Has anyone been to New Orleans recently?
 

We are going mid-July and will be staying in the French Quarter - we visit New Orleans fairly regularly and were just there last year pre-Katrina. I mentioned to a friend that I was going again soon and I got an earful about recent shootings, crime and the national guard being brought in to restore order. Just wondering if anyone has been recently and can provide some first hand feedback. I know New Orleans well enough not to wander into non-touristy areas at night, but how is the French Quarter? I've always felt very safe there - has it changed substantially?

Over the past weekend 6 people were murdered in New Orleans. Since the beginning of this year, 54 people have been murdered in the city. On that basis I would say it is questionable. Obviously, some parts of the city are unsafe, always have been and probably always will be. Other parts, wealthier and better policed, are safer. But Governor Blanco announced that the National Guard will now be brought in to help police N.O. On the NPR report it was said that NO officials were worried that the increase in crime would hurt tourism. Talk about getting the problem *** backwards! They should be worried about the crime, period, and what it is doing to their citizens. But in NO it has always been all about tourism. I feel sorry for the people who actually LIVE there!

The Guard is being brought back to supplement the NOPD, nothing more. The French Quarter is still quite safe, as are most of the areas that were safe prior to Katrina. Don't let media hysterics stop you from visiting.

For a city that often averaged one murder per day....having 54 people murdered since the beginning of the year is a undeniably regrettable - but POSITIVE occurance!

kswl - I lived in New Orleans for over 30 years and miss it every day (I've been gone 7 years). I grew up there...went to school, attended college, married, and had children there.

Are there problems? You bet....but I would move back there in a heartbeat if there was a job for my husband. We are seriously considering buying a condo in the warehouse district or French Quarter to use when we visit. No matter where we are...we have a Mardi Gras party every year!

We have lived overseas for 5 years and - as crazy as it sounds - I credit my "street savy, can get along everywhere, deal with anything " attitude to my years in New Orleans.

Yes, New Orleans relies heavily on tourism.....but there is so much more to the city. The city and it's people have a character, love of life, and passion for all things good and fun that is absolutely infectious. Family is key, friends last forever, and no one ever leaves hungry.

Please don't "feel sorry" for the people who live there. Most people are there because they CHOOSE to be there. Anyone who can't handle it ...can stay away.

BayouGal - want to help add anything??????

Grcxx3 - I was curious about that crime stat as well. New Orleans has never been considered a particularly safe city, but as long as you use common sense and don't venture out of the FQ alone at night there usually isn't any trouble. I lived in Kenner (went to school in Metarie) when I was a kid and New Orleans has always held a very special place in my heart (which is why we decided to return this year for our 10 year anniversary even though we were just there last year and planned to go somewhere else).

Dan, thanks for your reassurance that the FQ is still quite safe - that's really what I needed to hear.

snowrooster....where did you go to school?

Kehoe-France.

I live in the N.O. area, but more importantly, my gorgeous 24 yo DD lives alone in New Orleans proper--nowhere near Mom & Dad, either. Additionally, our 17 yo gorgeous DD works late at night in the FQ and drives to/from work to our home all the time. We would not want them living and working where their lives were in danger.

Wow, where to begin? I applaud Blanco for bringing in the Nat'l Guard. You folks have no idea how wonderful these young men and women are and how nice and reassuring it is to have them cruising night and day around your home and business. Where's the problem there? N.O. has lost lots of its residents, including a lot of the middle-class who have not completed the reconstruction of their homes yet and are not yet back to fill jobs like police officiers, etc. If N.O. had the ability to staff all these jobs, then we'd probably have the LOWEST crime rate, but until that time (which is coming soon based on the construction EVERYWHERE), who's gonna complain about ADDITIONAL protection in and around the area?

Aren't there a lot of cities you'd rush to visit if you knew that their police PLUS the Nat'l Guard was patroling?! How much safer can you get? If you ask me, this is the best of ALL worlds and a great time to visit.

I'm afraid I may have given the wrong impression by my comments, and if so I apologize. I wasn't saying that I pity the NOrleaners because it is a bad place to live or so dangerous, but rather because everything that the government does--or so it looks to the outsider---is done for the benefit of its tourists and not its citizens. I think that is a flawed approach to city services. A city should be run and managed and maintained for the primary benefit of those who <i>live</i> there--not for the tourists who have no vested interest in the long-term health and safety of the city.

I felt the same way about NYC when we lived there--it would infuriate me when someone (and there were many) would say, &quot;Oh, it's a great place to visit but I could never live there.&quot; Based on my own visits to NO, my friends who have gone to college there, and a few people I know who were reared there, it has always been a wonderful place to live. But post-Katrina, all I ever hear about is anxiety over the tourists.

The only anxiety I've heard about tourists in New Orleans is that they might not return. The restaurants and hotels in New Orleans need tourism to survive. The cab drivers need tourists for their fares. Many issues that affect residents go hand in hand with tourism in New Orleans.

From what I've read, the National Guard being brought into New Orleans will not be present in the &quot;touristy&quot; parts of the city but rather protect the residential communities where crime is more prevalent.

I think it's because tourism does play such a huge part economically. Also, I think New Orleanians really LIKE having tourists visit, unlike many cities. The sad thing is that most crime in New Orleans is far far away from the French Quarter yet stories like these make people shy away from visiting. Sad.

Dan makes an excellent point about New Orleanians not only appreciating tourism, but we do all enjoy having tourists in our city. And to be honest, all I have to do is go to a famous restaurant around the corner, shop for antiques on Royal, take a streetcar down St. Charles Ave, etc., to feel like a tourist myself. Nearly every New Orleanian I know regularly stays in hotels and B &amp; B's here, in their hometown, to celebrate special occasions or &quot;get away from it all.&quot; I love the way I can do the simplist thing in N.O. and feel like I'm on vacation. No wonder we appear to be all about tourism--the locals are often a lot of the &quot;tourists&quot; you see around town.

In the 80's when we had a virtual murder &quot;epidemic&quot; in NYC it took worry about people's perceptions of danger to get the mayor and police chief to do something about the problem. The tourists were safe; it was the citizens who were in danger. But the fear that kept people away finally drove the city government to develop programs, solutions, get a new police chief, etc. It's a shame that that's what it takes.

On the flip side, cities who have tourists to lose are in a way lucky because it motivates the city to do something to keep them.

I live in Cincinnati and crime as how grown downtown in recent years. Cincinnati isn't a big tourist spot outside of the midwest so there hasn't really been any to drive away from visiting. People who live here now just spend time in the burbs or in Northern Kentucky. Check any posts about people who are visiting Cincinnati - the recommendation is always to stay in Northern Kentucky (not complaining as I make this recommendation myself). We had the longest running 5 Star restaurant, The Maisoinette, downton and it had to close its doors due to lack of business. Maybe if we were losing tourist $$ there would be motivation to get it back, but we never had it to begin with. But I love living here (in the burbs), just thought it was an interesting comaparison.

You are so right, Snowrooster. We are all hoping the silver lining to the hell from Katrina is that many things, like crime, will be corrected in N.O.

Just saw the CNN report about the Nat'l Guard coming into N.O. today with our own Lisa Rosgen reporting. I was very glad to hear that these are local Nat'l Guard troops, from Louisiana, and as one soldier said, &quot;We have an interest in the rebuilding of New Olreans.&quot; I was also very glad to hear that they will basically act as police, being able to ticket and shoot, if necessary. I am so glad they are publicizing that information, because often just knowing that they are here to act, not just for visibility, will stop a lot of the crime activity. I sure hope the N.O./Louisiana powers that be crack down swiftly and decisively so that this is not allowed to drag on.

You all have such good advise. Where would you visit outside of NO? Any little towns that should not be missed?
I always wanted to go to NO But then rent a car and get into some small towns and feel some cajun culture, food festilvals and so forth.

St Francisville is wonderful but not Cajun. Any of the towns in Southwest Louisiana will give you Cajun culture. Try googling for Cajun festivals to see what is available. There's one somewhere most any weekend now.

Great ideal! Thanks

luvs2pack, a trip to Breaux Bridge and surrounding areas sounds like what you are looking for. If you can go very early Sat morning, do the breakfast at Cafe Des Amis, complete with Cajun band. If not early Sat, go anytime you can get a dinner reservation at Cafe Des Amis. They also have a great B &amp; B. Have fun!