If New Orleans isn’t on your bucket list, it absolutely should be. Cocktails, voodoo, and jazz all in one city? If we aren’t being specific enough for you, allow us to elaborate with just a few reasons we fully believe you should be planning a visit to The Big Easy.
If you fancy yourself a music buff or dare we say, jazz enthusiast, then you, more than anyone, will be able to sit back, relax, and enjoy the sounds of the city. It’s the ultimate live playlist! You can almost always find a jazz festival, or a live performance at a bar or restaurant, and don’t even get us started on the talent you can find on the literal streets of NOLA.
When it comes to food, we just have one question: why would you even go anywhere else? We’re talkin’ gumbo, jambalaya, crawfish, mile-high sandwiches, and of course, beignets. Don’t think for a second you have to go to a fancy, high-priced restaurant, the food you’ll find at the food trucks sitting on the street are just as good.
If you’re a sucker for beautiful architecture, look no further than New Orleans. The city is bursting with French Colonial buildings complete with Caribbean influences. And you can’t visit the city to appreciate the landscape without taking a stroll down Musicians Village Rainbow Row.
The city has a bit of being more of an adults-only retreat reputation, but that couldn’t be farther from the truth. NOLA doubles as a family destination with areas such as Jackson Square which features a ton of local artists, Magazine Street where merchants sell their handmade goods, and a ton of retailers that support local artists and makers by selling their handmade goods.
If your ideal day is checking out museum after museum, then you certainly won’t be bored in NOLA. There’s the Sazerac House, the National WWII Museum, New Orleans Jazz Museum, Ogden Museum of Southern Art, Historic Voodoo Museum, Children’s Museum, Museum of Death, Irish Cultural Museum, and a massive amount of historic homes to tour.
The locals here are among the nicest, most genuine people you’ll ever meet. In a lot of cities, the locals can come across as somewhat cold, especially in cities as big and bustling as NOLA, but the locals here are more than happy to enlighten you on some local history, suggest a restaurant, or help you find something on or off of the beaten path.
If you’re part of the spooky girls club, then you especially will appreciate NOLA’s dark past. Ghost tours are available all year round complete with cemetery tours filled with tales of vampires and voodoo rituals.
The French Quarter itself is a great reason for visiting New Orleans. Here you’ll find local markets, beautiful architecture, street performers, and rich history. And the best part? You don’t even have to go to the French Quarter with a plan, there are signs all over with suggestions of what you can go check out.