New Orleans: Haunted Pub Crawl

New Orleans lets you stroll the French Quarter with a drink in hand, and this tour makes good use of that odd little pleasure. For two hours, you’ll hear tales of murder, mayhem, and restless spirits while moving between haunted landmarks and old bars, including Lafitte’s Blacksmith Shop, one of America’s oldest bars. Guides such as DJ, Gomez, Wes, and Caroline are known for mixing local history with jokes and plenty of personality.

I like two things here: the relaxed pace gives you time to order a drink and look around, and the route reaches places you might skip on your own, including Lalaurie Mansion and Pirates Alley. The main thing to consider is that drinks cost extra, and the bars can be crowded. The exact route may also change because of parades, construction, or other city activity.

Key points to know before you book

• Lafitte’s Blacksmith Shop is the main bar stop: You get time for beer, cocktails, or spirits in one of New Orleans’ oldest drinking spots.
• The tour mixes ghost stories with real French Quarter history: Expect murder, mayhem, family scandals, and local legends rather than a nonstop scare show.
• Your guide shapes the evening: DJ, Gomez, Wes, Caroline, John, Maddie, Bobby, Coby, and others have all led highly praised tours.
• You buy your own drinks: The $25 price covers the guide, not cocktails or bar purchases.
• The route is flexible: Parades, construction, and city conditions can change which stops you visit.
• You must be 21 or older: Bring a driver’s license and wear comfortable shoes.

A ghost tour built around New Orleans drinking culture

This is not a formal haunted-house production. It is a walking pub crawl through the French Quarter, with stories delivered outdoors and inside or near historic bars. The mood is loose, social, and sometimes rowdy, which suits New Orleans far better than a stiff lecture.

The evening begins outside the Jax Brewery building, just beyond Bon’s New Orleans Street Food. Your licensed English-speaking guide waits outside the building, so arrive with your identification ready and give yourself enough time to find the meeting point.

From there, you walk through the French Quarter with the group. New Orleans allows open alcoholic drinks on the street, so you may pick up a to-go Hurricane or another local cocktail at the start. Your drink is not included, but the freedom to carry it while hearing stories is a central part of the experience.

I would think of this as a social introduction to the French Quarter after dark. You get spooky tales, a few drinks, and a look at famous addresses. If you want a serious study of New Orleans architecture, cemeteries, or Creole culture, choose a more focused walking tour. If you want history with a drink in your hand, this format makes sense.

Lalaurie Mansion and the darker side of the French Quarter

One of the first major sights is Lalaurie Mansion, where you stop for about 10 minutes. The building is tied to one of the city’s best-known tales of cruelty, scandal, and haunting. Your guide explains the story from the street, giving you time to look at the building and take photos.

This stop works because the French Quarter itself becomes the setting. You are not watching a staged performance in a dark room. You are standing beside an old building while your guide connects its appearance to the disturbing events associated with it.

The stop is brief, so do not expect a long interior visit. The mansion is a photo and storytelling point, not a museum visit. That short format helps keep the group moving, but it also means the guide’s delivery matters a great deal. A strong guide can make 10 minutes memorable. A weaker one would leave the stop feeling like a quick address on a street.

The strongest part of this tour is often the person holding the group together. DJ is repeatedly praised for humor, sarcasm, city knowledge, and a knack for keeping the evening moving. Gomez is singled out for energy and storytelling, while Wes is known for detailed stories and a good sense of humor. Guide assignments can change, so you cannot book a particular personality with certainty.

Lafitte’s Blacksmith Shop: the evening’s anchor

The pub crawl’s most important stop is Lafitte’s Blacksmith Shop Bar. You spend about 15 minutes here, with time to order beer, cocktails, or spirits and look around. The building is presented as one of America’s oldest bars, giving the drink stop more purpose than simply finding somewhere to buy alcohol.

This is where the tour’s two parts come together. You get a drink, hear about the bar’s sordid past, and take a short break from walking. Several guides have been praised for allowing enough time to order, use the facilities, and step outside for air before moving on.

Still, 15 minutes is not a long bar visit. Depending on the crowd, ordering may take part of your time. The bars can be crowded, and you should not expect a leisurely dinner or a full evening at each stop. Treat the stop as a taste of the place, not a pub residency.

You also pay for your own drink. At $25 per person, the tour remains fairly priced if you value the guide and the access to several notable locations. Your final cost depends on how much you order, so budget separately for cocktails, beer, spirits, and tips.

Pirates Alley and the short passing stops

Pirates Alley receives about 10 minutes of walking and sightseeing. This narrow passage adds a different texture to the route, with less emphasis on sitting down and more on moving through a location linked to old French Quarter stories.

The guide may use this stop to connect separate tales, explain local events, or give the group a quick look at a place you might otherwise pass without noticing. It is a good reminder that the tour is not only about bars. The streets and alleys are part of the story.

You then pass May Bailey’s Place and the Vampire Café, with roughly five minutes at each location. These are brief exterior stops, not full visits with guaranteed seating or drinks. Expect a quick explanation and a chance to see the buildings from outside.

That distinction matters when you compare this tour with a standard pub crawl. You will stop at multiple bars, but the supplied route includes several photo and pass-by locations rather than a drink at every address. If your main goal is to visit as many bars as possible, you may find the ghost-story sections take up more time than expected.

Why the guide can make or break the night

The tour’s format leaves room for personality. You walk, gather around a building, listen to a story, and then move on. There are no elaborate props or transport segments to carry the experience. The guide must project well over street noise, keep the group together, and make the stories feel lively.

That is why guide names come up so often in the tour’s feedback. DJ is praised for being funny, informative, and helpful beyond the tour itself. John is remembered for clear delivery, good timing in the bars, and a personality that worked well for a group of adult daughters traveling with their mother. Maddie is praised for local history, drink suggestions, and an upbeat approach.

Caroline is described as funny and engaging, while Bobby is praised for avoiding a cheesy style. Coby has a reputation for handling energetic groups with patience and humor. These details tell you what to expect from the best version of the tour: not a solemn paranormal investigation, but an outgoing local guide who knows how to manage a mixed group.

Some guides use banter and sarcasm. That can be a lot of fun if you enjoy being part of the joke. It may not suit you if you prefer a quiet, formal presentation. The group itself also affects the mood. Bachelorette parties, anniversary outings, girls’ trips, and groups of friends fit naturally here, but everyone still needs to arrive on time and drink responsibly.

A changing route is part of the deal

The published route is not a promise carved in stone. Parades, construction, and other activity in New Orleans can change the order or selection of stops. This is especially important during Mardi Gras, when crowds, barricades, and street closures can affect a walking route.

A flexible route has a benefit. Your guide can adjust the evening to keep the group moving and make the most of current conditions. One group may see the listed stops in a different order, while another may visit a nearby haunted bar instead.

The tradeoff is predictability. Do not book this expecting every group to receive the same sequence or identical bar time. If a specific location matters most to you, treat it as a possibility rather than a guarantee.

The route finishes back at New Orleans Ghost Adventures Tours. The listed duration is two hours, though one group found the evening longer than expected. Plan a little breathing room afterward rather than scheduling a tight dinner reservation immediately after the tour.

What the $25 price really covers

The $25 admission is best viewed as payment for a guided French Quarter walk with organized bar stops. It includes a licensed guide, but not cocktails. That is a fair arrangement for people who want a hosted night out without paying for a package of drinks they may not choose.

Your value depends on your habits. A light drinker gets a relatively inexpensive history walk with one or two purchases. A group ordering several cocktails can spend much more than the advertised price. Remember to add money for the drinks and for tipping your guide and bartenders.

The tour has earned a 4.6 rating from 379 ratings, and 96 percent of ratings give it a perfect score. The strongest pattern is clear: the guide’s humor, energy, storytelling, and local knowledge matter more than polished production.

That also explains the occasional limitation. A guide can make a crowded bar feel worthwhile, but cannot control the crowd. You may need to stand, wait to order, or step outside for elbow room. One particularly useful piece of advice is to avoid arriving already very drunk. The tour works best when you can listen, walk, and keep up with the group.

Practical details for a smoother evening

The tour is for adults 21 and older. Bring a driver’s license, even if you look well over the minimum age. Cocktails are not included, so bring a payment method for your own drinks.

Wear comfortable shoes. The route involves walking through the French Quarter, and old streets can be tiring after a few hours of sightseeing and drinking. The tour is wheelchair accessible, though the changing route and crowded bars may still affect how easy each stop feels.

You can cancel up to 24 hours before the start for a full refund, and you can reserve now while paying later. Check the available start time when booking because the duration is fixed at about two hours, but the actual start times vary.

The tour is in English. Since much of the experience depends on hearing stories outdoors, stay close enough to the guide to catch the details, especially during parades or busy nights.

Who will enjoy this haunted pub crawl

I would recommend it most strongly to:

• Adults visiting New Orleans for the first time who want an easy French Quarter orientation
• Couples looking for a relaxed evening activity
• Friends, birthday groups, and bachelorette parties
• Anyone who prefers ghost stories with humor instead of a stern paranormal presentation
• People who want to find bars they may return to later
• Drinkers who like history served casually rather than in a classroom

I would be more cautious if you want a quiet tour, a scholarly study of New Orleans, or a guaranteed visit to a particular bar. The route can change, the bars can be crowded, and the stories may be adjusted to suit the guide and the evening.

The experience also suits people who do not need every story to be proven as fact. The tour presents the French Quarter’s haunted past through tales passed down over three centuries, along with local murders, scandals, and mayhem. Some of the pleasure comes from the atmosphere and the telling.

Should you book the New Orleans Haunted Pub Crawl?

Book it if you want a social, story-driven night with several French Quarter stops and the option to carry a drink between them. The price is reasonable for a two-hour guided walk, provided you remember that drinks are extra.

I would choose this over a standard ghost walk if the bar stops matter as much as the haunting. I would choose a more serious history tour if you want extended architectural detail or a careful account of every event.

Your best result comes from arriving sober enough to listen, wearing good shoes, and accepting that the route may shift. If you get a guide with the energy of DJ, Gomez, Wes, Caroline, John, or Maddie, the evening has the right ingredients: creepy stories, local color, useful bar suggestions, and enough humor to keep the French Quarter feeling like a night out rather than a lecture.

FAQ

How long does the Haunted Pub Crawl last?

The tour is scheduled to last two hours. The exact starting time depends on availability, and the route may change during the evening.

How much does the tour cost?

The advertised price is $25 per person. Cocktails, beer, spirits, and other drinks are not included.

Are drinks included in the ticket?

No. You buy your own drinks at the bars or elsewhere along the route. New Orleans allows alcoholic drinks to be carried outdoors in the area covered by the tour.

What locations are included?

The route includes the French Quarter, Lalaurie Mansion, Lafitte’s Blacksmith Shop Bar, and Pirates Alley. It also passes May Bailey’s Place and the Vampire Café. Stops can change because of parades, construction, and other city conditions.

Where does the tour meet?

Meet outside the Jax Brewery building, just beyond Bon’s New Orleans Street Food. Your licensed guide waits outside the building.

Is the tour available in languages other than English?

No. The listed tour language is English.

What is the minimum age?

You must be at least 21 years old to participate. Bring a driver’s license.

Can I cancel the booking?

Yes. You can cancel up to 24 hours before the tour for a full refund. You can also reserve now and pay later.