New Orleans Trip Report
Nov 23rd, 2000, 11:09 AM
#1
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New Orleans Trip Report
Just back from 5 days in N.O., and want to thank everyone here for all the pre-trip planning help, and to leave some thoughts/recommendations:
We stayed at the Chateau LeMoyne, for $99 a night with a AAA discount. It's in a great location, close to everything but not so close that it was noisy.
Best Food: Acme Oyster Bar, for po-boys and of course Oysters (Please note that we didn't feel like putting on our Sunday best and dealing with making reservations for Arnaud's or the other famous places so we stuck to casual). Ranked up there were beignets and coffee at Cafe Du Monde. Believe the hype, it's great.
Worst Food: Court of Two Sisters brunch. I should have listened to the warnings in this forum, but we were starving and it was there. It was awful! The elderly ladies at the next table seemed to like it though.
Best Experience: Jazz at Preservation Hall. Forget that it's 100% tourists and enjoy the great sounds.
Biggest Waste of Money: Voodoo museum. A bunch of junk in dank, musty rooms poorly presented and low on the creep-out factor we were hoping for.
We also visited the Mardi Gras museum exhibit(can't remember the name of the museum) and were pleasantly surprised at how good it was. The jazz exhibit at the US Mint building was great (probably need to be a fan to really enjoy) although not as professionally put together as it could be.
Biggest surprise: How clean the french quarter is kept compared to the comments posted in this forum. We were not harrassed by anyone either, but we are New Yorkers so we have a knack for staying aware of our surroundings and avoiding potential weirdos.
We skipped Bourbon street altogether. It was even more tacky and unappealing than expected.
Cheers,
Marlena
We stayed at the Chateau LeMoyne, for $99 a night with a AAA discount. It's in a great location, close to everything but not so close that it was noisy.
Best Food: Acme Oyster Bar, for po-boys and of course Oysters (Please note that we didn't feel like putting on our Sunday best and dealing with making reservations for Arnaud's or the other famous places so we stuck to casual). Ranked up there were beignets and coffee at Cafe Du Monde. Believe the hype, it's great.
Worst Food: Court of Two Sisters brunch. I should have listened to the warnings in this forum, but we were starving and it was there. It was awful! The elderly ladies at the next table seemed to like it though.
Best Experience: Jazz at Preservation Hall. Forget that it's 100% tourists and enjoy the great sounds.
Biggest Waste of Money: Voodoo museum. A bunch of junk in dank, musty rooms poorly presented and low on the creep-out factor we were hoping for.
We also visited the Mardi Gras museum exhibit(can't remember the name of the museum) and were pleasantly surprised at how good it was. The jazz exhibit at the US Mint building was great (probably need to be a fan to really enjoy) although not as professionally put together as it could be.
Biggest surprise: How clean the french quarter is kept compared to the comments posted in this forum. We were not harrassed by anyone either, but we are New Yorkers so we have a knack for staying aware of our surroundings and avoiding potential weirdos.
We skipped Bourbon street altogether. It was even more tacky and unappealing than expected.
Cheers,
Marlena
Nov 24th, 2000, 05:56 AM
#4
Guest
Posts: n/a
If you want to eat at some different places than the usual "tourist" stuff, try DeJa Vue (open all the time) and Poppy's for breakfast. A Gray Line city tour is good because they also have a cemetery stop so you kinda get 2-for-1. A ride on the Natchez is fun and if you take a swamp tour only go for 1/2 day. A whole day is too long. Wander through the French Market and stop at Cafe DuMonde. I'm sorry Marlena was down on Bourbon Street, personally I think if you're in New Orleans it's a must see!
Have a great time!
Have a great time!
Nov 24th, 2000, 04:17 PM
#5
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I might add that we ate at the Redfish Grill one night because it was late and most other places were closed...it was really good, and it was a rare opportunity to eat some vegetables after days of starch and gumbo!
Since you asked, we did a cemetery walking tour, which we did enjoy. But didn't do a plantation or swamp tour which we hope to do next time.
To clarify my comments on Bourbon St., we walked down Bourbon almost daily, and I agree it's a must see...however, tacky bars and strip joints aren't my thing. I am in my early 30's and think I would have enjoyed it when I was in my early 20's much more...feels like nonstop spring break. But to each his/her own!
Marlena
Since you asked, we did a cemetery walking tour, which we did enjoy. But didn't do a plantation or swamp tour which we hope to do next time.
To clarify my comments on Bourbon St., we walked down Bourbon almost daily, and I agree it's a must see...however, tacky bars and strip joints aren't my thing. I am in my early 30's and think I would have enjoyed it when I was in my early 20's much more...feels like nonstop spring break. But to each his/her own!
Marlena
