New Orleans, Louisiana
French Quarter self-guided walking tour.
An original loop through the French Quarter: Jackson Square and the Cabildo, Café du Monde and the French Market, the Old Ursuline Convent, Lafitte’s Blacksmith Shop, the Cornstalk Hotel, Napoleon House and Pirate’s Alley. Read the stops here, then open the mapped route on your iPhone.
Start at St. Louis Cathedral
The loop begins on Chartres Street in front of St. Louis Cathedral, facing Jackson Square. Walk in daylight, follow local signs and diversions, and bring water. The route follows mapped pedestrian paths, but it has not been walked on site by DailyWander.
- On iPhone, get DailyWander if you do not have it.
- Return to this page and tap Open the tour in DailyWander. Check the preview, then choose Open in DailyWander.
- In the app, review the route and choose Start this route or Save route. Keep this guide handy for the stop notes.
Museum visits, meals and drinks are separate and are not included in the walking time. Streets in the Quarter can be closed for parades and events; follow local diversions.
Seven stops, in walking order
The route uses public viewpoints. Check the linked sources for current access before planning a visit inside.
Stop 1
Jackson Square and St. Louis Cathedral
Start on Chartres Street in front of St. Louis Cathedral, with Jackson Square at your back. A church has stood on this site since the 1720s; the present building largely dates from a rebuilding around 1850. Facing the cathedral, the building on your left is the Cabildo, built under Spanish rule in 1795–1799. The Louisiana Purchase transfer ceremonies took place there in 1803, and it is now a Louisiana State Museum.
Stop 2
Café du Monde and the French Market
Walk through or around Jackson Square to Café du Monde on Decatur Street, the open-air coffee stand known for café au lait and beignets, then follow the French Market downriver along Decatur Street. The market traces its first building to 1782, under Spanish rule, and has stood on this stretch of the riverfront since 1790. Its shops and Farmers and Flea Markets keep daytime hours.
Stop 3
Old Ursuline Convent
Turn away from the river to 1100 Chartres Street. The convent was built around 1750 for the Ursuline nuns, who arrived in the colony in 1727. It is counted among the oldest buildings in the Mississippi Valley and is the oldest American example of French colonial public architecture. It is now a museum with its own opening hours; the walk passes the Chartres Street gate.
Stop 4
Lafitte’s Blacksmith Shop
Walk up St. Philip Street to the corner cottage at 941 Bourbon Street. Its exact construction date is unclear, but it dates from the late 18th century, when Louisiana was under Spanish rule, and it is one of the few buildings of that age still standing. Legend links it to the privateers Jean and Pierre Lafitte, though there is no firm evidence for the story. Today it is a bar.
Preservation Resource Center: Lafitte’s Blacksmith Shop, truths vs. tales
Stop 5
The Cornstalk Hotel
Head back toward the river to 915 Royal Street. The house dates from 1816, and its cast-iron fence of cornstalks twined with morning glories went up in 1856, cast by a Philadelphia foundry. The often-told story is that the owner ordered it for his wife, who missed the cornfields of her native Iowa. If you walk our Garden District tour, you will see the same pattern at Colonel Short’s Villa. The building is a hotel: view the fence from the sidewalk.
Stop 6
Napoleon House
Follow Royal Street upriver to St. Louis Street, then turn toward the river to the corner of Chartres. Napoleon House, at 500 Chartres, was the residence of Nicholas Girod, mayor of New Orleans. Its name comes from Girod’s offer of the house as a refuge for the exiled Napoleon Bonaparte, who died on Saint Helena in 1821 without coming. It is now a restaurant and bar.
Stop 7
Pirate’s Alley and Faulkner House
Walk back along Chartres Street and turn into Pirate’s Alley, the narrow lane between the Cabildo and the cathedral. At number 624, William Faulkner rented rooms in 1925 and began his first novel, Soldiers’ Pay. The ground floor is now Faulkner House Books. From here the mapped route returns to the cathedral steps on Chartres Street.
American Library Association: Literary Landmark, Faulkner House
Keep the route with you
The tour link opens a route preview with an iPhone handoff. You can also download the GPX and open it from Files → Share → Daily Wander. The app shows the route; this page supplies the stop descriptions.
French Quarter walking-tour questions
How long is this French Quarter walking tour?
The mapped loop is about 1.4 miles (2.2 km). That is roughly 30 minutes of moving time at 3 mph; allow 1½–2 hours with stops. Museum visits or a coffee at Café du Monde add time.
Can I go inside the stops?
The Cabildo and the Old Ursuline Convent are museums with their own hours and admission. Café du Monde, Lafitte’s Blacksmith Shop, Napoleon House and Faulkner House Books are businesses, and the Cornstalk Hotel is a hotel. The walk itself uses public streets and sidewalks.
Can I follow the route on my iPhone?
Yes. Tap Open the tour in DailyWander, check the route preview and choose Open in DailyWander. If you need the app, install it first and return to this page. The page supplies the stop notes; the app shows the walking route.
Does the walk return to the start?
Yes. The loop starts and finishes on Chartres Street in front of St. Louis Cathedral, facing Jackson Square.
Can I combine it with the Garden District?
Yes. The St. Charles Avenue streetcar runs from Canal Street, at the edge of the French Quarter, to the Garden District. Our Garden District tour starts at The Rink, one block from the line.
Can I download the GPX instead?
Yes. Download the GPX from this page, save it in Files on iPhone and share it to Daily Wander. The route geometry is available under the Open Database License.
Another walk in New Orleans
Take the St. Charles Avenue streetcar uptown for the Garden District self-guided walking tour: Lafayette Cemetery No. 1, Commander’s Palace and the original Cornstalk Fence. For a different distance or a loop from your hotel, use the US walking-route planner.
More self-guided tours: Charleston and Amsterdam.
Original itinerary by VANTH Studio. Reviewed October 9, 2026. Route geometry from OpenStreetMap via the FOSSGIS pedestrian router; distance measured along the track. Actual time depends on your pace, stops and diversions. Access to venues is controlled by their operators.