Featured in films like Easy Rider and surrounded by mythology, New Orleans’ St Louis Cemetery No. 1 perhaps the most well-known graveyard in America. Due to regulations by the local Archdiocese, it is now only possible to visit this legendary landmark on an official tour. Choose from a late morning or early afternoon tour, and meet your licensed guide at Reverend Zombie’s House of Voodoo in the French Quarter.
After a short walk to the cemetery, step inside the hallowed gates and listen as your guide shares the unique history of the Roman Catholic graveyard. Built in 1789, it’s the oldest in the city and the final resting place of many illustrious local citizens. Learn the reasons behind New Orleans’ unique above-ground burial practices, and see some of the most elaborate tombs, once designed to showcase a family’s wealth and status.
No visit would be complete without a stop before the supposed tomb of voodoo priestess Marie Laveau. Hear about the mystery surrounding the vault and the symbolic rituals that many visitors have followed hoping to benefit from Laveau’s power beyond the grave.
