New Orleans, Louisiana

[taemo]

Don't want to derail the Houston thread but wife and I are planning a short trip to Houston end of February (5 nights) but we have decided to drive to New Orleans for 3 nights and check Louisiana
Looking forward to fresh boil and crawfish, and we'll definitely be trying some texas bbq while in Houston too :drool:

Has anyone ever done the drive from Houston to New Orleans and what they recommend to see?
We're not big party people and prefer being outdoor, hiking, etc.
Apparently it's Mardi Gras as well so we'll probably just do an overnight trip to New Orleans and explore the lower part of the state for 2 days.
Probably take Highway 90 from Lafayette to New Orleans

[hurrdurr]

Went a couple years ago...

I'm fat so here are my food suggestions:

The Joint for BBQ

Guy's for Po' Boys

Big Fisherman or Deanies for Crawfish Boil

Cafe Du Monde (very touristy) for coffee and Beignets

Grab some hot sauces and spices in the markets and don't do haunted tours

[jwslam]

Hit Bourbon Street twice; once during daylight and once after. Totally different scene.

There's also some pretty cool piano bars (don't remotely remember which ones we stepped foot in).

[R-Audi]

I found NO to be a sleezier version of Vegas, especially around Bourbon Street. There are many other cool things to do and see... but that particular area is a little been there done that type of a deal.

[Manhattan]

X2 on the sleezier than Vegas. You're gonna wish you stayed in Houston. :rofl:

Check out some music on Frenchmen St. Get your seafood fix anywhere except for French Quarters (double the price, half the quality). Check out the Garden District and cemeteries (Lafayette No 1 is the spookiest).

[taemo]

haha i can see NO being sleazier than Vegas hence why I don't foresee spending much time in NO, most likely exploring the state.
any good parks and historical places to check?

One that I've read so far is the Avery Island.

[adamc]

bourbon street blows, nobody local even sets foot in that area, there are so many other great parts of NOLA to explore.

Word to the wise though, it can go from nice to GHETTO super fast. I had a friend's bike while I was there, riding through neighbourhoods with million dollar historic mansions, cross an intersection and all of a sudden there are dudes sitting on porches with weapons clearly visible, burned out cars, etc. Scary as fuck.

[adamc]

http://www.commanderspalace.com/

this place is a must, and I have a small list of other stuff I can recommend when I get home to my notes. NOLA is a very special place, love it dearly.

[2Legit2Quit]

Keep walking down Bourbon til you hit the rainbows

[taemo]

so now im thinking of driving all the way to Orange Beach/Pensacola Beach for the first 2 nights :rofl:
then hit NOLA on our way back, probably stay by Bourbon Street, do a bayou tour (any recommendation?) and on our way back to Houston hit Avery Island

[2Legit2Quit]

Depending on your actual dates, have you booked or looked at booking a hotel there? NOLA and mardi gras = hotels booked the fuck up

[Manhattan]

I wouldn't plan a whole day around Avery Island. It was only marginally interesting and self guided i.e. walk around reading stuff on your own. 1 or 2 hour stop max.

Bayou/swamp tours are all the same. Get yourself a deal on Groupon for an airboat tour. It's worth the extra 10 or 20 bucks. But you won't see much this time of year. It's not warm enough for the gators to come out and play.

[taemo]

definitely not cheap around Bourbon Street, around 400+

snagged a room at the Holiday Inn New Orleans - Downtown Superdome for a reasonable price for one night on Feb 27

looking at some mardi gras videos on youtube, it's definitely not us.
we'll probably just tour the gardens around NOLA before driving back to Houston.

[2Legit2Quit]

Cafe du monde as already mentioned is a must go.

Get a muffuletta from Central Grocery on Decatur, google it and see if it's your thing...it's huge, the sandwich and a bag of chips is a dinner pretty much haha.

I've ate at Dickie Brennans and Chophouse for steak, preferred the Chophouse...reallyyyy good. Dickie's itself is a decent experience and the food was good but still preferred the Chophouse.

Drago's has really good chargrilled oysters, Lafitte's makes good hurricanes, Pat o'briens does as well but it's more touristy, but still their hurricanes mess you up real good. GW Fins has really good seafood, Deanie's seafood is fried seafood paradise...huge portions. Stanley's is a great breakfast place...french toast and ice cream, so good.

Lots of bars on Bourbon will sell like 3 beers for 7-9 bucks but if it's mardi gras, it'll prob be impossible to get into most spots, plus you don't sound too interested in throwing yourself into a chaotic mob which is understandable haha.

The Carousel bar is pretty cool but usually pretty busy, live music, moving bar, etc.

The Sazerac inside Waldorf Astoria is really nice, more upscale chill drinking spot. The sazerac drink itself is pretty damn good.

Could list off more spots I've ate at but these are what sticks out, can recommend more if you're looking for something in particular.

[nismodrifter]

I've done the drive a couple times, both from Shreveport and Houston. Beware, cops all around.

Cafe Du Monde - meh.

Bourbon - Have been there two times, can confidently say it is the dirtiest street ever.
Now, weirdly enough I had a great experience there. 5 of us (all Canadian) randomly went to a piano bar on a busy Saturday night and somehow got seated right in the front after just walking in. We requested the pianist play our National Anthem, we all stood up, and then around the room like 50 other Canadians (some wearing hockey Jerseys) stood up with pride and sang along. Best feeling ever.

After that of course we requested she play "Gin and Juice" on piano. :bigpimp:

Warning: Do NOT speed on I90. Heavily patrolled by air. I got pulled over there (ie: in an area where there is no place for a police car to stop, assume they are watching by air).

We did a swamp/bayour tour in Houma, if you want I can find out the name, I do think the gators were kind of sleepy this time of year though.

[taemo]

thanks all for the input, any legit cajun crawfish to try while in Louisiana where the local eats and not the tourists?
from my experience in other states, the shadier the restaurant the better :rofl:

I will try a swamp tour in Houma or atleast around that area, probably cheaper and less touristy than the ones offered in New Orleans, and I'm ok not to see as many gators because of the season.

any plantations do you guys recommend on visiting?

[Ekliptix]

- airboat tour, see gators
- plantation tours
- crypt / graveyard tours

Been many times.

[JohnnySand]

There's the Tabasco factory at Avery Island (on the way to NOLA from Lafayette).

I stopped in for a quick tour and to purchase some Tabasco swag. Kind of cool if you're into that sort of thing.

I like hot sauce so it was a no brainer :nut:

[Clever]

If you do check out the French Quarter, make sure to go to the Funky Pirate, has live music and is far enough from the crowds but still close to Bourbon. Out of all the places I went to I definitely had the most fun there. House of Blues is more of a club, which was disappointing. Crawfish by the bucket everywhere, I'm allergic to shellfish so I can't say where the best ones are, but they are not hard to find. There's a spot in downtown called Mothers it always had a line up and is highly recommended by locals. It was across from my hotel but didn't get to try. Line up was always too long. For breakfast I was a fan of Ruby Slippers, get there early, line up get's crazy. I'm thinking of going back this year with the wife as well, this time to check out the tours and explore the city more. Oh and try out Abita beer, let me know if it's really as good as I remember it to be, I don't like beer but I stocked up on those when I was there.