Overview
Le Pavillon opened in 1907 as the New Hotel Denechaud, a French Renaissance landmark in the New Orleans Central Business District that boasted the city's first hydraulic elevator and later housed its first radio station in the penthouse; renamed over the decades and known as the 'Belle of New Orleans', it is listed on the National Register and freshly renovated, its marble lobby hung with crystal chandeliers. Its haunted reputation is among the strongest of the city's grand hotels: the most told story is of a young girl from the horse-and-carriage era, often called Ava or Adda, said to have died in an accident nearby and now glimpsed in the corridors, and past investigations and staff accounts have described several other presences, from a wandering couple in evening dress to a playful spirit blamed for moved belongings. The hotel has long embraced this lore in its storytelling. These accounts should be presented as legend and guest reports rather than proven phenomena, and the deaths within them handled with care. Current room and booking details should be confirmed from the official site before publishing.