goal is a named cemetery; anyone who cannot manage 90–120 minutes standing and walking on uneven, unlit pavement, unless they take the carriage or the bus; anyone travelling with children who would find murder narration distressing; and anyone expecting evidence of the paranormal rather than storytelling. Two records also warn against the tour for travelers with poor cardiovascular health.
I want documented history
Guides who lead with researched history and true crime rather than jump-scares. One of these enters a private haunted building; one is adults-only.
2 eligible options
I want the classic ghost-story night
Voodoo, vampires and legend in the French Quarter, told for atmosphere. The most-reviewed choice in the city, and no stated age limit.
1 eligible option
I can't walk the Quarter
The Quarter's pavements are uneven and most ghost tours are 90–120 minutes on foot. The carriage option is seated and the shortest of the set.
1 eligible option
I want haunted bars
A licensed-guide pub crawl through haunted bars. Strictly 21+, and a different evening from a history walk.
1 eligible option
I want to go inside a cemetery
Almost no ghost tour enters a cemetery. Exactly one eligible option states night cemetery access — and it is a bus tour, not a walk.
1 eligible option
| Tour | Style | Format | Duration | Age policy | Cemetery access | Price | Rating | Reviews |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Inside a haunted location | History-led. The operator states its stories are "verified by historical research" and that the tour "is not about theatrics". | Walking tour of the French Quarter that enters at least one private haunted location, stated as an inclusion in the record. | 2 hours | Not clearly stated — no minimum age is given; the record notes infants and small children can ride in a pram or stroller. | No cemetery. The interior access is a private haunted courtyard on Orleans, not a burial ground. | $37 | 4.6 | 1,301 |
| Adults-only true crime | History-led true crime: murder sites, court records and the city's criminal history rather than paranormal framing. | Walking tour with an in-person guide. The record states all areas and surfaces are wheelchair accessible. | 1 hour 45 minutes | Adults only, 17+, stated by the operator. Intoxicated travelers are refused. | No cemetery in the operator's itinerary. | $38 | 5.0 | 2,073 |
| Premier ghost, voodoo & vampire | Theatrical legend: ghosts, voodoo and vampire folklore told through the Quarter's haunted addresses. | Walking tour, capped at 10 guests per booking by the operator, with a local guide. | 1 hour 45 minutes | Not clearly stated — no minimum age is given and the tour is not marked adults-only. The record does state it is not recommended for travelers with poor cardiovascular health. | No cemetery. French Quarter streets and buildings only. | $37 | 4.5 | 13,726 |
| Haunted history carriage | Haunted history, culture and architecture narrated from a carriage. | Small-group mule-drawn carriage with a licensed guide. Seated throughout; the record states it is wheelchair accessible. | 1 hour | Not clearly stated — no minimum age is given; the record notes infants and toddlers up to four years and prams are accommodated. | No cemetery. The route passes Quarter landmarks including St. Louis Cathedral, Jackson Square and the LaLaurie Mansion. | $65 | 4.6 | 2,580 |
| Haunted pub crawl | Haunted bars: stories the operator states are verified by research at each property, delivered between drink stops. | Walking pub crawl with a licensed guide; one private location is entered. Drinks are bought at the stops, not included. | 2 hours | Minimum age 21, stated by the operator. | No cemetery. Bars and streets in the French Quarter. | $37 | 4.5 | 2,211 |
| After dark city & cemetery bus | Overtly paranormal: the operator includes EMF readers alongside licensed live commentary. | Air-conditioned bus with live commentary and a restroom break; short walking at the cemetery stop. | 2 hours | Not clearly stated — no minimum age is given; the record states infants must sit on an adult's lap. | Enters a cemetery. The operator states exclusive access to an above-ground cemetery at night, but does not name it; other cemeteries are driven past and the Katrina memorial cemetery is viewed from outside the gates. | $56 | 4.7 | 1,863 |
Price, rating and review count are read live from the operator's current listing. Style, format, duration, age policy and cemetery access were read on 2026-08-25; the cemetery rules below were rechecked with the cemetery authorities on 2026-08-25.
I want documented history
Guides who lead with researched history and true crime rather than jump-scares. One of these enters a private haunted building; one is adults-only.
New Orleans Ghost Tour: Go Inside a Haunted Location
Go inside real haunted locations. Explore the darker side of New Orleans with this 2-hour ghost tour led by a licensed tour guide. Learn about real ghost stories at spine chilling locations throughout the French Quarter which have been verified by historical research - this is not about theatrics. We focus on historically accurate stories only, providing you with the most authentic experience in t
Indicative from $37 — confirmed on Viator
Check availability on ViatorBest for: The traveler who wants documented history and to actually go inside somewhere, with no age restriction to work around.
Skip it if: You came for jump-scares and theatrics — the operator explicitly says that is not what this is.
Cemetery: No cemetery. The interior access is a private haunted courtyard on Orleans, not a burial ground.
New Orleans Adults-Only True Crime and Ghost Walking Tour
Why Us? Because we care! We love our city and all her sick, morbid and disturbing secrets. We know them all and want to share them with you. This isn't some gimmicky fake ghost story tour created to take your money. Our native Horrorstorians will educate, entertain and scare you senseless. So veer off the bright lights and broken bottles of Bourbon Street and take a walk on the wild side. Walk th
Indicative from $38 — confirmed on Viator
Check availability on ViatorBest for: Adults who want the darkest real history in the set — and it carries the highest traveler rating of the six.
Skip it if: You are travelling with anyone under 17, or you want ghosts rather than crime.
Cemetery: No cemetery in the operator's itinerary.
I want the classic ghost-story night
Voodoo, vampires and legend in the French Quarter, told for atmosphere. The most-reviewed choice in the city, and no stated age limit.
New Orleans Premier Ghost, Voodoo and Vampire Walking Tour
Discover the supernatural side of the French Quarter with our spine-chilling New Orleans ghost tours. Join our expert guides as they lead you through the most haunted streets of America's most mysterious city, sharing bone-chilling tales of restless spirits, voodoo legends, and paranormal encounters that have made New Orleans famous worldwide. Our authentic ghost walking tours take you by: Histo
Indicative from $37 — confirmed on Viator
Check availability on ViatorBest for: The default first ghost tour, and the one with far more traveler reviews than anything else eligible in the city.
Skip it if: You want researched history over atmosphere, or you need a stated age policy before booking for children.
Cemetery: No cemetery. French Quarter streets and buildings only.
I can't walk the Quarter
The Quarter's pavements are uneven and most ghost tours are 90–120 minutes on foot. The carriage option is seated and the shortest of the set.
New Orleans Small-Group Haunted History Carriage Tour
The French Quarter is known as one of the most haunted places in America, and with so many ghost tours to choose from, the best choice is this 1-hour carriage tour from the award-winning Royal Carriages, recently awarded the 2018 Louisiana Attraction of the Year Award. Instead of walking around with a large group of people, you'll travel to and from haunted locations comfortably in a mule-drawn ca
Indicative from $65 — confirmed on Viator
Check availability on ViatorBest for: Anyone who cannot spend two hours on uneven pavement, anyone with small children, or a short first evening.
Skip it if: You want depth — one hour from a carriage is an overview, not a deep dive.
Cemetery: No cemetery. The route passes Quarter landmarks including St. Louis Cathedral, Jackson Square and the LaLaurie Mansion.
I want haunted bars
A licensed-guide pub crawl through haunted bars. Strictly 21+, and a different evening from a history walk.
Haunted Pub Crawl in New Orleans
Explore the intoxicatingly haunted side of the New Orleans French Quarter with this two hour Haunted Pub Crawl led by a licensed guide. Learn about real haunted ghost stories at haunted locations throughout the French Quarter which have been verified by historical research done at each property. This tour is all about fun and we make sure to stop by the best haunted bar locations in the city. You
Indicative from $37 — confirmed on Viator
Check availability on ViatorBest for: An adult group whose evening is going to end in a bar anyway.
Skip it if: Anyone in your party is under 21, or you want to hear every word — this is a social format.
Cemetery: No cemetery. Bars and streets in the French Quarter.
I want to go inside a cemetery
Almost no ghost tour enters a cemetery. Exactly one eligible option states night cemetery access — and it is a bus tour, not a walk.
After Dark Haunted New Orleans City and Cemetery Bus Tour
Enjoy a shockingly fun cemetery bus tour while a licensed guide shares with you the amazing history of New Orleans. Explore these cities of the dead under moonlight and be on the lookout for paranormal activity, so don't forget your camera. Go inside an above ground cemetery at night and explore! Step into the shoes of a real ghost hunter and use EMF readers throughout the tour while you search fo
Indicative from $56 — confirmed on Viator
Check availability on ViatorBest for: The one eligible ghost tour that actually goes inside a cemetery after dark, and the easiest of the six on your feet.
Skip it if: You specifically want St. Louis Cemetery No. 1 — no ghost tour can take you in there (see the access rules below).
Cemetery: Enters a cemetery. The operator states exclusive access to an above-ground cemetery at night, but does not name it; other cemeteries are driven past and the Katrina memorial cemetery is viewed from outside the gates.
Before you book a tour that mentions a cemetery
Cemetery access is set by the cemetery's owner, not by the tour operator. Rechecked 2026-08-25.
- St. Louis Cemetery No. 1
- Sightseeing access is guided only: the Archdiocese's own cemetery page states that tours of St. Louis Cemetery No. 1 are offered only by Cemetery Tours New Orleans. Descendants of those interred visit separately with a family pass. No ghost tour can substitute for that.Authority: New Orleans Catholic Cemeteries (Archdiocese of New Orleans)
- Lafayette Cemetery No. 1, Garden District
- The cemetery remains closed to the public while repairs continue; only permitted workers and families tending graves are admitted. A tour that promises it is describing somewhere you cannot currently enter, so check before you pay.Authority: City of New Orleans, Department of Property Management — Division of Cemeteries
Sources for the access rules
- New Orleans Catholic Cemeteries — St. Louis Cemetery No. 1 — The Archdiocese's own statement that tours of St. Louis Cemetery No. 1 are offered only by Cemetery Tours New Orleans, and the family-pass arrangement for descendants
- City of New Orleans — Division of Cemeteries — That Lafayette Cemetery No. 1 is one of six cemeteries owned and managed by the City, and the City's cemetery rules and access policies
- Lafayette Cemetery No. 1 — closure notice — That Lafayette Cemetery No. 1 remains closed to the public, with access limited to permitted workers and families visiting graves
The short answer
If you want atmosphere and volume of stories, take a large-group walking tour on the standard route — they are the cheapest and the most reviewed. If you want to hear the guide clearly and ask questions, pay more for a small group or a carriage tour.
If you are travelling with children, read the listing carefully. Several of the highest-reviewed Quarter night walks are explicitly adults-only, and the true-crime variants are the most graphic of them.
- Best all-round: a 90–105 minute French Quarter ghost, voodoo and vampire walk.
- Best for adults who want the darker material: an adults-only true-crime and ghost walk.
- Best for hearing the guide: a small-group haunted-history carriage tour.
- Best on a budget: a two-hour large-group ghost and vampire walk.
- Not the same thing: a cemetery tour. Those are daytime, permit-restricted, and covered separately.
The four formats, and who each one suits
Large-group walking tours run 90 to 120 minutes and can have thirty or more people. They are inexpensive and the storytelling is well rehearsed. The trade-off is audibility on Bourbon Street, which is loud, and the fact that you will spend part of the tour at the back of a crowd.
Adults-only walks tend to run smaller, start later and go further into the documented crimes and the voodoo material. Reviews for these consistently praise the guides rather than the route, which is the useful signal in a category where the route is fixed.
Carriage and small-group tours cost several times more per person and cover less ground. They buy you a guide you can actually talk to, and they suit anyone with limited mobility — the walking versions cover a mile or more on uneven pavement.
Pub-crawl hybrids attach the storytelling to bar stops. They are a night out with history attached rather than a history tour with drinks; the reviews split sharply along that expectation.
Start times matter more than you would expect
Tours starting around dusk are the most comfortable and the best for photographs. Tours starting after 21:00 are noticeably more atmospheric and noticeably rowdier, because Bourbon Street is by then at full volume and the tour has to work around it.
In summer, the earlier slots are hot and humid well past sunset; between June and September a later start is the more pleasant one. From November through March the reverse is true, and the 8pm slots are the sweet spot.
- Dusk start: easiest walking, best photos, family-friendliest.
- 20:00–21:00: the balance most travellers want.
- After 21:00: most atmospheric, loudest, adults-only in practice.
Ghost tour or cemetery tour? They are not interchangeable
New Orleans' most famous cemetery, St. Louis No. 1, cannot be entered without an authorised guide, and access there is governed by the Archdiocese rather than by tour operators. Those visits happen in daylight and are a different product entirely.
A handful of bus tours combine after-dark storytelling with a cemetery stop. If a cemetery is the point of your visit, book a cemetery tour; if the Quarter after dark is the point, book a walk.
What 1,000+ review counts actually tell you here
In this category, review volume is a proxy for how long an operator has been running the route and how consistent the guide roster is. The highest-volume tours in the Quarter have five figures of reviews, which makes their ratings hard to game and their weaknesses easy to read.
Read the three-star reviews rather than the one-star ones. In ghost tours the recurring complaints are always the same three: could not hear the guide, group too large, more comedy than history. All three are format decisions you can avoid at booking.
Practical notes
Wear shoes you can walk a mile in on broken flagstones. Tours run rain or shine, and summer thunderstorms are brief but heavy — a packable poncho is more useful than an umbrella in a crowd.
Most walks end on or near Bourbon Street rather than back at the meeting point, which is convenient if you plan to stay out and worth knowing if you do not.
- Meeting points are usually a bar or a square, not an office — arrive ten minutes early.
- Tips are customary for guides on walking tours.
- Under-18 policies vary by operator and are enforced.
Common questions
- Are New Orleans ghost tours suitable for children?
- Some are, many are not. Several of the highest-reviewed French Quarter night walks are explicitly adults-only, and the true-crime variants describe violent events in detail. Check the age policy on the listing before booking.
- How long is a typical French Quarter ghost tour?
- Ninety minutes to two hours, covering roughly a mile of the Quarter on foot. Carriage tours are shorter, around an hour, and cover less ground.
- Do ghost tours go inside any buildings?
- Most do not — they stop outside the houses and courtyards they discuss. A small number include interior access to a single haunted location, which is stated in the listing.
- Can you drink on a New Orleans ghost tour?
- On many walking tours, yes: New Orleans permits open containers in the Quarter, and some tours are built around bar stops. Guides ask you to use a plastic cup rather than glass.
- Do ghost tours visit the cemeteries?
- Only the bus variants that say so. St. Louis Cemetery No. 1 requires an authorised guide and daytime access, so it is a separate tour rather than part of an evening walk.
Sources
Hours, fees, reservation rules and schedules change — confirm with the operator or agency before you travel.
New Orleans & Company — French Quarter visitor informationArchdiocese of New Orleans — cemetery visitor rules
Top-reviewed ghost & cemetery tours
Only experiences with 1,000+ traveler reviews.
New Orleans Premier Ghost, Voodoo and Vampire Walking Tour
Discover the supernatural side of the French Quarter with our spine-chilling New Orleans ghost tours. Join our expert guides as they lead you through the most haunted streets of America's most mysterious city, sharing bone-chilling tales of restless spirits, voodoo legends, and paranormal encounters that have made New Orleans famous worldwide. Our authentic ghost walking tours take you by: Histo
Indicative from $37 — confirmed on Viator
Check availability on Viator
Adults-Only New Orleans Ghost, Crime, Voodoo, and Vampire Tour
Do you believe there are things in this life that simply cannot be explained? Come take a walk through the haunted French Quarter stories that may leave you questioning what you ever thought possible. Our 8PM tour will be available with the VIP option of HELLVISION™! We use handheld projectors to bring the bloody images of New Orleans out of the archives and onto the streets for your tour. Tours
Indicative from $37 — confirmed on Viator
Check availability on ViatorNew Orleans Adults-Only True Crime and Ghost Walking Tour
Why Us? Because we care! We love our city and all her sick, morbid and disturbing secrets. We know them all and want to share them with you. This isn't some gimmicky fake ghost story tour created to take your money. Our native Horrorstorians will educate, entertain and scare you senseless. So veer off the bright lights and broken bottles of Bourbon Street and take a walk on the wild side. Walk th
Indicative from $38 — confirmed on Viator
Check availability on ViatorRelated guides
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