Pirates Alley

If you’re coming to New Orleans for Halloween weekend, you picked one of the best times of the year to visit. Halloween night falls on Saturday, Day of the Dead follows on Sunday, and somewhere in between there are pirates, costumes, cocktails and several decisions you’ll probably blame on the French Quarter. Sleep is not…

Bourbon Street at night is something everyone should see at least once. The neon. The music. The balconies. The crowds. The drinks. The occasional questionable life decision unfolding directly in front of you. It’s Bourbon Street. But if your entire nighttime experience in New Orleans begins and ends there, you’re missing most of what makes…

You don’t need to believe in ghosts to understand why New Orleans feels different after dark. Spend an afternoon walking through the French Quarter and it can be bright, colorful and loud. Music spills from open doors. Tour groups move down the sidewalks. Balconies hang overhead. Courtyards appear unexpectedly behind iron gates. Then the sun…

There really isn’t a bad time to visit New Orleans, but October makes a pretty strong argument for being one of the best. The worst of the summer heat is usually behind us. Festival season is rolling. Football is back. Halloween decorations start appearing on balconies and porches. Costumes become increasingly normal as the month…

There are cities that celebrate Halloween. And then there’s New Orleans. October is one of our favorite times of the year in the French Quarter. The summer heat finally starts giving us a break, festivals fill the calendar, costumes begin appearing on the streets and the entire city seems to get a little stranger as…

New Orleans is usually pictured as a city for adults—Bourbon Street, late nights, cocktails, and live music. But if you’re visiting with teenagers, there are plenty of ways to experience the city without feeling like you’re dragging them from one historical landmark to another. The trick is finding experiences that are interesting enough for adults…

New Orleans isn’t a city people visit to do the ordinary. You can find great restaurants, beautiful hotels and museums in cities all over the world. But one of the reasons people come to New Orleans is to experience something they simply can’t find anywhere else. And if you’re looking for unique things to do…

“When visitors search for must-see attractions in the French Quarter, they often find the same recommendations: Jackson Square, St. Louis Cathedral, Bourbon Street, and Café du Monde. But hidden among these famous landmarks is one of New Orleans’ most fascinating and overlooked experiences.”   The French Quarter is filled with famous sights, iconic architecture, and…

So you’ve spent time walking the streets of the French Quarter, hearing stories of pirates, smugglers, battles, and the colorful characters who helped shape New Orleans. The question we hear almost every day is: “What should we do next?” Fortunately, you’re standing in one of the most unique cities in America. Whether you’re interested in…

The towering masts, billowing sails, and weathered wooden decks of the Tall Ships offer a glimpse into a world that once connected New Orleans to the Caribbean, Europe, and ports across the Gulf Coast. But after you’ve admired the ships themselves, many visitors find themselves asking a different question: Who were the men…