Ghosts, Gods, & Gangsters of New Orleans

Overview

“★★★★★ I’ve taken quite a few walking tours in New Orleans and the several I’ve taken led by Edward Simon were hands down the most interesting, surprising, thoughtful, hilarious, deeply creepy, and absolute BEST. - Michael Cerveris, Star of 'Mindhunter'

Wanna get weird? Walk with us, fam.

Curated by parapsychologist Dr. Edward Simon, this adults-only walking tour time machine transports you back through the ill-fated settlement that famed occultist Aleister Crowley referred to as the “Quartier Macabre,” a city lost between life and God.

One night, we’ll uncover Gallatin Street's scandalous past as a bustling red-light district, or we may find ourselves at the doorstep of the city’s first witch coven, whispering legends of magick rituals before getting stirred by vampire lore at the Old Ursuline Convent.

Wherever the road travels, you’ll be led and engaged by a master storyteller tasked to make your stay in our city one you won’t soon forget.

Book fast, or forever rue, boo.

City: New Orleans

Mon 08 Sep

Other dates

You can choose the date already on the booking website

Starting at $32.00

Make a reservation

Mon 08 Sep

Starting at $32.00

Make a reservation

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What's Included

A licensed and certified walking tour guide

Additional Info

Wheelchair accessible
Service animals allowed
Public transportation options are available nearby
Transportation options are wheelchair accessible
Suitable for all physical fitness levels
Adults only - 17+
Please arrive 30 minutes prior for check-in. Tours depart at their scheduled times.
Please plan in advance for Ubers, taxis, Lyfts, and travel mishaps. We cannot accommodate late arrivals

What To Expect

Old Ursuline Convent Museum

Our ghost tour pauses outside the gates of the Old Ursuline Convent, which has stood here since the early days of our city’s founding. Your guide recounts the legend of the casket girls - young women who traveled here long ago with peculiar chests in tow. According to lore, these cases contained unholy stowaways that still haunt the convent and streets nearby as vampiric beings to this day. As you gaze up at the decaying walls, you might wonder if something cursed still lurks within... Did the casket girls truly first usher vampires into New Orleans? Stand here after dark to hear the story and decide. Before we depart the convent grounds, listen closely for whispers on the wind.

Lalaurie Mansion

We pause outside the imposing facade of the stately Lalaurie residence, once occupied by the influential yet nefarious Madame Delphine Lalaurie, until a fateful day exposed her most insidious secrets. As we stand before the intricately wrought iron balcony, our guide recounts whispered tales of the ghastly revelations of diabolical experiments and unimaginable human suffering within these walls. Some say the anguished echoes can still be heard of those who perished by her philosophies. Others report sightings of the Madame herself, presiding still over her estate after death, denied her proper judgment for the reprehensible deeds committed on helpless souls. But we leave it to you to ponder... Do spirits still linger, or does public imagination haunt these grounds more fiercely than any wayward wraith could? What is evident is that this address continues to profoundly disturb anyone who learns of its history - now including those gathered among us on this tour.

French Market

We linger for a moment at the mouth of the unassuming street that now bears little trace of its debauched and deadly past. Your guide casts their lantern light towards what was once Gallatin Street - a seedy, riotous red light district that lured sailors and slummers to establishments promising every illicit desire in the late 1800s. Despite its allure, danger and predation lurked around every corner. Some tell tales of men lured by sirens into darkened dead ends, never seen again. Others whisper of malevolent gangsters hired by establishments that now mask their murderous history with respectable facades. But listen closely near the cracked sidewalks... Do you hear the distant echoes of raucous laughter turn suddenly to screams? Do wafts of lavender perfume mask the coppery scent of lives lost? We leave you to ponder if the spirits of Gallatin Street still lurk where their earthly vices laid them to rest too soon.

Jackson Square

Before the sprawling green space of Jackson Square took shape, our guide tells us these very grounds bore witness to some of the city’s most shocking and gruesome public executions. Surrounded by armed guards, prisoners would meet their fate by hanging from a crude wooden structure or more barbaric means based on their alleged crimes. For some, the seconds dragged on in slow, suffocating horror witnessed by jeering crowds. Others faced swifter ends on the executioner’s block in view of the stone cathedral. Though carnival tunes float lightheartedly today, we pause to acknowledge the square’s darker times witnessing the end of convicted lives – no matter the reasons or rights. As we take our leave, glance back and ponder if unrest still stirs spirits to linger along these shadows where public punishments once summoned throngs as macabre entertainment. The grounds hold many secrets and seek souls underneath the serene green space of Jackson Square.

New Orleans Pharmacy Museum

Our guide pauses along the route to indicate an unassuming building that now contains the New Orleans Pharmacy Museum. But they share tales passed down through generations about this site’s shadowy role during the plague years. As infections raged unchecked, rumors persisted of the building secretly housing fringe doctors conducting lethal human experiments to identify vaccines via questionable means. Details remain lacking and facts elusive of who or how many may have suffered within these walls in the name of battling our city’s waves of epidemic onslaughts. Yet eerie stories endure of lost souls seen in the windows, nameless victims stolen away never to return home when promising remedy at an unfathomable moral cost. Disturbing rumors alone leave a lingering vileness around our quiet pharmacy museum that not even formal dedications to medical ingenuity can rinse out.

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Cancellation Policy

For a full refund, cancel at least 24 hours before the scheduled departure time.

Ghosts, Gods, & Gangsters of New Orleans

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