Louisiana
New Orleans
State
Country
United States of America
Continent
North America
Size
906 KM2
Population
383,997
Spending Budget
$1,400 - $3,000
Famous For
- The French Quarter
- Colonial Architecture
- Creole Culture
Best Time to Visit
- February
- March
- April
- May
History
Founded in 1718 by French colonists, New Orleans was once the territorial capital of French Louisiana before becoming part of the United States in the Louisiana Purchase of 1803. New Orleans in 1840 was the third-most populous city in the United States, and it was the largest city in the American South from the Antebellum era until after World War II. The city has historically been very vulnerable to flooding, due to its high rainfall, low lying elevation, poor natural drainage, and proximity to multiple bodies of water. State and federal authorities have installed a complex system of levees and drainage pumps in an effort to protect the city.
Present Day
New Orleans is world-renowned for its distinctive music, Creole cuisine, unique dialects, and its annual celebrations and festivals, most notably Mardi Gras. The historic heart of the city is the French Quarter, known for its French and Spanish Creole architecture and vibrant nightlife along Bourbon Street. The city has been described as the "most unique" in the United States, owing in large part to its cross-cultural and multilingual heritage. Additionally, New Orleans has increasingly been known as "Hollywood South" due to its prominent role in the film industry and in pop culture.
Future
By 2030, New Orleans will be one of the most livable cities in America as neighborhoods are knitted together by convenient and walkable mixed-use neighborhood hubs that replace faded shopping centers and long-vacant industrial sites. Recognizing that modern economies depend first and foremost on people and their skills, New Orleans has invested in lifelong workforce training, effective and cost-efficient government, and enhanced quality of life. Better education, expanded job training, workforce readiness, and similar programs have extended new
opportunities to native New Orleanians. From culture, tourism, and maritime trade, to life sciences and media,
to alternative energy and coastal protection and restoration technology, New Orleans has diversified and
created a new era of jobs, built in part on the skills brought by new residents attracted to the city’s creativity
and quality of life.
National WWII Museum
The National WWII Museum, formerly known as The National D-Day Museum, is a military history museum located in the Central Business District of New Orleans, Louisiana, USA, on Andrew Higgins Drive between Camp Street and Magazine Street. The museum focuses on the contribution made by the United States to Allied victory in World War II. Founded in 2000, it was later designated by the U.S. Congress as America's official National WWII Museum in 2003. The museum is a Smithsonian Institution affiliated museum. The mission statement of the museum emphasizes the American experience in World War II.
Garden District
The Garden District is a neighborhood of the city of New Orleans, Louisiana, United States. A subdistrict of the Central City Area, its boundaries as defined by the City Planning Commission are: St. Charles Avenue to the north, 1st Street to the east, Magazine Street to the south, and Toledano Street to the west. The National Historic Landmark district extends a little farther. The area was originally developed between 1832 and 1900 and is considered one of the best-preserved collections of historic mansions in the Southern United States. The 19th-century origins of the Garden District illustrate wealthy newcomers building opulent structures based upon the prosperity of New Orleans in that era.
Frenchmen Street
Frenchmen Street is in the 7th Ward of New Orleans, Louisiana. It is best known for the three-block section in the Faubourg Marigny neighborhood which is home to some of the city's popular live-music venues, in addition to restaurants, bars, a record store, a book shop, and other local businesses. The oldest and best-known section of Frenchmen Street is in the Faubourg Marigny neighborhood, just downriver from the Vieux Carré or French Quarter. Wandering down Frenchmen Street, a passerby will notice the New Orleans architecture that makes the city stand apart from other American metropolitan areas. Frenchmen Street is home to many Creole cottages—a New Orleans design stemming back to the period between 1790-1850.
City Park
City Park is a neighborhood of the city of New Orleans, USA. A subdistrict of the Lakeview District Area, its boundaries as defined by the City Planning Commission. The neighborhood is named after and dominated by City Park. Serving as New Orleans' largest outdoor attraction since 1854, City Park is one of the oldest parks in the country. With its iconic oak trees and picturesque moss canopies, this 1,300 acre green space brings in millions of visitors each year. People come from near and far to enjoy the beautiful trails and scenery, as well as the endless amount of vendors, museums and activities within the park itself.
Jackson Square
Jackson Square is a historic park in the French Quarter of New Orleans, Louisiana. It was declared a National Historic Landmark in 1960, for its central role in the city's history, and as the site where in 1803 Louisiana was made United States territory pursuant to the Louisiana Purchase. In 2012 the American Planning Association designated Jackson Square as one of the Great Public Spaces in the United States. Every year, the square hosts the French Quarter Festival and Caroling in Jackson Square. Occasionally, formal concerts are given in the park.
French Quarter
The French Quarter, also known as the Vieux Carré, is the oldest neighborhood in the city of New Orleans. After New Orleans was founded in 1718 by Jean-Baptiste Le Moyne de Bienville, the city developed around the Vieux Carré, a central square. The district as a whole has been designated as a National Historic Landmark, with numerous contributing buildings that are separately deemed significant. It is a prime tourist destination in the city, as well as attracting local residents.
Preservation Hall
The Preservation Hall Foundation is an organization primarily dedicated to Preservation Hall's educational initiatives, including but not limited to providing private lessons to youth taught by New Orleans jazz musicians, coordinating group lessons with the Preservation Hall Junior Jazz Band, presenting workshops during Preservation Hall Jazz Band tours, or maintenance of the ever-growing Preservation Hall archives.
Audubon Zoo
Audubon Zoo is an American zoo that is part of the Audubon Nature Institute which also manages Audubon Aquarium of the Americas, Audubon Louisiana Nature Center, Freeport-McMoran Species Survival Center, Audubon Park, and Audubon Coastal Wildlife Network. It covers 58 acres and is home to over 2,000 animals. It is located in a section of Audubon Park in Uptown New Orleans, on the Mississippi River side of Magazine Street. The zoo and park are named in honor of artist and naturalist John James Audubon who lived in New Orleans starting in 1821.
Mardi Gras World
Mardi Gras World (also known as Blaine Kern's Mardi Gras World, MGW) is a tourist attraction located in New Orleans. Guests tour the 300,000 square foot working warehouse where floats are made for Mardi Gras parades in New Orleans. Mardi Gras World is located along the Mississippi River, next to the New Orleans Morial Convention Center. Their events venue, the River City Complex, also hosts festivals, weddings, private parties and corporate events.
Saint Louis Cemetery Number 1
Saint Louis Cemetery is the name of three Catholic cemeteries in New Orleans, Louisiana. Most of the graves are above-ground vaults constructed in the 18th and 19th centuries. St. Louis Cemetery No. 1 is the oldest and most famous. It was opened in 1789, replacing the city's older St. Peter Cemetery as the main burial ground when the city was redesigned after a fire in 1788. The renowned Voodoo priestess Marie Laveau is believed to be interred here.