Feb 2017 Mardi Gras Cruise

My wife and I will be on the 2017 Mardi Gras Cruise on the Equinox, Any buddy have any suggestions for excursions.

Take a look at your Roll Call -- you'll find others on your cruise investigating the same question and may be able to link up with something that sounds interesting.

It's also helpful if you tell us which ports you are visiting -- it's hard to make recommendations without knowing that.

Also, what kinds of things do you like? History? Food? Active shore excursions? Limited walking? Narrow your request down a bit for us, please.

Sorry, not quite awake yet, I should have narrowed it down. We are looking for things to do in New Orleans. We will be there for two nights 3 days during Mardi Gras. We are an active couple, walking not a problem, history, beaches, Casinos, seeing the sights, shopping etc.

I highly recommend the World War II museum.

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Try the ports board or internet search....area will be crowded that time of year...

Trolley is fun,,

Garden District has nice homes, gardens eateries,

Paddlewheelee river cruise with lunch or dinner

French quarter...food, flea market, history architecture...music street events

Nearby Plantations...

Had trouble posting so hope there are not dup posts,,if it happens, i am sorry

Sorry, not quite awake yet, I should have narrowed it down. We are looking for things to do in New Orleans. We will be there for two nights 3 days during Mardi Gras. We are an active couple, walking not a problem, history, beaches, Casinos, seeing the sights, shopping etc.

I second that the roll call has a ton of things set up .... you will want to look at part 2 otherwise you will be reading for days.

Many events are sold out already but now that final payment is on our heels, there will probably be some cancellations. I did read that a lot of things are closed down for the days we are there in NOLA. There are some free events posted on our roll call though.

My friends have been to Mardi Gras before and seem to recall they told me that if you want to get into Harrahs, you will need your players club card. I haven't been before (NOLA, yes; Mardi Gras, no) so not sure of the accuracy of this statement.

I can tell you that I have heard the WWII museum is great but may not be open while we are there. I loved going down to the Garden District, a cemetery tour, riding on the Natchez, Cafe Du Monde, the Mardi Gras museum in Jackson Square, a swamp tour, collecting some throws on Bourbon Street with all the different music venues, Preservation Hall, etc while I was there.... but both times I went it was during the summer.

i live in new orleans. most businesses except restaurants and bars will be closed mardi gras day (tuesday 2/28/17). the cruise port is downtown and there are road closures while parades are running. while parades are running, you will be mostly restricted to where you can walk. on sun 2/26 parades run all day and late into the evening. on mon 2/27 the parades are only in the evening. tues 2/28 parades start early morning and run into the afternoon. bring sturdy walking shoes. get a parade tracker app for your smartphone. check parade schedules at sites like mardigras.com.

Take a look at the roll call here:

http://boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=2325941

It is a very friendly and active group. You'll find a link to a comprehensive spreadsheet set up by one of our members that details the activities planned. Many of them have been sold out for over a year but as we near final payment there have been a few cancellations and you might get lucky. As people have already mentioned, some points of interest might be closed due to Mardi Gras but there should still be plenty left to do.

Welcome!

Meow Mix

Would you be able to tell me if a lot of the attractions are within walking distance of the port. Our ship docks at 6pm on feb 26th and leaves at 10 pm on the 28th. We would like to do a few things like the WW 2 Museum, a swamp tour, haunted walk etc. Can you tell me which ones would we be able to do without having to cab a lot. Seeing that we get in at 6pm on the 26 and that the 28th is Mardi Gras and most things are closed are only real sight seeing day would be the 27th. Any guidance you can give us would be appreciated. We are Canadian so it would be better for us to book our tickets here and pay in Canadian so we kind of need to know what we can do using our feet and the ship as a base.

Meow Mix

 

Would you be able to tell me if a lot of the attractions are within walking distance of the port. Our ship docks at 6pm on feb 26th and leaves at 10 pm on the 28th. We would like to do a few things like the WW 2 Museum, a swamp tour, haunted walk etc. Can you tell me which ones would we be able to do without having to cab a lot. Seeing that we get in at 6pm on the 26 and that the 28th is Mardi Gras and most things are closed are only real sight seeing day would be the 27th. Any guidance you can give us would be appreciated. We are Canadian so it would be better for us to book our tickets here and pay in Canadian so we kind of need to know what we can do using our feet and the ship as a base.

The WWII museum should be walkable from the dock and looks as though they are open on Monday, the 27th (closed on Mardi Gras). You can purchase your tickets ahead of time at: https://ticketing.nationalww2museum.org/webstore/shop/viewItems.aspx?cg=Tickets&c=GA

Having lived in New Orleans for a few years previously, Mardi Gras is not the time to visit if you want to engage in typical tourist activities. New Orleans is a vibrant, amazing city, but during Mardi Gras (and the days leading up to Fat Tuesday) it is extremely crowded and crazy and the focus is on celebrating Mardi Gras.

The swamp tours are not near the downtown area. I believe that the museum is somewhat near to where the ship docks and may be feasible if you do early in the day Monday. There should be Haunted Tours available near by, but not sure if they will be operating on/near Mardi Gras (again early in the day Monday would be the best bet if they are running).

If you want a typical tourist experience try visiting another time of the year. Summer can be extremely hot and humid, but the rest of the year is perfect. I am heading for a few days next month myself.

Bornbeau,

Check out the shore excursions on X's cruise planner. They offer a swamp tour and several walking tours. Might also want to look at independent tours though as X can be pricey. For example, X is offering grandstand space for parade watching at $249pp. We paid $35pp through a Mardi Gras web site and that included their vip option, restricted area with port-a-potty (very important).

I live an hour from New Orleans. You aren't going to be able to just stroll the streets and do regular tourist things like you would on any other three day period during the year. Many things will (wisely) shut down. The only thing that's going on in New Orleans, particularly the French Quarter/downtown area where you're docked is Mardi Gras. You won't be able to venture in the beautiful old hotels either. Unless you have a key and are registered there, you can't go in. We hate Mardi Gras personally (did it my whole life - now we don't even go to the parades around here). I hope people aren't disappointed that all there is to do is big crowds and parades and bars. I assume that's why people took this cruise, parades. Mardi Gras is anything but usual in the city. Things shut down. Lock down. Be vigilant because crazies come from all over the world to act crazy and make some very poor public choices :eek:

If you want to see the city, come back another time, around Easter or in late October. Stay off Bourbon Street - if you can even get a foot on it. It's wall to wall people and moving is by bodies smashing against each other front and back and sides. And it smells. Not all the French Quarter streets will be as crowded as that one, but they will be crowded, particularly the three blocks closest to Canal Street where much of the parade action is.

I hate to be negative but the question has been asked here a few times. Do get on your roll call. And one other thing is how to pronounce New Orleans, in case you're interested. It's NOT "new-or-LEENS". Around here we say "new OR luns" Some natives will say it more like "new AW luns."

I do hope you have a great cruise. It's going to be interesting, for sure.

Sorry, not quite awake yet, I should have narrowed it down. We are looking for things to do in New Orleans. We will be there for two nights 3 days during Mardi Gras. We are an active couple, walking not a problem, history, beaches, Casinos, seeing the sights, shopping etc.

Be sure to take in a Parade!

My friends have been to Mardi Gras before and seem to recall they told me that if you want to get into Harrahs, you will need your players club card.

My husband and I are on this sailing as well. While I don't doubt that the city will be a madhouse and most business will be closed down for the celebration, I just called Harrahs and they told me that the casino is opened 24/7 - 365 days a year, including during Mardi Gras which is, in fact, their busiest time of year.

The Grandstand tickets with Celebrity are outrageous! We are doing several of the other tours with Celebrity in New Orleans and probably nothing in the islands, since we've been there so many other times.

Looking forward to this cruise!