Four Days: New Orleans

I love New Orleans. Sure, it’s not everyone’s favorite, but I always say: don’t knock it until you’ve experienced it for yourself. And by “experience it,” I don’t mean just wandering Bourbon Street or hitting up Mardi Gras—unless that’s your thing.

The real magic of New Orleans is that it offers something for everyone. Whether you’re into live jazz, Creole cuisine, haunted history, or LGBTQ-friendly nightlife, there’s a version of the city that’s just right for you.

New Orleans is more than its party reputation—it’s a vibrant, culturally rich city filled with layers of music, food, art, and history. Don’t let clichés define your travel plans. Dig a little deeper, and NOLA will surprise you in the best way.

Know Before You Go

Most, but not all, of my New Orleans adventures have been anchored in the French Quarter and downtown areas. That’s certainly not all of New Orleans there is to see, but if most of your activities are centered in this area as well, it’s a good sign not to bother with a rental car. Parking can be a hassle and expensive, many of the streets are narrow and congested (and may be closed or blocked at times by deliveries, parades, or who knows what). Besides, you’ll see more while walking or taking the streetcar, and taxis or ride shares are generally plentiful.

Getting into town from New Orleans Airport:

Locals insist that the fastest and most direct transportation to and from the airport is via taxi: $36 for one to two passengers and $15 each for additional folks. The taxi line just outside the airport should move quickly. Note that cabbies often prefer cash, although they are required to accept cards.
Uber and Lyft fares average about $40 each way, but could be (much) higher if it’s a busy time and surge pricing takes effect. On Friday of Labor Day weekend, there was a long-ish line of folks waiting but prices both directions were about equal to taxi fares.
And if you’re looking for the most economical transport to downtown or the French Quarter, the RTA bus is $1.25 each way with cash, the RTA app, or a fare card. Keep in mind, it will most certainly not be the fastest and isn’t door-to-door so you may have a long walk with luggage depending on your hotel location.

Oh, New Orleans. Our Lyft driver had her tuba in the trunk when she arrived.

Once you’re in New Orleans, get ready to have a great time (obviously). But do be prepared. My comments here are likely not that different than other guides, but worth reiterating:

Wear good (closed toe) shoes that can get wet or dirty. Especially if you’ve made the downtown area your home base, you’ll do a lot of walking. And depending on where you’re walking, the streets may have some, uh … puddles (!) you won’t want to inadvertently dip your bare toes or expensive new shoes into. There’s also the regular puddles from street cleaners and sudden thunderstorms, so bringing a second pair of shoes may be valuable so you have a dry pair when needed.
New Orleans gets hot. Remember, it’s further south than San Diego and Phoenix. So plan to drink lots of water interspersed with that Cafe du Monde coffee, hurricanes, and whatever else you’re doing.
Be smart, take out only the things you need, and stay aware of your surroundings. This is true anywhere and shouldn’t be interpreted to say New Orleans is unsafe: over multiple trips and many late nights, I’ve never had any issues. But street performers and some nefarious folks are highly experienced at taking advantage of folks for their gain. Don’t become a statistic.
And after you’ve remembered the above items, take note that drinking in public is legal in the French Quarter (as long as you’re of legal drinking age and not in a car), though you’ll most certainly want to trade your glass for a plastic to-go cup before you head outside, because glass is a no-go. (Pro tip: if you’re drinking beer or seltzer on your walk, save some money by grabbing one from CVS or Walgreens.)

Finally, be aware that New Orleans hosts all sorts of events throughout the year which could be great fun and/or could mean crowds and expensive flights and accommodations. Obviously, Mardi Gras is a headliner in this regard, but other major events range from food and music festivals of all sorts, to Southern Decadence (more below), to Essence Fest—the Independence Day celebration started by Essence Magazine in 1995, plus everything in between.

LGBTQ Safety

New Orleans, in my experience, is a place that welcomes LGBTQ folks with welcome arms (and beads). The city earned a score of 86 in HRC’s database of LGBTQ legal protections, though almost all of these are at the city level, so keep that in mind if you wander further afield. Statewide, Louisiana earns a D grade from Safehome.org for LGBTQ safety—their rating is a mix of legal protections and reported hate crime statistics (both the quality and quantity of data available to them and the fact that it’s statewide mean the ranking is imperfect, but I still found it of interest since few other resources include hate crime statistics in their formulas). As well, Louisiana is listed as one of the worst states in terms of transgender protections and current or pending anti-trans laws, so keep that in mind if you choose to visit—especially as you consider identification for air travel.

Sightseeing Highlights

Just strolling around New Orleans is a treat in itself, so long as you don’t melt from the heat and humidity. The French Quarter is in a league of its own for people watching (not always for the best reasons), but there’s much more to see and do. A few of my highlights are below, which could also be supplemented by other guides or guidebooks.

Bourbon Street, Frenchmen Street jazz clubs, and Jackson Square

In or Near French Quarter

Bourbon Street is clearly one of the best-known parts of New Orleans, but don’t let its reputation be your only perspective. Yes, the later it gets, the messier it gets, but afternoons can be a wonderful opportunity to catch live music, maybe an impromptu parade, and the spectacle that is uniquely New Orleans.
Louis Armstrong Park is just at the edge of the French Quarter and is filled with history, sculpture, theaters, and a wonderfully calm green space that feels a world away from the the chaos of Bourbon Street.
Frenchmen Street, and in particular, several blocks near the River, is a spectacle of New Orleans jazz and live music. Especially in the evenings, the area is hopping with great music, libations, and food. On weekends, many of the clubs have a cover, the weeknights are just as fun and typically have little or no entrance fee. Bamboula’s and Snug Harbor were a couple of my favorites.
The Mississippi Riverfront is a great place to take in the river and cityscape. With all the great food in New Orleans, it’s also a good spot to get out for a run, if that’s your thing. The Shops of the Colonnade and French Market Crafts Bazaar are also fun to wander through and find some local wares.
Jackson Square and adjacent St. Louis Cathedral are right next to the river, but provide a distinct backdrop and are similarly full of New Orleans history. Artists paint, draw, and otherwise display and sell their works around the square (especially on weekends), so it’s also a low-key way to take in some art while you’re strolling around the area.

Outside of the French Quarter

Uptown, which includes the Garden District, has “the looks in the family, bless its heart,” according to the NewOrleans.com page. From the majestic houses and manicured gardens to the ornate iron work, this neighborhood is a sight to behold. Fans of Interview with the Vampire can also check out Anne Rice’s former mansion here, as well as plenty of other city sights featured in the Interview TV series.
Whether in the Garden District or elsewhere, the New Orleans streetcar is not only a great way to get around New Orleans, at least to the areas they serve. But it’s also a great experience in itself, catching all the sights along the way (like the Tulane campus). And the historic trolley cars themselves are charming too. As with the bus from the airport, pay with cash, the RTA app, or via a pass (multi-day passes are available).
Throughout the city, New Orleans cemeteries are unique and historic. Tours are a great way to get a deeper dive into the stories and history, but even a self-guided walk through the above-ground crypts is a fascinating exploration of things that are uniquely New Orleans.
Outside of New Orleans, a swamp tour is another unique experience rarely found elsewhere. Most tour companies offer shuttles to downtown hotels (see: no car needed!). We did an airboat tour, but other options are available too where you can see alligators, the regions swamplands, and (at least in our case) some massive spiders (!). Maybe not something you’d need to do every trip, but certainly fun to check out at least once.

New Orleans Streetcar, swamp tours, and historic cemeteries

Eating and Drinking

Look, you could eat and drink your way through New Orleans for a month and not even scratch the surface of all the great places to go. Clearly, there are a lot of guides and everybody’s tastes (and budgets) are a little different, but a large handful of suggestions are here. Note also that New Orleans’ version of Restaurant Week, COOLinary, is a 6-week long event with special dishes and tasting menus all across town.

There are a lot of spots in New Orleans that might be considered touristy, but typically they’re busy with tourists for good reason. Some of my favorites in that category include:

Pat O’Briens is surely one of the more touristy spots on this list, but they are the birthplace of the hurricane cocktail and I’ve found their food to be good. Plus, they have a great courtyard patio. Note: they’re closed on Mondays and Tuesdays.
Commander’s Palace is a New Orleans fine dining institution. Emeril Lagasse made his start here (succeeding Chef Paul Prudhomme, for those who follow notable chefs) before he opened his own restaurant. Commander’s is now owned by part of the Brennan family who are legends in the New Orleans restaurant scene (more on that below). Make reservations, check their dress code (skip the jeans and wear a collared shirt, guys) and plan to drop some coin. Entrees start at $30-40.
Dragos in the New Orleans Hilton is well known for their charbroiled oysters, but the rest of the menu is good too. If you’re just going for oysters or other small bites, grab a seat at the bar.
Brennan’s is another New Orleans institution and where the Brennan family got their start in the city back in 1946. As with Commander’s Palace, this is a place to splurge as well as one to make reservations. There is a dress code here too, but it’s more relaxed that Commander’s Palace. Fun facts: the family that owns this restaurant also has other notable restaurants around the city. Founder Owen Brennan’s widow and children operate separately and bought Commander’s in 1969, while Owen Brennan’s siblings and their children retain this restaurant and the namesake restaurant group.
The Sazerac Bar inside the Roosevelt New Orleans is a worthwhile stop if you’re a fan of bourbon (and especially rye) drinks. They’re not cheap, but they will get your evening off to quite a start and the bar itself is beautiful and stately with its artwork and wood paneling.
Cochon is probably a splurge-level dinner spot for most people (it was for us), but the food was fantastic and service was equally good. There are dishes that many folks would consider pretty adventurous, but the basics are well done too, as was my gumbo. Get reservations if you can, but they state that they save spot for walk-ins too.
Last, but not least on this list is Cafe du Monde. Honestly, at $4 for 3 modestly-sized pieces of fried dough, you could consider it a tourist trap. But they are delicious, the people watching is amazing, and at $4, it’s not really a wallet-buster, so why not?

Gumbo at Cochon, Beignets at Cafe du Monde, and chicken at Willie Mae’s

But not all of New Orleans restaurants are on the tourist circuit. There’s an endless list of places to fill your belly. Those include:

Cafe Beignet has a much broader menu than the name suggests, and is a good spot for the namesake sugar-dusted fried dough, a full breakfast, or a po boy. They have four locations – I’ve only been to the one on Bourbon Street, but that one has a large outdoor patio, often with live music.
Dat Dog—yes, hot dogs—offers some solid budget-friendly eats on Frenchmen Street. I thought it was a great spot to get a little food in my belly in between jazz shows (and drinks). Bonus: the 2nd floor balcony gives a Birds Eye view of the street.
Willa Jean’s serves up baked goods and breakfast and is a good excuse to get on the streetcar (it’s between the French Quarter and Garden District). It’s primarily first-come-first-served, but you can get in line by checking in on line. (Follow the link above.)
Coops Place describes themselves as “a true taste of New Orleans at down home prices” and the combo plate will give you a taste of it all. They’re right by the Colonnade and Crafts Bazaar and just a couple blocks from the jazz clubs on Frenchmen Street.
Central Grocery and Napoleon House in the French Quarter are go-to spots for muffuletta sandwiches (Central Grocery is said to have introduced the sandwich to the USA when Sicilian Lupo Salvadore opened Central Grocery in 1906).
Deja Vu in the French Quarter was on my list after after someone recommended their red beans and rice (which were definitely good), but their po boys are great and the service was good too.
The Court of Two Sisters has a live jazz brunch every day of the week from 9am to 3pm (they also serve dinner). It’s a buffet, but it allows for sampling a little bit of everything. The front room is held for walk ins, the nicer back room and courtyard are typically for those with reservations. The musicians rotate between the two spaces so hopefully your timing is better than mine since they were in the other room most of the time I was there.
Key’s Gas Station on Rampart and Governor Nicholls has literally the crispiest fried chicken I think I’ve ever had. It’s great for a late night bite after the bars 😆
Daisy Dukes, on the opposite side of Canal Street from the French Quarter, is also open late and is a reliable option if you need some food in your belly before turning in. Notice, I said reliable not good. I mean, it’s fine and the staff are surprisingly friendly for what they probably have to deal with at 2am. But Michelin isn’t doling out any stars here anytime soon.
Willie Mae’s Scotch House is a drive from the French Quarter, but oh-so-worth it for their amazing fried chicken. Expect at least a short wait and maybe an extended one at busy times. NOTE: as of August 2024, their New Orleans restaurant said it’s temporarily closed (😢). I suggest checking their website or Google to see when it’s reopened.

There are also several recommendations shared while I was planning my most recent trip. I haven’t checked these out yet, but they’re on my short list!

Deja Vu’s po boy, Key’s fried chicken, and Daisy Duke’s po boy.

The Quarter Grocery at Burgundy and Dumaine has a deli in the back with “the best sandwiches” (which can apparently feed multiple folks) as well as other food.
Adolfo’s on Frenchmen is said to serve great Italian food (next door to Dat Dog) with Creole flair.
The Original Pierre Maspero’s (next door to Napoleon House) has a menu full of classic Creole favorites that looks delicious.
NOLA PoBoys is either the best place (“great poboys”) or the worst place (“terrible service”) you could go on Bourbon Street, but the location’s convenient and prices are good.
Speaking of Po Boys, on Royal, Verti Marte’s All the Jazz Poboy is stacked with turkey, ham, shrimp, cheese, mushrooms, tomato, and sauce. Sounds delicious.
Deanie’s Seafood in the French Quarter serves up all the favorites: fried stuffed shrimp, BBQ shrimp, gumbo and so on. And supposedly has the “best bloody Mary’s.”

Nightlife

Typically, I’d focus on LGBTQ+ nightlife here, but even for gay and other people looking for a space surrounded by folks like them, it would be a shame to ignore the other great nightlife in New Orleans, especially the jazz clubs on Frenchmen Street like the Spotted Cat, Bamboula’s, and Snug Harbor.

But if you’re looking for places that cater primarily to the LGBTQ+ community, New Orleans has plenty of that too! Most of the bars are on or near Bourbon Street and St. Ann, but there are a few a little further afield as well. A relatively complete list is HERE; read on for my abbreviated one:

Bourbon Pub is a spot where I’ve always had a great time. It’s right at the epicenter of Bourbon and St. Ann, often with go go boys, revealers hanging out on the 2nd floor balcony, and more. Expect a cover (and potentially lines) on event weekends.
Oz is right across the street from Bourbon Pub, with a similar vibe and entertainment, plus more drag shows. It also has a 2nd floor balcony and the stretch between the two might evoke memories of an infamous scene in Girls Trip (though I don’t believe this was the exact location). Do with that as you wish.
Cafe Lafitte in Exile is said to be the oldest continuously operating gay bar in the United States. To be fair, I’ve not found it to be a place I’d call a favorite, but your experience may vary. Go for the history or the very boozy frozen purple drinks (also not my thing), stay if you dig it.
Good Friends Bar and Queens Head Pub is just off Bourbon Street and is a little calmer experience. I found it a great place to go when looking for a break from the Bourbon Street chaos without turning into a snooze fest.
Rawhide used to be a seedy good time. I’ve heard the atmosphere has changed since I was last there in 2019, but at least during decadence 2024, it was its seedy old self. Online chatter I’d read had some less-than-flattering things to say about the bar’s ownership, though after losing my phone inside in 2019, I was very appreciative of the bar’s willingness to help get it back to me. It’s undergone a couple name changes in as many years, but I’ve heard things are more or less the same as they had been, depending on the weekend and crowd.
The Golden Lantern happens to be the starting point for the Southern Decadence parade so it’s definitely busy on that day of the festival, but it’s a fun spot with a neighborhoody vibe on other days too. And we had quick, friendly service even when the bar was busy. The bar had portable toilets outside during the festival weekend and if there’s anything I would have recommended avoiding in New Orleans, it was those toilets.
Phoenix Bar is a bit outside of the French Quarter and caters largely to the leather crowd. The little bit of time I’ve spent here was fun with a no-drama crowd, but due to its location, it’s not been my go-to hang out in town.

Southern Decadence

Southern Decadence, New Orleans’ annual Labor Day LGBTQ+ celebration (though predominantly gay men), is a magnet for revelers coming to let their hair down in the French Quarter and throughout the city.

While Southern Decadence used to be focused on events in the street and the bars along Bourbon and St. Ann, scheduled parties have become more popular. That’s a little bit of a bummer in my opinion because the buy-tickets-in-advance parties lose some of the spontaneity that the event had when it was primarily a street fair. Still, it’s a great celebration in a great city and the street scene is still happening. It’s not missing out if you had a great time!

Beyond the street fair and parties throughout the weekend, there’s the Decadence Parade on Sunday. It’s New Orleans, so of course there’s a parade!

But aside from the Sunday parade itself, the event is often the pre-parade block party where parade participants line up in front of the Golden Lantern on Royal Street from about noon til 2:00 p.m. By about 1:30 p.m. there are hordes of people in the streets and on the sidewalks celebrating the start of the parade—and likely a few protesting it. In addition to general celebration and revelries in the street, this is the place to show up and get photos since a lot of folks will have dropped out of walking in the parade before it gets to Bourbon Street (the heat—and alcohol—does a number).

Lodging

In New Orleans, I’ve primarily stayed in the Central Business District (roughly from the Superdome to Canal Street and the River). It’s a touch quieter than the French Quarter, but the Quarter is still a reasonably easy walk. Other parts of the city are easily accessible by streetcar and Lyft. If you have a car, however, look closely at parking rates—many of the close-in hotels are valet-only and are expensive to park at.

Besides parking hotels here vary pretty widely in cost, style, and amenities. If having extra space or a place to work is important, you’ll benefit from paying a little extra attention to the details before you book, as exemplified by the places I’ve stayed:

The Troubadour Hotel (a Hilton property) was stylish and the room was nice looking if you didn’t look too closely. Everything worked as promised, but the scrapes and bumps around the property said it’s seen a thing or two. Our room had a bar-height table and chairs that would function for working if you didn’t need to focus on that part of your day much. There wasn’t much space elsewhere on the property to set up and work, but there was a full restaurant and bar on the main floor as well as a roof deck for more leisurely activities. (The Canopy by Hilton at the other end of the block looked newer and also looked nice, for what it’s worth.)
The Moxy (a Marriott property) is a hotel I really love … if you don’t have to work. Check in is at the bar, so the lobby is usually lively. It has lots of tables, chairs, and counter space and is great for a drink or even sending emails before having a drink, but awkward for a Zoom call. Similarly, the rooms are fun and not overly expensive, but they’re small. On a recent trip, the hubby managed a desk-height setup by perching his laptop on an upside-down trash can stacked atop the bedside table. I tried simultaneously working on the bed but gave up and powered through email from the lobby.
The Roosevelt (a Waldorf Astoria/Hilton property) as generally as posh as you’d expect given its history and Waldorf Astoria affiliation. It’s been several years since I stayed there, but from what I recall, rooms are spacious if a bit more anonymous than one might hope for the price and to my chagrin, there wasn’t a complimentary offered as a welcome drink.
The Hampton Inn & Suites (a Hilton property) was pretty similar to any Hampton Inn you’ve ever seen, but was probably one of the better hotels I’ve stayed at in New Orleans when I’ve had to spend time working in the room.
While I didn’t stay there, the Selina Catahoula looks really cool and I’m noting to remind myself to check it out next time. The rooftop bar that used to be open to the public says it’s closed now (not sure if that’s just to the public, or everyone). But having walked through some parts of the hotel to get to the roof, the courtyard, murals, and other varied spaces the rooms open to are really charming. Available room types and accessibility are likely to be more varied and quirkier than chain hotels, so keep that in mind if you have specific needs or wants.

Pretty much every Hilton, Marriott, Holiday Inn/IHG, and Hyatt brand that exists has a property here, plus a wonderful handful of smaller boutique hotels. As long as it’s not all booked up for the event du jour, it’s rarely an issue to find an option or several at various prices.

With that, go out and explore! There’s too much to see, do, eat, and drink to sit around a hotel room.