what to pack for a week in new orleans
New Orleans is a treasure trove of history, culture, and music. Any time of year the weather will exist warm, the political party volition be on, and the food volition be spectacular. Take a travel backpack and don't overpack.
The beginning twenty 4 hours I spent in New Orleans was i of the unforgettable travel days of my life. My long awaited Mardi Gras visit was topped off with an unexpected bonus: The Saint's Super Basin Parade. Rolling into the Big Piece of cake on the same day that the Saints came marching in was serendipity of the highest order, and the parade, well, suffice it to say it was the Mardi Gras parade to end all Mardi Gras parades.
New Orleans calls me back. Of grade Bourbon Street must exist experienced and the French Quarter must be wandered, but at that place'due south so much more than to the city, in the dorsum alleys and the pigsty in the wall establishments. 1 of the great music centers of the world, it's as if the entire metropolis moves to a Zydeco beat.
I've visited to eat, and for French Quarter Festival. I've lined upwards along the route of repose niggling family style community Mardi Gras parades in Metatarie and defenseless fruit instead of chaplet thrown from floats. And of course no one has truly been to New Orleans if they oasis't learned to suck the head at a crawfish boil.
This spring, the whole of Team Tortuga assembled, from three countries and two continents, in the Large Easy. We came to work, play, and build the community frontward in the means that allow us to continue to innovate together and push the boundaries of our craft.
What we pack, as a team, is e'er fascinating to me. Every bag we make in the Outbreaker Collection was represented. As were samples of a few things we haven't released withal. Angela, Concierge and Marketing team member, won the minimalist honor by packing in only a large packing cube. For most of a week. Yep, actually.
When to Visit New Orleans
New Orleans is on the Mississippi delta of the gulf coast of Louisiana. The summer climate can be described in two words: Hot and wet. The rest of the twelvemonth, even so, is very pleasant with average temperatures in the 60-75F range, and lows non dropping below 40F, for the most part. Of course at that place will common cold snaps in winter, and sudden thunderstorms are a staple, only in that location are many months of great weather to choose from.
Budget wise, the most affordable months are also the hottest: Mid summertime. In terms of bucket listing experiences, Mardi Gras is a big one for a lot of people. The near popular time to visit New Orleans is the long weekend before Fat Tuesday, which signals the end of Carnival and the beginning of Lent. That will exist Feb 8-12 in 2018.
Plan months in advance if you lot want a hotel room in a fundamental location and plan to pay a pretty penny for information technology; simply hey, it'south a once in a lifetime feel, correct?
Packing for New Orleans
Bold yous're not Angela, and you plan to take more than a packing cube, here's a list of the essentials for the Big Piece of cake.
- two casual pants, skirts, or capris
- 3 casual t-shirts
- 1 long sleeve shirt for layering on absurd evenings
- 1-two dressier pants or skirts for evenings out
- 1-2 dressier shirts or blouses
- 1 pair walking shoes
- 1 pair dancing shoes (learn the Lindy Hop & Zydeco while y'all're in town!)
- 1 light jacket or sweater (winters are cool and the Air conditioning in summer tin sometimes be too cold)
- i rain jacket or travel umbrella
- 4 pair of socks
- 4 pair of underwear
- i swimsuit
- ane h2o bottle
- 1 pair of earplugs, if you are trying to sleep during the endless party, y'all'll give thanks me & they take the edge off an overly loud music venue
In the summer add together:
- 1 canteen of sunscreen (or buy information technology there)
- ane lid with a wide brim for the dominicus
- ane pair of sunglasses
In the winter add together:
- 1 light sweater
- one scarf
- Exchange the light jacket for a medium weight one
- 1 pair of light gloves
For festivals or Mardi Gras add:
- i sarong to sit down or lay on in the grass or on the curb
- 1 daypack
- A rubber place to stash your greenbacks (Shawn says not a money belt)
- 1 portable battery charger for your telephone (trust me you'll be taking pictures & recording)
What Angela Packed
Too known as "the goddess of become-lite packing list," hither's what Angela tucked into her one and but big original Tortuga packing cube and ultralight daypack (because she had just traveled for five weeks in her 35L Outbreaker & Duffle and her Outbreaker packing cubes were nonetheless occupied — She landed in New York from that trip 10 hours earlier leaving for New Orleans.)
- 1 crew cut socks (Smartwool — because you tin can wear merino socks for a week without them smelling)
- 3 thongs – Patagonia (officially the most comfy, quick-drying thong she's endemic)
- 3 sports bras
- i pair of bluish jeans
- 1 thin brown woven belt
- 1 black & white dress
- 3 tank tops
- 1 greyness sweatshirt
- ii Able-bodied shorts – sleep + under shorts
- Boots – Cobb Hill Bethany
- i Door pendant necklace
- Ugly yellow daypack (Angela says: I know off brand, but information technology packs SO TINY! And yes it definitely killed my shoulders. But I did it in the name of packing stupidly light!)
- TSA liquids bag — 1 quart Ziploc purse
- Index cards – 15 food intolerance list for restaurants
- GRAYL Ultralight — disclaimer, she held this in her other paw
- Cell phone & charger
- Bluetooth headphones & charger
- Laptop (11" MacBook Air) & charger
- Portable charger
Yes. She's amazing.
Packing a Daypack in New Orleans
Okay, here's the affair: You lot're going to walk. A lot. Even if you just hang out in the French Quarter, the walk forth the waterfront from the French Market place down past the aquarium is just the outset. Plan to spend hours getting lost on the side streets, wandering in and out of shops and galleries and loving it.
Outbreaker Daypack ($99)
Of class a number of our crew were sporting the Outbreaker Daypack which we can't assist only love; it'south awesome, and we designed it ourselves! Y'all can accept one too, nosotros'll share! Our favorite features of this bag for New Orleans are the awesome waterproof fabric, and the padded shoulder straps. I lived in mine.
Hither'due south what should be in your daypack for New Orleans:
- Water bottle (if yous're drinking- it'due south NOLA, you're drinking- stay hydrated)
- Sunglasses
- Sarong
- Hat
- Spare battery charger
- The carte du jour from your hotel desk (any driver tin use that go y'all home when y'all're tired or inebriated!)
What Not to Pack for New Orleans
Don't go crazy. Travel light. Buy some stuff when you go at that place, like toiletries and sunscreen. Programme to do laundry at the hotel. And don't pack these things, they can definitely exist had on the ground when it's time to get your party on:
- Sequined everything, from boy shorts to bra tops
- Plume boa
- Party masks
- Fishbowl margaritas (don't be a cheapskate and pack your bowl from the final trip to refill!)
Team Tortuga Short List for New Orleans
So what did we practice in New Orleans that we loved? Ate, mostly. And walked. And listened to music.
Eat
Jeremy is the foodie extraordinaire on the team and he takes information technology upon himself to plan some truly special meals for u.s.a. when nosotros gather. This time he out did himself. Our two favorite restaurants were Marjie'southward Grill and Pêche Seafood Grill.
Whatever you do, don't miss Marjie's. Described every bit "Mekong meets the Mississippi Delta," information technology's unbelievably delicious. Sit at simple tables. Swallow off of plastic plates, and be prepared to have your tastebuds blown. We knew we were going to love it when nosotros saw the Joe Beefiness cookbook on the shelf. We went to Joe Beef in Montreal last yr every bit a team and loved that too!
Pêche Seafood Grill has a keen location in a walkable district and serves gorgeous fresh fish. We ordered family fashion, ate, and laughed well into the evening. Garrett and I agree that yous should pair the rosé with whatsoever the fresh grab of the twenty-four hour period is. We're the rosé drinkers of the team.
Also: Eat shrimp and grits. Oft.
Walk
I've taken a number of walking tours in New Orleans, from the cemeteries, to the haunted, and even i centered around the history of the sexual activity industry in the Big Piece of cake. The city has a reputation for a reason, that'southward all I'm sayin'.
Far and abroad the best one, in my experience, is by Haunted History Tours. Y'all'll notice their fliers all over boondocks. I highly recommend that you lot request Ariadne as your tour guide. She's personable, knowledgeable, and tells a great story.
Without a tour, you can however walk. When you become lost, or tired of walking, take a bus, streetcar or ferry. The RTA gomobile app is the best way to buy tickets right from your phone.
Music
If you have a difficult fourth dimension finding live music in New Orleans, check your map, because you lot're probably not in New Orleans. Sweet and sassy tunes drain out onto the street from every street corner cafe and society, and half a dozen betwixt each corner too. Beer garden stages provide a balance of fresh air and sunshine with the dark interiors of classic clubs. Practise yourself a big favor and get off of Bourbon Street. That'south not where the locals are going, I assure you.
Cheque the dates of your trip against the almanac calendar of festivals and yous might just detect that you luck into something actually special. New Orleans likes to party!
Source: https://blog.tortugabackpacks.com/new-orleans-packing-list/