If you had one day in New Orleans....

I'd go to the WWII Museum.

 

I would take a street car to the Garden district and take a walk there, and check out a concert at Tipitinas. There's a lot more to New Orleans than the French Quarter.

 

Grab 2 seats at the oyster bar in Drago's and order the charbroiled oysters..unlike anything you've ever had.
Then head to Kermit's Mother in law lounge for live music. Your GF will thank you.

 

I've been to NO a few times in the past, but my last visit was before Hurricane Katrina so I'm sure a lot has changed. Although, one of the highlights of a past trip was visiting Preservation Hall and attending one of their old-time jazz band performances....
https://www.preservationhall.com

 

French Quarter during day. Maybe Cafe Du Monde while there. WWII museum is good but you could end up spending all day there. I didn't catch your dates but they have Christmas lights at the zoo through the holidays. A swamp tour is different. Have fun!

 

Deanie's for seafood and a cruise on the Mississippi river then Cafe du Monde.

 

In that case, forget Bourbon street. Head over to Frenchmen street. It has the jazz and blues clubs I was hoping were on Bourbon street, but were not. The Spotted Cat is probably the most popular spot there, but I really enjoyed Bamboula's.

For me, if I had one day, I'd grab breakfast/brunch at the Ruby Slipper (although court of 2 sisters mentioned above is also a good choice), a couple of hurricanes at Pat O'Reilly's in the dueling piano bar, dinner at New Orleans Creole Cookery (I'm sure there are better options, but I really enjoy that place), then drinks and jazz/blues on Frenchmen for the night. Mix in some wandering around Royal st. and Jackson Square, and if there's time maybe the aquarium (very well done aquarium, and takes much less time than the WWII museum).

Now I want to go back to NOLA....

 

Ruby slipper has the most amazing biscuits! I'll second that as a great breakfast choice

 

This place was awesome.

 

I went dancing at Tipitinas in one of my early trips - it was so much fun!!!

 

Deanies does have good seafood. The hurricanes r at Pat O'Briens. Don't do those to early.

 

You'll see more during the day...
French Quarter, Bourbon Street, Cemeteries, Jackson Square, Walking the Riverfront, Beignets, Harrahs

 

I've been to N.O. four times, though it's been several years. The first two trips were day junkets to Harrah's. Nonetheless, I escaped from the casino long enough to walk around the French quarter, mainly to compare the shrimp Creole to mine and to say I've been there – done that. (Mine's better!) The next two trips were for a few days, I had company, and got to explore a lot more.

Some of my favorites included the Audubon Zoo via the trolley. Maybe it was because I'm a Nastassja Kinski fan and some of "Cat People" was filmed there. I also went to Preservation Hall. I had a CD from there and was anxious to see it. There was a large auditorium that wasn't being used, and the audience sat on wooden benches in a very small area. Nonetheless, the musicians were terrific. That was on Halloween, which was beyond crazy. I can't even imagine how it must be on Mardi Gras.

 

Doh! Yes, Pat O'Brien's. I totally messed that up

 

I wouldn’t say Bourbon Street is a must “do” but it’s a must “see.” You don’t need to go inside any of the bars, but grab whatever you guys’ favorite drink is and take a stroll down Bourbon for a nightcap. During the day it’s just dirty, smelly, and old. When the neon flips on, it has a certain charm.

 

New Orleans is weird. I love visiting, but it really doesn’t have many easy touring recommendations since there aren’t a ton of worthwhile “attractions”. It’s all about the food/drink and general atmosphere. There’s a lot of stuff you can only get in the old school bars/restaurants so I’d make a point of trying as many of those things as possible.

Food
-Cafe Du Monde/Cafe Beignet
-Commander’s Palace
-Brennan’s brunch
-Arnauds
-SoBou Burlesque brunch (Modern twist compared to the other classics)
-Hansen’s SnoBlizz if you’re visiting in season. Be prepared to wait in line quite a while.

Drinks
I’d skip the frozen drinks and Hurricanes, as there are just too many amazing classic cocktails to try instead. Carousel Bar at Hotel Monteleone, Napoleon House, French 75 Bar, The Sazarac Bar at The Roosevelt, Tujague’s all make good old school cocktails. Have to hit as many of the classic drinks as your liver can handle. Erin Rose or Molly’s at the Market for a great frozen Irish coffee to start the day.

Touring
-Walking tour of the French Quarter to get some context/history for the city. We’ve also done a cemetery tour, but found that to be pretty bland.
-Mardi Gras World to get a taste of the season without having to fight the crowds during Mardi Gras
-WWII Museum is extremely well done. We unfortunately went on a free entrance day so it was packed, but still had a great time.

 

Glad to hear that the WWII Museum is worth the time. I'm a bit of a WWI history buff, but our time in NO is limited. If the GF is interested, and we have a couple hours to spare, we'll probably visit there.