Voo doo dolls in a New Orleans gift shop

The first time I visited New Orleans it was to attend a conference and hang out with friends. It’s no surprise, then, that I spent a few nights on Bourbon Street and got very familiar with the Crescent City’s reputation for a good party. I had a blast, but I was a little nervous about how my routine visit – one I planned to make with two small children in tow – would compare.

Visiting New Orleans with kids definitely involves fewer hurricanes and mechanical bulls, but there’s still plenty of fun to be had. In fact, most of New Orleans is very family friendly. Read More »

I believe that eating the local cuisine is an essential part of experiencing any travel destination. You don’t have to fall in love with the food, but eating what the locals do – or what the local chefs are most proud of serving – is a great way to get gain a better understanding of the local culture. It’s because we really are, to a certain extent, what we eat that I always put eating on my list of must-do attractions. No place is this more true than in New Orleans.

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While it’s just one street in a sprawling city with much to offer, Bourbon Street has gained quite a reputation around the world as a must-see-and-do attraction in New Orleans. But any stretch of land that boasts 24 hour drinking should not be approached without a few precautions and good sense guidelines.

What You Should Know About Bourbon Street

1. It is not kid-friendly at any time of day.

I wouldn’t take my kids into a nightclub at midnight, but I’d have no problem having them walk up and down the Vegas Strip at noon. Bourbon Street is not like the Strip. While the workers and partiers alike are generally friendly and respectful, the street is lined with bars and strip clubs that graphically promote their activities with posters plastered on doors and outside walls.

You don’t have to go into a strip club to see bare-breasted women on Bourbon Street. At noon.

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New Orleans - the Crescent City

It wasn’t until 6 years after Hurricane Katrina that I first set eyes on New Orleans, so I have no pre-existing condition against which to compare her current state. I can, however, tell you that today the city is alive, beautiful, and bursting at the seams with things to see and do.

One interesting thing to do in New Orleans – and a great way to learn a little more about the 300 year old city’s history – is to take a guided tour of one of their legendary cemeteries.

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