First trip to NO-- 3 days or 5?
Oct 30th, 2003, 04:48 PM
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First trip to NO-- 3 days or 5?
Not sure how much time it will take to see the must-do sites in NO. I have traveled in the South before, Florida, Savannah, Charleston, so more interested in specific NO and Louisiana activities than soaking up the southern atmosphere (though I do enjoy that!). Will Sat-Wed trip be too short (3-full days)? I am flying from San Francisco on Sat. leaving on either Wed or Fri. Mid December.
Oct 30th, 2003, 05:10 PM
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ms myst, Depends on what you want to do.
If you want to take in some of the plantation, swamp, Tabasco etc tours, they can pretty much take up a full day.
If you keep it local, Garden Distr. walking tour, Natchez RivBoat, Vampire tour, Aquarium, shopping eating drinking dancing, 3 might be good enough. But DO FIVE!!!!!
You really won't regret it. Especially flying in from SF.
Kajun Kal
If you want to take in some of the plantation, swamp, Tabasco etc tours, they can pretty much take up a full day.
If you keep it local, Garden Distr. walking tour, Natchez RivBoat, Vampire tour, Aquarium, shopping eating drinking dancing, 3 might be good enough. But DO FIVE!!!!!
You really won't regret it. Especially flying in from SF.
Kajun Kal
Oct 31st, 2003, 02:10 PM
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Forget Tabasco!!! Shame on you!!!
I believe it's about a 2hr 1 way drive out to Aveyr Isl.
LA Times had a good New Orleans article on 10-26 you may want to peek at.
I forgot about the Egyptian Exhibit at the Mueseum.
We also walked by the new Renaissance Arts Hotel on Tchoupitoulas.
Looked very nice and according to our wicked wahine from Waikiki, MelissaHI, her friend was staying there and paying quite a bit less than us at the Wyndham and she at the Marriott.
Right now my brain still feels like the old "8 Ball" toy....every once in awhile a NOLA memory pops up...but I keep getting "try again later"!
Mahalo Ya'll!
Kal
ps
You getting hail or rain in SF area yet?
I believe it's about a 2hr 1 way drive out to Aveyr Isl.
LA Times had a good New Orleans article on 10-26 you may want to peek at.
I forgot about the Egyptian Exhibit at the Mueseum.
We also walked by the new Renaissance Arts Hotel on Tchoupitoulas.
Looked very nice and according to our wicked wahine from Waikiki, MelissaHI, her friend was staying there and paying quite a bit less than us at the Wyndham and she at the Marriott.
Right now my brain still feels like the old "8 Ball" toy....every once in awhile a NOLA memory pops up...but I keep getting "try again later"!
Mahalo Ya'll!
Kal
ps
You getting hail or rain in SF area yet?
Oct 31st, 2003, 03:08 PM
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I agree that 5 days is better than 3, especially coming such a long distance.
We thought the D-Day Museum was ecellent, and worth almost half a day.
Also liked the place where they make most of the Mardi Gras floats.
We thought the D-Day Museum was ecellent, and worth almost half a day.
Also liked the place where they make most of the Mardi Gras floats.
Nov 1st, 2003, 03:20 AM
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Five days is the only way to go - There's so much to see and do that once you get started you won't be sorry in extending the vacation to try to fit it all in.
Don't mind Kal, he just returned from New Orleans and I do believe he's trying to get the ol' head on straight after "too much fun" in the city!!
Don't mind Kal, he just returned from New Orleans and I do believe he's trying to get the ol' head on straight after "too much fun" in the city!!
Nov 1st, 2003, 05:17 AM
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Be sure and take the plantation tour. You might enjoy the Madri Gras Museum. I think you would be wise to plan on a five day stay. Biloxi is a nice drive from New Orleans and you might like to see the home of Jefferson Davis located there. There are casinos, hotels and shows along the coast at Biloxi, if you like that sort of thing. However, there is much to do and see in New Orleans. The restaurants are fabulous. Hsve a great trip.
Nov 1st, 2003, 07:44 PM
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<<<I forgot about the Egyptian Exhibit at the Mueseum.>>>
Better not let my BF know about this. We were in London and he was closely examining every mummy--including the cats, frogs etc....I thought we would never get out of the British Museum and I looooove museums.
Thanks for all the other tips --I am getting excited. I just love planning trips. Biloxi is also a good idea. I have a History degree and my focus was 19th century American, so I love visiting historical sites in the south.
Better not let my BF know about this. We were in London and he was closely examining every mummy--including the cats, frogs etc....I thought we would never get out of the British Museum and I looooove museums.
Thanks for all the other tips --I am getting excited. I just love planning trips. Biloxi is also a good idea. I have a History degree and my focus was 19th century American, so I love visiting historical sites in the south.
Nov 3rd, 2003, 09:40 AM
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Hi myst,
I live in New Orleans and will give you a few insights into this intriguing city.
Places to eat: Brigston's uptown between 5-6pm for great inexpensive food. Commander's Palace uptown for lunch. Court of Two Sisters on Royal for a sumptuous brunch.Best bread pudding and Eggs benedict that you will eat..IMO. Petunia's right off of Bourbon is one of our favorite moderately priced Quarter restaurants. We always go to Croissant D'or for breakfast when we come back from Paris to keep the Parisian magic alive. Irene's in the quarter for top notch, yet moderately priced food.Feelings cafe in the Marigny is a wonderful place for a romantic meal. We have too many great restaurants to list. A few that I have yet to try are Antoine's, The Palace Cafe, Broussard's and some of the new restaurants owned by the talented Brennan family.We have some restaurants that have been opened continuously for 140 years. It blows me away.
Wander the quarter and experience the quaintness of it. Bourbon tends to be overwhelming and tacky, but otherwise the quarter, Faubourg Marigny, Uptown, Algiers Point, Bywater, Esplanade Ridge, are uniquely interesting New Orleans neighborhoods. City Park and Audubon Park are lovely. We have one of the most beautiful zoos anywhere and the Aquarium of the Americas is interesting with a lot of local flora and fauna.
Some of the plantations up river are pretty. Oak Alley is lovely as are Houmas house, and Nottingham.I've wanted to, but have not yet seen Laura Plantation, which is suppose to be a working plantation that showed all aspects of plantation life, not just the rich, southern society life.
The ghost tours are very popular. You can do a self guided tour or follow a tourist pack led by guides dressed in 19th century black clothes and a top hat. You will be hard pressed to find a local who does not have their own ghost story or two. New Orleans is a very spiritual place. We love to just walk through the beautiful Garden district and our cemeteries are very reminiscent of ones found in France. We call them the city of the dead because all of the tombs are above ground and resemble little stone houses.
A down side of New Orleans is that we are again the murder capital of the country. We are a port city and heroin has made a huge resurgence here over the last few years. We have about 2-3 murders a night in a city of a little over 400,000. Blend in and don't wander off the beaten path especially after dark. This is a pretty place with fun loving people, but it's also full of poverty and desperate illiterate folk. And remember that we never, ever stop serving liquor... so pace yourself. Enjoy, but be wise. Tim
I live in New Orleans and will give you a few insights into this intriguing city.
Places to eat: Brigston's uptown between 5-6pm for great inexpensive food. Commander's Palace uptown for lunch. Court of Two Sisters on Royal for a sumptuous brunch.Best bread pudding and Eggs benedict that you will eat..IMO. Petunia's right off of Bourbon is one of our favorite moderately priced Quarter restaurants. We always go to Croissant D'or for breakfast when we come back from Paris to keep the Parisian magic alive. Irene's in the quarter for top notch, yet moderately priced food.Feelings cafe in the Marigny is a wonderful place for a romantic meal. We have too many great restaurants to list. A few that I have yet to try are Antoine's, The Palace Cafe, Broussard's and some of the new restaurants owned by the talented Brennan family.We have some restaurants that have been opened continuously for 140 years. It blows me away.
Wander the quarter and experience the quaintness of it. Bourbon tends to be overwhelming and tacky, but otherwise the quarter, Faubourg Marigny, Uptown, Algiers Point, Bywater, Esplanade Ridge, are uniquely interesting New Orleans neighborhoods. City Park and Audubon Park are lovely. We have one of the most beautiful zoos anywhere and the Aquarium of the Americas is interesting with a lot of local flora and fauna.
Some of the plantations up river are pretty. Oak Alley is lovely as are Houmas house, and Nottingham.I've wanted to, but have not yet seen Laura Plantation, which is suppose to be a working plantation that showed all aspects of plantation life, not just the rich, southern society life.
The ghost tours are very popular. You can do a self guided tour or follow a tourist pack led by guides dressed in 19th century black clothes and a top hat. You will be hard pressed to find a local who does not have their own ghost story or two. New Orleans is a very spiritual place. We love to just walk through the beautiful Garden district and our cemeteries are very reminiscent of ones found in France. We call them the city of the dead because all of the tombs are above ground and resemble little stone houses.
A down side of New Orleans is that we are again the murder capital of the country. We are a port city and heroin has made a huge resurgence here over the last few years. We have about 2-3 murders a night in a city of a little over 400,000. Blend in and don't wander off the beaten path especially after dark. This is a pretty place with fun loving people, but it's also full of poverty and desperate illiterate folk. And remember that we never, ever stop serving liquor... so pace yourself. Enjoy, but be wise. Tim
Nov 3rd, 2003, 09:52 AM
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There isn't really a good reason to waste a day going to Biloxi. If you want to gamble there is a Harrah's right downtown. If you can stay for 5 days, by all means do so. If you want history outside of town, Natchez & Vicksburg are much better bets. Biloxi is probably 2 hrs. Natchex 3 & 1/4. But, there is more than enough to do in NO. I am returning in February for the 10th time (or so) & am spending 5 days myself. Enjoy.
Nov 3rd, 2003, 09:57 AM
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I'm not sure how much credence you should give to the prior post from Mite. Commander's is in the Garden Dist. not uptown (I don't know where Uptown even is, the Quarter, the Business Dist. the WareHouse Dist. ??) Personally I wouldn't suggest most of the places he is telling you to eat either other than Brigston's but to each his own.
Nov 3rd, 2003, 10:54 AM
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Hi again myst,
Nothing like visitors telling locales about one's own town. The nerve.I'm not so sure that SAnParis has ever been here since she has never heard the term uptown used in New Orleans. It's as basic as red beans and rice on Mondays here. We New Orleanians reference direction according to the river. Uptown is up river and downtown is down river. Lakeside is on the lake side and riverside is towards the river. The Garden district is in uptown which was where the Americans settled because they were shunned by the French and Spanish Creoles that had already established a wonderful society here by 1803. Down river or downtown was and is today much more influenced by the Caribbean and France than the more Uptown American side. Canal street in the CBD is where the old French-American line was drawn. Commanders Palace is located across from Lafayette cemetery so called because it was an old plantation then a town called Lafayette. It was incorporated into New Orleans in the early 19th century. Commanders is located on the corner of Washington and Coliseum Streets in the middle of the Garden district which is in the middle of Uptown which is up river from the Central Business district which begins at Canal street which separates uptown from downtown. Canal street has a large neutral ground ( called median by the rest of the country)and it was so named because it was a neutral ground between the French and English speaking people of new Orleans. The park like neutral grounds is part of the reason our city is so lovely.
The Beau Rivage hotel and casino in Biloxi is magnificent. New Orleanians have been going to Biloxi for generations and it is a beautiful place. The old homes along the beaches that stretch from Pass Christian to Ocean Springs are grand and unique. Harrah's is large, but I don't know of anyone that says the payout is as good there as the other three local casinos. A charming alternative to far off Natchez and Vicksburg is St. Francisville,LA which is known for it's quaintness and bed and breakfast establishments. It's another favorite weekend get away for locales as well as the Destin, Fla area.
I think that SAnParis ought to tell me where she lives so that I can tell her about her city. The nerve. Tim [email protected]
Nothing like visitors telling locales about one's own town. The nerve.I'm not so sure that SAnParis has ever been here since she has never heard the term uptown used in New Orleans. It's as basic as red beans and rice on Mondays here. We New Orleanians reference direction according to the river. Uptown is up river and downtown is down river. Lakeside is on the lake side and riverside is towards the river. The Garden district is in uptown which was where the Americans settled because they were shunned by the French and Spanish Creoles that had already established a wonderful society here by 1803. Down river or downtown was and is today much more influenced by the Caribbean and France than the more Uptown American side. Canal street in the CBD is where the old French-American line was drawn. Commanders Palace is located across from Lafayette cemetery so called because it was an old plantation then a town called Lafayette. It was incorporated into New Orleans in the early 19th century. Commanders is located on the corner of Washington and Coliseum Streets in the middle of the Garden district which is in the middle of Uptown which is up river from the Central Business district which begins at Canal street which separates uptown from downtown. Canal street has a large neutral ground ( called median by the rest of the country)and it was so named because it was a neutral ground between the French and English speaking people of new Orleans. The park like neutral grounds is part of the reason our city is so lovely.
The Beau Rivage hotel and casino in Biloxi is magnificent. New Orleanians have been going to Biloxi for generations and it is a beautiful place. The old homes along the beaches that stretch from Pass Christian to Ocean Springs are grand and unique. Harrah's is large, but I don't know of anyone that says the payout is as good there as the other three local casinos. A charming alternative to far off Natchez and Vicksburg is St. Francisville,LA which is known for it's quaintness and bed and breakfast establishments. It's another favorite weekend get away for locales as well as the Destin, Fla area.
I think that SAnParis ought to tell me where she lives so that I can tell her about her city. The nerve. Tim [email protected]
Nov 3rd, 2003, 10:59 AM
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Just to correct stats here. Wash. DC is currently in the lead for "murder capital" this year but NO's rate is still quite high. These murders almost always occur well outside of the touristy areas, though. N.O. is averaging fewer than 1 murder per day, not 2-3. We've certainly had bad days with that many. Let's hope NOPD can get a handle on it soon.
Nov 3rd, 2003, 11:01 AM
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I forgot to mention that Tim's right about Commander's being Uptown. The entire Garden District is part of Uptown; in fact, everything "west" of Canal is "uptown" while the "east" side is "downtown." (Yes, it's quite confusing)
Nov 3rd, 2003, 11:26 AM
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With all due respect to Dan I would like to refer to an excerpt from the local newspaper called the Gambit dated 8/12/2003.
"Indeed, New Orleans is on track to become the nation's murder capitol for the first time since 1994. Homicide figures for the first half of 2003 show that we are four times more dangerous than Chicago and seven times more dangerous than New York City, Scharf says. Boston, whose population far exceeds New Orleans, recorded only 19 homicides through the first half of 2003."
I wish that it weren't so Dan, but I live and work in the middle of it all. I am curious...Do you live in the city proper or possibly Jefferson Parish or the north shore?
"Indeed, New Orleans is on track to become the nation's murder capitol for the first time since 1994. Homicide figures for the first half of 2003 show that we are four times more dangerous than Chicago and seven times more dangerous than New York City, Scharf says. Boston, whose population far exceeds New Orleans, recorded only 19 homicides through the first half of 2003."
I wish that it weren't so Dan, but I live and work in the middle of it all. I am curious...Do you live in the city proper or possibly Jefferson Parish or the north shore?
Nov 3rd, 2003, 11:29 AM
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I have always heard the areas of NO referred to by their Districts. The uptown & downtown as previously described are very vague & I've not heard them used before (perhaps because they cover such large areas). I have been traveling to NO for 10 years & go there @ least once a year. I am also not a 'Her'. One shouldn't make assumptions I guess, huh ? I find it difficult to fathom that anyone in NO would suggest that someone go to Biloxi for much of anything other than a weekend gambling junket. By the way, thanks for the clarification Dan. I currently reside in Charlotte, NC. I am sure you can copy comments from a guidebook for Charlotte just as you have for NO. Happy Travels.
Nov 3rd, 2003, 11:34 AM
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Dan - do you think Mite is a bit argumentative ? Referring to an Arts & Ent. paper from August hardly seems to be the best source of such info. Someone has a little too much time on their hands or thats where Mite works...Anywat Myst enjoy your trip, hopefully you'll be able to avoid any know-it-all locals on your trip. Ciao.
