NOLA Mardi Gras on Equinox....need info please

[Hydrokitty]

 

We are a bit disappointed though that X hasn't offered any excursions yet other than the overpriced bleacher spot.

 

This is why I bailed on this cruise Baron Barracuda....when I started researching

independent tours I discovered that the plantations and other points of interest to us were closed for Mardi Gras...so we decided to visit NO on our own at another time.

[SouthernLadyinLA]

Well I hope you do experience some of Mardi Gras and being on the stands on St. Charles is the best way to do it with access to bath, food, and drink.

The River boat Natchez runs most of the time but is used in pre Mardi Gras events, so it will depend when you are in NO what will be available to you.

The main parades and events begin the Wednesday, Thursday prior to Mardi Gras and go through Mardi Gras Day.

I would also go to the Plantations web site, but I feel like they will be normal till you get to Lundi Gras/Monday, or Fat Tuesday.

Hope this helps.

Phoebe

[bagelme]

Thank you, Hydro Kitty. I'm going to look into what changes we can make. We booked the Mardi Gras cruise on a whim and obviously had not done our usual thorough homework on that cruise. Thank goodness for Cruise Critic. Also, thank goodness our cruise isn't until 2018, so we have plenty of time to investigate other options.

 

Gangway...since you have plenty of time, maybe you should wait and see what those of us sailing in 2017 can tell you about our experiences. My main goal is to experience the Mardi Gras atmosphere. Like DragonoftheSeas, we will doing the private event that has been organized for viewing the parades Monday evening. I'm sure your Roll Call members could do something similar for 2018.

Pat

 

Sent from my KFTT using Tapatalk 2

[Cruise Raider]

Gangway...since you have plenty of time, maybe you should wait and see what those of us sailing in 2017 can tell you about our experiences. My main goal is to experience the Mardi Gras atmosphere. Like DragonoftheSeas, we will doing the private event that has been organized for viewing the parades Monday evening. I'm sure your Roll Call members could do something similar for 2018.

Pat

 

Sent from my KFTT using Tapatalk 2

 

That is exactly what I was thinking. I won't listen to nay sayers when planning my events. I wanted to go visit the 100th Rose Bowl Parade way back when. Everyone warned me of how horrible it would be and all I would see was the back of people's heads and hit all sorts of traffic going in. Well, turned out to be just the opposite. Yes, there were crowds but it wasn't unruly. We found a parking spot not too far away and walked right up with our chairs to the front row. You cannot enjoy the smell of a parade when watching it on tv. The roses are incredible ... even the smell of the horses made a difference in the overall ambiance of the parade. Even if you were back a few rows, you can see the parade ... the floats are way larger than people in front of you are tall. I am so glad I didn't listen to all the negative comments. Only you know what it is important to you and if the town gets too crazy, you will still have a little sanctuary right down the street. Same goes for enjoying New Year's in Vegas. We were warned but it was spectacular and even my DH that hates crowds said he would do it again in a heartbeat.

I am not challenging the fact that it may be crazy or crowded, maybe too crazy or crowded for some, but it will be a unique experience -- that's for sure. I, too, am crossing it off my bucket list as I am all in. We have a great group on our roll call that is helping to set everything up for interested groups. It should be great ... and if not, I am sure we all report back and that would be a better time to cancel the 2018 sailing.

[MichaelCMTX]

DW and I are booked on the 2/20/17 NOLA sailing and we're also a bit apprehensive about the massive crowds. However, after reading all 5600+ posts on our roll call (cudos to beba for managing this monster) we've decided that Mardi Gras is a great bucket list item to cross off, and this cruise is a wonderful way to do it. Even if we aren't able to view the parades close up we can lurk at the periphery and enjoy people watching. If things get too crazy we'll just head back to the ship where Ill have my high powered binoculars. We are a bit disappointed though that X hasn't offered any excursions yet other than the overpriced bleacher spot.

 

Exactly as you stated. We can be there for one rather than just read about it and wonder, with the added benefit of having our accommodations and mode of travel be a Cruise Ship. From this thread I did make it a point to explain to DW that Harrah's, Cemetery tours, a nice quiet Bengnet, a lot of the "We'll be in NOLA, wouldn't it be cool to..." activities are simply not on the Menu for this trip.

 

I really wish Royal Caribbean still sailed out of there, or that we'd learned about it earlier and went sooner.

[mafig]

Azamara has a fabulous itinerary in April with three nights in NOLA. Az is expensive, but I don't know what premium you paid for this Equinox cruise.

 

Check it out!

[SouthernLadyinLA]

Azamara has a fabulous itinerary in April with three nights in NOLA. Az is expensive, but I don't know what premium you paid for this Equinox cruise.

 

Check it out!

 

We loved Azamara, and how great we it would be to be in New Orleans for a couple of days. Living here, or outside the city, we love playing tourist and do on a regular basis and stay downtown. So many great places to eat, drink, and people watch. You will be able to venture on St. Charles Avenue, Magazine Street etc etc.

Take advantage of being in a great city with a wonderful history.

Phoebe