When Is the Best Time to Visit New Orleans?

New Orleans is great for bachelor or bachelorette parties, romantic getaway weekends, family vacations, or any fun travel in general. But when is the best time to visit New Orleans?

There’s really no bad time to visit this amazing city, though some times are better than others. The best times are the seasons with mild weather and during the festive periods. From January through May, there are plenty of festivals, including Mardi Gras, Jazz Fest, and French Quarter Festival. October through May also offers some of the best weather and delicious seafood, too.

Time to visit New Orleans — Visiting New Orleans

Before planning your trip, think about what part of New Orleans you want to experience most. Are you looking for food, music, festivals, or a bit of everything?

You’ll find exactly what you need with this article as we take you through when New Orleanians les bons temps rouler (let the good time roll)!

Table of Contents

What time of the year does New Orleans have the best weather?

When you’re traveling to the southern United States, you definitely want to consider what the weather is like.

If you’re allergic to hot weather, July through September is the worst time you can go to New Orleans.

New Orleans weather travel advice — New Orleans weather

The weather is insanely hot and humid. This is also New Orleans’s hurricane season, so your trip runs the risk of getting canceled.

On the other hand, if you’re not looking for a specific event in New Orleans, October through November is a great time of year to visit, weather-wise, as well as April through May.

Though New Orleans’s climate is pretty unpredictable, these few months are generally the best for wandering around this beautiful city.

When considering the weather, too, food should also be a priority:

The best raw oysters come from the cooler months, usually October through April (the months that have an “r” in them, as locals say).

If you want to get down on some boiled crawfish, their season is December through July.

Mardi Gras Season

The date of Mardi Gras changes every year based on Easter Sunday, a Christian holiday that falls on a Sunday between March 23 and April 25. Phat Tuesday, or Mardi Gras day, is always 47 days before Easter.

Visiting the Mardi Gras parade — Mardi Gras parade

Mardi Gras gets all the partying out of your system before Lent, a time for Christians to fast, give up bad habits, and prepare for Jesus’s resurrection.

But Phat Tuesday isn’t the only day that New Orleans celebrates!

In fact, the celebration begins on Twelfth Night, another Christian holiday celebrating the last day of the Christmas season.

Just a few weeks after that, the first parades start marching.

Each weekend, you can find parades throughout the city. Floats are pulled by tractors with costumed riders throwing beads, plastic cups, doubloons, and other knick-knacks to parade-goers.

High school and college marching brass bands provide amazing songs and atmosphere, while groups of dancers from all ages

If you’re headed to New Orleans, Mardi Gras is something you cannot miss. The entire city has a completely different energy to it.

One thing you may want to consider, though, is that there will be a huge influx of crowds at this time.

This will also coincide with a peak in prices for hotels, food, transportation, and other essentials.

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Festival Season

Once Mardi Gras season is over, the fun doesn’t stop in New Orleans.

As the weather gets warmer, New Orleans hosts tons of festivals based on the rich history of food and music.

The best part is, many of them are free or inexpensive to attend!

Here are some of the best festivals in the New Orleans area:

March 18 – NOLA On Tap
March 22 – Tennessee Williams; New Orleans Literary Festival
March 24 – Congo Square Rhythms / Treme Creole Gumbo Festival
March 31 – Hogs for the Cause
April 13 – French Quarter Festival
April 28 – May 7 – New Orleans Jazz and Heritage Festival
May 19 – Bayou Boogaloo
June 29 – Essence Festival of Culture
July 14 – Running of the Bulls
July 23 – Tales of the Cocktail

Other than Mardi Gras, Jazz Fest is the most popular festival in the city.

It features the biggest musicians from around the world, and some of the best local musicians as well.

Street performers in New Orleans musicians — Street performers in New Orleans

There are plenty of amazing food and drink options, as well, including crawfish bread, gumbo, strawberry iced tea, and other local favorites.

French Quarter Festival is another great time to visit New Orleans.

This music festival has stages all throughout the historic French Quarter, which includes amazing local music.

On top of that, some of the best restaurants around town have stalls, so you can enjoy some of the most delicious New Orleans food while listening to local tunes.

Times to Avoid

There’s not really a bad time to go to New Orleans.

Even in the slower months in the summer, there are still tons of amazing live local music, outdoor events, and amazing restaurants to explore.

Busiest season in New Orleans — Busy season in New Orleans

However, for most people, summer is the worst season in New Orleans. On top of the hot weather, there are fewer festivals from late July through September.

Most visitors avoid New Orleans in the summer, though that does mean those who choose to go can enjoy a less crowded time with plenty of discounted hotels and experiences around the city.

For example, many of the best restaurants offer COOLinary menus, three-to-five-course tasting menus, for affordable prices.

Conclusion

There’s really no wrong time to go to New Orleans. However, there are plenty of times you can go to experience authentic New Orleans. Now, you have so many options to enjoy all that New Orleans has to offer!