New Orleans is known for good times, fabulous food, a top notch cocktail scene and an intriguing history. But lurking alongside those bon temps are chilling tales of hauntings, ghosts and other paranormal activity. Based on Google Trends data reflecting searches for haunted cities, New Orleans comes out on top as the spookiest city in the U.S.
From Jean Lafitte and Marie Laveau to Anne Rice’s famed vampire Lestat, there’s no shortage of stories documenting ghostly happenings around the city. New Orleans has inspired the likes of True Blood, Angel Heart, American Horror Story: Coven and more creepy pop culture phenomena.
Wander through New Orleans cemeteries—known as Cities of the Dead for their above-ground tombs that resemble small buildings—to get a sense of the spirit world, and take a tour with Save Our Cemeteries to hear the stories that lie within. Take a ghost tour with a group like Haunted History Tours to hear about hauntings throughout the French Quarter. You might spot William Faulkner’s ghost sitting at his writing desk at Faulkner House Books, catch a glimpse of Pierre Antoine Lepardi Jourdan — former owner of the building that is now Muriel’s restaurant who committed suicide when he lost the house in a poker game — appearing as a glimmer of light, witness doors opening and objects moving on their own at Old Absinthe House or see a lonely ghost dancing under a chandelier at The Bourbon Orleans , among many other potential sightings.
New Orleans is tops if you’re looking for thrills and chills from the realm beyond, but you can also find spooky experiences in Salem, Massachusetts, Gettysburg, Pennsylvania, Jerome, Arizona and Savannah, Georgia.