Luxury holidays in New Orleans
Spend time exploring some of the Big Easy’s diverse districts, the soul of the city: the French Quarter (aka Vieux Carré) where the streets are paved with Mardi Gras beads; jazz club-packed Frenchmen Street in Faubourg Marginy, the artsy Warehouse District; the verdant Garden and Lower Garden Districts; stylish Uptown; and historic Tremé. As you wander, notice conversation-starting architecture – ornate wrought iron swirls bedecking wraparound balconies, imposing columns and steep pitched roofs – setting it apart from the any other city in the US.
A renowned music scene, festivals, and fried, spiced, hot-sauce-lashed food lure revelers. Even if you're not in town for mighty Mardi Gras the party continues. Music, holy days, the dearly departed: Nola’s citizens celebrate everything. See a second line (an impromptu jazz parade) coming your way? Join in.
If you do nothing else, eat, preferably while listening to a brass band. Cajun and Creole cuisine can be found simmering on a stove in the most humble dining dens off a cobbled alleyway – with a queue snaking down the street – as well as in one of the many Michelin-star-worthy kitchens. Visitors leave satiated, a bit hungover and hopelessly magicked and it’s not just the voodoo. It doesn't take a reading with a psychic priestess to know once you’ve experienced the bewitching Big Easy, you’ll be back.
When to go
Although this Southern city stays warm throughout the year, the mildest months are February through April and September through November. From June to August be prepared for sticky, humid heat. Keep an eye on weather reports starting in August, when hurricane season begins.