New Orleans Ghosts Boos and Booze Haunted Pub Crawl

The most interesting part of the New Orleans Ghosts Boos and Booze Haunted Pub Crawl is the way it mixes old city stories with actual drinking stops. You walk from Jackson Square through the French Quarter, hearing about haunted hotels, pirates, Voodoo, murder, and the troubled past of LaLaurie Mansion.

I like the focus on well-researched local history, which gives the ghost stories more weight than a string of cheap scares. I also like the freedom to choose your own drinks at each bar, including Lafitte’s Blacksmith Shop, one of the city’s oldest drinking spots.

The main caution is consistency. The tour is advertised as visiting four bars, but the detailed route names three: Pirate’s Alley Cafe, the Ice House Bar, and Lafitte’s Blacksmith Shop. One poor experience also involved a late start, a missing guide, and an incomplete pub crawl, so last-minute booking may carry some risk.

Key points before you book

• Jackson Square is both the meeting point and the final stop, so you can arrive early, get your bearings, and avoid arranging a ride from a distant ending point.
• The route combines bars with haunted landmarks, including the Omni Royal Orleans, LaLaurie Mansion, and a hotel linked to an ax murderer and serial killer.
• Royale is one guide who earned especially warm praise for clear historical storytelling and useful local tips.
• Drinks are not included, which keeps the $36 price lower and lets you order only what you want.
• An EMF detector costs an extra $6 to rent or buy, but the tour does not require one.
• The experience lasts about 1 hour and 45 minutes, with a maximum group size of 50 people.

Starting among the spirits at Jackson Square

Meet at Jackson Square 15 minutes before the scheduled start. That early arrival matters here because the tour begins in a busy part of the French Quarter, and one bad outing involved the guide not being at the meeting point on time.

Jackson Square is a fitting place to begin. The park is said to have its own ghostly activity, so the tour starts with an atmospheric setting rather than a plain street corner. You might see nothing supernatural at all, of course, but the old square gives the guide a natural way to introduce New Orleans as a city where public spaces, homes, hotels, bars, and cemeteries all carry stories from earlier generations.

The meeting point is also the ending point. That is useful after a night of drinks, especially if you do not want to navigate an unfamiliar part of the city afterward. The tour takes place in English, and service animals are allowed. Most people can take part, though you should remember that this is a walking experience through the French Quarter.

The Omni Royal Orleans and the city’s grander ghosts

The first major hotel stop is the Omni Royal Orleans, an elegant building with a dark reputation. The tour connects the hotel with an iconic Led Zeppelin song and uses its reported hauntings to show how New Orleans ghost stories often cling to beautiful places.

This is a good early stop because the setting contrasts with the tales. You are not standing in a ruined building or an obvious horror set. You are looking at a polished, historic hotel, then hearing accounts of strange events associated with it. That contrast is part of the appeal.

The stop lasts about 15 minutes, but the route also includes walking between sites. You should expect short bursts of storytelling rather than a long lecture in one place. A strong guide can make these brief pauses work by keeping the facts clear and tying each story to the building in front of you.

One guide named Royale was singled out for making the area easy to understand and adding helpful local tips. If Royale leads your tour, you may get more than ghost stories alone. Still, guide assignments can vary, so book this for the route and subject, not for a guaranteed individual guide.

Bookshops, Voodoo, and stories tied to living traditions

The route continues to buildings and shops connected with less familiar parts of New Orleans history. One stop is a bookstore in a building dating to 1834. The guide recounts first-hand reports from patrons who felt or heard unexplained things inside.

That detail gives the story a more personal quality. Instead of only hearing that a building is haunted, you hear about people who claim to have experienced something there. You can decide for yourself how much weight to give those accounts, but the setting helps keep the story tied to a real place.

Another stop focuses on Voodoo in New Orleans. The shop opened in 1996 and became known for Voodoo-related goods. Here, the guide explains the role Voodoo is said to play in the city and its connection to ideas about the living and the dead.

This part is important because New Orleans ghost tours can easily reduce Voodoo to a spooky prop. The route promises a look at the culture and its place in the city, rather than treating it only as a source of horror. Listen for the historical and cultural context, and keep an open mind. This is a short walking tour, not a full course in religious history, but it adds useful depth to the evening.

The names of the bookstore and Voodoo shop are not specified in the tour details, so you should not expect a fixed, independently advertised list of every storefront. The named landmarks and bars provide the clearest picture of the route.

Pirate’s Alley Cafe and the first real drink stop

Pirate’s Alley Cafe is the first named bar stop. The guide shifts from haunted buildings to New Orleans’s pirate past, telling stories while you have the option of ordering a drink.

The phrase option matters. Your admission does not include drinks, and you pay for whatever you choose. That may sound like a drawback, but I see a practical benefit: you are not forced into a preset beverage or a higher package price. If you prefer a cocktail, beer, soft drink, or nothing at all, you can make that choice yourself.

The stop is scheduled for about 15 minutes. That is enough time for a brief drink and a story, but not a long dinner or a relaxed bar visit. You should eat before the tour if you need a full meal, since the experience is built around short stops and walking.

Pirate’s Alley Cafe is presented as friendly on the surface but tied to a darker past. That contrast fits the tour’s tone. The best moments here will depend heavily on how well the guide connects the pirate tales to the room and the surrounding French Quarter.

The Ice House Bar at the Provincial Hotel

The Ice House Bar of the Provincial Hotel is the longest named stop before the final bar, with about 20 minutes scheduled. The hotel and bar are described as having a troubled past and a strong reputation for paranormal activity.

The story here is not limited to old reports. The tour also points to accounts from bartenders and people who have taken the tour. That gives the stop a more immediate feel, though you should treat every paranormal claim as part of the storytelling rather than proven fact.

This is where an optional EMF detector may appeal to enthusiasts. Rental or purchase costs $6, and the device is not included in the tour price. It can add a playful experiment to the evening, but you do not need it to follow the stories or enjoy the route.

A 20-minute stop gives the guide more room to build suspense than at the shorter locations. It also gives you more time to order a drink. Still, a group of up to 50 people can make bar access and conversation less intimate, especially if everyone orders at once.

LaLaurie Mansion and a beautiful house with a grim past

The walk then reaches LaLaurie Mansion, one of the most emotionally heavy stops. The house is beautiful, but its history includes suffering, violence, heartbreak, and revenge.

This is not simply a haunted-house story. The power of the stop comes from the human events connected to the building. A good guide should handle this material with care, since the subject involves real pain rather than harmless folklore.

You will likely spend more time listening than looking inside. The tour takes place from the street, and the mansion’s exterior becomes the setting for the account. That can be enough: in New Orleans, the buildings themselves often provide a strong sense of place, and the guide supplies the details that turn a facade into a chapter of the city’s past.

If you prefer lighthearted ghost stories only, this portion may feel somber. If you want a tour that links supernatural tales to difficult history, it is one of the more meaningful stops.

The 1829 hotel and the ax murderer’s house

Another stop brings you to a hotel dating to 1829. The building is described as haunted and once associated with an ax murderer and serial killer. The guide tells the story of victims believed to remain trapped there.

The subject is grim, and the tour uses it to build toward another drink afterward. That rhythm is typical of the experience: hear something unsettling, walk through the Quarter, then pause at a bar.

Again, the guide makes a major difference. One poor outing was described as scattered, with the guide giving limited ghost stories and failing to follow the planned pub route. That account is unusually specific and worth taking seriously. Confirm the meeting details before you set out, arrive early, and make sure the group is actually moving through the promised stops.

The hotel itself is not named in the supplied details, so you should avoid expecting a particular famous property unless it is confirmed after booking. The story, rather than a guaranteed interior visit, is the central feature.

Lafitte’s Blacksmith Shop and the final toast

The last named bar is Lafitte’s Blacksmith Shop Bar, a must-see French Quarter landmark according to the tour description. It is presented as one of America’s oldest bars and as a former pirate hangout.

This is the route’s strongest finale because the location has an obvious connection to the tour’s themes. You get pirates, spirits, old New Orleans, and a chance to order one of the bar’s suggested daiquiris. Drinks remain extra, but the guide can recommend the local favorite as a fitting end to the evening.

The stop lasts about 20 minutes. That is enough to settle in briefly, but not enough to turn the crawl into a full night at each bar. The activity ends back at Jackson Square, so you can continue your evening nearby or return to your accommodation from a known point.

One major warning: the detailed schedule names three bar locations, while the summary promises four. A past poor experience also involved stopping at only two pubs and ending at the last bar without entering. Ask your guide at the start which bar stops are planned that night. This simple check can prevent confusion.

Is $36 a fair price?

At $36 per person, the tour is reasonably priced if you want a guided introduction to French Quarter ghost lore and a few historic bars. The price covers the guide, the stories, and the walking route, but not drinks, gratuity, or the optional $6 EMF detector.

The value depends on what you want from a pub crawl. If you expect several included drinks, $36 will disappoint. If you prefer choosing your own beverages and want a guide to connect the bars with local history, the price is more attractive.

The tour lasts about 105 minutes. That is a compact evening activity, not a full-night event. I would pair it with dinner before or afterward rather than treating it as a meal replacement.

The maximum group size is 50, which is large enough to affect the mood. A lively crowd can make the bars feel social, but it may also make it harder to hear. Smaller groups generally make ghost storytelling stronger, yet the listed capacity means you should prepare for a public walking tour rather than a private séance.

Who will enjoy this haunted pub crawl?

I would recommend it most to first-time visitors who want a quick introduction to the French Quarter’s darker stories. The mix of hotels, shops, a mansion, pirate lore, Voodoo, and bars gives you several themes in one outing.

It also suits people who prefer history with their nightlife. You are not simply moving from one bar to the next. The route gives each stop a story, and the strongest guides add practical tips about the area. Royale received especially warm praise for making the neighborhood easier to understand.

You may want another option if you need a guaranteed four-bar itinerary, a small group, included drinks, or a strictly timed professional production. The mixed account about one guide missing the meeting point and failing to complete the pub crawl shows why expectations matter.

Book at least several days ahead if possible. The experience is often reserved about a week in advance, and the cancellation terms are friendly only up to a point: cancel at least 24 hours before the start for a full refund. Inside that window, you pay the full amount, and changes are not accepted.

My call: book it for stories, not proof of ghosts

I would book the New Orleans Ghosts Boos and Booze Haunted Pub Crawl if I wanted a short, social walk through the French Quarter with strong local themes and optional drinks. The best parts are the setting, the connection between real places and old stories, the Pirate’s Alley and Lafitte’s stops, and the chance to learn more than just ghost anecdotes.

I would confirm the night’s route at the start, especially the number of bars. Arrive 15 minutes early at Jackson Square, budget extra for drinks and gratuity, and consider the $6 EMF detector only if that kind of gadget adds fun for you.

Choose this experience for atmosphere and storytelling. Do not choose it expecting guaranteed paranormal activity, a meal, or four included bar visits. With a capable guide, it can be a lively and useful introduction to the French Quarter after dark.

FAQ

Where does the haunted pub crawl begin?

The tour begins at Jackson Square in New Orleans, Louisiana. You should meet there 15 minutes before the scheduled start time.

Where does the tour end?

The activity ends back at Jackson Square, the same place where it begins.

How long does the experience last?

The tour lasts approximately 1 hour and 45 minutes.

Are drinks included in the $36 price?

No. Drinks are not included, so you choose and pay for your own beverages at the bar stops.

How much does the EMF detector cost?

An EMF detector is available for an additional $6. The tour price does not include rental or purchase.

Is the tour offered in English?

Yes. The experience is offered in English.

Can I cancel for a full refund?

Yes, if you cancel at least 24 hours before the scheduled start time. Cancellations or changes made within 24 hours are not refunded or accepted.