This year was my first Mardi Gras ever in New Orleans so I’m far from any sort of expert but here’s what I learned from this trip in no particular order.

1. Choose your hotel location based on what you want to see and do.
We chose one in the French Quarter two blocks from Bourbon Street assuming this was the center of the action. Not exactly. Yes there is action but not what we were looking for. Bourbon street is all about alcohol consumption, puking and college kids. This is also the only place you are likely to see tits. Though we didn’t see any.

The parades take place all over the city but St Charles street to Canal street is a frequently use parade route. A hotel near this area is best if you plan to hit lots of parades. It will mean less walking.

Shopping is best OFF of Canal street. Royal, Dumaine, Decatur and the French Market at the river front have far better shops. If you pick a hotel near the French Market you will be nearby all the best shopping.

2. If you drive to NOLA, have your parking taken care of in advance or expect to pay at least $40/night for a public lot. There are no in/out privileges either. You won’t be able to drive around anyway due to local traffic and constant street closures. Parking on the streets is very, very limited and for only 2 hours at a time. You will get a ticket and you will get towed.

3. Expect to walk everywhere. Bring a couple pairs of super comfy shoes so you can trade off each day. If you are comfortable in sexy shoes, wear them but be prepared for wet, disgusting streets and that your shoes will be RUINED. The sidewalks and streets are very uneven with lots of things to trip over or twist your ankle on. I’m not graceful in heels on a flat surface, let alone drunk on the cobblestones. No one gives a shit about how hot your shoes are anyway.

4. Great tip from our new friends and Mardi Gras veterans: buy some yard sale bikes and bring them with you to ride around. Get some bike locks too. The locals rely on their bikes to get around. At times we saw two bikes locked to every pole on the street.

5. Parades never start on time, expect them to be at least an hour late getting started and they take hours to make their way to their end point. Zulu was to start at 8am. I think it got underway at 9am and finished leaving St Charles street (not even halfway down their route) around 1pm.

6. Better ‘throws’ seem to be at the end of the route, early on they seem to pace themselves so their throws last the entire route.

7. If you are all about the parades – arrive early and plan to camp out all day. Bring your fold up chairs, coolers, ladders, blankets, a grill if you want and stuff to entertain you until the floats start rolling. If you are traveling with a group, plan out who is going to watch your spot in shifts so no one is stuck there all day.

8. Don’t buy shit on Canal Street. The French Market and flea market there is amazing! There is great music, food, tons of booths, restaurants, shops and oh yes, the riverfront for boat watching!

9. The French Quarter if full of local culture. Great place to walk, explore the endless shops of arts, antiques and so much more. Street performers dot the streets and people watching is at its finest. There are dive bars on nearly every corner if you want to have a few drinks without some frat boys spilling beer down your back.

10. Bring some cash. The ATM fees are really high and the French Market vendors are mostly cash only. Tipping the locals will get you some extra info or valuable help/advice. $20.00 meant the difference between us MAYBE getting one of the very limited free parking spots at our hotel and our name being added to the paperwork securing it for us.

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11. If someone wants to talk to you about where you got your shoes, keep walking!!

12. Don’t plan to visit the cemeteries on your own. Apparently one is closed completely due to high crime and the others aren’t safe to visit unless you are with a tour group.

13. I think everyone knows to be smart about pickpockets in large crowds right?

14. Public bathrooms are SCARCE. Be prepared to buy a day pass for one or see if your hotel offers your a wristband for around the clock access to theirs.

15. Bring a box or tote of nonperishable snacks and drinks for in your room. There are plenty of places to eat and drink but its not cheap if you are staying several days. (We did this and it was great)

16. There is virtually no public transportation in the French Quarter and cabs aren’t just cruising around looking for fares. You can call them to pick you up though.

17. Several of the local Mardi Gras magazines and brochures were incredibly helpful. Ask your hotel to send you some in advance, especially something with the parade routes and times.

18. Some of the parades are more popular and the crowd Sunday night was much smaller than Saturday night even though Drew Breese was heading the first Sunday night parade.

19. Night parades are more fun!

20. A simple photo copy of a map of the French Quarter was invaluable to us.

21. If you have never been to NOLA, the drive in along Lake Pontchartrain is amazing so have your camera out.

22. Take your pictures during the day and leave your camera in the room at night.

23. There are two Starbucks on Canal Street, one is in the Sheraton hotel. There is another coffee shop on North Rampart where we had the most wonderful breakfast and latte. The Decadence Shoppe

24. It gets chilly in the south sometimes! You might need a warm coat, hat and gloves.

25. If you want a wig, go to Fifi Mahony’s on Royal Street

26. Don’t expect to be able to get across Canal Street during parades. It will be barricaded for several blocks so you may end up walking well out of your way to get to the other side.

27. VooDoo Harley Davidson is on the Riverfront near Canal Street

28. There are some chain stores on Canal Street if you need them: Walgreen’s, CVS, Payless Shoes, Radio Shack, McDonalds, Arby’s.

29. People are very friendly for the most part.

30. I didn’t see a single pair of bare tits the entire week. We did get to see some girl in a thong with her dress up around her stomach though.

31. Last but not least, Bourbon street closes at midnight signally the end of Mardi Gras on Fat Tuesday.

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