A 24 HOUR GUIDE TO NEW ORLEANS
What can you do with less than 24 hours in New Orleans? SO. MANY. THINGS. A few weeks ago, my husband and I stopped there for a day before heading to Texas for my best friends' wedding. We had less than 24 hours to enjoy NOLA, and it was a freaking blast.
THE QUICKEST NOLA TRIP EVER
WHERE WE STAYED
There are several different areas of New Orleans to see, but we decided to stay right in the middle of the French Quarter. Knowing our time would be limited, we wanted to be able to walk everywhere. So, we accidentally booked a haunted hotel. We found this out before we went, but decided to be total risk takers and kept the reservation. The only thing "weird" that happened is our bathroom light flickered on and off throughout the night. We stayed at The Cornstalk Hotel, and here are my thoughts:
It was around $100 a night, plus $30 for a parking pass. This, to me, was worth it to be in the French Quarter and not have to cab or uber anywhere. The exterior and interior were beautiful. The house was built in the 1800s, and apparently Elvis stayed there in the 1950s. The street it is on is pretty quiet, and there happened to be street musicians performing right in front of our hotel for most of our stay. They were really good - so it wasn't bothersome. This hotel is a block from Broad Street, but you wouldn't know it. It stayed pretty quiet at night. All in all, if you don't mind an older, quaint room... I would definitely recommend it! Here is the website for more info.
LUNCH
After check-in, we moseyed around the French Quarter and grabbed lunch near Jackson Square. We ended up at Monty's which was just alright. I got a salad, and Wes got the Po'Boy. It was decent, the cocktails were good, and it was right on Jackson Square. Probably will try somewhere different next time, but it wasn't bad.
HAPPY HOUR
Cane + Table, a craft cocktail bar with hipster tropical vibes in the French Quarter, was so kind to sponsor a happy hour for us! I fell in love with the place as soon as we walked in. I really can't say enough good things about it.
It's everything I look for in a cocktail bar: amazing wait staff, (who by the way had incredible wardrobe choices), beautiful, carefully crafted cocktails, and great prices. They also have a fantastic food menu featuring elevated choices, rather than your typical pub fare. Just fyi, the host was wearing the most amazing outfit - some sort of yellow 80's pants that have stuck out in my mind ever since we left. His hair was on point too. But beyond that --- the service was amazing.
Our waiter took the time to explain the menu and gave his personal and honest opinion on everything, which I really appreciated. Wait time for food and drink was quick, and super yummy. We got a few rounds of drinks and ordered the pimento cheese + coconut bread appetizer. This made for one fun, delicious happy hour! I highly suggest checking this place out - we will definitely be back!
Featured cocktails, 'Paint it Gold' on left, 'Phoenix Like' on right. Both amazing!
THE OLDEST BAR IN THE U.S.
If you're the bar hopping type, you must stop at Lafitte's Blacksmith Shop on Bourbon Street. It is supposedly the oldest bar in the United States, and I'm pretty sure they say it's haunted too. They make a killer frozen daiquiri and when in Nola, you gotta have a real daiquiri! I love the environment of this place. It's dark, cozy and the whole place is lit by candles.
A CREOLE DINNER
After our stop at Lafitte's, we wanted creole food for dinner. I honestly have no idea what the name of the place was that we stopped at (#bloggerfail). It wasn't anything super special, but the food was really dang good! It was one of several creole restaurants that we walked by, and we just happened to pop inside this one.
BOURBON STREET
After dinner, it was 9pm. After driving all morning and going nonstop, I was ready for bed. But we walked down Bourbon street because you can't go to Nola and not walk down Bourbon, even if only for a moment! We stopped in a bar that had live jazz music because it looked interesting from the sidewalk. This turned out to be the COOLEST place! It was the bar of the Bourbon Orleans hotel, called the Bourbon "O" bar. They made delicious, beautiful cocktails and had really great live music.
BEFORE WE HIT THE ROAD
The next morning, we got up and walked a few blocks to the famous Cafe Dumonde. The beignets are really something you gotta try while you're there! We grabbed some and walked over to the river. It was really beautiful.
So, I have to say... we experienced a lot in the short amount of time we were there, and we weren't rushed. If we hadn't gone home at 10pm to get some sleep, I'm sure we would have seen even more. When people heard we were stopping in Nola for less than 24 hours they acted like it wouldn't be worth it. But... I'm here to say, that it was SO worth it. Such a fun quick trip!
