new orleans hotel....i am confused

i need a room 2/16 to 2/18,,,went to priceline...but dont know which section of n.o. to bid on....i am cruising on 2/19....i see some hotels charge 28$ for parking...is it better to rent a car and stay further out????? or is it better to stay on bourbon street...we are seniors... looking for a good deal for three days...any advice would be so helpful....thank you...our first trip to n.o....

That is the week after Mardi Gras, so you should be able to find some great deals. I was not familiar with Priceline's N.O. locales, but I checked it out for you, and since I am familiar with N.O., I hope I can help. On Priceline, select Convention Center only to stay nearest the port. The convention center adjoins the cruise port. The following hotels are all within walking distance to the cruise port on Julia. They are listed from farthest away to nearest: Hilton, on 2 Poydras; Courtyard by Marriot, 330 Julia St.; Springhill Suites by Marriott, 301 St. Joseph;Embassy Suites, 315 Julia St.; Hampton Inn & Suites, 1201 Convention Center Blvd. Walking from the Hilton may be pushing it for seniors with luggage, but the hotel is on the river & near Canal St, but the others are very near the port. I provided street addresses so you can go to mapquest.com and see how near/far they are from things you'd like to see/do in N.O. Please let me know if this helps!

Also, try going to the Where have you stayed in New Orleans? thread for more information.

Good luck! :)

Hi, we have stayed at the Maison St Charles, it is on the streetcar line , so was easier to get around, if you don't have to rent a car you are better off. The city has a lot of one way streets and can be confusing. My daughter just made reservations a few weeks ago for 2-22 thru 2-28 right near the convention center for a conference she is attending , the area was pretty much booked up. So don't wait too long to book.

Cori

If you need help bidding on Priceline, let me know. I use it for almost all stays in New Orleans.

what do u land up paying on priceline for no hotel???

For your dates, $60-$90 per night plus tax for a decent hotel. Try for a 4* or 3* in the Conv Center or Central Business area.

should i rent a car...????or just take cabs and walk...thanks so much....

Get a cab or travel the streetcar. You really don't need a car in New Orleans. I booke priceline just about everytime I go and usually get the room for $50. I use CBD area 4* as my first choice and usually get the Marriott on Canal. It's right across from the streetcar stop and close to bourbon.The only area that I would not bid on is Central Business District (CBD) 3* because one of the hotels is the Park Plaza formerly the Radisson. This hotel is further out on Canal and not really good walking area at night. I have stayed in just about all areas and found no problems. A few weeks ago I was having problems finding a room so I even tried Convention Center 2.5*. Received the Residence Inn on St. Joseph Street. This is a few blocks from the Convention Center (Cruise Terminal is behind the Convention Center). These were really apartments and were really fine (even had complementary breakfast(, (not continental) Got these for $50. We walked in the day and took cabs in the evening.

You should have no problems booking after Mardi Gras.

Smiles196, I bid on Priceline for our N.O. precruise and postcruise hotel and received the 4* Le Pavillon (Central Business District) and 3* Omni Royal Crescent (Convention Center) for October 2005. Both hotels cost me less than $80/day. I did hear on biddingfortravel.com that the Priceline has lowered the rating of the Park Plaza to a 2* hotel.

The price for parking a rental car for one night is probably more than cabs would cost for your entire stay. I paid $29 for overnight parking last weekend.

thanks...i feel much more informed...and comfortable about going to n.o......

Hi, we have stayed at the Maison St Charles, it is on the streetcar line , so was easier to get around, if you don't have to rent a car you are better off. The city has a lot of one way streets and can be confusing. My daughter just made reservations a few weeks ago for 2-22 thru 2-28 right near the convention center for a conference she is attending , the area was pretty much booked up. So don't wait too long to book.

Cori

Cori - what can you tell me about Maison St Charles? we booked it during jazzfest for one night but haven't been able to get much feedback on it. thanks.

Hi,The hotel is on the edge of the garden district and not far from the French Quarter, the hotel has two different areas, the old area rooms are small and run down and sort of dumpy ,really are not very nice I would not stay in those, but the new area rooms in the back are ok not great but ok, more like your standard motel room sort of thing. Be sure to request a room in the new building, and have them email you a confirmation of you reservation and the price you agreed on and that it is in the new building.We saw one gentleman who traveled there for business often and he was having a difficult time with the front desk about the price they were charging him, seems like they changed the price on him, he was upset !!!!! IF they say they don't have space in the new building , then don't book there. Look else where , the Garden district is nice with lots of quaint hotels. Also I read something on one of the boards about the Cotton Exchange Hotel in the business district , worth looking into. The price we paid was pretty cheap so it was ok for two nights and convienent to the streetcar line, but not if you have to pay a premium price. There is a small restaurant at the hotel, but we walked next door to a nice little french restaurant, it was a cafateria type place, looked like mostly locals ate there great bread and soups. Directly across the street from the hotel is Emerils restaurant (not fancy just a old building) . The hotel is right on St. Charles St. which is the street car line, very convienent for getting to the french quarter. That was the main draw for us. So we could get around easily.

Remember that many of the buildings in the NO area are old. We booked directly with the hotel. But my daughter just booked a week in NO for a conference thru her medical group , and a couple days extra thru hotwire, got a good deal, you might check that out.

Be sure to go to Cafe Dumond for the bengnets (spelling ??) yummy.

Have a good trip, I hope this information helps, really if you have other choices other than Maison St. Charles , check them out :)

Cori

How much is the taxi fare from the airport?

Also, are there car rental places in the French Quarter if we wanted to make a couple of day trips.

Thanks!!

Cori -- thanks for the info. we are staying during jazzfest for only one night so it was like pulling teeth to get this hotel in the first place. most required a three night stay but when I contacted the maison st. charles the reservation manager waived the requirement. she didn't say anything about old or new building. I am traveling with my MIL, DM, DH, and our two young children. We were very excited about this hotel, even got reservations for Emerils. Now I'm worried we'll start our vacation on a bad note.

I would suggest calling the hotel right away and tell them you want a room in the new building, and don't take no for an answer, the rooms in the old section are small and with your group you need more room. I would definetly call them and try to make sure you are in the newer building. Post on this thread and let us know if it worked.

While you are there you can get a day pass on the Streetcar for I think it was 1.25 or 1.50 per person I don't remember for sure, but that might be something you want to do. You can get off the streetcar right at Burbon St. and walk across and you are in the French Quarter, keep the kids close as there are some unsavory characters in the Quarter. Are you going to Preservation Hall ? Let us know what the hotel says.

Cori