<p>Hi all! My mom and I are flying down on Friday the 14th for Top Scholars weekend, so we have all day Saturday to see the city of New Orleans. Both of us have never been. Is there anything I HAVE to see or do while I'm down there? Thanks!!</p>
<p>It doesn’t make a huge difference but it does make some difference: where are you staying Friday and Saturday nights? Also, what time are you supposed to arrive Friday?</p>
<p>My daughter and I are going to be visiting New Orleans and Tulane from March 23 - 27. She/we? will be attending Destination Tulane on Monday March 24. I just booked the Hampton Inn Garden District on St. Charles. What do you think of that location? We are very excited about seeing New Orleans and Tulane!</p>
<p>It’s a great location. I have stayed there often. You are right on the streetcar line, about equidistant between Tulane and the FQ, and an easy walk through some nice homes to Magazine Street.</p>
<p>Give yourself about 40 minutes to get to Tulane by streetcar. It only takes 15 but you never know how long before the next one comes. Exact change of $1.25 needed, or buy the day pass for $3.00 (that’s each).</p>
<p>We had a streetcar issue this week. There was an accident- car vs streetcar and the line closed down for over an hour. First time we ever saw that! </p>
<p>You are in a great location, Magazine St is a lot of fun, cute shops and some cool restaurants. </p>
<p>I was waiting for the streetcar a couple of years ago when a student thoughtlessly swayed into the path and got clipped. She wasn’t drunk, it didn’t appear, she just forgot where she was for a second and moved the wrong way at the wrong time. Needless to say we were stuck there for about an hour as they tended to her and took reports. I heard the next day she was fine, except for a little soreness. The streetcar was coming to a stop and was moving very slowly when it hit her, thank goodness.</p>
<p>Thanks for the feedback! Now we just need to plan out our days. Monday will be Destination Tulane. We will have Tuesday and Wednesday to see the sights! Any suggestions?</p>
<p>So many choices. For New Orleans, planning what you want to do and see has to include where you want to eat. Are there any food restrictions, either medically or just by preference? Also, how many fancy meals do you want and how many that are more moderately priced? Finally, are you both OK with a lot of walking? For that matter, would you want to do a bike tour? With those answers I think you can get several inputs with choices on where to eat and what to do/see.</p>
<p>I could write a book. 
Plan to spend on of those days in the FQ. It’s a nice streetcar ride. Don’t rush to get there, the Quarter tends to wake up slowly and doesn’t really start moving until 10:00 am. Early morning in the FQ is one of my favorite times however, it’s quiet, shop owners are hosing down their sidewalks…peaceful. You will get a million recommendations for restaurants! Check out their locations and menu’s, have a few options in mind. It’s best to be flexible. Unless there is someplace you really want to experience, then make a reservation if they accept them. To get a good feel for the area you could take a walking tour of the FQ. Wear comfortable shoes. Prepare to walk. alot. You don’t want to spend your entire time doing tours, but cemetery tours are interesting too.
If you are into museums there is NOMA - the art museum, the WW2 Museum, among others. If you aren’t up to walking you could do a mule drawn carriage tour. They leave from Jackson Square. Stroll Royal St for art galleries, antique stores and funky little shops. For great live music at night you’ll want to head to Frenchman Street, which is just past the FQ. Preservation Hall is a must as well for traditional jazz. </p>
<p>Check out the Gambit:</p>
<p><a href=“http://www.bestofneworleans.com/”>http://www.bestofneworleans.com/</a></p>
<p>There’s and event/restaurant calendar in the upper right of the page. It’ll take 4 years of College to explore it all!</p>
<p>The first time we visited NOLA, we did a 4 hr (I think) bus tour (it was a rainy day, so it was a great way to see a lot without getting soaked!). It gave us a pretty good overview of the city and even stopped for about 1/2 hr for a brief cemetery tour which was interesting. The bus picked us up at the hotel (Roosevelt near FQ).
Of course, you must see the FQ but do not limit yourself to Bourbon St which is crazy and a bit sleezy (but fun!). Walk down Royal Street to Decatur St (and the famous Cafe Du Monde). There are a lot of artists and street performers in that area. And Dolphin is correct…wear comfortable shoes! </p>
<p>Thanks for all the suggestions! We are getting sooo excited! Also looking forward to escaping the never-ending winter of 2014 in Chicago - I know many others are in the same boat!</p>
<p>Mommio - we’re in the same boat here! We plan on visiting from Chicago as a family on the weekend of March 21st. However, the hotel rooms seem kind of expensive. Are there any hotels which have Tulane rates, or is my only choice to find something on hotels.com?</p>
<p>Yes, there are several hotels that have a Tulane rate, but I have no idea how much discount that represents or if it is still available. Most hotels will only allow so many rooms to go at a discounted rate at the same time, and I am led to believe there is a lot going on in New Orleans that weekend. I think it was that weekend, anyway. But this page on the Tulane web site <a href=“Tulane Portal – Campus Travel Management”>http://www.campustravel.com/university/tulane/index.htm</a> are hotels Tulane has negotiated with. It might be tough this close to the visit, though. Good luck, let us know what you find.</p>
<p>Hmm, odd, I can’t find anything that would be driving up the prices unless there is some large convention in town that I didn’t come across. There are hotels that offer a Tulane rate, <a href=“http://admission.tulane.edu/visit/stay.php”>http://admission.tulane.edu/visit/stay.php</a></p>
<p>Thanks to both of you for your responses. Now it’s time to do some dialing.</p>
<p>I had a queen queen room reserved at Loews for about $280/night with one of the Loews website promotions…no cc deposit charged…and cancel up to the day before for the March weekend. The rates for the April dates are close to $500/nignt for the same room. I found any and all rooms slim pickins for both dates. When I tried the Tulane portal I was not getting the best rates vs booking directly thru the hotel sites.ymmv.</p>
<p>safe happy travels this weekend all.</p>
<p>I haven’t really tried the Tulane rates. Because I travel so much Hilton properties always gives me their best price. But I know in the past when just chatting up people at the hotel desks, they have told me that corporate rates tend to be fixed, so even when prices drop because of availability the same rate shows up. It is an advantage when prices are high, but you have to know to ask for the lowest rate available first, then see if an affiliated rate like Tulane’s is lower or not.</p>
<p>Looking forward to your reports. On Friday I will start a new thread for weekend reports. If someone starts it before me, great.</p>
<p>Makes more sense for me to join this discussion that I just noticed AFTER I posted in the March Scholars weekend thread…we’re also super excited to be visiting NOLA and Tulane for the first time this weekend! We’re staying at the Hilton Garden Inn on Gravier Street. No food allergies but D and H are not particularly adventurous… :)</p>
<p>We have most of Saturday to explore the city (by foot or streetcar) after hotel check-in. Definitely strolling/shopping on Magazine Street will make D happy! The Royal Street suggestion also sounded interesting. Probably museums will not be appealing to my group (we live outside of DC and go to museums regularly!). What are some suggestions of things to do or see in proximity to the river? Also looking for something traditional to NOLA for hubby and I to do Sunday night while D is at her overnight with host student?</p>
<p>Thanks for any and all suggestions!</p>
<p>Plan to have a nice dinner with the husband. We just discovered a really cute little restaurant in the quarter- Orleans Grapevine- very cozy. Check out their menu on line and see if it’s something you would enjoy. I’d plan to go to Preservation Hall Sunday Night. Can’t get much more traditional than that! They have two sets and depending on what’s going on you often have to get in line to get in about 30 minutes before the set. It’s very rustic-no bar, no a/c…I think there are some pillows on the floor and 2 or 3 rows of benches, and then standing room. It’s a really amazing experience . For dinner check out some online menu’s and make a reservation- if you do a 7:00dinner you can make the late set at Preservation Hall. Some of my favorite restaurants are Irene’s. Domenica, August, K-Pauls, Palace Cafe, …so many! Feelings (although you need to take a cab there), NOLA,. From your hotel you can walk to the Quarter, it’s only 2 blocks from Canal St, which is the border of the FQ. </p>
<p>As far as things near the river, there isn’t much. You can do a Paddle Wheel cruise along the Missisippi. But don’t do the dinner cruise. The food is awful. Don’t waste a bmal on banquet style food,lol. NOLA takes it’s meals very seriously! </p>