Convenient NO hotel recommendations?

My daughter and I will be in NO in early September. Our plan is to take several tours, and maybe catch the streetcar to see more sights. My daughter can%26#39;t manage long walks (post cancer) so trying to find creative ways to give her a great NO experience (first time for us both).

Any recommendations on hotels that would be convenient for catching tours...and maybe only a short walk to interesting sights?

thanks again...Connie

Convenient NO hotel recommendations?

I would probably choose a hotel centrally located on Canal St. or a block or so from there. I recommend the JW Marriott or the Astor Crown Plaza. From there you can catch the Canal St. streetcar, or the St. Charles bus, the streetcar on St. Charles does not take you all the way down St. Charles yet, they are still repairing it since Hurricane Katrina. however there is a bus running down there. It is a nice ride to the Garden District /Uptown with many beautiful antebellum homes.Also you have the Magazine St. bus whcih takes you down Magazine St. a long street with lots of funky little boutiques, cafes, restaurants etc. The French Quarter is conveniently located across the street from the JW. Marriott and the Astor is on the same side of Canal as the French Quarter. All tour companies pick up at the major hotels. Both hotels are not too big, not too small, very comfortable and have an excellent staff. Tour companies that I recommend are Tours by Isabelle (15 passenger vans) and Grayline.

Convenient NO hotel recommendations?

First, dowload one of the street maps -- close up of the Quarter and another of the greater area -- from one of the online sites. I think nawlins.comis the CVB (convention visitors bureau). Then oke around reviews here for reviews. Then in Trip Advisor you can search for hotel offers by date, area, price and star range, etc. Look at their web sites and mark their locations on your map, make a chart of prices, ameities if you like (well, I%26#39;m a bit over obsessive in planning).

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Summer and December hotel prices are the lowest, Labor day week will be high, then mid-Sept through end of Nov medium range.

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Any hotel can get you to the standard bus and van tours. Walking location depend upon what you want to see. The main part of the QUaarter is about 8 blocks long and 5 blocks deep, parallel to the river (roughly east-west there). CBD (business district) to the left (approx east with the river at your back, looking at the map), and Garden District above that .

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The St Charles Streetcar through the Garden District may still not be running by Sept, but regular old buses do. Worth riding to the end and back to see all the mansions. The Canal streetcar goes from the river';north,'; (not much to see), but then turns right and ends at the Museum of Art and outdoor sculpture garden.

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There are bus tours uprive to the plantations, but take all or half day and are pricey. If you want to view a magnificent period house, I recommend a cab ride to Longue Vieux house and gardens, in the city. Two museums on the square on either side of the cathedral, plus in the quarter two other restored period homes -- Gallier House and Hermina-Grimm House, all with 3-4 blocks. ALso Beauregaard-Keyes House and great small garden. Skip the 1860%26#39;s House o the Square; two huge steep staircases! I wouldn%26#39;t do all the homes or museums in one trip, they start looking alike. :)

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Also on the visitor%26#39;s bureau site, somewhere, download the text of their Quarter walking tour. DOn%26#39;t need to do the whole walking tour, although it%26#39;s compact. But reading about the buildings before you go there wilol give you a sense of ';being in the know.'; Then when you dowalk parts of Royal and Chartres streets, look UP. The floors above those glass store fronts are lod time huge residences. Back then the wealthy merchants ';lived above the stores). Oh, the Historic New Orleans Collection (HNOC) has a small free museum on Royal St. Then they have a guided tour of their courtyards and complex of bildings. However, the last residents decorated it in the early 1900%26#39;s ';contemporary'; drab.

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Remember the Quarter is aplace of courtyards. What faces the sidewalks are the backs of homes, and shops. In the middle of the blacks, hidden away, are the courtyards leading to home entrances. Unfortunately, most all locked off. Peek through the gates betrween buildings where you can. The showoff later settlers in the Garde District showed off their wealth with their front yards and porches. The old line Europeans and Crealoes in the Quarter his their comforts from sight in their homes and secluded courtyards.

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The evening ghost and vampire tours are also walking, and frankly theatrical tourist hype, little authenticity. The donkey carriage rides give the same hype, but you can sit in a carriage and see a bit the city. On Jackson Square (cathedral front) you can sit and watch the worldgo by. Not many street performers left these days. Acrossfrom it the Cafe DuMonde. Coffee and beignets and moresitting and watching the world go by (more my speed). Behind that the river. Watch the boats go by. Right there the riverfront trolley can take you east to the Riverwalk mall. Just a typicalmall,really, but you can get a tray of lunch from their food court and take it outside to tables also overlooking the river. And maybe right there watch a huge cruise ship loading, and be jealous of the people ging into those balcony cabins.

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Don%26#39;t try to do everything in one trip.Half of the experience is just being there in the atmosphere. And, of course,the food everywhere!

Thank you both for all of your input. I really need to go for ease of touring this time, and your info really helps. I%26#39;ll go check out those hotels. My daughter would even dig the corny theatrical haunted tours...but the walking thing won%26#39;t work. Thanks...Connie

P.S. If you%26#39;re going with the previous poster%26#39;s rec of the Astor CrownePlaszaon Canal and Bourbon, that is probably still the BookIt.com%26#39;s four star ';mystery hotel.'; Check the thread here in TA. that way%26#39;s it%26#39;s 79 anight, vs their off-season 149 or more.

Or, central to the Quarter and riught behind Jackson Square, I like the Wyndham Bourbon Orleans. ';sizzlin%26#39; summer'; rates at 79 per, also. Sept maybe a bit more. Call them and askfordiscount rates.

Stay right in the quarter and not on Canal..the prices are still fairly good in September...try near Jackson Square..such as the Place D%26#39;armes, Bourbon Orleans, St Marie...its near a lot of the tour locations.

Connzo--

We%26#39;ve been to NO a good many times, but not since Katrina, so I hope this info is still valid. (We would like to visit again next summer.) My husband also has some mobility impairments, and it%26#39;s always just the two of us, so for what it%26#39;s worth I%26#39;ll tell you some of the things we%26#39;ve enjoyed.

First, know that early Sept. will probably still be pretty hot, but we always go in June or July, which are hotter. (I%26#39;m a teacher so that%26#39;s when we have to go.) The heat is tolerable to us, but we don%26#39;t go non-stop all day. Many hotels have small pools, so bring swimsuits. Except for the really fancy restaurants or clubs, dress is casual. There are always things like the Aquarium (it%26#39;s not far from the French Quarter, but probably too far to walk--take a cab or see if the streetcar goes there) which are air-conditioned if you need a cool activity, or a break from history, etc. There are malls right by the river--one time we took a little Cajun cooking class in one ot them. I can%26#39;t remember if it was in the Jax Brewery building or the mall near the aquarium. Go on line or pick up (or send for, since you have some time before your trip) some of the booklets to get an idea of all the activities. Also look at a map of the French Quarter and nearby areas, so you have a grasp for where things are. Some of them show where the hotels and restaurants are located and they are very helpful in planning.

Our favorite hotel is the Bourbon-Orleans, (We now usually stay in a condo-type near the Canal end of Decatur St., though. It is Club La Pension if you want more than just a room. Still very historic, of course. Near the edge of the FQ so a little farther away from some of the things.)

I think the Bourbon-Orleans is owned by Wyndam now. It is right in the middle of the French Quarter so it is close to just about anything you%26#39;d want there, kind of behind the cathedral and close to Jackson Square. They usually have some pretty good deals, and you can go on-line or call and join the Wyndam preferred-guest type thing and probably get a few perks. The building has a lot of history, of course. The Monteleone on Royal is also very famous and supposed to be a classic for N. O. We%26#39;ve never stayed there, though. It%26#39;s very large with the pool on the roof, I think, and probably a little more expensive. The Bourbon-Orleans is probably a little closer to more things. Both are inside the F. Quarter but the locaion of the B.O. can%26#39;t be beat.

Personally, I would stay INSIDE the French Quarter so you don%26#39;t have to do so much traveling back %26amp; forth to see the things there. Most people who want a ';New Orleans'; type trip are thinking about the French Quarter. We just love strolling around and looking at all the beautiful old buildings, etc. There are many places to duck in for a cool drink and to rest if you need to--candy shops, pastry shops, etc. too.. I think it%26#39;s worth a little extra money to stay in the FQ, esp. with your daughter%26#39;s limitations.

Definitely eat at least once at the Gumbo Shop, the Cafe du Monde for the beigneys (sp?) %26amp; coffee or chocolate, and Deannie%26#39;s for seafood. There are tons of good places to eat that won%26#39;t break the bank. We also liked the Royal Cafe (with the lovely ironwork balcony) but I don%26#39;t know if it%26#39;s still open or not. Several of our favorite restaurants have closed, but there are still plenty. Some are really fancy and pricey, some just plain old good food. Depends on what you like.. Some of the fancier ones are famously New Orleans, I think. We tend toward the less-fancy types.

Royal Street has some lovely shops, and used to have a perfume shop that was a neat place. Bourbon St. is just wild or sleazy, depending on your tastes. Of course, there are a zillion bars and all kinds of nightlife. (I%26#39;m thinking you have a young daughter, but maybe not?) N. O. is also full of historical things, authentic and lovely.

I%26#39;ve always felt safe walking in the French Quarter in the daytime, even by myself--most posts seem to think it%26#39;s still safe; we%26#39;ve not been in a while. We avoided the side of the FQ that is on the opposite end from Canal St, and far back from the river. The 3/4 of the Quarter toward the river and toward Canal used to be the more traveled parts. The French Market area, near the less-traveled end but toward the river, was OK. The ';rule'; used to be that if you stay where there are lots of people, you%26#39;d be fine. But, my daughter and her husband were there on business several months ago, and were advised to NOT walk around outside the French Quarter at all. I don%26#39;t know--I%26#39;m just passing on what they were told. ??

One thing you might consider, and that my husband uses, is to rent a ';transport chair'; for your daughter. It%26#39;s a very lightweight folding kind of wheelchair, but without the large wheels--you%26#39;d have to push her. I don%26#39;t know if she%26#39;d go for that, or if you could hold out to do it, but it would make walking around the Quarter much easier on her, They weigh less than 20 pounds. We%26#39;ve never had a problem taking it on tour buses or streetcars--it folds up quickly. The sidewalks can be a little bumpy, though. Just a thought to consider--makes it much easier for my husband, for sure. (We%26#39;ve named his chair the ';Red Blitz'; and it%26#39;s got quite a few miles on it!)

We took a cemetery tour on an air-conditioned mini-bus once, and that was very unusual, if you are into old stuff like that. You get off the bus, but then you can walk around the cemetery--they are like little cities, above-ground-- as much or little as you like--stay with some of the group, though. This was not the ghost tour, just a tour of one old cemetery. There are all kinds of tours to take. We took another one once that went out by Lake Ponchartrain--also A/C bus.

We like to walk up (yes, up) to the riverbank and look at the Mississippi. There used to be a ferry you could take across the river to Algiers, but check to be sure it%26#39;s still OK--safe and all, if it%26#39;s still running. The St. Charles street car was a beautiful ride to see the old mansions in the Garden District, but from some of the posts here, apparently it is not totally back in service right now. If it%26#39;s running, that%26#39;s a very enjoyable, relaxing experience. (You may see some ';unique'; characters, or not.) That streetcar line was the oldest in the US still operating, I believe.

We also took a big paddlewheel boat ride up the river, which was very informative and fun. I guess they still offer those. We%26#39;ve done it with the lunch buffet and without the buffet. The food wasn%26#39;t anything special, so the next time we just took the boat ride without the meal.

My husband is a history buff, so we did the D-Day Museum, but it might not be interesting to your daughter, depending on her age and interests. Take a cab if you do that. We%26#39;[ve also taken a cab to the Art Museum, but it%26#39;s kind of a typical museum and farther away. There%26#39;s also an I-max at the aquarium, but you can see an Imax in other places. I don%26#39;t know how many days you%26#39;ll have for extra things like that. There%26#39;s so much in the French Quarter that%26#39;s just so different from any other place--we concentrate on the NO type things, mostly..

I know you%26#39;ll find plenty to do! We are not big party people, and have physical limitations, but we%26#39;ve always had a great time in N.O. Enjoy your visit!

PS--Our favorite ';NO'; set movie is ';Double Jeopardy'; with Ashley Judd--but I digress! Makes us want to go back everytime we watch it.