New Orleans Neighborhoods

The heart and soul of New Orleans, this romantic and undeniably European slice of the city fronts the banks of the Mississippi and boasts lacy colonial balconies, centuries-old Creole joints, historic cathedrals, and the infamous Bourbon Street. Walk around Jackson Square, shop the antique stores on Chartres Street, and stop for coffee and beignets at one of the Quarter’s delightful cafes.

Bordering the French Quarter at bustling Canal Street, the city’s original main street, this is the land of suit-wearing business types and high-rise office buildings. Here, you’ll find the Superdome, which is famous not only for hosting music and major sporting events, but for its role sheltering victims in the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina.

Ride the St. Charles streetcar to the neighborhood characterized by Antebellum opulence, moss-covered Victorian mansions, magnolia trees, and Anne Rice’s former home, where she drew inspiration for her Vampire Chronicles. (Stay on your toes when you visit the aboveground graves at the Lafayette No. 1 cemetery.)

Faubourg Marigny is a hip and distinctly non-touristy neighborhood adjacent to the French Quarter and immediately across from Esplande Avenue. Residential Creole cottages and narrow shotgun houses abut local boutiques and bohemian cafes. Frenchmen Street boasts nightlife with an authentic local flavor.

Just around the corner from Tulane University, Carollton buzzes with students. Make the trip uptown from the French Quarter in the afternoon to tour Pulitzer Prize-winning author John Kennedy Toole’s house, and stay the evening to check out some of the city’s most authentic jazz and soul music venues.

An historically African-American neighborhood akin to New York’s Harlem, Treme (pronounced Treh-MAY) is home to Basin Street and Louis Armstrong Park (aka “the birthplace of jazz”). Though the neighborhood has had a tough time recovering from Katrina, visitors can still experience a vibrant neighborhood culture slowly returning to life. (It’s not advisable to walk here at night.)

Originally an industrial port area, the revitalized Warehouse and Arts District immediately north of Canal Street has been called “The SoHo of the South” in reference to New York’s artsy “SoHo” neighborhood and is known for trendy restaurants, art galleries, and cultural institutions like the Ogden Museum of Southern Art, the National D-Day Museum, and the Contemporary Arts Center.