Top 10 "Must Do" in New Orleans

My hubby and I have 5 days in New Orleans.

What are the "must do"? We love to tour, drink and eat. Just want to hear from the travel experts!

Thanks all! :D

http://boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=679336

Lots of good ideas here.

We go to NO often and on our trips there are three things we must do each time. As soon as you get there, go to Pat O'briens and get yourself a Hurricane. In fact go there several times a day and get a Hurricane:) .

Second, you have to get coffee and beignets at Cafe Dumond. They melt in your mouth.

Third. If you like great music and dancing, go to the Famous Door Bar on Bourbon street. Absolutly fabulous band playing classic rock from the 70's 80's and 90's. Their house band is called RockBox and they are incredible.

Have a good time.

We really enjoyed this cooking demonstration. And the eating of course!

http://www.neworleansschoolofcooking.com/

Ride the authentic paddlewheel Mississippi River steamboat NATCHEZ, and make sure to visit her engine room to watch the antique steam machinery work.

Check http://www.steamboatnatchez.com and the food on the boat is worth trying. Right next to the Natchez you will also find the Grey Line busses. Combo tickets are available too.

Check out jgpuma´s thread.

I like the Aquarium and zoo. Been to Mardi Gras World. DDay Museum. Swamp Tour. New Orleans School of Cooking was great too. French Market. Café du Monde and beignets. And food, food, food... and music, music, music...

steamboats

I highly recommend the swamp tour http://www.honeyislandswamp.com/. Our guide was great and we learned a great deal about the people living in this area.

After riding the Steamboat NATCHEZ catch the Cemetery streetcar (right by the steamboat landing) and ride out to the end of the line. get off the streetcar and walk over to the shaved ice stand and buy the coolest and sweetest nonalcoholic libation in town. During the long steamy New Orleans' summers, this is a real treat! :)

I recommend www.visiticket.com for the best (and most affordable) selection of tours. I do this everytime I bring someone new to the city.

Have chargrilled oysters somewhere. I got mine at ACME Oyster Co, and my mouth still waters when I think of them.

Have a burger and a Red Turtle at Port 'O Call. Don't have more than two Red Turtles, as they are far more deadly than you might think.

If you have a thing for cemetaries then you have to visit the ones in New Orleans, as they're like nothing I've seen anywhere else.

Have coffee at Cafe DuMonde and enjoy the street performers.

Be careful at the ferry dock, as when we went there were some homeless people holed up inside it who were screaming at everybody who went past.

Eat at The Gumbo Shop

Ride the Steamboat Natchez

Enjoy the Street Performers

If you like military history. The World War II museum was FANTASTIC!! Give yourself about 4 hours to enjoy all of it though! It can be done at a much faster clip if you don't watch the movies they have.

Drink.... all day...and yes the WWII museum is amazing. its very out of place... should be in D.C. with how great it is.

Drink.... all day...and yes the WWII museum is amazing. its very out of place... should be in D.C. with how great it is.

From Wiki.......

"The main reason the museum is located in New Orleans is because the city was where the "Higgins Boats," vital to D-Day operations were designed, built, and tested. The museum gives extensive coverage of the "LCVP" or "Higgins Boat" landing craft used in the invasion of Normandy and elsewhere. These landing craft were designed by Andrew Higgins of Louisiana and produced in New Orleans by Higgins Industries and its licensees. Furthermore, New Orleans was the home city of historian Stephen Ambrose who spearheaded the effort to build such a museum."

"Andrew Higgins ... is the man who won the war for us. ... If Higgins had not designed and built those LCVPs, we never could have landed over an open beach. The whole strategy of the war would have been different." — General Dwight Eisenhower

Okay, here's my problem: we will get to New Orleans about mid-afternoon and have all of the next day as well, and we are traveling with our 7yo DS. We aren't interested in the French Quarter or any of the bars. The things we are interested in are:

Natchez

Aquarium

Zoo

IMAX, maybe

swamp tour

Since we don't know what time we'll get in on Friday afternoon, there is very little we can see before everything closes (4:30-5pm this time of year). So we may try to see the botanical garden. If we want to ride the Natchez, the time options are 11:30 and 2 (having to be aboard 30 minutes before those times). The other things don't open until 10am. How long does it take to see the aquarium, keeping the attention span of a 7yo in mind? How large is the zoo? Should we do that if the weather is nice instead? If we did the 2pm Natchez ride, would we have time for both?

Okay, here's my problem: we will get to New Orleans about mid-afternoon and have all of the next day as well, and we are traveling with our 7yo DS. We aren't interested in the French Quarter or any of the bars. The things we are interested in are:

 

Natchez

Aquarium

Zoo

IMAX, maybe

swamp tour

 

Since we don't know what time we'll get in on Friday afternoon, there is very little we can see before everything closes (4:30-5pm this time of year). So we may try to see the botanical garden. If we want to ride the Natchez, the time options are 11:30 and 2 (having to be aboard 30 minutes before those times). The other things don't open until 10am. How long does it take to see the aquarium, keeping the attention span of a 7yo in mind? How large is the zoo? Should we do that if the weather is nice instead? If we did the 2pm Natchez ride, would we have time for both?

Are you set on riding the Natchez or just want a riverboat ride? There is one that goes from the aquarium to the zoo daily. I highly recommend the show 'Hurricane on the Bayou' at the IMAX. I'm not big on zoos or aquariums, but do enjoy both in New Orleans. The Aquarium usually takes us a couple hours to go throught with the kids (7 & 9) and they enjoy returning. The zoo can be an all day affair. It's a pretty good sized zoo. If I had to choose between the two I'd go for the Aquarium. There is also the Insectarium that just opened, which the kids LOVE. All 4 places (aquarium, zoo, IMAX and insectarium) are part of the Audubon Institute, so you can get deals if you go to more than one of them. http://www.auduboninstitute.org/ The IMAX is in the same building as the aquarium. The zoo is upriver and the insectarium is on Canal street.

One thing that you may enjoy is a ferry trip across the river. The ferry lands right by the aquarium and makes the trip across the river every 30 minutes. It's free for walk on travel. My kids love doing that - we don't even get off when we get across, just ride it across and back and then go get beignets. It runs from early in the morning (I wanna say 6am, but could be wrong there) and I think now runs until midnight (maybe later).

There is also a children's museum, but it would be pretty far down on my list of things to do in New Orleans.

I really kind of wanted to ride the Natchez and see the steam engines. But if there's a better option, I'm open to it, especially if it allows us to cover more things. We've never been to New Orleans, and don't know when we'll get back, so we'd like to see as much as possible.

I really kind of wanted to ride the Natchez and see the steam engines. But if there's a better option, I'm open to it, especially if it allows us to cover more things. We've never been to New Orleans, and don't know when we'll get back, so we'd like to see as much as possible.

Well, you're only going to get the steam engine experience on the Natchez - some who say they want to ride the Natchez are just wanting a riverboat ride.

Pat O'briens (hurricane and piano bar), Cafe du Monde, Eat a Muffalatta (Frank's on Decatur), Sing Karaoke at Cat's Meow, Gumbo at the gumbo shop, Go to Big Daddys, Enjoy the live music, Tour the side streets during the day and look back between nasty buildings to see marvelous homes, flash, hook up with someone!!! :) It's New Orleans...let the good times roll!!!