New Orleans Travel Guide

TOP TEN THINGS TO DO IN NEW ORLEANS

Laissez les bons temps rouler! Translated from French means, let the good times roll! Music, mayhem and revelry are all part and parcel of the New Orleans experience. This city with its amazing cultural mash-up (Cajun, African, Caribbean, Creole, Spanish, Italian, American etc.) tops any bucket list as one of the most exciting travel destinations in the U.S., if not the world!

MARDI GRAS MADNESS

Mardi Gras in New Orleans must be the best party ever! Its world famous parades feature glitzy floats, scantily clad dancers and musicians to create loud and gaudy processions. Everyone throws necklaces from the floats (green, purple and gold shiny baubles) and different districts try to outdo each other every year to create the best parade. Mardi Gras always takes place on the Tuesday before Ash Wednesday, which is usually in February. As the most famous street in the French Quarter, Bourbon Street is always one of the best places to watch a parade but there are dozens of them happening all over the city. And the party atmosphere starts before Mardi Gras itself with popular parades like Endymion, Bacchus, Zulu and Rex all taking place the weekend before Tuesday. Mardi Gras also has ‘blast from the past’ aristocratic balls that are, strictly, invitation only. Each ball will have its own King and Queen as well as debutantes. Invitations used to be created in Paris and are so beautiful as to be treasured keepsakes. But for most folks, it is about partying, wearing a mask or costume and soaking up the incredible atmosphere of Mardi Gras.

THE FANTASTIC FRENCH QUARTER

At the beating heart of the historic French Quarter is Bourbon Street, full of nightclubs, brothels, restaurants and is the quarter’s most popular hang-out. These days, this part of the French Quarter is a bit grimy and fallen down but that just adds to its charm. Confusingly, the architecture is more Spanish than French with iron work balconies and courtyards prominent. Rue de Royale (Royal Street) is very upmarket with antique shops, art galleries and excellent eateries, including the Court of Two Sisters with its famous courtyard and fantastic all-you-can-eat buffet. Enormous doors leading into courtyards are left over from horse and carriage days.

Jazz and blues music is an important part of the French Quarter with many venues boasting live music every day of the year.

On the corner of Chartres Street is Napoleon House which was actually built for Napoleon to spend his exile in a plot hatched to rescue him from St. Helena. It now houses a restaurant and the courtyard is a wonderful place for sipping their speciality cocktail, Pimm’s Cup.

Around the corner from Napoleon House, also on Chartres Street, is the New Orleans Pharmacy Museum located in the first apothecary in the country. Blood-letting, leeches and gris gris potions used by Voodoo practitioners are some of the exhibits and part of the experience. Louis J. Dufilho, Jr. became America's First Licensed Pharmacist in 1816 after the State of Louisiana introduced laws stating pharmacists must be licensed in order to practice.

Another highlight of the quarter is Jackson Square, originally named Place d' Armes and is located in front of St. Louis Catholic Cathedral. The iron fences, walkways, benches, and Parisian-style landscaping from the original design by Baroness Micaela Almonester-Pontalba in 1851, still remain. Shops and restaurants surround this historic square and horse-drawn carriage rides are situated nearby for those who want to see the French Quarter at a relaxed pace.

There are fantastic hotels in the French Quarter like the elegant Royal Sonestra Hotel and the famous Cornstalk Hotel on Royal Street (one of the most photographed buildings in the quarter). Some hotels were formerly the town homes of plantation owners like the Soniat House Hotel on Rue de Chartres. Across the street is one of the very few original French structures to survive in the old quarter. The Old Ursuline Convent is kept in pristine condition by the Catholic Archdiocese of New Orleans.

The French Market, which is located off Decatur St. near the banks of the Mississippi River is a fun and fantastic place to visit. It has fruit and vegetables and other raw ingredients for cooking as well as all sorts of general products, clothing and souvenirs.

STREET MUSIC

So you’re getting the picture. New Orleans has ‘party atmosphere’ oozing out of every pore and it is always accompanied by music. Jazz, jive and blues is happening in loads of venues and on nearly every street corner and square. Bourbon Street, Royal Street and Decatur Street all have live music on every curb and corner.

The Court of Two Sisters has a trio in their courtyard every lunch time and there are great venues like Howl at the Moon for listening to bands but it is outdoors where the music is the most infectious.

Frenchmen Street is the new alternative to Bourbon Street and offers a lively street culture with fun overflowing from bars and music venues. Bluegrass and gypsy jazz pick-up bands nestle into stoops along the strip. Brass bands are commonly found on the corner of Chartres and Frenchmen, and before you know it, you'll be dancing in the streets like a local.

In Jackson Square, there are often impromptu concerts and all musical styles are on offer, oh, and it will usually with brass instruments. Many musicians hail from New Orleans (Louis Armstrong, Harry Connick Jr. and Wynton Marsalis are just a few of the great jazz artists) and the tradition continues today.

BRING ON THE NIGHTLIFE!

Only in New Orleans would you have a bar based on a liquor that has been outlawed. The Old Absinthe House on Bourbon Street is named after an alcoholic beverage thought to have toxic qualities. Pat O'Brien's Bar on 718 St. Peter Street, is well known both for inventing the red cocktail, Hurricane, as well as having the first duelling Piano Bar. A great place to visit is old Lafitte's Blacksmith Shop; a tavern located on the corner of Bourbon and St. Philip streets and built sometime before 1772.

Dance clubs are all the rage now and some of the most popular are on Bourbon Street. Bourbon Heat is a trendy new place that boasts a huge courtyard, unique lighting and great service, while Beach on Bourbon and Bourbon Cowboy are two other new places to try. Krazy Korner, The Famous Door and the Cat’s Meow are also top spots where you can dance ‘till the wee hours and also on Bourbon Street. Old Opera House is where the good times roll and you might even see a famous musician or two; while The Oz is a popular gay night club. Like many before him, actor Channing Tatum fell for the Big Easy in a big way. Channing Tatum’s Saints and Sinners is the star’s new restaurant/bar tribute to the city’s famous Storyville red-light district on Bourbon Street.

Harrah’s New Orleans Casino on Canal Street is a great place for high rollers or just those that want a flutter.

Sweet Lorraine’s Jazz Club on St. Claude Street is a classy establishment and a New Orleans’ institution. Leave your t-shirts and sandals at home and get jazzed up proper if you’re headed here to check out the music and the club’s Creole menu. At Sweet Lorraine’s, New Orleans musicians dig deep into jazz, both smooth and modern, and the more up-to-date styles of rhythm and blues.

EATING

The mix of cultures in New Orleans (Cajun, Creole, Spanish, French and American) has created a cuisine that is truly unique. Po’boys, turtle soup, red beans ‘n’ rice, crawfish, Shrimp Etoufee are just a few of the many dishes on offer. There are classic restaurants here that have been around for generations, such as Antoine’s and Galatoire’s, but why not try out some of the funkier places, too?

The closest thing to a chain restaurant in New Orleans is the Café du Monde, one of which is in the French Market as well as on Royal Street. Famous for freshly baked doughnuts covered in powdered sugar called Beignets, there are several cafes throughout the French Quarter.

R’evolution, inside the Royal Sonestra Hotel on 777 Bienville Street, is one of the newest, chicest restaurants in the French Quarter. A bit pricey but well worth it. Two chefs, one from Chicago and one New Orleans, are the creativity behind this top class eatery.

Napoleon House (yes, built for the Napoleon himself) located at 500 Chartres Street specialises in Po’Boys and Pimms Cup cocktails. Its historic yet casual atmosphere is a hit with tourists and locals alike.

Acme Oysters on 724 Iberville Street offers fantastic cheesy chargrilled oysters and crawfish when in season. Chef Scott Schick’s wonderful red beans n’ rice or Shrimp Etoufee are worth a try. Chef Scott’s home-style gumbo which is, of course, an old family recipe is also delicious.

The Court of Two Sisters in the French Quarter is a wonderful place to eat outdoors. Experience their extensive buffet in the old-fashioned courtyard (along with a great jazz trio). As you walk toward the buffet, it will hit you like a brick…the aroma of freshly baked cornbread. Mouth wateringly good.

Dickie Brennan’s newest restaurant, Tableau on 616 St. Peter Street, offers excellent traditional New Orleans traditional. The Turtle soup with sherry is just plain decadent.

TERRIFYING TOUR OF THE ST LOUIS CEMETERY

Going on a graveyard tour, especially at night, might sound scary but it is actually a fun way to get to know the early inhabitants of this unique city. The vaults in the three St. Louis cemeteries are completely above ground. Interring bodies in mausoleums is a tradition of the French and Spanish though some think New Orleans cemeteries were built like this because of flooding. Voodoo tours inevitably visit the Glapian Family crypt where Queen of Voodoo, Marie Laveau, is laid to rest. It is festooned with beauty products, candles and flowers as Marie, a Louisiana Creole, was a beautician as well as a practitioner of the voodoo arts. Saint Louis Cemetery No. 1 is one block north of Basin Street and encompasses one city block.

Famous people buried here include Etienne de Bore, wealthy sugar plantation owner and first mayor of New Orleans. Homer Plessy, plaintiff in the 1896 Plessy v. Ferguson Supreme Court decision on civil rights is also here as is Ernest N. "Dutch" Morial, the first African-American mayor of New Orleans.

Others buried here are Bernard de Marigny, the French-Creole playboy who brought the game of craps to the United States; Barthelemy Lafon, an architect and surveyor who allegedly became one of Jean Lafitte's pirates; and Paul Morphy, one of the earliest world champions of chess.

In 2010, actor Nicolas Cage purchased a pyramid shaped tomb to be his final resting place.

SWAMP TOUR

If gators and snakes are your thing, then a swamp tour is for you. Alligators might even seem to attack the boat once you are out on the bayou. But they just want to get at some of the goodies proffered by the boat captains. It is places like St. Tammany Parish and the Pearl River State Wildlife Reserve where there are fantastic swamp excursions. With Cajun Encounters Tours you can motor down the Pearl River to see alligators, snakes, wild pigs and all sorts of other critters. If you go during the summer months, it will be hot and humid but still a wonderful, if slightly terrifying, experience. It takes about 40 minutes to get to swamp country. Travel out from the French Quarter on Baronne St. to US90 East and then I-10 W. It is only a few miles to the other side of enormous Lake Pontchartrain. Cross the lake via the Lake Pontchartrain Bridge (longest bridge in the world at 23 miles) and you are soon in alligator territory.

SHOPPING

Anyone who loves a bargain should head out to the new outlet shopping mall located on the Mississippi River, right next to the ferry terminal and Canal Street. The Outlet Collection at Riverwalk has three levels of shops with national and local brands as well as restaurants under one roof. It is the first ever outlet mall built within the city limits in the United States.

Quirky shops are a big part of the French Quarter shopping experience. There is a fantastic shop dedicated solely to selling masks for Mardi Gras called the Maskarade Shop on St. Ann Street. Antique shopping is another big favourite (Bourbon, Decatur or Royal Streets) have more antique shops than you could count so you should be able to find some real gems.

Jackson Square is lined with shops offering souvenirs, trinkets, clothing and assorted goodies. Clothing and shoe shops are virtually all around the French Quarter offering everything from casual outfits to dressier upmarket fare.

There are literally 6 miles of shops on Magazine Street which runs from Cable Street, through the Garden District all the way to uptown New Orleans. There are loads of restaurants here as well if you need some fuel to keep on shopping!

Also on Cable Street is an excellent shopping mall with luxury goods. The Shops at Canal Place is the place to go for that high end handbag or pair of shoes.

GARDEN DISTRICT

Be a fancy pants and take a horse drawn carriage tour around the elegant and historic Garden District. This New Orleans neighbourhood is populated with gorgeous antebellum mansions from the 19th century. Drivers will take you past the Anne Rice house (famous for Vampire novels) and fill you in on all the gossip of present and past residents.

The intersection of Prytania Street and Washington Avenue is the heart of the Garden District and has shopping and cafes as well as the historic Lafayette Cemetery # 1. This cemetery has been a back drop for film, literature and photography and is a cool attraction. Directly across the street you can’t miss the gaudy exterior of Commander's Palace Restaurant. In operation since 1880, Commander's is a New Orleans culinary institution and- their brunches are legendary.

VISIT THE PLANTATION HOUSE WHERE HUSH HUSH SWEET CHARLOTTE WAS FILMED

No trip to New Orleans is complete without a visit into the past of the Deep South; where sugar cane and cotton growing made millionaires of the individuals who owned these enormous plantations.

Hush Hush Sweet Charlotte was filmed at Houmas House, one of these original plantation homes. It is located about a 45 minute drive east of the city in Darrow, Louisiana. This stunning antebellum mansion has been continuously lived in since it was built in the 19th century and boasts 16 rooms of period antiques and Louisiana artwork. The current owner, Kevin Kelley, lives in the property and has for many years. Quite a few of the keepsakes, paintings and furnishings belonged to the original owners, Maurice Conway and Alexander Latil who bought the land from the Houmas Indians in the late 1700's.

If you are lucky, tour guide Judy will take you on the official tour of the house. She will not only regale you with tales of the family, the plantation and the Deep South but might also give you an impromptu concert on the grand piano in the parlour. Ask her to play the theme song from Hush Hush Sweet Charlotte. I am fairly sure she will be happy to oblige.