Family Vacation in New Orleans – Itinerary

 

I have to tell you when we were contacted by The New Orleans Board of Tourism and asked to take a family vacation in New Orleans I was over the moon excited!  I have wanted to go to New Orleans since I read the book Ruby by VC Andrews.  The Landry series takes place in the bayou and spills into the streets of the French Quarter.  Ever since I read that series I have really wanted to visit.  Keep reading for our full family itinerary to New Orleans…

Disclosure:  We are working in partnership with the New Orleans Board of Tourism and we have been compensated with a family vacation to New Orleans.Honestly, N’awlins (as the locals call it) never jumped out at me as a family destination, but after checking out the Follow Your Nola site I was pleasantly surprised by how many family activities there really are.  I also received great suggestions from an article on New Orleans Moms Blog and then we got to planning.  The first things I figured out is that we definitely needed a full week and these are essential packages to purchase:

City Park Family Fun Pass – includes entrance once to Storyland, New Orleans Botanical Garden, City Putt (play one course), unlimited rides at Carousel Gardens Amusement Park and a discount at Morning Call.

Audubon Experience Package – includes admission to Audubon Zoo, Audubon Aquarium of the Americas, Entergy IMAX® Theatre and Audubon Butterfly Garden and Insectarium.

Jazzy Passes for the Streetcars and Buses are also a must!

Also a great hotel is absolutely essential and we will be staying at the fabulous JW Marriott in New Orleans. I am sooo excited.

We have so many things on our itinerary that we want to check out.  With
us, an itinerary is more of a suggestion.  We will see how it all plays
out.  All I know is we are going to have a fabulous time and you get to
come along for the ride.  Follow us on Facebook, Instagram and Twitter to get real time updates during our vacation in N’awlins follow hashtag  #FollowYourNOLA.

Did we miss anything?  What sounds good to you?  Tweet your NOLA vacation suggestions to @Slow_Roasted #MyNola to be entered to win a fabulous prize pack!

Day 1

First things first.  Breakfast beignets and “rocket fuel” as a friend calls it, are the perfect way to start off your day.  Stop in at Cafe Du Monde in the French Market grab your goodies to go and head over to Woldenberg Park to enjoy the morning.  I can’t think of a better way to start a vacation than to take a tour of the city.  Gray Lines Super City Tour takes you all over the French Quarter, through a historic cemetery and shares stories of voodoo and piracy on the Bayou on a 2 hour narrated motor coach tour.  Spend the rest of the day exploring your favorite spots from the tour.  Make sure you stop at Johnny Po’Boy’s for lunch and no trip to N’awlins would be complete without stopping in to Pat O’Briens to drink a Hurricane.

Day 2

Late breakfast at the well known Camellia Grill and then walk over to the highly recommended Audubon Aquarium of the Americas.  The backstage penguin pass is said to be spectacular!!  After a few hours of aquarium time head out to meet your tour guide for your culinary tour of NOLA.  TasteBud Tours has fantastic reviews and we are so excited to be tasting the city with them.  A 3 hour walking tour will take you through the streets of the New Orleans stopping at some of the best food spots in the city.  Top off a fabulous day with a spectacular view of the city while aboard the Steamboat Natchez with a Creole dinner and the sounds of the Dukes of Dixieland.

Day 3

Catch a ride on the Canal St Streetcar line to City Park.  Once at City Park you can get breakfast at Morning Call (bring cash) then head off to check out the Botanical Gardens and Besthoff Sculpture Gardens.  Walk through the gorgeous park to Big Lake where you can rent pedal boats, bikes and ever enjoy a gondola ride.  You’re not done yet!  Don’t forget to check out Carousel Gardens which features 15 rides for kids of all ages, Storyland where fairytales come to life and City Putt a 36 hole mini golf complex (which just opened).  After a fun filled day you can stop off at the famous Angelo Brocato’s Italian Ice Cream Parlor for some gelato. Is it Thursday in the Spring or Fall?  Ride the Canal Street Streetcar to Rampart and relax in Louis Armstrong Park to the soothing sounds of jazz and enjoy dinner.

Day 4

Start your day off with an energizing breakfast from Ruby Slipper Cafe; which was named one of New Orleans best breakfast spots.  They serve a full breakfast menu, have fabulous prices and have a fantastic kids menu.  Triple point score!  After breakfast head out to the Audubon Zoo.  You can catch the St Charles Streetcar right to Audubon Park and enjoy a leisurely stroll through the spectacular oak trees to the zoo.  The Audubon Zoo is one of the top 5 zoos in the US!  58 stunning acres of animals.  There is so much information on this fantastic zoo I will just let you read about it here and here.  Make sure you don’t miss Cool Zoo (a splash park right in the zoo) and Audubon’s Dinosaur Adventure!

Day 5

Your last day in The Big Easy should start with breakfast beignets and “rocket fuel”.  Stop in at Cafe Du Monde in the French Market.  Take a stroll through the market and check out the shops and stores.  Make sure to pickup some pralines at the confection shops!  Then walk over to Jackson Square to see the St. Louis Cathedral and take a carriage ride through the park.  After a fantastic morning enjoying the sights head over to the Entergy IMAX and catch a spectacular show.  Don’t forget the Audubon Butterfly Garden and Insectarium.  Dinner the last night has to be fabulous, so GW Fins it is!  With seafood so fresh they have to print their menus daily, this is the perfect place to eat.

We are going to have a fabulous time and you get to
come along for the ride.  Follow us on Facebook, Instagram and Twitter to get real time updates during our vacation in N’awlins follow hashtag  #FollowYourNOLA.

Did we miss anything?  What sounds good to you?  Tweet your NOLA vacation suggestions to @Slow_Roasted #MyNola to be entered to win a fabulous prize pack!