My wife wants me to take her to New Orleans

All of this.

Great town. Charlestown, SC is the New Orleans of the east, minus the Jazz and the reputation of Bourbon Street.

Well bless your heart! - it's Charleston (ne Charlestowne).
Personally I don't see the comparison, having spent substantial time in both. Charleston is inherently one of the most gentile cities in America - occasionally has a tourist problem.
 
Sounds great, but...with all the wonderful old hotels in the French Quarter, one can't help but wonder how you selected Fairfield?

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Being a Marriot club member, I know how they could have selected Fairfield... Points.. Membership credit.. I go out of my way to use their chain if they are near where I am going. I've gotten free upgrades and discounts as a result...
 
Being a Marriot club member, I know how they could have selected Fairfield... Points.. Membership credit.. I go out of my way to use their chain if they are near where I am going. I've gotten free upgrades and discounts as a result...
That's like going to New Orleans and eating at Applebees instead of Gallitoires because you had a coupon.

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That's like going to New Orleans and eating at Applebees instead of Gallitoires because you had a coupon.

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Actually, no... its not.

A hotel room is a place to sleep.. It needs to be clean, safe, up to date, and close to what I want to do, at a reasonable price. I like what I like, and these places I like give me what I want at the price point I like. And I've stayed in many places. Including yours. Once.

Why should I pay $3-400 a night for some swanky place in the quarter when I can get what I want for a fraction of that, and put that funding towards good food, like Acme or Drago's... or whatever else we may come across.....
 
Cowman, what will you be flying, and what's your comfort level with talking to a class B tower?
There is a great little grass strip called Ama ("aim-ah") just south of MSY, on the other side of the river. Listed as private, but have used it with permission before. No fuel, nice older crowd.

LS40
St. Charles
3900x125 grass
 
Well bless your heart! - it's Charleston (ne Charlestowne).
Personally I don't see the comparison, having spent substantial time in both. Charleston is inherently one of the most gentile cities in America - occasionally has a tourist problem.
Oops. I could blame spell check but I suspect it was caused by a friend of mine calling it "Chucktown"....
 
Being a Marriot club member, I know how they could have selected Fairfield... Points.. Membership credit.. I go out of my way to use their chain if they are near where I am going. I've gotten free upgrades and discounts as a result...
Or they got the room on reward points as I just did in Charleston. Yeah, it was corporate hotel, but saved me $300/night over some other options. You can pay for a lot of Uber rides and top-shelf meals for the savings over 3 nights.
 
So, in terms of hotels here's what we are looking for in order of priority..

-Reasonably clean & Quiet
-Safe and convenient location
-a reasonable level of confidence anything I leave in the room will still be there on return
-King Bed
-good wifi
-a toilet and shower
-sufficient convenient outlets to charge my various devices
-A hot breakfast that includes either on the basic end biscuits and gravy or on the better end fresh bacon is nice but not needed
-a hot tub either in the room or somewhere not crowded is nice but also not needed
-a nice view from an upper floor can be cool but again this is an extra

I'm not necessarily opposed to paying a little more for a room but if I do it's not going to be for fancy furnishings, ambiance, or pretentious attitude.




Cowman, what will you be flying, and what's your comfort level with talking to a class B tower?
There is a great little grass strip called Ama ("aim-ah") just south of MSY, on the other side of the river. Listed as private, but have used it with permission before. No fuel, nice older crowd.

LS40
St. Charles
3900x125 grass

I'm flying an Archer... that would be an option but I'm probably going to want things like fuel, tie-down for several days, and easy transportation options. Might be easier to land at a bigger facility.
 
I got a deal at Aloft, a Starwood property, about a block from The Roosevelt. No breakfast, hot tub or view but good value for money on a deal. Meets the rest of the requirements.

Cheers
 
NOLA is a great town. We've been often. I don't post often but this trip is one of our favorites. 1st off, Lakefront is great. FBO "Flight First" treats us as good as anyone, anywhere. Affordable and accommodating. Parking an airplane here is cheaper than parking a car in the Quarter, so as has been said, don't get a car. UBER is everywhere 24 hours a day. Walking and street cars, buses and ferries take you wherever you need to go too, (which is part of the adventure). So for a 1st time, when you land and get parked, before you call UBER, walk next door to the terminal, which was built in 1934. Just go in and walk around. Upper and lower levels. Magnificent example of art deco from that era and imagine what it must have been like. The building was recently restored and it's worth 15 or 20 minutes. Also, a beautiful fountain in front of the terminal is worth a look. (if you like that kind of thing) We thought, even if this was all we saw in NOLA, it was worth the trip.
We've stayed at the Wyndham French Quarter on Royal St. It's affordable and convenient and comfortable, but most places there probably are. Just use TRIVAGO. You'll probably do fine with any you choose. Walking the French Quarter to familiarize is probably the best way to get around in there. It's pretty tight Quarters and its not that big. Very touristy but fun.
All the restaurants mentioned are very good. We like Mr. B's for expensive night out and Acme Oyster House is as good as described. Mulate's is cajun and outside the Quarter and a lot of fun with Zydeko music every day. (split your food order, the portions are enormous and the food is very rich)(Muffuletta sandwich and jumbalaya and etouffee, amazing) All very popular in NO everywhere, so you don't have to go to Mulate's, but for a 1st time it's a good introduction to cajun food.) For good food and great oysters at reasonable prices, Mr. Ed's Oyster Bar and Fish House. On Bienville St. Doesn't look like much, But it's very good. As I said, There's no bad food in New Orleans.
For night life and music, forget Bourbon St. (after the obligatory "Hurricane") "Frenchmen Street", just outside the Quarter has the best bars and music. More local and spontaneous. Bands play for tips and there's many varieties of music.
For day touring, a "cemetery tour" is fun (for a 1st timer) and a street car trip to "City Park". Ask which line takes you there then go to Canal Street to pick it up. It's also a good way to see the city. At the park, there's the Botanical Gardens, which is beautiful, The NO Museum of Art and a spectacular Sculpture Garden. "Morning Call Cafe" in the park is open 24 hours and serves beignets and coffee as good as Du Monde.
We took a lot of street car rides outside and inside the Quarter just to see the city and it was a blast. Also took the Ferry at the end of Canal St. and, crossed the Mississippi River over to "Algiers Point" which is a NO neighborhood. There's a walking tour of the neighborhood you can follow in order to get descriptions of the architecture and history there.
Of course, I could go on, but I think this gives you an idea that whatever you do and wherever you go, it's going to be fun and interesting. We go to a different museum every time we go and it's always fun. Last time, the history museum at Jackson Square where we saw "Fats Domino's flooded out baby grand piano on display (destroyed in Katrina). Just an example, but you get the idea.
 
GREAT write up CF- makes me yearn to go back.
 
If you go to Acme and see a line, look behind you at Felix's. Same oysters, no line, half the cost and you'll be in there with locals.

Mr. B's is still my favorite place to go. Jaques'imos in Uptown is also Nola funky and excellent food. Great music on Frenchman Street.

Check out the terminal at KNEW as mentioned, it's beautiful. Stay away from MSY; it's a fine airport but the cabs, parking fees and fuel are much more expensive.

Let me know if you get in trouble or need some local help.
 
Don't take a cab from KNEW, Uber is much faster and more reasonable.

The hangar at KNEW is where they filmed a scene for a James Bond movie :)

And don't forget Banana Foster's at Brennans. Touristy, yes, but still worth it.
 
Planning on getting in early next week. I think from what I've seen the hurricane misse them and everything is open for business?


If any of you houligans are around I'd be happy to meet someone for a drink.
 
Planning on getting in early next week. I think from what I've seen the hurricane misse them and everything is open for business?


If any of you houligans are around I'd be happy to meet someone for a drink.

I'll just miss you. I'll be there Friday to Monday. My friend (Saints fan) and I (Pats fan) are heading down for the game on Sunday, as well as any other shenanigans we can get into.
 
NICE TIMING! Headed there next week and about to book a room - just might be: Monteleone hotel Carousel bar. Pirep the following weekend (If I remember.)

Another option is to go to Hammond LA. Nice airport from what I understand. The area has excellent food and a bit quieter than the Bourbon St. Hammond is good enough to be a destination itself - with the only issue of being so close to Bourbon to just drive across the lake anyway...



Vegas: What happens in Vegas - stays in Vegas.
New Orleans: What happens in NOLA - um - what happened in NOLA? Seriously, I don't remember?
 
Where did you finally stay?

After showing my wife all the recommended places in this thread I invoked my self proclaimed "after I land the plane, I abdicate all responsibility and decision making" rule. She booked us at the Pelham hotel which is close to but outside of the french quarter, right next to the Ruby Slipper cafe. I was a bit unsure about it at first but it turned out to be a good choice, reasonably priced and it was close to everything. Our room was quiet enough after hours but having heard some people in the halls in the evening I suspect a louder crowd in the Hotel might easily have made it go the other way. Nothing too fancy but it was clean, AC worked, had the essentials so I'm not complaining.

Neat place. Had a different po'boy every day for lunch, had beignets..... wife bought so much beignet and coffee mix we're probably pushing our weight limits on the final leg home tomorrow. Had all the Cajun/Creole fare at a number of different spots. Did an airboat tour because you need to feel vibrant and alive.... did not blow the engine. Hit up the WWII museum, a ghost tour, and a mule-drawn cart tour of the French quarter because one of us can't miss any equine related activity.

KNEW was pretty easy to get in/out of. Flightline First had great services, free sodas/coffee/cookies. Parking was $10/night but they only charged me for 2/3 nights, I assume because I bought fuel. Signature was the other FBO option which, based on what I've read on POA I knew enough to avoid. You don't want to rent a car, just use Uber or something when you need it and try to get a hotel you can walk to most places from. Parking is hard to come by in that town and expensive... and you'll still probably end up walking a lot. We didn't bother with a car. My phone says we walked about 6 miles per day which for us isn't unusual but the heat was a killer. Pro tip: the big yard long daiquiris they serve all over will indeed cool you down but maybe be somewhere you can stay put. I drank one while walking another mile or more... the heat, alcohol, fruit juice, and activity hit me fortunately only a few blocks from the hotel. That was... unpleasant but an hour of rest and a shower and we were back out again.

Either we came on a slow weekend or I'm desensitized because I didn't see anything too shocking. We had a few panhandlers try to bug us, some person of indeterminate gender screaming at their associate in the middle of the sidewalk, one of our front desk people was a huge dude in a wig with press-on nails..... but that's about it. Stuff you might see in any major city really and this was over 3 nights and 3 1/2 days. Yeah, got a whif of urine in a couple parts of the french quarter/bourbon street areas but you just notice it for a moment and it's gone. Didn't really ever feel in danger, police are usually around and I think the only way you'd find trouble is if you're looking for it.
 
Oh the stories and memories of New Orleans. Not what it was back in the late 60s-70s, a lot safer then, and some very crazy things going on in the boobie bars. That's what I heard anyway... ;)

I was there once when I flew for a private owner. The other pilot and I were in a bar on Bourbon St with hardly anyone in it, sitting at the bar. In walks these two very big men, black and white guy, sitting a couple stools from us. I noticed one had a huge ring on his finger, and I told the other pilot I bet that's a Super Bowl ring. Turns out they were Broncos and were out the night before the next day's game with the Saints. Then right after midnight, 12:15 or so, one says "crap we missed curfew". The other says "well $500 fine regardless of how long we stay out now", and ordered another round.
 
Well, my wife said we already stayed at the Monteleone. We stayed in what she called the "vampire room". They acoustics and being centrally located in the hotel you could sleep forever.

In NOLA - this is good.


I had a sister that said the same thing as you about NOLA. The Facebook post was basically "I don't get it" with a timestamp of about 8PM. I told her to take a nap. Then go to dinner. Then go to bourbon street. Her post just after midnight was basically "OMG!"

Regardless of what does happen, the food, music and atmosphere is unique...
 
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