Cjar

Hello everyone. We have a family trip to New Orleans coming up in March including myself, husband and 2 adult kids. The internet offers a lot of information but also a lot of the same information, so I wonder if those of you familiar with New Orleans can offer up some favorites- restaurants, places, music venues, tours ( we like both information and fun . The only truly cerebral one is my daughter, so a blend of interesting stories and facts are nice.), off the beaten path , whatever floats your boat for me to check out.

Some of the things we’ve put on our list are the usual touristy things. After all we are tourists and we’ve never been before.

French quarter- is there a beignet(sp) that you prefer? What streets and shops tickle your fancy? Any restaurants that will also cater to my seafood allergic son? We know we’re going to New Orleans but…
Is there a music venue that is your favorite?

Garden District- is there a tour company or a self walk you like?

Metairie Cemetery

Do you recommend an airboat tour ? Frankly, that makes me a little nervous, but it’s always good to try new things, right? The only wildlife we get close to at home are mourning doves and woodpeckers and crickets.

what is don’t miss for you?
We have the 4-8th of March, arriving early and leaving early. I have noticed some tours don’t run M-Th.
Any thoughts are appreciated. Thank you.

TDudette

My information is sooo dated but the Commander's Palace restaurant is still open and we had our best meal there (we went for lunch to save money). Others can say about more current places. We really enjoyed the zoo, a cemetery tour, a plantation tour, and brunch at the Court of Two Sisters. Walking around the vieux carré was great. We were on a city bus through the Garden District and I wished we were walking. We loved sitting in Café du Monde with its beignets and coffee with chicory. Please report back with more current info after your visit!

PrairieHikerI

Ride the historic St. Charles Trolley to Audubon Park; explore the 1791 French Market; visit the 1794 St. Louis Cathedral; explore the Longue Vue House and Gardens; wander around the lush, subtropical New Orleans Botanical Garden which has 2,000 varieties of plants; listen to Jazz where it was created in the 1890s at Maple Leaf, Le Bon Temp Roule and Tipitinas (if they are still open).

Cjar

TDudette- You are always so kind to respond! I believe we have reservations at the Commander’s Place. I hope it is terrific. I have never heard of the Court of 2 Sisters. I will check it out. Which cemetery did you tour? I understand some of them are only with a tour guide now. I am looking at a walking tour of the Garden District because I have read it’s nice to linger a bit.

PrairieHikerI- I love these suggestions! I will look at all of these places. So wonderful of you to chime in.

TDudette

You are welcome, Cjar! I like it when folks reply to me so I try to do the same when I have info to share. I think it was the St. Louis Cemetery... part of a tour so not totally certain. 😁

Madam397

It's been a long time but I have also had dinner at the Court of the Two Sisters

KarenWoo

We visited New Orleans in October 2022 and had a wonderful time! I usually do trip reports but I neglected to write one for NO so I don't remember all the restaurants we dined at. And I lent my guidebook to our daughter, so I am going by memory.

One of my fondest memories is sitting outside at Cafe du Monde on the Riverwalk, and drinking delicious coffee and eating awesome biegnets, with street musicians playing a few feet away. I would return to NO just to replicate this experience again. We didn't actually go into any music venues. You will find that there are street musicians and all kinds of performers all over NO. For example, we saw a very talented comedian put on a show in Jackson Square. They don't charge but they hope to receive tips, of course. And we tipped him very well. He was awesome!

Another fond memory is the day we rented a car and visited two plantations along the Mississippi: Oak Alley which is worth visiting just to see the huge oak trees lining the walkway. Our favorite plantation was Laura Plantation; it's very different from Oak Alley. More modest but with a very pretty exterior, and our tour guide was excellent. Very knowledgeable with a warm and friendly personality.

We did one of the "free" guided tours, which I highly recommend. Met the tour in Jackson Square by the statue. The guide took us to areas we hadn't visited yet, including a section of Bourbon Street away from the honky tonk. You don't pay for the tour but the guides expect tips, of course. This is how they make their living.

Restaurants: some hits and some misses.
Our favorite meal, believe it or not, was breakfast at the Ruby Slipper. They also serve lunch. Get there early. There was a line but well worth it.
We also liked Acme Oyster Bar in the French Quarter.
We were disappointed in Felix's in the French Quarter. We've had better oyster po'boys on Cape Code in MA.

KTtravel

We enjoyed listening to jazz in the clubs lining Frenchmen Street.

Cjar

Karenwoo, thank you for sharing your mini trip report with me. It sounds like Cafe du Monde has several locations unless I am geographically confused which is possible. I only knew about the French Market and City Park locations. Glad to know they are delicious anywhere you try them. Do you happen to recall which “free tour” you used? It’s always great to get off the tourist path a little bit even for first time visitors.

We are so looking forward to music.music,music. I think we will try to visit some venues on Frenchmen’s. Anyone have any places you love? I know music is so personal , but I’d love suggestions. I’ve read that preservation hall, d.b.a. and Spotted Cat are fun.
Kt travel- anyplace in particular you enjoyed or was it really just the whole experience. Oh, also any safety concerns. We’ll be there midweek not on a busier weekend.

I am looking at booking a tours by locals. Has anyone used something like this? The guy I’m looking at will pick us up at the airport and give us an overview with a few stops and then drop us at our hotel in time to check in. My kids are interested in a ghost tour so, trying to make sure there is something for everyone. My son would also like to visit the World War II museum. Has anyone been? What did you think?
Thanks again.

rncheryl

Surprised that no one has mentioned the WWII museum. An easy bus ride from Bourbon Street area, and a fascinating collection. We happened to see a old gentleman with his family at an exhibit of the Battle of the Bulge several years ago. You guessed it, he fought in this battle and meeting him was a delight. https://www.nationalww2museum.org/

TDudette

Looking forward to reading your trip report!

KTtravel

The WWII museum is terrific!

k_marie

I agree: WWII museum is excellent.

And my crew—husband, daughter, and teen grandson—would insist on lunch at the nearby Cochon Butcher too!

https://cochonbutcher.com

shelemm

We canoed Bayou des Familles in the Barataria Preserve, part of Jean Lafittle National Historic Park, and ate at Restaurant des Familles. Both exotic and serious experiences.

willowjane

I agree with Commander's Palace - we took a taxi from the french quarter but wish we had done the trolly thing and strolled around that beautiful area - 25 cents martinis at lunch! LOL It is always a treat! We loved the WWII museum and the Cochon Butchery afterwards. We like wandering around Jackson Square and got a horse drawn carriage tour of the French quarter and a fascinating tour of cemetery!! We really like Court of Two Sisters, but we are more about going there for bar food and appetizers. Frenchman Street has many jazz bars. Don't miss Sweet Loraines or Maple Leaf for good music. We love food, and not sure where you are on this, but we really liked Arnaud's and Bayona in the French quarter. Make sure you get some turtle soup at some point ( great at Commander's). Have a great time.

willowjane

Oh, I will add. I wish we had done a swamp tour!

Cjar

Thanks willowjane. We have a lunch reservation @ Commander’s Palace although we almost skipped it . It has been our experience that sometimes legacy restaurants don’t live up to their reputations . In this case I think it’s worth it either way. My husband is particularly looking forward to trying turtle soup. We also booked @ Bayona a few weeks ago so we’re looking forward to some yummy meals.
Thank you for the music recs. I have taken a look at both. It seems we are visiting at an odd time , both month and days of the week. We’ll be there early March ,M-F ,but leaving early Friday so we may miss out on what appears to be a terrific weekend music scene. Any suggestions for midweek are much appreciated.
I have also been reading a bit on the Bywater area. Anyone have any feedback on that, dos, don’ts or suggestions.
Thank you again for all of the lovely thoughts. We’re really looking forward to our NOLA visit.