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Going to New Orleans for the First Time..

rhett7660

rhett7660

macrumors G5
Original poster
Jan 9, 2008
14,588
4,768
Sunny, Southern California
Hello All..

Going to New Orleans in July and have been looking at the various links on google but would like to hear from the macrumors forum members who have been there and wouldn't mind recommending the following:

Hotels
Bars
Things to see
Places to see

:)

Thanks a bunch!!!!
 
New Orleans is a great city to visit. It has been a long time since I was there so I can't really recommend to much. I would recommend taking a cemetery tour, go to Cafe Du Monde and get some beignets, visit the French Quarter.

I hope you have a great time!:D
 
ucfgrad93 said:
New Orleans is a great city to visit. It has been a long time since I was there so I can't really recommend to much. I would recommend taking a cemetery tour, go to Cafe Du Monde and get some beignets, visit the French Quarter.

I hope you have a great time!:D
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Thanks!!!!!

Cafe Du Monde - Check
Cemetery Tour - Check
We are actually going to be staying at a hotel in the French Quarters.......

Thanks a bunch!!!
 
Restaurant suggestions:

Arnault

Galletoire

Commanders Palace

Brennans

Hotel:

Royal Sonesta Hotel...in the Quarter.

Music Bar:

Tippitinas

Laissez le bon temp roulé:D
 
rhett7660 said:
:eek: Thank you very much!!!!!!!!!!!! :D
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You're welcome!

Two more suggestions:

N. O. has a great zoo! Take the last remaining trolley line...the St. Charles line (no, the Desire line no longer exists). The trolley will take you through the Garden District...great viewing!

Also, of course, Bourbon Street...especially at night! Don't miss it!:D
 
Dominique's on Magazine is really good.. There's actually a lot of new restaurants that recently popped up on Magazine St. I don't know the names of all of them but you should definitely visit that area when you're there.
 
If you want to have a true New Orleans experience (and you're in town on a Tuesday) you should go see Rebirth Brass Band at the Maple Leaf bar. It's in Uptown and just off of the streetcar line and it's a great time. You can have dinner at Jacques-Imo's ahead of time (great restaurant), but that place can be a PITA because they don't take reservations and there's always a wait.
 
Shrink said:
You're welcome!

Two more suggestions:

N. O. has a great zoo! Take the last remaining trolley line...the St. Charles line (no, the Desire line no longer exists). The trolley will take you through the Garden District...great viewing!

Also, of course, Bourbon Street...especially at night! Don't miss it!:D
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That is a must and we will be hitting Bourbon Street! Thanks for the tip about the Zoo.

DaweebZ said:
Dominique's on Magazine is really good.. There's actually a lot of new restaurants that recently popped up on Magazine St. I don't know the names of all of them but you should definitely visit that area when you're there.
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Great! Another place to eat!!! We cannont wait to try many of the different places.

Domiique's Check!

adk said:
If you want to have a true New Orleans experience (and you're in town on a Tuesday) you should go see Rebirth Brass Band at the Maple Leaf bar. It's in Uptown and just off of the streetcar line and it's a great time. You can have dinner at Jacques-Imo's ahead of time (great restaurant), but that place can be a PITA because they don't take reservations and there's always a wait.
Click to expand...

Yup we will be in town on Tuesday!

Maple Leaf Bar Check
Jacques-Imo Check

Thank you all for the suggestions.....!!!!
 
Rent the movie The Big Easy, with one of the Quaid brothers, iirc. It's not so much a "what a to see" but "local flavour".

Also, if you are driving the countryside outside the city and see a "pipe crossing" sign you either want to speed up or slow down, depending on whether it's rental car or your own car (respectively).
 
rhett7660 said:
Maple Leaf Bar Check
Jacques-Imo Check

Thank you all for the suggestions.....!!!!
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Again, check the Yelp reviews for Jaques-Imo's before you go - some people really don't like the attitude and the atmosphere of the place, but most love it. I guess not everybody enjoys sitting at a bar for 2 hours waiting for a table. But Rebirth at the Maple Leaf is a must, and as I said it's very accessible from the streetcar.

Closer to the French Quarter, Port of Call restaurant on Esplanade has great burgers and their signature drink, the monsoon, packs a punch. It's a good place to go if you need a break from the fancier meals New Orleans is famous for.
 
The last time I visited with my wife, which was several years ago, one of our favorite things was taking a "haunted historical tour" around the French Quarter. Basically, they tour you around and tell you the "evil" and "mythic" history of the historical buildings in the area like, murders, local legends, ghost stories, etc.. Our tour took place at night, like 9:00 PM, and it was really fun.

And, of course, eat, eat, eat. The food is awesome! We like to hit the Gumbo Shop not far from Bourbon street. I think locals view it as a "touristy" place, but we thought the food was great. Have fun and let us know how it goes. :)
 
I'm from New Orleans :)

I hope you enjoy your time out there. Most of what's been said here is spot on. You might want to check out the Aquarium. We have a pretty awesome one. Also, We have mama's burgers Uptown. Probably THE BEST peanut burgers i've ever tasted in my life.
 
tekboi said:
I'm from New Orleans :)

I hope you enjoy your time out there. Most of what's been said here is spot on. You might want to check out the Aquarium. We have a pretty awesome one. Also, We have mama's burgers Uptown. Probably THE BEST peanut burgers i've ever tasted in my life.
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Mama's Burgers check... I will be posting a tentative itanary here shortly, hopefully I have a few spots to fill in for other activities.

The Ghost Tours is a must as that is one thing the wife really wants to do. We did one in Savannah Ga and loved it.
 
Went to New Orleans for a day a couple of years ago. Spent the whole day in the French Quarter, but had a good time walking around Bourbon St. and getting a really good shrimp Po' Boy.

Have fun!
 
rhett7660 said:
Mama's Burgers check... I will be posting a tentative itanary here shortly, hopefully I have a few spots to fill in for other activities.

The Ghost Tours is a must as that is one thing the wife really wants to do. We did one in Savannah Ga and loved it.
Click to expand...

You will not run out of stuff to do in NOLA
 
Just wanted to post back on this thread. The trip was freaking fantastic and here is a list of places we went to etc:

French Quarter Phantoms
Flannagins Bar
Yo, Momma's burgers
Draggo's
Delmonico
Arnaud’s
5 cemetaries
Brennans
The Italian Barrel
Stanley
Little Vic's
Café Amelie
Waffle House (yes I know, but we both love this place)
Cafe Du Monde (a couple of times)
Cafe Fleur De Lis
Trolly
Garden District
Myrtles Plantation
Camellia Grill


We had an excellent time and man o man between the food and music we want to go back for more!!!

The 4th of july show was pretty slick also, two spots with fireworks going off over the Mississippi river was a treat.

We ate a lot, we drank a lot and we walked a lot. The weather was not to bad and the humidity was a little intense on some of the days but over all wasn't bad.

We do like Bourbon street better at night then during the day. There is a completely different vibe during the day. Didn't like it to much.

We also went down to "Frenchman" street was pretty cool and checked out a couple of the "local" bars there also.

I really want to experience this place during Mardi Gras!!!!!

Again thank you all for the tips and suggestions!!!!!!!!!
 
You missed one:

Salu on Magazine Street. Would have loved that restaurant.

ProTip: On Mardi Gras, stay away from Downtown parades and French Quarter. Instead go to Uptown along St. Charles Street. Better viewing and not as crowded.

If you really want to venture down to French Quarter during Mardi Gras go the Thursday or Friday before Fat Tuesday avoid the weekend at all costs or you won't enjoy it.
 
jav6454 said:
You missed one:

Salu on Magazine Street. Would have loved that restaurant.

ProTip: On Mardi Gras, stay away from Downtown parades and French Quarter. Instead go to Uptown along St. Charles Street. Better viewing and not as crowded.

If you really want to venture down to French Quarter during Mardi Gras go the Thursday or Friday before Fat Tuesday avoid the weekend at all costs or you won't enjoy it.
Click to expand...

This is good to know!!!!!!

Yup, we missed a few we wanted to take in, adding this one to the list for next time~!!!
 
Wish I would have seen this before your trip as I would have recommended the Nationional WWII Museum in the warehouse district.

This started out as the D-Day Museum and initially featured Andrew Jackson Higgins and his Higgins boat. Many say that this man and his boat won the war.

"During the war, Higgins’ name became indelibly tied to his landing craft. Men did not come ashore in LCVPs, they traveled in “Higgins boats.” His achievements earned him countless accolades, but none was greater than the one he received from General Eisenhower. Higgins, Eisenhower said years later, “won the war for us.”

Next time you come make sure to see it. I would also suggest Oak Alley Plantation, it's the one I bring visitors to.
 
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