Greater New Orleans
Here is a region so steeped in its history, so connected to its French and Spanish roots that first-time visitors cannot help but liken New Orleans to many European cities. So what will you see and do here? First and foremost, the architecture will amaze you. From the magnificent hundred year old mansions along St. Charles Avenue and the Vieux Carre's colorful Creole cottages with their lacy iron balconies and secret gardens, to the gothic spires of St. Louis Cathedral and the haunting marble tombs of the above-ground cemeteries, the landscape reads like an epic novel, full of mystery, adventure, heartbreak and romance. Dig deeper with a visit to any number of museums, where you can learn about Marie Laveau's voodoo spells, Jean Lafitte's pirate treasure, the Battle of New Orleans, and of course the birth of jazz. (It's been said that jazz was born in New Orleans because you simply can't do this city justice with words alone.)
New Orleans has long been a haven for musicians, writers and artists. This thriving arts community is yours to discover in the galleries of the Warehouse District and the eclectic shops on Magazine Street. The Warehouse District is also home to the Ogden Museum of Southern Art, with the largest and most comprehensive collection of Southern art in the world. Across the street we recommend the very moving National WWII Museum, and just down the block is the Louisiana Children's Museum. In the City Park area is another must-see—the New Orleans Museum of Art, with its permanent collection of Fabergé eggs, its outdoor sculpture garden and the nearby Botanical Gardens, filled with rare and wonderful specimens of native plants and flowers.
You can get to know New Orleans in a number of ways. Take walking tours through the French Quarter and Garden District, ride a street car down Canal Street or up St. Charles Avenue, or take a horse and buggy through the narrow streets of the Vieux Carré to Jackson Square, where you'll find fortunetellers, portrait artists, street performers, and shops filled with every kind of antique and collectible you could imagine, from Confederate dollars to alligator claw backscratchers. You can also get another view of the city, with a ride on an authentic six-story, paddlewheel steamboat.
If all this sightseeing and doing makes you hungry, you're in luck. New Orleans is famous for many things and at the top of every list is our food. Every meal is a feast, from beignets at breakfast to thick gumbos and even thicker po-boys at lunch to pecan-crusted trout and bourbon-soaked bread pudding for dinner and…well, you get the idea.
Travel across Lake Ponchatrain and you're in for more adventure. The Causeway Bridge, the longest expansion bridge in the world at 24 miles, leads to the piney woods of the Northshore and the relaxing, artsy communities of Mandeville and Covington. Spend the day discovering one-of-a-kind antiques, sculptures, paintings and hand-crafted jewelry in the many galleries or rent bikes and cycle the 31-mile-long St. Tammany Trace. Don't miss the Farmer's Market for home-grown strawberries and tomatoes. And of course, watch the sunset on the lake as you dine at yet another incredible seafood restaurant.
In Belle Chase, there are plantation homes and battlefields. Or try your luck at one of the many casinos. The list of things to do in Greater New Orleans is as long as the main parade route on Mardi Gras day. And the best part of all-this is your parade. So expect the royal treatment.
