Areas to Avoid in New Orleans

Looking to book a hotel for our upcoming cruise. Have found some out by the airport with stay and park packages, but not sure of the area they are in. Also found a Best Western Westbank. Is this a good area?

Any suggestions would be appreciated.

Last October we stayed at Prytania Park in the Garden district. It is only a couple of blocks from the St Charles streetcar. Nice not having to fight for parking in Downtown area. There are a couple of restaurants in the area and away from the Bourbon street crazy. Of course it was only my husband & I, so we weren't looking for anything to occupy kids with. Hotel is family owed and they have a continental breakfast that they serve in the courtyard area. If we go back to NO that is where we will stay. Very Happy

First off... You need to know about NOLA is that hotel parking downtown or in the quarter is $30 to $50 a night. Parking at the port is easy and much cheaper. If you stay 3 star and above you have a lot of hotels to choose from. My fav. is the La Pavillion. It is closer to the Superdome but easily the nicest place for the $$ you can get most of the time.

Also, check out vacation rental by owner. There is a cool B&B in the Marigny called Maison du Laginappe that DW and I have stayed at many times. If they are not busy the owners may allow you to leave your car (no promises).

We usually stay at Hilton Riverside. It's VERY close to the port. In fact, one morning I parked early at Fulton St Garage, walked back to the room and got our stuff and walked with suitcases to get on the ship. I only used Fulton St when we sailed out of NOLA on RCI. When we cruise Carnival we also stay there, but park at the port for convenience. I'll pay more $$ to be able to get off of the ship, walk to my car and be out of the garage before they call zone 1. We do self-assist and are on I-10 by the time others are just getting to customs. I've learned some things are just worth paying the extra money for the convenience:D.

Be careful with hotels around the airport and Metarie. Shady things happen there quite frequently. Go to nola.com and read the crime section to see what areas you should avoid.

We are staying at the Loews right up the street in August for a wedding and then cruise the next day. Was it much of a hassle and how long did it take to walk from the Hilton to the terminal? We had considered the streetcar to the terminal.

Which cruise line are you going on? Believe it or not it makes a huge difference. When we stayed at the Hilton we went on Royal Caribbean so it was literally a walk across the parking lot. Norwegian also uses this berth. If you are going on Carnival you'll have to walk further and around the Convention Center, but it's still easy. Google Earth the Julia Street Pier and you'll get a better idea. Not sure if I helped, but you can continue to ask until I do. Ha!

We are on the Carnival dream. I have info about getting to the Julia Street terminal, it looks easy enough to get there by walking or streetcar. But not on the Erato Street Terminal. Some say quicker to walk then taking a cab. I just wasn't sure how much hassle it is to get from the John Churchill station into the cruise terminal.

We are on the Dream in November. Which terminal will she be docked at?

Carnival leaves from Erato Street. It sounds misleading, but they are literally right next to each other on the water. When you drive to the pier for Carnival it's easiest to park in the garage at the pier. You drive up, pay for parking, next stop is the porters then you park and take the elevator directly into the terminal. Easy peasy.

If you click on my user name and look at my posts about parking for my Royal Caribbean cruise vs parking for Carnival cruise it may help you a little more.

I found the thread so you can just click below and see if it answers your questions. On page 2 I came back and explained how we did it.

http://boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=1732852&page=2

Last October we stayed at Prytania Park in the Garden district. It is only a couple of blocks from the St Charles streetcar. Nice not having to fight for parking in Downtown area. There are a couple of restaurants in the area and away from the Bourbon street crazy. Of course it was only my husband & I, so we weren't looking for anything to occupy kids with. Hotel is family owed and they have a continental breakfast that they serve in the courtyard area. If we go back to NO that is where we will stay. Very Happy

Thanks for the feedback! I'll be staying at the Prytania Park in October. They've had good reviews online, but it's always good to read another good one.