Saints and Sinners Tour, French Quarter Phantoms

"Zoom out. What’s the big picture here? Tour operator French Quarter Phantoms is one of the larger tour options in New Orleans, and this is one of their more niche tours; one that dives into the seedier side of the city’s history in a way that the regular ghost and cemetery tours don’t. My tour group of 10 or so met with guide Bobby outside the Voodoo Lounge dive bar to set out on our experience detailing the city's few “saints” and many “sinners." Advance reservations are required, as group sizes are capped. You can expect a well-curated and well-researched experience, but with a chance for the guide’s personality to shine through. Tell us about your fellow tourees. Our group is mainly young people, with a range of looks from groups in full-on gothic makeup and clothing to casual solo guests like myself. Everyone except me is from out of town, though the details divulged on the tour would definitely interest even locals. There’s around a mile and a half of walking over two or so hours, with a break at a local bar half way through. It’s a slow, meandering pace most people would find easy going. How are the guides? Bobby starts the tour with a warning about the potential for lewd language, and although some of the stories do stray into bawdy territory, there’s nothing offensive or overly profane. Bobby obviously knows a lot about the history of the city, and he’s not shy about mixing in general-knowledge gems between the more lurid stories. He’s a jovial, expressive, and knows how to weave the tales of mischief with the wider historical points that give the juicier morsels some context. Anything you’ll be remembering weeks or months or years from now? Learning the origins of the more hedonistic parts of the French Quarter is an eye-opening part of the experience: The revelry of Bourbon Street, for instance, has its beginnings in bars that were opened to accommodate theater-goers when NOLA's first opera house operated. The saints on this tour are far and few between, with the bravery and fairness of Henriette DeLille (a Black Catholic nun in the 19th century) given some well-earned respect. The sinners arrive fast and frequently, from brutal pioneers to corrupt politicians to those who exploited sex workers in the city’s famous ‘Storyville’ neighborhood. It’s a risqué mix, delivered entertainingly and even-handedly. So: money, time—how can we make the most of both? Guests looking for shock value or controversy might be disappointed by the substance of this tour. While there are some gory details, it’s not really going to offend anyone (outside of the very sensitive). There’s a very decent amount of local history divulged, with great facts about the city’s early days and scene-setting tales of topics ranging from the local burlesque scene to pirates and other unsavory characters that probably don’t crop up in most history tours. The tour was serious when it needed to be and lighthearted when it could be, and I’d say most people left satisfied." - Paul Oswell