What To Do in New Orleans That Isn’t Bourbon Street

Teddy and I continued on from Waco toward New Orleans during our 7 Day Road Trip through the South. We drove through Lafayette on our way into New Orleans. I’ve been to New Orleans before, but since this was Teddy’s birthday trip, so when he said he wanted to see if we could make visiting the city work, we did it. We had about a full day in the city and while we can appreciate the architecture on Bourbon street, it’s not for us. So here’s what we did during our time there that’s not Bourbon Street.

Stop #1 – Jean Lafitte Historic Park and Preserve

I had never heard of this park or the history of the area prior to our trip but on our drive into the New Orleans area, we listened to two podcasts I’ve linked below about Pirate Jean Lafitte and his smuggling business through the island of Barataria.

At the park, we went on the boardwalk of the Plantation Trail where we got to see two alligators and then we checked out the Bayou Coquille Trail. Since the flora and fauna are so different than that of the northeastern United States, we enjoyed the walk and checked out the wildlife and history of the area.

Stop #2 – Oak Alley Plantation

Next up was a tour of the Oak Alley Plantation. The front of this home is iconic with the 28 oak trees that lead to the front door. For our visit, we purchased tickets for the site as well as the “Big House” tour. For how large the house is, I was surprised by the few bedrooms but I probably should have realized since spaces were used for entertaining. We were able to hear stories of the home and the people that lived there as well as about the oak trees which the history nerd in me always appreciates.

Since Oak Alley was a sugar plantation, they relied on enslaved people to work the fields. On the property is a self guided exhibit of slave cabins that walk you through what it may have been like for their living conditions, the process for farming the fields, as well as wider overview on slavery in the area and the names of the slaves that worked the property.

Stop 3 – Henry Howard Hotel

The building in the garden district was built in the 1860s as a townhouse initially. It’s now a boutique hotel with around 18 rooms. We stayed in one of the second story rooms and while it was small, they made great use of the space. The manager recommended some dinner spots for us and we took him up on the Gris Gris recommendation. When we got back, they had done turn down service to our room (which we had given permission for) and we loved it. There was music playing, chocolates on our pillow, and our bed all ready for a good nights sleep. It was lovely. We’d absolutely stay here again.

Stop 4 – Gris Gris

When we got to Gris Gris for dinner, since we didn’t have a reservation, we were able to sit right by where the food was prepared and watch. We were fascinated watching them cook, prepare, and plate the meals. They also had the most incredible shrimp and grits I’ve ever had in my life (and probably ever will). Even Teddy liked it! We also got the gumbo and a seafood appetizer to start, Teddy got the porchop for dinner, and we split a bread putting for dessert which was also a highlight.

Stop 5 – Cafe Du Monde

The next morning we ventured over to Cafe Du Monde for beignets since Teddy had never been before. We went to the one at the French Market. They said they were open when we got there but then had us take a seat and wait until you could order to go. But if you wanted to eat there you could order a while. We waited for about 20 minutes until we could place a to go order. Overall it was not a great experience, but the beignets are good enough that it was worthwhile for Teddy to have his first one.

Podcasts

These are podcasts we found along our drive from Texas to Louisiana. I’m sure I could have found others but these gave us the insight we were looking for. I’d recommend listening to them in the way they’re ordered below as it goes broad to very specific.

• The Louisiana Purchase Podcast – We learned so much on this one. It’s a teacher’s history of the United States and I never knew exactly how we had the opportunity to purchase the Louisiana territory and this made it so understandable.
• New Orleans History Podcast – This one was short but informational specifically talking about the port of New Orleans.
• Jean Lafitte Podcasts – Part 1, Part 2 – Once you know all about New Orleans history, this one gives a very specific deep dive into Jean Lafitte and his influence on both the city’s history but also American History.
• Sugarcane Podcast – This one is meant for kids but we passed so many sugarcane fields and trucks hauling the plants that we were curious about how it’s made. While for kids, still worth the listen.

And that’s a wrap on our time in New Orleans. While it’s not my favorite city, I can appreciate the history. I genuinely enjoyed each of the items above that we did. About a day in the city was just enough for me before we were headed on to our next stop!