Does My Plan Make Sense

[riddle]

We are driving to NOLA and will be on the road all day Saturday. I know we will be beat when we get in about 6:00 p.m. DH and I usually stay on the riverfront but I will be with DD and 2 small kids instead this time.

 

I have checked riverfront hotel prices and they are out of this world and most of the hotels I know are fully booked.

 

Since we will arrive around dinnertime and be exhausted I was thinking of getting a hotel just outside of NOLA (at a much cheaper price). We can have dinner, the kids can swim and we can just hit the sack.

 

We plan on getting up early on Sunday morning and dropping our bags off at the port and parking the car in the NCL lot or Fulton Street. We then want to see just a tiny bit of NOLA (DD has never been there and wants beignets) before we get on the ship.

 

Does this plan make sense considering our situation. As I recall it is a short walk from where you park at the pier to the riverfront area.

[firefly333]

There is one of those coffee shops, cant spell it, near the port. There is a walkway on the 2nd floor on the other side of the rr tracks and its in there.

 

Dont know the age of your kids and how much of walkers they are. I always pick a hotel that has parking. Holiday Inn is kinda a long walk to the port with small kids. Around $169 lately with parking and no breakfast. Getting kinda steep price wise, used to be less.

 

Ive even gone to those sites to figure out which hotel included parking at fulton on hotwire and gone that route, but I used to cruise enough it was worth saving a buck.

 

There is a better location for that coffee place ....but for convenience go to the one across from the port area.

 

Over the years Ive just found it doesnt save any money to pay for hotel and parking separate, just my own opinion.

[jgmpuma]

Your plan should work, but I would not get to the terminal too early. You will run into both the disembarkers and the new arrivals. 10:30 or so should be OK.

 

After you drop the luggage off and park it is a fairly short walk to the French Quarter from the NCL terminal.There is also a riverfront streetcar stop on Julia Street, right outside of the NCL terminal.

[VideoTech]

There are many hotel options aside from riverfront in New Orleans. Try the hotels on Poydras street or the ones in the Warehouse district (behind the cruise terminals). You may find one that suits your needs for price and kid-suitability.

 

There is a Cafe Du Monde stand in the shops in front of the Hilton Riverside hotel, not too far from the Julia St. Terminal. It will have the authentic taste, if not the atmosphere, of the real Cafe Du Monde in the Quarter.

 

I don't know the ages of your kids, but I would not call the walk from the cruise terminals to the Quarter riverfront a "short walk" for small kids. It's just under a mile from the cruise terminals to the Aquarium at the foot of Canal St. As pointed out, though, there is a streetcar, and you could take that all the way to the Dumaine stop, which would allow you to go to the real Cafe Du Monde, and see Jackson Square and the entertainers there. the plus to that is that the kids would probably get a kick out of the streetcar ride.

 

One other option if you decide to spend Saturday night outside the central city area: Instead of driving to the port first thing, why not just drive down to the riverfront area, spend the money to park by Jackson square, do a little sightseeing, then get back in the car and go to the port? That takes care of your transportation issues, and the only cost difference is parking vs streetcar rides, which may end up being pretty close.

 

 

 

 

We are driving to NOLA and will be on the road all day Saturday. I know we will be beat when we get in about 6:00 p.m. DH and I usually stay on the riverfront but I will be with DD and 2 small kids instead this time.

 

I have checked riverfront hotel prices and they are out of this world and most of the hotels I know are fully booked.

 

Since we will arrive around dinnertime and be exhausted I was thinking of getting a hotel just outside of NOLA (at a much cheaper price). We can have dinner, the kids can swim and we can just hit the sack.

 

We plan on getting up early on Sunday morning and dropping our bags off at the port and parking the car in the NCL lot or Fulton Street. We then want to see just a tiny bit of NOLA (DD has never been there and wants beignets) before we get on the ship.

 

Does this plan make sense considering our situation. As I recall it is a short walk from where you park at the pier to the riverfront area.

[riddle]

Video Tech - these all seem like good ideas. Not being familiar with the area, can you tell me some of the hotels in the warehouse districtor on Poyndras Street that might work.

[firefly333]

 

There is a Cafe Du Monde stand in the shops in front of the Hilton Riverside hotel, not too far from the Julia St. Terminal. It will have the authentic taste, if not the atmosphere, of the real Cafe Du Monde in the Quarter.

 

I don't know the ages of your kids, but I would not call the walk from the cruise terminals to the Quarter riverfront a "short walk" for small kids.

 

Yep thats the coffee shop and you can see the walkway where the smaller version is from the top deck of some ships Ive been on.

 

Ive stayed in quite a few hotels there, garden/warehouse district, whatever its called is closer to the terminal, but further walk to french qtr but since the op doesnt want my opinion on hotels...and dont know their price range anyway, good luck

[VideoTech]

Video Tech - these all seem like good ideas. Not being familiar with the area, can you tell me some of the hotels in the warehouse districtor on Poyndras Street that might work.

 

In the Warehouse District:

Plaza Suite

Omni Riverfront New Orleans

Courtyard New Orleans Downtown Convention Center

Embassy Suites

Residence Inn

SpringHill Suites

Hilton Garden Inn

Hampton Inn and Suites

Hyatt Place

 

Along Poydras:

Hyatt House

Homewood Suites

Drury Inn

Whitney Hotel

Staybridge Suites

 

These are just a few. Use Google Maps. Go to New Orleans, center it on the area you're interested and enter "hotels" in the search box. Also remember that most of these chains have several locations in New Orleans, so make sure you're booking the right one if you do.

 

You can expect that prices in New Orleans proper will be higher than those out in the suburbs of the city. You should also check the convention schedule..if there's a big convention scheduled, prices will be higher and rooms harder to find.

[selljd]

So My husband and I are planning to stay about an hour outside of New Orleans the night before our cruise. We are early risers and both up by 6. Thoughts are that we will be up get breakfast and drive in to see the WWII museum (well as much as possible) before parking at Fulton's and boarding at 2:30. May seem extreme to some but I booked a room in Hammond for under $70 for the night - not a really nice one, but it has good reviews on Trip Advisor, not to mention I booked through South West and get 750 points through them.

[Mutumbojimbo]

When we cruised out of NOLA, we were able to park on the street with in a couple blocks of Café du Monde. I think we had one block, then Jackson Square, which is pretty neat to walk past, then I think we were right at CdM. you might try that, then drive over to the port or Fulton Street garage. It only cost a dollar or 2. As I recall, it would be a pretty good walk from the cruise port to CdM. Depending on your check-in time you should be able to make that work.

[myCatalina]

We were also thinking of staying in Hammond. What hotel did you use and how was it and the drive over?

[selljd]

We were also thinking of staying in Hammond. What hotel did you use and how was it and the drive over?

 

I booked the Quality Inn Hammond - for Late October 2016 - the rate I have booked is 69.95 plus tax. We've never stayed before so this will be a 1st for us. Wish I could offer more information - according to google it's about an hour drive to the port.

[Lynda59]

Hammond is a good hour away, but you do not want to hit New Orleans rush hour traffic on a Monday morning until after 9:00am.

 

The WWII museum is amazing, but it is very big. Do not miss the part with the planes. There is parking in nearby lots and then it is just a few miles to the port.

[selljd]

Hammond is a good hour away, but you do not want to hit New Orleans rush hour traffic on a Monday morning until after 9:00am.

 

The WWII museum is amazing, but it is very big. Do not miss the part with the planes. There is parking in nearby lots and then it is just a few miles to the port.

 

So how bad is New Orleans Traffic Hour? I ask because I grew up in Dallas, TX, Currently live in Central Missouri - first time I drove to St Louis I was warned about the "traffic" I never saw any - never dropped below 45-50 MPH. When I was commuting in Dallas it took 45-60 minutes to drive the 15-20 miles to work and never got out of 2nd gear in my manual transmission vehicle.

 

As to the planes at the WWI Museum - That's what will hold our interest the most I imagine - my husband and I love history.

 

Thanks!!!

[rvsullivan]

We are driving to NOLA and will be on the road all day Saturday. I know we will be beat when we get in about 6:00 p.m. DH and I usually stay on the riverfront but I will be with DD and 2 small kids instead this time.

 

I have checked riverfront hotel prices and they are out of this world and most of the hotels I know are fully booked.

 

Since we will arrive around dinnertime and be exhausted I was thinking of getting a hotel just outside of NOLA (at a much cheaper price). We can have dinner, the kids can swim and we can just hit the sack.

 

We plan on getting up early on Sunday morning and dropping our bags off at the port and parking the car in the NCL lot or Fulton Street. We then want to see just a tiny bit of NOLA (DD has never been there and wants beignets) before we get on the ship.

 

Does this plan make sense considering our situation. As I recall it is a short walk from where you park at the pier to the riverfront area.

 

I can't imagine driving 820 miles non stop with two small kids! With no stops it's a hard 12 hour drive and with little ones it's going to be more like 14-15 hours. Talk about tired and stressed. Hammond is a pretty good stopping point, about an hour out.

[Lynda59]

So how bad is New Orleans Traffic Hour? I ask because I grew up in Dallas, TX, Currently live in Central Missouri - first time I drove to St Louis I was warned about the "traffic" I never saw any - never dropped below 45-50 MPH. When I was commuting in Dallas it took 45-60 minutes to drive the 15-20 miles to work and never got out of 2nd gear in my manual transmission vehicle.

 

As to the planes at the WWI Museum - That's what will hold our interest the most I imagine - my husband and I love history.

 

Thanks!!!

 

New Orleans is not like Dallas. I do not work in the city, but I would allow an extra 30 minutes. I would not plan to get to the museum until 9:30 or so. They open at 9:00am.