SenecaGirl

Hello all...myself, Mom and sister are going to NOLA from Sat 12/11 to Tues 12/14 for a last minute trip. We are looking for a hotel or B&B in the French Quarter, for under $120/night. We would like a clean, safe, unique hotel with a friendly staff who can help us first timers with advice on where to go/what to do. We do not have a rental car and are non-smokers. We want to be close to activities since we won't be driving, & would like a quieter hotel to get a good nights sleep. We do plan on drinking some at night, so we want a hotel we can safely walk to from Bourbon St.

I have a done a lot of research and have found the following hotels that seem to fit my above description. Please let me know what you think of the hotel and if you have any other suggestions not on my list. All prices are for 3 nights, including the extra charge for the 3rd person in the room. I have looked at 5 internet sites (Expedia, Travelocity, Hotels.com, Orbitz, and the hotel's reservation site) plus called the hotel directly and the price below reflects the lowest price I've found.

Hotel Chateau Dupre $211
Le Richelieu $276
The St. Louis Hotel $331
Hotel St. Marie $337
Alexa Hotel $372
Hotel Monteleone $382
Iberville Suites $416
Chateau Sonesta $417

I would love to stay at Avenue Inn B&B, however that looks too far away. Thanks for your help! SenecaGirl

LilyLace

Hey Seneca Girl,

We have stayed at Bienville House hotel several times and it was fine. Very good location if you plan to drink a little.

SenecaGirl

Thanks LilyLace -- the Bienville is booked on various internet sites and the hotel is quoting $169/night prices -- a little bit out of our range. SenecaGirl

benj

The Monteleone is an interesting hotel. It has a revolving carousel bar that is neat. My parents stayed there when they would go to NO in the 1950s so it has an old style charm. There is also a rooftop pool but I doubt you need that in Dec! The hotel is convenient & safe. It has gotten mixed reviews on some of the travel sites. My advice is try it & if you aren't happy with the room just speak up. Chances are you'll like it ok.
Have you been to their website to see the different room descriptions?

MSS

Although I would recommend the Royal Sonesta which you can enter and exit right on Bourbon Street, I do think it is out of your price range, but the Montelone looked very nice from the outside and is close to everything. We never got a chance to see the carousel bar, but hope to next time. Have a great time and words of warning -- don't have a hurricane and a hand grenade all in the same night. BIG MISTAKE (lol). Have fun.

IamBooth

We have stayed at the Monteleone. Great location and the hotel has a lot of class.

CAPH52

Try the Chateau Hotel on Chartres. I don't know what their rates are now. But it was quite reasonable when we stayed there in June of '01. It's a couple of block walk to Bourbon so convenient, but far enough away to be quiet. We stayed there with our kids and were very, very happy with it.

dfinley

We stayed at the Hotel Monteleone and the location was great, we walked everywhere except one night we took a cab to Comanders Palace. The rooms were very pretty, but kinda small. We went last January and received a great rate of $125 a night. We had 4 rooms ( a girls trip)and they gave us this rate because of the group but maybe you could get a better rate by calling them. The lobby is very nice also.Have a great time!!

dfinley

oops, I just realized your price was for 3 nights. Sorry...

Gardyloo

We enjoyed the Sonesta's location. Get a room facing inward (courtyard) rather then Bourbon St. and it will be nice and quiet.

tpatricco

You might check the Dauphine Orleans. It's one block over from Bourbon Street and a convenient walk to all areas of the quarter. My husband & his friends have stayed there for 2 bachelor parties (inexpensive cost a consideration) and I have stayed there with him as well...and found the property very nice.

Good luck & have fun in NOLA!

SenecaGirl

Thanks -- we will check out Dauphine and Chateau Hotel.

Question -- how strict are hotels on the 3rd person charge? Will they really know if the 3rd person is absent during check-in?

Conlet

We stayed at the St Marie a few years ago and enjoyed it. I think they had 2 other small hotels that were run by the same people, also in the Quarter.

ET

Stayed at Le Richelieu a couple of years ago. It was nice, located in a quiet corner of the French Quarter, but within easy walking distance of Bourbon Street and the river area. You don't need a car to get around in the French Quarter. Small dining room, but the food was pretty good. The staff was very friendly and helped arrange a couple of tours and made dinner reservations for us.

laurieb_nyny

I second the Chateau on Chartres!

clarkgriswold

Expedia has 20percent off that Iberville Suites rate, and I think it includes buffet breakfast which saves you another 20-30 bucks per day.

JeanH

Seneca Girl, I'm curious if the hotels you listed have two beds in the rooms? I'm thinking of a trip to New Orleans with a friend, really would prefer separate beds. Most of the places I've stayed recently have had small rooms with only one bed, find for dear husband and I, but not good for the upcoming trip.

Personally, I wouldn't try and 'hide' a third person. Most of the hotels are small properties, less than 100 rooms. You'll not have enough towels, and if the hotel thinks there are just two of you, your room might be really small.

Jean

SenecaGirl

JeanH -- Yes, I've found 2 beds in the room, and a lot of hotels have a roll-away bed available too. I don't want to hide the 3rd person, we probably won't...just curious on if other people do and their experiences.

You have all given great feedback -- making it harder for us to pick a hotel!!! I'm thinking Iberville Suites so far -- the extra space in the room with the sitting area will be nice and the breakfast included will save a lot of $$ across 3 mornings. But the others sound just as good...aaarrrgh!! Don't know what to do!

Ryn2691

Have you included the Papa Noel rates? You should be getting some very good quotes for those dates, better than I'm seeing in your list. For instance, Bienville House is $79-99 for those dates. Usually you have to ask directly for the Papa Noel rates; they often will not volunteer them.

I can't get a direct link to post, but go to http://fqfi.org/ and click on the Christmas in New Orleans section; then click on Hotel Rates.

SenecaGirl

Ryn2691 -- Thanks so much! I will be calling these hotels tonight to see if I can get these great rates! This hopefully will allow us to stay at a nicer hotel that is in our price range. The other sections on this site are helpful too. Thanks! SenecaGirl