24 Hours in New Orleans
One day, the French Quarter, the Garden District and live jazz, hour by hour, ending on Frenchmen Street.
Twenty-four hours in New Orleans means picking the French Quarter’s history and the Garden District’s charm over trying to cover the whole sprawling city, this order gets you both plus live jazz without wasting time backtracking. Here’s the full plan, hour by hour.
Beignets at Café du Monde
Start with a New Orleans essential, beignets and chicory coffee at the original Café du Monde, right by the French Market and Jackson Square. Go early, this spot draws a real queue by mid-morning and the beignets are best fresh and still dusted with sugar.
Jackson Square and St. Louis Cathedral
Walk to Jackson Square, framed by the St. Louis Cathedral, the oldest cathedral in continuous use in the United States, and surrounded by street performers and local artists even this early. It’s the natural heart of the French Quarter and a good anchor for the rest of the morning.
Royal Street
Walk Royal Street, running parallel to Bourbon Street but considerably more sedate, art galleries and antique shops behind French balconies and ironwork. This is the French Quarter at its most photogenic without the Bourbon Street chaos.
Lunch and the Garden District
Ride the St. Charles Streetcar, the oldest continuously operating line in the country, out to the Garden District for lunch and a wander past its 19th-century mansions. Lafayette Cemetery No. 1, with its ornate above-ground tombs, is worth a look if the city’s history interests you.
Magazine Street
Still in the Garden District area, Magazine Street runs for miles with independent boutiques, galleries and cafes, a good, unhurried stretch to shop and people-watch before heading back toward the Quarter.
The streetcar back, and a look at Bourbon Street by daylight
Ride the streetcar back into the French Quarter and walk Bourbon Street while it’s still family-friendly and daytime-calm, colourful balconies and historic buildings without the after-dark crowds. It’s a genuinely different street depending on the hour, worth seeing both versions.
Dinner and a Hurricane at Pat O’Brien’s
Pat O’Brien’s, the birthplace of the Hurricane cocktail, is a genuine New Orleans institution, worth the stop even if just for a drink in the courtyard. Follow with dinner somewhere serving proper Creole or Cajun food, gumbo or jambalaya, before the evening properly starts.
Live jazz on Frenchmen Street
Skip Bourbon Street’s touristy chaos for the evening and head to Frenchmen Street instead, the Spotted Cat and Blue Nile are two reliable venues for authentic live jazz without the cover charges of Preservation Hall. Follow the music, quite literally, this street rewards wandering.
That’s everything I’ve got.
A note before you plan around this: prices, opening hours, booking requirements and admission details in this guide were correct at the time of writing, but venues change these often and sometimes without notice. Always check directly with the attraction or its official website before you travel or build a schedule around a specific time or price.
Before travelling to any destination featured on this site, please also check your government’s latest travel advice, as safety situations, entry requirements and travel warnings can change.
