I’m really excited to interview Angela and Mark Aspiazu of NOSecretsTours.com about New Orleans, Louisiana. Angela and Mark’s tips for the best things to do in New Orleans are awesome because Mark was born and raised in The Big Easy, while Angela quit her job and moved here after falling in love with the city during a business trip. They provide unique perspectives on New Orleans regularly to locals and tourists through their specialized tours.
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Historic Jackson Square in the French Quarter. Photo courtesy of Proverbial Photography on Pixabay
New Orleans, Louisiana
New Orleans is a popular destination at the mouth of the Mississippi River. It has an interesting history with its ties to the French (before the Louisiana Purchase), jazz music, and the cuisine of the Cajun and Creole people who live nearby.
Many visitors come for the live music and fun bars on Bourbon Street or to eat their way around the city’s incredible restaurants. But visitors shouldn’t miss an opportunity to explore the city’s diverse history and wonderful museums. The National World War II Museum is one of the best museums in the country. During your tour, make sure that you watch the “Beyond All Boundaries” movie.
Mark and Angela recommend visiting New Orleans in the fall or spring, when the humidity and temperatures are not too high. Summer can be crazy hot and humid, but that also means that there the lines are shorter at the WWII Museum, Mardi Gras World, and Cafe du Monde. There are festivals throughout the year, but Mark and Angela’s favorites are the New Orleans Jazz & Heritage Festival, French Quarter Fest, Essence Festival of Culture, and (of course) Mardi Gras.
We share a lot of resources and local suggestions in today’s podcast, but you should also check out Visit New Orleans, the local visitor’s bureau. They are a wealth of information and can help you plan an itinerary based on your time, budget, and interests.
If you’d like to learn how to travel for free using airline miles and hotel points, check out my free 7-day email course.
Tour the World War II Museum and see the “Beyond All Boundaries” movie.
Getting around New Orleans
The local airport is Louis Armstrong New Orleans International Airport (MSY), which is about 15 miles from downtown.
Angela and Mark say that there’s no need to rent a car in New Orleans. The French Quarter and Bourbon Street are very walkable. And Uber and Lyft are excellent ways to get around.
The only exception to having a rental car is when you want to see several attractions outside of the main tourist area, such as visiting a plantation, going on a swamp boat tour, the zoo, etc. A car will save you some time and possibly money. Otherwise, many tours include transportation or you can use a rideshare service to get there. If you decide to rent a car, click here for the best offers from Avis, Budget, or Hertz.
If you only need a car for a couple of hours, you can rent by the hour with Zipcar. Join now to get $25 loaded into your account.
New Orleans has incredible food. Stop by The Ruby Slipper for delicious pancakes and a cocktail.
Places we talked about on the podcast
Here is a map of all of the places we talked about on the podcast episode with Angela and Mark Aspiazu about New Orleans, Louisiana. You can zoom into the map and click on each dot to explore the city.
- Red dots = best places to eat in New Orleans, Louisiana
- Green dots = best things to do in New Orleans, Louisiana
- Yellow dots = best places to stay in New Orleans, Louisiana
Who are Angela and Mark Aspiazu?
Angela and Mark Aspiazu are partners with James Corbyn in New Orleans Secrets Tours. They offer a variety of historical and cultural tours throughout the New Orleans area, focusing on Food & Cocktails, Haunted & History, Swamp & Plantations. Custom and corporate tours are also available. Their company was named the best New Orleans tour company in 2019 and is consistently rated highly on TripAdvisor.
Mark, Angela, and James co-authored Secret New Orleans by Reedy Press to share some of the weird, wonderful, and obscure attractions in New Orleans. It is available on Amazon, but you can buy a signed copy from their website.
Additionally, Mark and Angela run Maison Touriste, a duplex property that they rent out to people visiting the city. It is located in Algiers Point across the river from the French Quarter, and it is easily accessible by ferry.
Angela, Mark, and James
Here are a few of the options available through New Orleans Secret Tours:
You can connect with Angela and Mark on their website and on Twitter, Facebook, Instagram, Pinterest, and YouTube.
Visit historic buildings, such as Lafitte’s Blacksmith Shop. Photo courtesy of David Mark on Pixabay
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Visitors taking one of their French Quarter History And Cocktail Tours
Stay tuned for our next episode
Listen to the next episode when Dea Hoover of Are We There Yet? Tours shares the best things to do in St. Louis, Missouri. Dea and I talk about the Gateway Arch, which is the tallest National Monument, taking a Riverboat Tour, and why the zoo and museums are free. We hope you’ll join us when We Travel There.
What’s your favorite part of New Orleans? Send us a Tweet, let us know in the comment section below, or continue the discussion in our Facebook group!
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To see which cities we’ve interviewed and scheduled, please visit WeTravelThere.com/map. If you’d like to be a guest on the show, please submit an application at WeTravelThere.com/guest.
Related episodes
To learn more about Louisiana, please listen to our other podcast episodes for the state:
Angela Monroe
Thanks SO much for hosting us, Lee! I can’t believe how quickly that time flew by…so many fantastic and off-the-beaten-path places we didn’t have the chance to mention! I guess having that many interesting places/activities/restaurants/etc. is a great problem for a city to have. 😉
If anyone listening has questions — we’re happy to help! Call us with your interests and we’ll make recommendations for things to see and do specifically for you. Find us at http://www.NOSecretsTours.com or http://www.MaisonTouriste.com.
~ Laissez les bons temps rouler! ~
Lee
It was a pleasure, Angela. Thanks for sharing so much of your knowledge. I can’t wait to visit NOLA and take one of your tours.