New Orleans is one part fantasy, one part mystical metropolis,
and several parts sweet romance.
Horse-drawn carriage through the French Quarter
When Marcus Grayson proposed to Cindy Haverfield in upstate New York last year, he did everything he was supposed to do, as Cindy recalls.
He found a secluded spot in a local park, got down on one knee, held Cindy’s hand in his, looked lovingly into her eyes and said: “Cindy, will you marry me…?”
“Everything was so perfect,” Cindy says. “But then he finished his proposal by saying: “…in New Orleans, the last weekend of April so we can kill two birds with one stone by getting married and going to Jazz Fest?”
“I was sort of flabbergasted,” Cindy says now, “but Marcus has this thing about New Orleans and really it didn’t shock me. I wasn’t too crazy about the ‘two birds with one stone’ being inserted into my marriage proposal, but you’d have to know Marcus to understand.”
Or you would have to know New Orleans. On the very short list of the most romantic cities in the world—Paris, Rome, Athens, San Francisco, to name a few—New Orleans is perhaps the only one that might inspire a couple born and raised in Buffalo to ask their entire families and friends to travel such great distance to witness their nuptials. But they did, and surprisingly, almost everyone they invited made the trip. The wedding was on a Friday night. Saturday the whole entourage spent the day at Jazz Fest.
New Orleans is one part fantasy, one part mystical metropolis and several parts sweet romance. Couples fall under the same spell today, in the same singularly romantic locations as they did in the New Orleans of the 18th or 19th centuries. Brides and grooms exchange their pledge of forever love under centuries-old oak trees that have shaded generations of Crescent City lovers.
A romantic moment in New Orleans can happen in a light, late afternoon rain, on a street corner under an oversized umbrella, or dressed to the nines at well-known Chef Emeril Lagasse’s urban-chic Warehouse District eatery. Romance is to New Orleans as sunsets are to the Caribbean—warm, dependable and radiant.
Herewith is a list of some of New Orleans Top Romantic Experiences.
They say the New Orleans moon makes the mighty Mississippi River the golden seaway of the South. An evening by the Mississippi begins with a carriageride to the French Market, followed by dinner at Bella Luna, an elegant contemporary restaurant with massive windows overlooking the river. Watch the oceanliners sashay around the bend in the river or contemplate the rooftops of the French Quarter as you dine on Chef/owner Horst Pfeifer’s roasted corn and smoked shrimp bisque and herb crusted lamb loin. The chef grows the herbs in a convent garden just two blocks away. After sharing double fudge ice cream topped with Jack Daniels, take a leisurely stroll down the golden-lighted Moonwalk along the River. Have coffee at the historic Café du Monde and decide where the rest of the evening will take you.
No trip to New Orleans, honeymoons included, are complete without a drive up the Avenue, with stops at all the great New Orleans haunts you’ve heard so much about. In fact, disembark in the Garden District and stroll among some of the city’s most magnificent mansions. See if you can spot Anne Rice’s former digs, and doesn’t at least one well-known celebrity have a house in these blocks? You bet.
Have a sloppy, roast beef po-boy at one of the neighborhood joints, and once you’re back on board the street car, ride up to the University area and spend some time in Audubon Park, especially at the world-famous Audubon Zoo. As the sun sets, the mansions on St. Charles take on a new glow, particularly those with massive diamond-cut glass doorways.
How about a full-fledged date, just the two of you, club-hopping through the city that care forgot? Ladies, break out the little black dress, and gentlemen, go casual, but cool. Start off by catching a show at the legendary Snug Harbor in Faubourg Marigny. You can't go wrong any night with the powerful line-up of blues, jazz, funk and soul musicians this atmospheric joint boasts. Then head just blocks away to the French Quarter, where you can enjoy Pat O’Brien’s iconic patio or piano bar and sip hurricanes. As the evening wears on, work your way to House of Blues, where the music menu is about as eclectic as the appetizer selection. Find a quiet corner where you can sway to the rhythms together, but remember, as the evening progresses you need to be just north of the CBD to catch the late show at Le Chat Noir, New Orleans’ one and only real cabaret. Right this way, your table’s waiting. Where did the time go? Is that the sun coming up across the river?
French Quarter Courtyard
More than one couple has decided impulsively and lovingly to get married in New Orleans. The trick is finding the perfect spot for the ceremony. While the city boasts 941 churches and nine synagogues, here are just a few imaginative ideas:
Uptown, hundreds of couples get married inside the grounds of the Audubon Zoo, with their reception also among the exotic animal exhibits. Ceremonies also happen at the zoo’s Tea Garden, followed by receptions at the Audubon Tea Room, one of the city’s newest and most elegant reception facilities.
It’s not unheard of to recite vows on a steamboat on the Mississippi, with a party following on the boat or on land at one of the elegant riverside hotels. Speaking of hotels, consider the Hotel Monteleone, on the historic register, or the Crystal Room at Le Pavilion Hotel, an authentic downtown gem in the business district.
What appear to be private mansions along St. Charles Avenue are sometimes really venues for weddings and receptions, complete with formal gardens. One of the finest is the Elms Mansion, a gorgeous 19th century structure with marble fireplaces and stained glass windows that once counted Confederate president Jefferson Davis as a regular guest.
On nearby Prytania Street in the Garden District, the New Orleans Women’s Opera Guild House is an exquisitely appointed mansion that can be rented for wedding ceremonies and receptions.
And while couples may not be accustomed to royal treatment in their own cities, here in New Orleans their wedding party will receive a police escort from the site of the ceremony to the reception destination. Brides and grooms are very important people in this town.
A surprising number of local citizens opt for honeymooning in the French Quarter over the more conventional destinations, such as Jamaica, Cancun or the Bahamas. Many ask themselves the same question: Why leave? As for accommodations, they may be as elegant as the Monteleone, the grande dame of Vieux Carré hotels, or the magnificent Omni Royal Orleans, with its rooftop pool and stellar view of the French Quarter. Others might opt for the Royal Sonesta, positioned amidst the non-stop activity of Bourbon Street, but with rooms as private as any quiet inn. The Friday lunchtime seafood buffet at the hotel restaurant, Begue’s, is among the best in the city.
In the morning, no matter what hotel has been selected, it’s a short and altogether necessary walk to the legendary Arnaud's restaurant for breakfast, where they do things with eggs even an artist couldn’t conceive. The afternoon includes a leisurely shopping stroll down Royal Street, with stops at some of the best antique stores and galleries in the world.
After late afternoon cocktails at the famous Napoleon House, dinner is always waiting at Court of Two Sisters, where the magical outdoor courtyard is naturally sheltered by aged wisteria. Oh, and remember Chef Horst Pfeifer? Think of him if you decide dinner might be better on the balcony of your hotel room. Pfeifer offers dinner for two, in your choice of locations, with a waiter to attend to your needs. Perfect.
After dinner the evening is still young enough for couples to use their own creativity.
New Orleans has always been about romance. Those who live here already know that, and those who visit discover something special in the air the first time they see the crescent moon lingering over the river. Whether it’s an all-day swamp tour through the Louisiana bayous or just café au lait at an Uptown sidewalk café, the city speaks the language of love through its ambience, its history, and most of all, through its own love affair with romance.
 Ride a carriage under the moonlight through the French Quarter.
Take a canoe ride through the swamp to see a romantic sunset.
Sneak a kiss while overlooking the Mississippi River at Bella Luna Restaurant.
Sip late night drinks at the Columns Hotel.
Toast your partner with a Pimm's Cup at Napoleon House.
Float away on a ferry ride across the Mississippi River.
Sip a hurricane in Pat O’Brien’s Fountain Courtyard.
Visit the Voodoo Spiritual Temple for love potions and love predictions by the voodoo priestess.
Stroll along the golden-lighted Moonwalk.
View the splendor of oaks at the Oak Valley Plantation.
Sit back to a Dinner Jazz Cruise on the Steamboat Natchez.
Dine, socialize and smell the jasmine in one of our beautiful French Quarter courtyards.
This material may be reproduced for editorial purposes of promoting New Orleans. Please attribute stories to New Orleans Metropolitan Convention and Visitors Bureau.
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