New Orleans, commonly referred to as Nola, provides music, culture, great food, and a non-stop party which makes it the perfect place for a bachelorette party or girls trip! After doing two bachelorette parties in New Orleans, mine and my best friends, I’m here to help you plan the ultimate girls weekend trip to Nola!

Table of Contents

• Where to Stay
• Things to Do
  • Get boozy at a cocktail class
  • Scout for alligators on a bayou booze cruise
  • Have a spooktacular time on a haunted pub crawl
  • Explore the French Quarter
  • Dance the night away on Bourbon Street
  • Enjoy jazz music on Fremont Street
• Where to Eat
• Bars to Visit
• Safety Tips

Where to Stay

Like most cities, knowing which areas to stay in is crucial for your safety–and even in the safe, touristy areas you should still be very well aware of your surroundings. With that being said, I recommend staying in or near the French Quarter or in the Central Business District. Both of these areas are full of hotels and air bnbs and are walking distance to majority of the activities I’m going to recommend.

• New Orleans Marriott: Located right on Canal Street, The New Orleans Marriott is walking distance to Bourbon Street and provides a safe place to stay. Valet your car and utilize uber/lyft and your two feet to get around. It’s also right by the trolly that you can ride to get around town!
• The Old 77 Hotel: If you’re like me and my husband, where you stay is just as important as the vacation itself. We usually opt to stay in unique hotels vs a chain when possible and The Old 77 Hotel provided us with a wonderful experience! It was still walking distance to Bourbon Street, but gave a more upscale lodging experience.
• Air Bnb: There are tons of air bnbs located throughout New Orleans! We stayed at one operated by Sextant/Roami located on Union Street and were walking distance to both Bourbon Street and The French Quarter. While I can’t find our exact one on the website, I’d definitely recommend the air bnbs they operate–as we had a wonderful experience from check in to check out!

Things to Do

New Orleans is full of fun, and sometimes spooky, things to do! From cemetery tours to riding through an alligator filled swamp, there’s something there for everyone to enjoy! Here are things I would recommend from personal experience to make your bachelorette or girls weekend a major hit!

New Orleans Cocktail Class

Take a class at Drink Lab Nola! This class was so, so much fun! Spend some time learning how to make classic Nola drinks and learn about the history of them! No need to pregame this class as the drinks you make will be strong (or be like me and my friend and show up with a drink in hand; you do you boo, no judgement here). Either way, you’re guaranteed a good time and a strong buzz after this class!

Bayou Booze Cruise

You can’t go to New Orleans and not go out searching for gators! This Bayou Booze Cruise will not only allow you a chance to see some some of these majestic creatures, but will also ensure a good time! The cruise is BYOB and the vibes are immaculate. Big shout out to our boat driver Mike, I’m not sure who brought the party more–him or us! We got lucky and the group that was supposed to be with us cancelled, so we had the boat to ourselves and Mike let us plug up our phone to blast some tunes. We even got to PET AN ALLIGATOR! I mean, what?!?! Now, this is not a guaranteed part of the tour, we were just lucky. Either way, this is a Nola must do! It was everyones favorite activity by far.

Haunted Pub Crawl

Grab your ghouls and go on a Haunted Pub Crawl, where you may or may not be crawling back to bed by the end of it. While this tour had it’s ups and downs, we still enjoyed trying different bars + classic Nola drinks recommended to us by our guide. However, we were disappointed with it’s lack of spookiness and having to wait in lines at each bar we went to. I’d recommend trying to find a tour where drinks are included to help keep the pace up a bit. We did, however, find the best Irish Coffee by taking this tour! Overall, it was a more chill thing to do that was enjoyable, but not everyones favorite.

Explore the French Quarter

Filled with history, food, and shopping the French Quarter is an area in Nola that you have to explore. Spend some time walking around Jackson Square or grabbing a beignet at Cafe du Monde. Let New Orleans guide you on what to do! Trust me, there’s plenty of entertainment up and down the streets.

Dance the Night Away on Bourbon Street

You can’t go on a girls trip to Nola and not go to Bourbon Street at least once. Full of bars, street performers, and plenty of people watching–Bourbon Street is party central. There really is no telling what you’re going to get yourself into. Bar hopping is made easy as there are no covers and you can easily walk in + out of each place. Find some live music or a DJ spinnin your favorite tunes and dance the night away. Be aware of the shot girls!!! They WILL try to get you to take a shot of juice, essentially, and then charge you $40. We learned this the hard way on our first trip down there and were very firm, yet kind, with our “no’s” the second time around. Don’t fall for it!

Enjoy Jazz on Fremont Street

Need a break from the craziness of Bourbon Street? Head over to Fremont Street and enjoy live jazz music and a calmer setting. If I ever make it back to Nola, I plan on spending majority of my time here as ya girl is getting too old for the shenanigans that occur on Bourbon Street.

There’s tons of other things to enjoy in New Orleans, such as museums, cemetery tours, an aquarium, and more! With so much to do, it takes multiple visits to see it all! These are just things that I’ve done and enjoyed and hope you will too.

Where to Eat

When I think of some of the best food I’ve ever had, I always think of New Orleans. From fresh seafood to creole inspired dishes, New Orleans serves up some of the most flavorful food I’ve ever eaten. With so many options to choose from, it can get overwhelming figuring out what to try first. Here are my recommendations for delicious food in New Orleans!

• Domenica: I like to find yummy Italian food anywhere I go and Domenica was absolutely delicious. The squid ink pasta was so good, my friend and I think about it to this day. On top of the great food, the atmosphere was superb as well. If you’re looking for Italian, go ahead and make a reservation here–it will not disappoint!
• Restaurant R’evolution: Looking for a more upscale restaurant? Head over to Restaurant R’evolution which serves up anything and everything. From New Orleans classics with a twist to steak and pasta, this restaurant has something for everyone! Be sure to get the blue crab beignets! They were a HIT!!
• Cafe Amelie: Cozy and quaint, Cafe Amelie serves up all those Parisian feels while being in the south. It’s the perfect place for brunch after an evening out and their patio is so cute! The menu is kind of limited so if you’re a picky eater, it may not be the place for you.
• Copper Vine: If you need a place that provides a chill atmosphere and cute decor, then make sure you visit Copper Vine! We ate here on our last night in Nola and everyone loved it! The menu has a wide variety of food to choose from so even the pickiest eaters can find something they like!
• Red Fish Grill: Another more upscale restaurant, Red Fish Grill is absolutely amazing! While most of their menu is fresh caught seafood, they do have chicken + steak dishes for those who aren’t a fan of seafood.
• Vampire Cafe: As big Vampire Diaries and Twilight girly, I HAD to make a stop at the Vampire Cafe. It’s the perfect place to share some appetizers and grab a drink for lunch! Plus it’s decked out in all things vampire, so anyone who’s into spooky + supernatural are sure to love it! My only disappointment is that there were no Salvatore brothers waiting for my arrival (if you know, you know).
• Cafe Beignet and Cafe du Monde: You can’t go to New Orleans and not grab a beignet…or two…maybe even three. Both of these cafes are famous beignet shops and are the same in quality! I will say that I like the atmosphere of Cage Beignet more than Cafe du Monde, it’s more quaint and Parisian, whereas Cafe du Monde is geared more for tourist. Remember to bring cash as Cafe du Monde is a cash only establishment!

Bars to Visit

Along with many delicious places to eat, New Orleans is full of unique bars to visit! There’s many to choose from and you really can’t go wrong with any of them, but here are some that stood out to me from my visits!

• Carousel Bar & Lounge: Located in Hotel Monteleone, the Carousel Bar is one of the most well known bars in New Orleans. If you’re lucky like we were, you’ll be able to grab a seat at the bar that is in the shape of–you guessed it, a carousel! Sit, sip, and spin while the carousel moves around ever so slightly, you really can’t tell you’re moving until you look up and you’re in a different part of the bar. The drinks were delicious and the overall ambiance was super unique!
• Pat O’Briens: Known for their Hurricane, Pat O’Briens is another famous bar in New Orleans that you have to visit at least once!
• Mollys at the Market: If you go anywhere for a drink, make it Mollys at the Market. Not only is it a super chill spot to grab a drink, it has the BEST Irish Coffee I’ve ever had!! Spice it up and add another shot of Jameson, this drink is so good we went back for seconds before going to the airport! It’s so creamy, flavorful, and has just the right hint of alcohol in it.
• Lafittes Blacksmith Shop Bar: If you’re looking for a bar with a haunted history, head over to Lafittes. One thing that makes this bar unique is that they utilize candlelight, lanterns, and a fireplace instead of harsh overhead lighting. This really makes you feel like you’re time traveling back in time! Rumor has it that Lafittes treasure is still buried within the bricks of the bar and people have seen a ghostly pirate guarding the area. I wasn’t fortunate enough to have a ghost encounter, but if you do please tell me about it!

The amount of bars in New Orleans is honestly overwhelming, these are just a few that stood out to me as we explored the city! If you stumble across any worth visiting, please leave them in the comments so I can check them out during my next visit!

Safety Tips

Like any major city, New Orleans has had some big safety events occur so it’s also best to have plans in place to keep everyone safe. Here are some of my tips that I live by, regardless of where I’m going (especially on girls trips).

• Share each others location on your iPhone
• Use the buddy system when going to the bathroom, grabbing a drink from the bar, or walking around
• Have a “designated sober” person for the night. Rotate each night on having a person who doesn’t drink that much and is a bit more sober than the rest of the group.
• Be sure to lock all doors once you’re in your hotel or air bnb.
• Be aware of your surroundings! When walking in a group, don’t let people stray too far ahead or fall too far behind.

New Orleans is a place where you feel like you’ve traveled into another world! From the food, entertainment, and overall culture you’re guaranteed to have a great time! What’re some of your favorite things to do in Nola? Leave them in the comments so I can be sure to add them to my itinerary the next time I visit!

til the next trip,

bre<3

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