It’s official! New Orleans Mayor Ray Nagin declared that New Orleans was a ‘Ghost City’. Of course, that was way before Hurricane Gustav decided not to drown New Orleans, and the entire world was watching as millions of people high-tailed it out of the Big Easy and the rest of the Gulf Coast.

Now they’ll all come back and there’ll be a party to end all parties, in celebration of New Orleans being safe after all. But considering the panicky Mayor has already declared it a Ghost City, and the fact that Halloween is around the corner, I decided to explore the street creds of the hotels in the French Quarter, as far as meetups with ghosts are concerned.

And what do you know? The Hotel Monteleone has been the subject of ghostly whispers and allegations of dark secrets and ‘unexplained’ occurences. Even better, they’re offering a Haunted Weekend package for Halloween, from Oct 31 to Nov 2, 2008. $479 per person, double occupancy, and includes a 3 day, 2 night stay with deluxe digs, breakfast on both mornings, welcome reception with hors d’oeuvres, cocktails and dinner on Saturday.

Weaved in with your stay is a ‘Murder Mystery Weekend’, with performers from Murder Mystery Weekend Inc. and Murder Mystery USA, some of whom will blend in as guests and then dissappear. Its upto you to figure out what happened, follow the twists and turns and use the clues to solve the mystery of the missing people. For reservations, call (800) 535-9595, or visit the hotel’s website for more details.

No shortage of things to do on vacation in the Big Easy, but when you literally have Cajun Spirits to scare the bezezzus out of you, coupled with sumptous Southern hospitality and dining, well… That’s one New Orleans spectacle you don’t want to miss out on.

Photo copyrights - Hotel Monteleone, 214 Rue Royale New Orleans Louisiana 70130; (504) 523-3341

Posted on September 2nd, 2008 by Thomas
Filed under: Festivals, Hotels