FAQs About Planning a Trip to New Orleans
Jackson Square and Saint Louis Cathedral
Is New Orleans Kid Friendly?
For our family this was a resounding yes! Many things were free for kids under five. It is very easy to walk or take streetcars to most of your destinations. There are lots of activity options for kids to do there that parents will love as well. We had gone during the weekdays and always went back right before dark except for our one night at the Music Box Village. On Thursday and Friday the French Quarter was more crowded and I am guessing at night and on the weekends there would be more revelry in that area.
Will there still be parades and music even if I am not going during Mardi Gras?
Yes! Our trip was in November and we still saw multiple small parades sporadically as we walked along the streets. There were also musicians playing on the street and in various restaurants and cafes. I was speaking to a resident who told me in New Orleans there are also many parades for the whole month of Mardi Gras.
How can I experience the magic of Mardi Gras if I am going at a different time of year?
On our trip we went to Mardi Gras World where we all had a blast seeing the different floats being constructed. We also ate king’s cake and saw a short video about Mardi Gras. You can always wear Mardi Gras beads as you walk around as well.
How should I plan ahead for my trip to New Orleans?
We picked one paid activity per day for our trip and booked these ahead of time. We had not rented a car so we wanted to make sure we knew how to get to all of these places beforehand. We booked with coupons and through Groupon. Viator also looked like a good option for booking things beforehand for your trip.
Wear sneakers! There is a lot of walking. Bring a portable power bank for your phone as well.
We had purchased these bags from Five Below in the picture below that worked well for our Spirit airlines flight. If you are also trying to travel there with limited luggage purchasing gallon sized Ziploc bags to help compress your clothes is very helpful.
Always check your flight bag requirements before making a purchase.
What kind of clothes should I pack?
We packed lighter clothes since it was hot there in November as it is a fair amount of the year. We purchased Mardi Gras beads from Dollar Tree beforehand and these were easy to throw on with any of our outfits. Many stores also sell them in New Orleans. Some of the New Orleans themed shirts we packed for the kids are pictured below. For our steamboat ride we had my son wear suspenders.
Should I rent a car in New Orleans?
This will depend on your itinerary. For our trip we were doing a short trip and mostly staying within a small area so we did not rent a car. We only ended up getting three Uber rides and the rest of the time we could walk or take streetcars. The streetcar rides were one of my son’s favorite parts of our trip. Public transportation was all very clean since food and drinks were not allowed to be consumed. For our Cajun Pride Swamp Tour we booked a trip where they could pick you up from your hotel. When we went to Mardi Gras World we called them and were able to get picked up and dropped off to a central location. If you are planning a longer trip it might be worth renting a car for a few days if your itinerary includes multiple places that are further away.
What foods should I eat in New Orleans?
There are lots of foods associated with New Orleans. The ones we were able to try while we were there included a beignet, gumbo, jambalaya, po-boy, muffuletta and pralines. Our favorite meal was eating beef po-bao and the pork street tacos at Bon’s. Our favorite dessert was eating beignets from Cafe du Monde. New Orleans also has lots of great spots for Vietnamese food. I only learned this at the end of our trip but I will definitely check these out if we return again.
What are good souvenirs to take home and for friends?
My daughter’s favorite souvenir was her New Orleans jazz bag she purchased. For my son he loved this alligator puppet we bought after our swamp tour. He still likes to feed his puppet marshmallows to this day. We liked our pot holder and magnet that we took home. They were all easy to pack.
For friends we mostly took home pralines and they were a hit. Aunt Sally’s pralines are great since they are gluten-free and individually wrapped. If you get hooked on them like we did you can also buy them on Amazon once you get home. Mardi Gras beads are another easy souvenir to take home for friends and family.
Are there Penny Press machines in New Orleans?
Yes! We found them on our trip at the Cafe Du Monde location near Jackson Square. We also saw another one inside of Mardi Gras World. This shows locations of other Penny Press machines in New Orleans and Louisiana: Louisiana Penny Press Machines.
What things did you do on your trip there?
Our major activities were Mardi Gras World, Cajun Pride Swamp Tours, the Riverboat City of New Orleans and Music Box Village. Other places we went included Jackson Square, St. Louis Cathedral and more.
To learn all the details about our trip see my article here:
The outside of Music Box Village
What are other things for kids there that you would consider for a future trip?
City Park sounded like it would be lots of fun for kids with Storyland, Carousel Gardens Amusement Park and City Putt.
The Audubon Nature Center also sounds like an interesting place to visit with its hardwood bottomland forest and astronomy center.
Other travelers we met mentioned that their kids enjoyed the Louisiana Children’s Museum with its many hands-on activities.
When asking for food recommendations, many people mentioned that Mulate’s had tasty Cajun food.
What are things you would recommend if you are planning a trip to New Orleans without kids?
I would still repeat our entire itinerary if traveling without kids as all the activities we did on our trip I enjoyed a lot.
Two of our friends recently went and had a dinner date at Arnaud’s. There they saw Mardi Gras costumes housed above the restaurant in a personal museum. This sounded like an awesome date night in the city.
We passed some of the houses in the Garden District on our streetcar and they looked very picturesque. It would be fun to walk around the Garden District for part of a day or even do a tour there.
Going out on or around Bourbon Street during the night time or on weekends definitely seemed to be popular for adults.
New Orleans is known for its ghost tours so if you are not easily scared these may be fun to check out: Haunted Tours in New Orleans
The infamous rotating Carousel Bar in the Hotel Monteleone has a Bar Bites menu and sounds like a unique experience.
The Caesars Superdome looked impressive from the outside. They have games and events all the time that sound like they would be a lot of fun.
Are there other websites about New Orleans I should check out before my travels?
Read my article about our trip here to help you plan your own adventure: Our Family Trip Down in New Orleans.
New Orleans travel website is amazing with lots of itinerary ideas and things to do in different seasons. New Orleans
These are two coupon sites that would be useful to check during your trip planning: New Orleans Coupons & New Orleans Deals
The portion of the site that I used the most during our trip was the streetcar itinerary here: New Orleans Streetcar Itinerary
This was another helpful guide for using streetcars: New Orleans Streetcars Lines
What are websites that will tell me more about the history of Louisiana?
History of New Orleans by Period
New Orleans History Starter Pack
Where was the Louisiana Purchase Signed?
Send me an email if you have further questions you want answered for your trip!