New Orleans, Louisiana · City Break
Jazz, beignets & the French Quarter
Cast-iron balconies and gas lamps in the Quarter, brass bands on Frenchmen Street, Creole cooking, streetcars through the Garden District and the bayou on the doorstep — nowhere in America feels quite like NOLA.
Why New Orleans
The most European city in America
French, Spanish, African, Caribbean and Creole influences collide in a city of 300 years of music, food and architecture. Pair a few nights in the Quarter with Memphis, Nashville or a wider Deep South fly-drive — or combine with the plantations and bayous of Cajun Country.
Explore More · Top Tips
Top things to do in New Orleans
Highlights drawn from New Orleans & Company, the city's official destination organisation — tell us which appeal and we'll fold them into your itinerary.
Wander the French Quarter
The oldest neighbourhood in the city — cast-iron balconies, gas lamps, hidden courtyards and Jackson Square framed by St Louis Cathedral. Start on Royal Street for antiques and art, then drift down to the river.
Beignets & café au lait at Café du Monde
The 24-hour open-air institution on Decatur Street — three pillowy beignets buried in powdered sugar with chicory coffee. Go early or very late to skip the queue.
Live jazz on Frenchmen Street
Locals' answer to Bourbon Street. Bar-hop The Spotted Cat, Snug Harbor, d.b.a. and the Maison for brass bands, trad jazz and modern players — most with no cover, just tip the band.
Ride the St Charles streetcar through the Garden District
The world's oldest continuously operating streetcar line. Roll past oak-canopied avenues and antebellum mansions, hop off at Washington Avenue for Lafayette Cemetery No. 1, Commander's Palace and Magazine Street shopping.
Take a swamp & bayou tour
Thirty minutes from downtown, the Honey Island and Manchac swamps are a different world — cypress knees, Spanish moss, alligators and herons. Choose a small airboat or a quieter pontoon tour.
Eat your way through Creole & Cajun classics
Gumbo, jambalaya, étouffée, po-boys, muffulettas, BBQ shrimp and bread pudding. Pull up a chair at Commander's Palace, Cochon, Galatoire's, Coop's Place, Parkway Bakery and Willie Mae's Scotch House.
WWII Museum
Consistently ranked one of the best museums in the world — vast, immersive galleries, restored aircraft, a 4D Tom Hanks-narrated film and oral histories. Allow at least half a day.
Take a guided cemetery or voodoo history tour
St Louis Cemetery No. 1 (resting place of voodoo queen Marie Laveau) is only accessible by licensed guide. Pair with a voodoo history walk or an after-dark ghost tour through the Quarter.
Magazine Street & the Warehouse Arts District
Six miles of independent boutiques, galleries, cafés and antique shops on Magazine. Then loop back through the Warehouse District for the Ogden Museum of Southern Art, the Contemporary Arts Center and Julia Street galleries.
City Park & the New Orleans Museum of Art
1,300 acres of ancient live oaks, the free Besthoff Sculpture Garden, paddle-boats on the lagoon and NOMA's world-class collection — plus a beignet stop at Morning Call inside the park.
Source: neworleans.com/things-to-do, the official New Orleans destination marketing organisation.
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