New Orleans is no stranger to the paranormal, which is why it’s considered to be one of the most haunted cities in the world. Consequently, New Orleans is home to some of America’s most haunted hotels!
While there are plenty of ghost tours that will give you a brief rundown of some of the most haunted places in New Orleans, spending the night in one of these haunted hotels in New Orleans will really give you an immersive experience.
And who knows? You might just have a paranormal experience of your own!
Here are some of the most haunted hotels in New Orleans. And if you’re not a fan of sharing a bedroom with boogeymen (who can blame you?), check out other places to stay in NOLA right here.
Most Haunted Hotels In New Orleans
1. Hotel Monteleone
Address: 214 Royal St, New Orleans, LA 70130
There are few hotels in New Orleans that could turn a skeptic into a believer, and the Hotel Monteleone is one of them.
Hotel Monteleone has a lengthy list of paranormal encounters from guests and visitors, leading many to believe it’s the most haunted hotel in New Orleans. Countless ghost hunters have spent time here, and they all come back with the same paranormal research: it’s haunted.
But by whom? Well, a lot of people, actually. Several of them were supposedly former employees or former guests at the Hotel Monteleone.
Many of the spirits at the Hotel Monteleone like to “play games” with current guests, like the two former employees who’ve decided to spend eternity clocked in and making things difficult for the staff. Opening and closing the restaurant door, moving things around, and just being that co-worker.
Perhaps the creepiest encounter is when you ride the elevator. It has a habit of letting you off on the wrong floor, and when you begin to walk down the hall, you’ll be met with a blast of ice-cold air…and at the far end of the hallway, ghost children who were playing will vanish.
The 14th floor is where the most action happens; do what you will with that information!
See Related: Best Tours in New Orleans, Louisiana
2. Bourbon Orleans
Address: 717 Orleans St, New Orleans, LA 70116
Originally built to be the Orleans Theatre and Ballroom, the Bourbon Orleans Hotel had a rough start. Not only was construction delayed for a decade by the War of 1812, but it was destroyed by a fire just a year after it opened. Woof.
It was rebuilt in 1817 and had a wonderful run for about 60 years before the Sisters of the Holy Family (the first African-American religious order in the country) purchased the building, and it became St. Mary’s Academy.
The Bourbon Kings Hotel Corporation purchased it in 1964 and went through a lengthy restoration, turning Bourbon Orleans into the historic French Quarter hotel we have today.
With such a rich history, it should come as no surprise that the haunted Bourbon Orleans Hotel is known to be a hotspot for paranormal activity and one of the most haunted hotels in the French Quarter.
A Confederate soldier is just one of the ghostly souls that guests and staff have reported seeing, and he’s often spotted on the third and sixth floors. Children playing and former Sisters have also been sighted, a nod to the building’s past as a convent and orphanage.
But the most haunted room at this French Quarter hotel is the ballroom. A lone dancer has been seen dancing by herself underneath the ballroom’s crystal chandelier, dancing like no one’s watching…except when she notices you, she vanishes.
3. Place D’Armes Hotel
Address: 625 St. Ann St., New Orleans, LA 70116
The original building of the Place d’Armes Hotel was actually the first school in French Colonial Louisiana. Sadly, the school burned down in the 1700s, and many students and teachers died in the fire. This plays a part in the hotel’s haunted history, for sure.
One of the main ghosts spotted here is pretty chatty, and it’s not uncommon for guests to have full conversations with him before realizing they’re speaking with a ghost. He’s a bearded fellow who is believed to have been the headmaster of the school. He’s often seen hanging out on a balcony or just wandering the grounds.
See Related: A Local’s Guide to Mardi Gras in New Orleans: Making the Most of Carnival Season
4. Dauphine Orleans Hotel
Address: 415 Dauphine St, New Orleans, LA 70112
The Dauphine Orleans Hotel is one of the most famous haunted hotels in New Orleans, with many paranormal investigators spending a few nights here. May Baily’s Place, the bar at the hotel, was once a thriving licensed brothel in the city’s legalized red-light district at the end of the 19th century.
It was here that Millie, an employee at the former brothel, met the love of her life, a Confederate soldier. They got engaged, and Millie hyper-fixated on creating the perfect wedding gown. On the day they were to be married, the groom was shot after a gambling dispute.
Millie never overcame her grief and has been one of the most common ghost sightings here. Many guests report sightings of the phantom bride wandering through the bar, still wearing her wedding dress, searching for her fiance.
5. Lafitte Hotel and Bar
Address: 1003 Bourbon St, New Orleans, LA 70116
Your best bet at having a paranormal experience on Bourbon Street’s Lafitte Hotel and Bar (also known as the Lafitte Guest House) is in Room 21, but the entire hotel seems to be a spirit’s playground.
The ghost in question in Room 21 is a young girl named Marie, who was the daughter of the original owners. It’s believed that Marie was one of the many victims of the Yellow Fever epidemic that hit New Orleans pretty hard in the 1800s.
Marie prefers to interact with other children, which may or may not give your kids nightmares for the rest of their lives. When she’s not playing with other kids, she’s been spotted as a ghostly image in various mirrors throughout the hotel.
See Related: Most Haunted Hotels in Salem, Massachusetts
6. Jean Lafitte House
Address: 613 Esplanade Ave, New Orleans, LA 70116
No, it’s not the same hotel. We just really like naming hotels after famous pirates.
The Jean Lafitte House on Esplanade is believed to have been the Captain’s Quarters for Jean Lafitte, one of Louisiana’s most infamous pirates.
At the time, Esplanade was the go-to route for merchants to travel from the Mississippi River up to Lake Pontchartrain. Of course, not everything that went down the “road” was legal, and Jean Lafitte had a reputation for being the go-to guy for smuggling things through the city.
When the owner of the home decided to put in a pool in 1984, construction crews discovered a tunnel that ran parallel to the house and Esplanade Avenue. Could this have been used to smuggle illegal goods without detection?
It certainly plays a part in why there have been so many ghost sightings at this haunted hotel. Surprisingly, the ghostly figures seen aren’t Jean Lafitte… It’s a woman dressed in white who is seen in the corner of a room on the second floor.
She doesn’t have a name, or at least no one knows who she is. She doesn’t speak, she doesn’t move, she just stands there. Staring at you.
It may not sound like much, but it’s been enough for multiple housekeepers to quit, and I cannot say blame them. If you don’t see her, you very well could hear some of the other ghosts at play within these walls.
Guests and staff have reported hearing disembodied bodies, echoes of laughter, and even the sounds of footsteps and possibly dragging/moving things around. Could this be a spiritual loop of Jean Lafitte’s smuggling operation moving things underground?
7. Le Pavillon New Orleans
Address: 833 Poydras St, New Orleans, LA 70112
Many haunted hotels in New Orleans own it and wear the reputation like a badge of honor, including Le Pavillon. Remember to ask the front desk for a pamphlet that goes into great detail about all the paranormal activity that has been reported here.
It’s thought that the land that Le Pavillon Hotel sits on is a portal to another realm. This portal seems to be a highway for the paranormal, and ghost hunters believe that there are more than 100 ghosts within these walls.
The building was once the home of the National Theatre, and then once that burned down, it became a bit of a red-light district scene with more risqué shows. Guess these performers still plan to put on a show, even in the afterlife!
If you’re staying on the second floor, keep an eye out for a couple that’s dressed from the 1920s. Both of them are dressed to impress and are often seen making their way to the elevator.
On the ninth floor, specifically room 930, the ghost of a teenage girl is often seen standing in the corner of the room, or if she’s more comfortable, she may take a seat on the bed. Rumor has it she was killed after getting hit by a carriage in front of the hotel.
Maybe she was staying in room 930? You can be the judge.
See Related: Best Restaurants in the New Orleans French Quarter
8. Andrew Jackson Hotel
Address: 919 Royal St, New Orleans, LA 70116
The background for the Andrew Jackson Hotel is set up perfectly for hauntings. The building was once a boarding school and an orphanage for young boys who had lost their parents to Yellow Fever.
Unfortunately, a fire broke out and killed five boys who were living there, and now it seems like they’re roaming the halls for eternity. Seriously, why is it always ghost children?
Probably the most playful ghosts you’ll ever encounter, these boys are known for turning on the television and watching cartoons. Some things never change, right?
Room 208 is rumored to be the most haunted location at the Andrew Jackson Hotel, and a boy named Armond particularly likes this room. He’s known to pull your blankets off of you while you sleep, giggling the entire time.
9. Hotel Provincial
Address: 1024 Chartres St, New Orleans, LA 70116
Long before it was the Hotel Provincial, the building was a military hospital for civil war soldiers. That should give you an idea of the hauntings that you may encounter at this haunted hotel in New Orleans.
The ghosts of wounded soldiers are often seen, or rather heard, at Hotel Provincial. Guests have reported hearing the sounds of soldiers crying out in pain, sometimes even catching a glimpse of a soldier before he vanishes into thin air.
On several occasions, guests have turned down their beds only to discover bloodstained sheets that disappear right before their eyes. Good luck getting a good night’s rest after seeing that!
See Related: Do You Need A Rental Car in New Orleans?
10. Hotel Villa Convento
Address: 616 Ursulines Ave, New Orleans, LA 70116
Like other haunted hotels on this list, before becoming the luxurious hotel that it is today, Hotel Villa Convento was once a former brothel.
The ghosts that call Hotel Villa Convento home have been there since the brothel days, including one particular ghost known as “The Madame,” and she likes to make herself visible to the male guests more than the female guests.
Rooms 301, 302, and 209 are the most haunted rooms at this hotel, and there’s a wide range of experiences. Some guests hear disembodied voices and knocking, some have their belongings rearranged, and some just can’t shake the eerie feeling they are being watched.
If you do end up hearing a strange knocking sound, just know that that’s believed to be The Madame, letting you know your time is up!
11. Omni Royal Orleans
Address: 621 St Louis St, New Orleans, LA 70130
Some employees are more loyal than others, continuing to work even after they’ve clocked out of life, and that’s the case with this hotel’s haunted history. The ghosts at the Omni Royal Orleans are former employees, and they take their jobs very seriously.
Guests who have stayed at the Omni Royal Orleans have reported lights turning on and off, flushing toilets, and even drawing a bath for them! How…kind?
If you don’t encounter a ghostly maid, then you might end up on the other side of the spiritual realm, hearing the faint sounds of wounded soldiers from when the hotel was used as a medical center during the Civil War.
I don’t know about you, but I’d much rather deal with a ghost turning down my sheets than one screaming in pain!
See Related: Most Haunted Hotels in Minnesota
12. Audubon Cottages
Address: 509 Dauphine St, New Orleans, LA 70112
The Audubon Cottages were built in the late 18th century and named after famous naturalist and writer John James Audubon, who actually lived in one of the cottages for a while. Although he’s not one of the ghosts seen here, these cottages are some of the most haunted places to stay in New Orleans, especially cottages two and four.
These particular spirits seem to be just down to have a good time and really seem like they just want to be included in the fun. The ghost in Cottage Four is believed to be a Confederate soldier really loves country music (quelle surprise) and is known to turn on the radio from time to time.
13. Troubadour Hotel
Address: 1111 Gravier St, New Orleans, LA 70112
Before it was The Troubadour, it was known as the Rault Center, an office and apartment building in the New Orleans Central Business District that would end up making national news and going down as one of the darkest days in New Orleans history. On November 29, 1972, a fire broke out on one of the top floors of the 17-story building, and it quickly spread.
It was the perfect storm. The building didn’t have a sprinkler system, so the fire easily consumed the top three floors. Firefighters couldn’t spray water that high, leaving them helpless to the flames.
Five women broke a window on the 15th floor, hoping to be rescued…but the firefighter’s ladders were too short to reach them. They watched in horror as the women had to make the unthinkable decision to jump from the 15th story.
Four of the women died in the fall, but one woman did survive. She sustained two broken legs, a broken back, and a shattered pelvis… but she lived to be 81 and passed away in 2014.
If you find yourself staying at this haunted hotel in New Orleans and you think you smell smoke or the faint, disembodied sounds of screams for help, you could very well be hearing the final words of the unfortunate souls who succumbed to the fire that day.
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