Things to Skip and Splurge On in New Orleans | brokeGIRLrich
It’s been a pretty jet setting month and my last adventure was a return trip to New Orleans, Louisiana with one of my best friends.
We both did a lot of Pinterest searching for what to do and here (in my expert opinion), are a few things you could skip to save money and a few things that are worth the splurge.
Skip: Pat O’Brian’s Hurricanes
Holy cow, they’re so gross. Like. SO. GROSS.
I’m a sucker for drinking or eating almost anything at the “original” or “home of” type of place. All the things we found about New Orleans said Pat O’Brian’s was the home of the original hurricane, so how could we resist?
Dude, resist. They are foul. I mean, I know it doesn’t help that I don’t like rum, but I really can drink just about anything and I couldn’t drinking more than half of that drink.
Splurge: Tropical Isle Shark Attack
Ok, so it was a super dorky tourist trap drink that involves some kind of pink liquid and a showy display with a plastic shark, but as far as all the tourist trap drinks go, the Shark Attack actually tasted ok and it’s a fun drink.
Skip: The Creole Queen
Man, I hate to say it cause I love boats, but the Creole Queen was really kind of boring. The sunset on the water was as pretty as it ever is, but the rest of the time just felt like forever until we disembarked. The jazz music was kind of rough too. The guy playing piano on the top floor was ok, but the dude on guitar down in the dining room was horrendous. Spend your money elsewhere.
And if you ignore that warning and decide to go anyway, boarding starts an hour before departure – get there like 10-15 minutes before departure, not a full hour before like we did.
Splurge: A Psychic Reading at the Bottom of the Cup Tea Room
Honestly, I’m surprised I considered this one of the highlights on the trip. My best friend is all about the supernatural/other world/mumbjumbo stuff. I am not.
That being said, since this was so high on her to do list, we went, and we went big. It was $70 for a thirty minute reading with tarot cards and tea leaves. Maybe because of my lack of mumbojumbo belief, it felt more like a weird little therapy session and that was alright with me. Either way, it was an experience.
Skip: Café du Monde
Oh man, I know this might cause some people to riot. And really, if you do go, it’s like $4, so whatever, but especially if you’re from my neck of the woods and you grew up going to fairs and eating zeppoles. A beignet is the same thing.
Splurge: Mother’s Restaurant
They say they have the best biscuits –holy cow do they ever have the best biscuits. My only regret at Mother’s was that I didn’t understand the size of the portions and I got a biscuit and a po’boy for breakfast. If I knew then what I know now, I’d just get two biscuits and call it a day. They are massive, delicious biscuits.
The po’boy is also massive. I barely made a dent in it.
Skip: Hand Grenades
Unless you love midori, definitely skip this Bourbon Street alcoholic delicacy. It was another one I could barely get through a few sips of.
Splurge: Lafitte’s Blacksmith Shop
Yes, it’s just as much of a zoo as all the other bars in the area, but it is the oldest building in America operating as a bar, did once belong to a pirate, and is still mostly lit by candles (though the giant TV screen 100% ruins the vibe in there).
Skip: Witches’ Brew Ghost Tours
This is the ghost tour you can find on Groupon. It really wasn’t all that engaging and we had a giant group. I’d really recommend paying a little more and going with a smaller group. You can get closer to the places you’re hearing the stories about and you can go to more places.
Skip: The Museum of Death
Unless you’re like super into serial killers, you can give this one a pass. It was a little pricey at $17 (which included an extra charge for using a credit card, psht, what year is it, Museum of Death, no one carries cash anymore!). We shot through it in like 15 minutes and then we sat and watched some really grainy, weird crime scene photos narrated by some guy in the back of the museum. It as nice to sit, but there are definitely places you can sit for free without listening to a litany of how people were murdered.
Splurge: The Pharmacy Museum
Make sure you go for the tour at 1:00 PM on weekdays! It’s nice and cheap, so it doesn’t even count as a “splurge” at $5. Do be forewarned that it’s a popular stop and kind of a zoo. My friend and I both got a little overwhelmed by the crowd and headed out pretty quickly.
Also, if you liked American Horror Story: Coven, the scene where Kathy Bates and Jessica Lange meet for the first time is in the courtyard of the Pharmacy Museum and you can go sit right by the fountain.
