Seven Essential Things to Do in New Orleans

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Jackson Square is just one thing to see while you're in New Orleans. (Photos courtesy of Geoff Worden, unless noted)
There is no place like New Orleans. The traditions, holidays, festivals, music, people, beverages and cuisine are unlike any other place. Even if you live here, this little corner of southeast Louisiana can take a lifetime to experience. While you can’t even hope to do it all in just a few days, this list will help you explore and discover some of the best New Orleans has to offer. Some of them may be familiar but read on, there are some tips you will find valuable.
1. French Quarter
This is a must, everyone knows that, but get off Bourbon Street. No, I’m not your mother telling you to stay away from all that debauchery. Go ahead and visit that world famous place, get a hurricane and enjoy yourself, just be sure to venture a little farther afield in the French Quarter. Get to Jackson Square, visit the Cabildo and St. Louis Cathedral, check out the artists and, above all, look up. The balconies and architecture are stunning, especially on Royal Street, Chartres (pronounced charters here) Street and, yes, even parts of Bourbon Street. Please do look down from time to time, however, sorry about the sidewalks in disrepair.

2. Cafe du Mondé
You need to go here even though other places nearby offer beignets and various coffees and the “Cafe of the World” usually has a large population standing in line(s). It’s a tradition and New Orleans has some traditions that predate the Declaration of Independence. (You can even touch a living part of that history, see #4 below.) Consider getting your order to go, there’s a different, sometimes shorter, line.

3. Ride a streetcar
This is an easy, cheap way to see the city. According to the Regional Transit Authority (RTA), the St. Charles streetcar line “began in 1835 ... and it remains the oldest continuously operating street railway in the world ... all the green St. Charles streetcars need to appear and be maintained and operated as they were in 1920.” You can easily imagine riding them decades, or even a century, ago as they noisily make their way past mansions and universities. You can ride all the way to the end of the line but there is nothing to do there.

Consider getting off at Maple Street or Oak Street and visiting some restaurants, bars and shops that cater to more locals than tourists. If you want more comfort, try the red cars on Canal St, a line that was re­established in 2004. They have air conditioning and can even take you to City Park, ask the almost always-friendly conductors for help if you need it.
4. Visit City Park
The end of the spur of the Canal streetcar line ends on City Park Avenue and Esplanade Avenue (Fair Grounds Race Course is just off this street about 10 blocks away from the park). The New Orleans Museum of Art is located in this corner of the park as is the Sydney and Walda Bestoff Sculpture Garden, the Botanical Garden, two 18-hole putt­-putt courses and even a place to rent bicycles (many styles), canoes, kayaks and paddle boats. There are festivals and events galore, check the City Park calendar page for your visit.

The sculpture garden is hard to beat on a nice day with lots of very different art to view. Large plantings of irises make this especially gorgeous if you’re lucky enough to see them in bloom. It is free to enter but please make a donation, especially if you enjoy it. As you’re leaving the garden, turn right and walk about 100 feet. Although there is no marker any more, this is the last remaining Dueling Oak where some people settled their differences until the practice was outlawed in the late 19th century.
DUELING OAK

5. Explore a cemetery
With most of the city below sea level, burying the dead is not advised. Interment in New Orleans is above ground. Some burial spots are merely raised graves while some are grand vaults meant to accommodate many generations. Whatever the choice, the result is a sight unfamiliar to most Americans and the lengthy history of the city provides lots of opportunities to connect with the past. Although there is a huge cemetery complex at Canal Street and City Park Avenue (on the Canal streetcar line) most people choose to visit Lafayette No. 1, in the Garden District (part of "Double Jeopardy" was filmed here), and/or St. Louis No. 1 closer to the French Quarter. To see St Louis No. 1 you must be part of a cemetery tour but you can explore Lafayette on your own.
LAFAYETTE CEMETERY No. 1

6. Listen to live music on Frenchmen Street
A long time ago, Bourbon Street was an important destination for jazz. While there are still a few clubs that feature live music, and even some jazz, the epicenter of New Orleans’ music universe has shifted to Frenchmen Street. Conveniently located just a few steps past Esplanade Avenue, the far end of the Quarter from Canal Street, this is music paradise. You can find nearly every style emerging from an amazing array of venues. Many places offer free early shows around 5 or 6 p.m., please remember to tip though! You can also eat and, in classic New Orleans tradition, get a drink and wander. Check out Offbeat’s website for full listings and club information. Plan to stay late and take a cab, or pedicab, back to your hotel.

7. Last but certainly not least, be sure to eat and drink!
There are far too many choices to list them here, but you can’t go more than a few blocks without finding a bar or restaurant, or both. Get some raw oysters, forget that “only in months with an ‘r’” stuff and dig in. There is always a risk in eating raw shellfish but it seems very minimal these days. If you’re concerned, find grilled oysters. Cooked in the shell with butter and garlic, these are an addictive treat and lots of places serve them now.
CRAWFISH BOIL

By Giovanni Handal (Own work) [GFDL or CC BY-SA 3.0], via Wikimedia Commons
Finally, be sure to get some boiled crabs, shrimp or crawfish. You could spend a lifetime tasting different boil recipes and get delightfully messy in the process. A perfect match with beer, I find the flavor also works with off­dry white wines like Riesling and Chenin Blanc. My favorite thing about boiling with friends are the other foods that get thrown in to soak up the flavor. Potatoes, garlic, sausage and corn are fairly standard, be sure to get some of those with your platter.
Have fun!