Hey all! So, I%26#39;ve been reading posts about solo travelers, particularly women, and I%26#39;m ALMOST convinced to just go ahead and book my flight. I have a (cancel-able) reservation at the Renaissance Pere Marquette (I%26#39;m a Rewards member, so I prefer Marriott properties).
My dates would be Friday, May 29 through Monday, June 1...leaving the day after I officially graduate with my MS degree! I%26#39;ve been waiting for friends to say whether they can come to celebrate with me, but today I%26#39;ve been thinking about just booking the flight, and if people join, then great. If not, great, too! :)
I%26#39;ve been to New Orleans once before, last March with two other women, and I%26#39;ve wanted to go back ever since. I want to celebrate, take a much needed break from life, and enjoy all that New Orleans has to offer. I didn%26#39;t get to experience too much of Bourbon Street at night last trip, and I would probably skip that on my own as well, which would be kinda sad - but I%26#39;d make up for it by keeping a solid buzz on throughout the day. It%26#39;s my understanding from reading various posts here that I could easily take cabs to and from various bars and night spots and have plenty to do on my own at night. Is that right? I%26#39;m used to NYC so I%26#39;m not overly-worried about safety...I subscribe to the ';common sense approach'; to not walking into dark deserted allies, etc.
I sooooo want to go on this trip! But I still need an itty bitty bit of encouragement to build up the courage to click through on that ';confirm'; button. ;) So, go ahead - talk me into it!
27/F Solo Traveler needs one last push to book!
Yup, you definitely can find cabs all over the French Quarter area, and it would just be a short ride to your hotel, which is downtown. It%26#39;s definitely fine to walk back and forth during the day, since it%26#39;s a couple blocks to the Quarter - lots to see and do there!
As for your hotel, it has the great MiLa restaurant attached, but if you%26#39;re looking at Marriott properties, I would also consider the Renaissance Arts hotel in the Warehouse District, which is in a nicer area, with amazing restaurants right outside. It%26#39;s a better hotel too!
27/F Solo Traveler needs one last push to book!
Thanks for the quick reply! I considered Renaissance Arts, but I was unfamiliar with the area so I decided to stick with what I knew. Last trip, we stayed at the Country Inn %26amp; Suites on Magazine Street a few blocks from Canal. I was appalled by some of the reviews I read on the New Orleans Marriott on Canal, and I%26#39;m not interested in the rates for the JW Marriott for this particular trip. Is the Renaissance Arts just as walkable to the Quarter as the Pere Marquette? Is it accessible to any streetcar lines?
I%26#39;m really not even the least bit concerned about walking around on my own during the day. I could really use a little nudging and some guidance on solo nighttime activities that involve bars/moderate drinking. I went on a haunted walking tour last time, and that was fun enough to do again. Aside from that, I am a little concerned about hanging out in bars/etc. on my own.
Thanks again!
Confirm!!!! Especially since you%26#39;ve been to NO b4, you know the lay of the land as they say.
I am also a solo female traveller, late 30%26#39;s, going to NO for the 1st time next Thursday for 12 days! I%26#39;ve never done anything like this and I only feel excitement (and I%26#39;m not from a big city like New York). I like to think I have a head on my sholders and know the dos and don%26#39;ts, so I%26#39;m not too worried.
Go ahead, do it. I%26#39;m sure you won%26#39;t regret it. :)
Okay, okay - you got me! I%26#39;m gonna do it! Just waiting a couple days to transfer money instead of charging it. Hopefully the awesome deal I just found will still be awesome by Friday. (It%26#39;s even more so than my previous awesome deal, and with an extra night!)
Thanks guys! :)
I wish I knew you- I%26#39;d certainly go celebrate with you---NOLA is awesome!!!
New Orleans is always worth the trip.. This is my third trip SOLO. Sorry, not much for the bar.. so I can%26#39;t offer opinion on nightlife. I am more an early bird. I like to wander. And never had any real problems. Worst thing about being in New Orleans alone.. is that sometimes you are so excited about seeing/hearing something and you got no one to share it with. I%26#39;m pretty chatty.. so I just unload on the next person I run into. You%26#39;ll be fine. Go. OH! I think they even have tours for the ';nightlife'; so you could go out with a group. You might want to check into that.
The Renaissance Arts is just as walkable to the Quarter as the Pere Marquette and both are a few blocks from the Canal St and St. Charles Ave streetcar lines, respectively! The Pere Marquette is in the CBD, so that area will be quiet and empty at night, whereas the Renaissance Arts is in a hipper, more vibrant neighborhood, even at night.
Solo, you%26#39;ll be fine. Go for it.
If you do end up at the Renaissance Pere Marquette, be sure to stop in and see Chris McMillian in the lobby bar. He%26#39;ll make you a great mint julep, and entertain you with cocktail stories for hours. A great guy, and a wonderful bartender.
Thanks, all!!! I plan to book tomorrow. I%26#39;ll be booking 4 nights, Thursday through Monday, the last weekend in May. I am still leaning toward the Pere Marquette because a) I can get a ridiculously awesome rate on that hotel and flight for $400 (the Arts is about $100 more...still a great deal, but still), and b) the Pere Marquette seems more walkable/more central to the whole of the Quarter and that%26#39;s a plus for me. I don%26#39;t mind being in the CBD at all. In fact, this hotel is several blocks closer to Canal than the one I stayed in last time, and we had no problems walking back there at night then. The Arts seems to have nicer-looking rooms, and I%26#39;m a little bit of a sucker for that, but I don%26#39;t feel totally convinced that it%26#39;s worth the extra money and blocks of walking. Am I underestimating its awesomeness? :)
As for nightlife, I definitely plan to do another haunted walking tour, which will provide some group night-time fun, and I am looking into the cocktail tours but these all seem to take place in the evening (~4pm) instead of at night. I am also going to look into Bloody Mary%26#39;s pub crawl. It seems like it might have to be arranged for pre-existing group, though...does anyone know/have experience with this? If need be, maybe I can wrangle up a TA group of NOLA pub crawlers! :)
Thanks again for the encouragement! This will be my first solo trip anywhere and the more I think about it now, the more excited I get! I%26#39;m still a bit concerned about being safe and having music/bar-related fun at nighttime on my own, but I%26#39;m sure I%26#39;ll manage to be smart and have a blast somehow!
While not a woman(at least the last time I checked) I have to come to New Orleans a few times a year for business so I%26#39;m used to being their alone. Check out The Funky Pirate when Big Al is singing. Free admission and the drinks are reasonable. He%26#39;s amazing. I always go, sit at the bar and listen to a set of his.
grt
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