Summertime in New Orleans is the perfect time to enjoy the sights and sounds of the city's impressive attractions and historic locations.
City Park
City Park of New Orleans, located at 1 Palm Drive, is a 1,300-acre recreation site that offers something for everyone. City Park features four golf courses, 36 tennis courts, and much more.
One of the highlights of City Park is the New Orleans Botanical Garden. It is a beautiful 10-acre garden that contains more than 2,000 varieties of flowers and plants from all over the world, all set among the nation's largest stand of mature live oaks. Explore the wonders of nature at the tropical conservatory; butterfly, rose, and herb gardens; and lily pond.
The Hines Carousel Gardens Amusement Park is also located in City Park. It features a beautifully restored antique carousel—one of the last wooden carousels in the country—that is listed in the National Register of Historic Places. Other rides the family will enjoy are a new Ferris wheel, a roller coaster, and a miniature train.
Adjacent to the amusement park is Storyland, a charming fairy-tale theme park with life-size fairy-tale figures and storybook exhibits for children. Kids will love going up the hill with Jack and Jill or going into the whale's mouth with Pinocchio.
Lions, Tigers, and Penguins?
Two stops that are a must in New Orleans are the Audubon Zoo and Aquarium of the Americas. The Audubon Zoo (6500 Magazine Street) is one of the country's top zoos. Come see an exotic mix of animals from around the world in their natural habitats, including white tigers pouncing in the wild and jaguars slinking in a jungle rainforest. Witness a real-life alligator feeding or feed a giraffe yourself!
If walking beneath a vivid Caribbean reef or journeying down the Mississippi River interests you, then come to Audubon Aquarium of the Americas. Located at 1 Canal Street, the aquarium promises an action-packed adventure with penguins, sting rays, sharks, and other deep-sea creatures. Touch the nose of a stingray at the Adventure Island exhibit, or help feed the penguins. You can also swim in the aquarium's aquatic tunnel and get up close to aquatic creatures of all shapes and sizes from around the world!
A Tour Through History
The New Orleans Historic Voodoo Museum at 724 Dumaine Street offers great informative walking tours to explore the mysterious history of the city. Tours encompass haunted houses, the oldest cemetery in New Orleans, and a voodoo pharmacy.
Gray Line Tours, located at 2 Canal Street, offers another fun learning tour that will take you to homes of past kings and queens of Mardi Gras, stately mansions, hidden gems of the French Quarter, and other interesting sites.
Get on board for a day of great food, music, and sightseeing with Steamboat Nachez river cruises. You'll have a breathtaking view of the city while enjoying a live narration of historical facts and highlights of the port. Then indulge in a freshly prepared Creole lunch while listening to live jazz music. Reservations are recommended. The cruise departs daily from the Toulouse Street Wharf, behind Jax Brewery at 600 Decatur Street.
