Fans of the popular FX television show American Horror Story who visit New Orleans are discovering a well-kept secret—an unauthorized tour of the show’s film locations in New Orleans’s French Quarter. People mostly discover the tour through word of mouth. The tour is unauthorized because the tour guide is not associated with FX Television, Twentieth Century Fox Film or anyone or anything connected with the show. A licensed tour guide gives the tour, so you know you are in good hands.
Jason heard about the tour from another tour guide. His only problem was he didn’t know where he could go to take the tour. He finally found the website http://www.americanhorrorstorytour.com. He later also found the tour at www.viator.com. There are two tours per day. One morning tour leaves from Jackson Square and ends at the cemetery. The second tour starts at the cemetery and ends at Jackson Square.
The tour Jason went on started at the St Louis #1 Cemetery. The cemetery tour, which lasted a little over thirty minutes, was fascinating and very informative. He saw Marie Laveau’s tomb and did the thing where you knock three times, turn around and ask Marie to grant you a wish. That’s the old tradition. He also learned that it’s a federal crime with a $10,000 fine to mark on the tomb.
When the group left the cemetery, they were given a chance to grab some water or something else and take a bathroom break. The tour went over to the French Quarter and explored several locations where interior and exterior scenes were filmed for American Horror Story, including the location where Marie Laveau once lived, a popular jazz venue where the story of the Axeman was heard, the corner where Fiona and the four witches—all dressed in black—stopped on the way to a fountain and the location of the first witchcraft store in New Orleans. The all time favorite stop was Madam Lalaurie’s mansion. The house has so much history and they even learned that Nicholas Cage once owned it. The tour ended in the French Market, a great central location. (If the tour starts in Jackson Square, it will end at the St Louis Cemetery #1.)
The American Horror Story tour is about 2 hours long with about 8 or 9 stops. It’s a walking tour, so be sure to wear comfortable shoes. The tour is $25, but it’s less if you know a magic word. I’m told the magic word changes everyday. You can make reservations online at http://www.americanhorrorstorytour.com or www.viator.com or you can sometimes walk up and get a spot on the tour.
Note: Everyone must pay to go into the St Louis Cemetery #1 to see Marie Laveau’s tomb. The tour guides taking people into the cemetery charge $15-20 bucks for maybe a 45-minute cemetery tour. You will be much better off spending the extra $5-10 bucks to take the two-hour tour.