Who haunts the Bourbon Orleans
Reported as stories, with where each one comes from. Most reported: The ballroom dancer.
The ballroom dancer
Guests and staff report a woman dancing alone under the ballroom chandeliers, as if with an unseen partner.
The nun of Room 644
Guests in Room 644 describe crying in the night and a nun in a habit standing quietly by the bed. The order has never confirmed any death there.
The orphan children
Guests report children's laughter in empty corridors, tugs on their clothes and a little girl with a ball on the sixth floor.
The Confederate soldier
Said to limp along the third and sixth floor halls, his uneven footsteps heard at night.
The cigar-smoking man
Guests and staff report smelling cigar smoke before seeing an old man reading a newspaper in the lobby.
"The hotel itself claims to house the ghosts of a Confederate soldier, various nuns and children, and a lonely ghost dancer in its famous ballroom."PCMA Convene
The building
Before you book
| Room to request | Room 644 (Room linked to the ghostly nun; most often called the hotel's most haunted) |
|---|---|
| Does the hotel tell the stories? | ✓ Yes The hotel's own history page tells of its ghosts, and it has run ghost-tour packages and a 'Ghost Camp' paranormal weekend |
| Built | 1817, as theatre and ballroom (later convent, school and orphanage) |
| Historic listing | None found |
| Historic Hotels of America | No |
| Google rating | 4.4 from 2,959 reviews |
| Address | 717 Orleans St, New Orleans, LA 70116 |
| Jackson Square | 720 ft (220 m), 3 min walk |
Sources
7 independent sources, quotes checked
- Bourbon Orleans HotelThe hotel
- Ghost City ToursGhost tour
- New Orleans & Company (neworleans.com)History
- PCMA ConveneMagazine
- SmarterTravelMagazine
- French Quarterly MagazineMagazine
- New Orleans & Company (press release), 2014News
- Haunted Rooms, 2026Blog
Photo: St. Louis Cathedral at night, OrleansPhotoArt, CC BY-SA 3.0, Wikimedia Commons. This is the area, not the hotel.
Around the Bourbon Orleans
Straight-line distances from the front door; walking times allow for streets. Places from OpenStreetMap.
Eat and drink
- Orleans Grapevine Bar and Bistro1 min walk
- Jimmy White's Pub & Grill1 min walk
- Bourbon O Bar1 min walk
- Pere Antoine Restaurant1 min walk
- Napoleon’s Itch1 min walk
- Tropical Isle1 min walk
See nearby
- French Quarter2 min walk
- Louisiana State Museum Library2 min walk
- M.S. Rau2 min walk
- The Cabildo2 min walk
- New Orleans Historic Voodoo Museum2 min walk
- Madame John's Legacy3 min walk
Other haunted hotels
- Place d'Armes Hotel2 min walk
- The Cornstalk Hotel3 min walk
- Andrew Jackson Hotel3 min walk
- Olivier House Hotel4 min walk
Cemeteries
- Saint Louis Cemetery Number One10 min walk
- Saint Louis Cemetery Number 20.7 mi (1.1 km)
- Saint Vincent de Paul Cemetery1.6 mi (2.6 km)
Questions
Is the Bourbon Orleans Hotel haunted?
It is one of the most often named haunted hotels in New Orleans, and the hotel itself lists a Confederate soldier, nuns and children from the old convent and orphanage, and a lonely ghost dancer among its stories.
What is the most haunted room at the Bourbon Orleans?
Room 644, linked to a ghostly nun. Ghost City Tours notes the suicide story behind it has never been confirmed by the Sisters of the Holy Family.
What was the Bourbon Orleans before it was a hotel?
The Orleans Ballroom and theater from 1817, then from 1881 to 1964 the convent, school and orphanage of the Sisters of the Holy Family.