Hello everyone. My family and I will be arriving in New Orleans 2 days before our Fantasy Cruise in October. I am interested in driving around New Orleans so that we can sight-see and show our children some of the aftermath of hurricane Katrina, however, my husband is a bit skeptical as he has some concerns for our safety because we aren't familiar with the city... this will be our first time there. Can someone please tell me what areas are not safe and should be avoided? Any help would be greatly appreciated.

Thanks in advance, Tiffanni 

msann74:

Hello everyone. My family and I will be arriving in New Orleans 2 days before our Fantasy Cruise in October. I am interested in driving around New Orleans so that we can sight-see and show our children some of the aftermath of hurricane Katrina, however, my husband is a bit skeptical as he has some concerns for our safety because we aren't familiar with the city... this will be our first time there. Can someone please tell me what areas are not safe and should be avoided? Any help would be greatly appreciated.

Thanks in advance, Tiffanni 

We too are going to be in New Orleans.  We are going to the Aguarium on Sunday, it is suppose to be one of the best in the country, totally destoyed by Katrina, over 500000 fish killed.

Saturday night we are going to walk around, go eat at Mothers or Acme Oyster House,  Take the Trolley to the garden district, maybe see Jackson Square,let Matthew see some street perfomers. My son is 5,I want his memory of New Orleans to be a  good one,he is too young to understand Katrina, not sure I want to be bummed out by it either.  My truck was stolen Sept 1st 2005 while I was at Copperfield Baptist Church(Houston) voluntering,helping the kartina evacuees.  I've had enough of that Hurricane, paid my price(sorry if I sound horrible, but just dont see why anyone would steel from someone tyring to help them).  That memory is still with me even after all these years,trying to move on and have a great time in New orleans, hope my new car doesnt get stolen.

New Orleans isn't an easy city to drive in especially if you aren't familiar with it. I visit there every year and even though I know there's a lot of crime, it is perfectly safe in the tourist areas. I've never felt threatened. If you are staying in the French Quarter you should be fine for walking. Ask at the hotel and they will usually give you the parameters to stay in.

New Orleans is a great city. Take advantage of as much as you can in the two days you are there. If you really want to see the areas of Katrina, do a tour. A lot has been cleaned up but there's still a lot of destruction.

I'll be glad to offer you suggestions on tours (swamp tours are great if you have time!) and restaurants. I can also give you a bit more information on where to avoid walking to.  Feel free to email me directly at lisa_3866@yahoo.com

Enjoy! It really is a great city.

Somehow that email address came out weird - just in case you want to email me for some details.

It's:

lisa_3866@yahoo.com (lisa_3866)

 Lisa is right.  If you want to see the after math of Katrina, take a tour.   

 If you are staying in the French Quarter, you will be fine.  Just use the same precaution you would in any city.  Dont walk around too late at night, know where you are going, stick with the crowd,  stay in litted areas etc etc.       MOST of the crime here is drug related, SO.. unless you are into that you will be fine.   I'm from here and have never been a victim nor have I ever witnessed any crime.

 feel free to email for anything: nola_cajun@hotmail.com

 Have fun, Enjoy and 

 LAISSEZ LE BON TEMPS ROULE !

 New Orleans is kind of a checkerboard city - one block can be fine and the next block maybe not so. Not really that granular, but you get the picture. The majority of crime is drug related and/or retaliation oriented; it is not directed at tourists. There is a noticeable police presence in the tourist areas including the French Quater.

Checkboarding is less of an issue when driving, however, streets in New Orleans do not run North-South, East-West like many cities. The Crescent City is between a river and a lake and directions are often given in terms of uptown/downtown, lakeside/riverside.

Katrina tours are certainly available; I'm not sure if anyone has ever written a self-guided one. Hmmm. Note to self!

 The aquarium wasn't destroyed, but all the animals died - very sad. Some employees stayed and tried to keep the generators going, and I forget if they finally ran out of fuel or broke down, but then that was game over. But no worries - the aquarium has since been re-populated and is once again a great place to visit. There is also an Imax theater there.

 If you scroll down about a thrid of a page, there are pictures from the aquarium:

http://www.zydecocruiser.com/Blog_2009/post/indexPost.htm

You didn't "axe" for it, but here are pictures from the Audubon Zoo

http://www.zydecocruiser.com/nola/zoo/index.htm

If you don't otherwise get an opportunity, here is a free Katrina tour:

http://www.zydecocruiser.com/katrina/index.htm

Grayline does a Katrina tour and I think originated them. A lot of people seem to like Tours By Isabelle: http://www.toursbyisabelle.com/tours_neworleans.html

Citizens of New Orleans

There is really a Katrina tour? I remember throwing rocks and debris after Andrew when folks came by to point at us.

 There truly are Katrina tours by a number of companies. Even Carnival used to sell one; they may still. 

But a caveat - Typical tourist areas, like the French Quarter are fine. You can visit the city, have a great time, eat great food,  and never see any of the residential areas still in recovery.

What about the streetcars?  I see they have a $5 all day pass.  Is this a good thing to do?  What areas to avoid along the route?  Where can you buy the passes?

 The pass is good for both buses and streetcars. The New Orleans streetcars are pretty unique and nothing like the cable cars of San Francisco, for example.

Standard fare is $1.25 (transfers are possible for extra), so if you go anywhere, it will be $2.50 rt. The pass does allow you the ability to hop on - hop off wherever you please. The buses and streetcars require EXACT change, so the passes also save you from dealing with that issue.

$5 is dirt cheap when you think about it.

Passes are available for 1,3, 5 days @  $5, $12, $20.

 There is an "official" list of where you can buy them, but you can contact your hotel and see if they have or will get for you.

These days, there are several street car routes - sort of like the good old days.

The longest one is the St Charles line. I grew up beyond the end of the tracks and to this day have no concerns riding the entire route. You can see some amazing homes in the Garden District, and various landmarks along the way - such as Camelia Grill 

I think this is such good stuff that I'm going to put it on my website!

The routes is what they is - you can't avoid them, but if you are on a streetcar, there really are no horrible areas. With buses or streetcars, if you don't like the looks of the neighborhood, don't get off.

The street cars are not only a great mode of transportation, but also quite fun. There's two sets, one that seems to travel along a river route, and the other which goes through the Garden District/Business District area. I haven't rode the ones on the river route but the Garden District cars will take you to museums, restaurants, and hotels in that area. Plus it's very interesting just to ride the route and look at all the gorgeous homes! I think it's $1.25 per trip so if you are planning on using these a lot, the $5 pass would be worth it. I do suggest if you have time just take the Garden District route (forget the actual name of it) and enjoy the scenary.

Are they just for sightseeing or can you use them to get to the port with luggage? At $7 per person each way for a cab from our hotel we would do a little lugging of suitecases to save money.

Do you know where to purchase the passes?  We are staying at the Drury.

GOOD-BUCK:

Are they just for sightseeing or can you use them to get to the port with luggage? At $7 per person each way for a cab from our hotel we would do a little lugging of suitecases to save money.

My earlier reply is lost is moderation land somewhere. They are really for public transportation but work for sightseeing. They are not designed for carrying luggage and would be awkward to say the least.

 I would contact Drury and ask them if they have; they certainly could get but may not want. There are some "official" spots listed on the RTA site.