New Orleans · With kids
WITH KIDS
A zoo, an aquarium, a paddlewheeler and a swamp — with a nightlife district to route around.
Audubon Aquarium and Insectarium
Now combined in one riverfront building, with a walk-through Gulf tunnel and a butterfly garden. Ages two to ten, about two hours.
Audubon Zoo
Uptown among the oaks, with a Louisiana swamp exhibit, white alligators and a splash park that runs all summer. Ages two to ten.
City Park
Storyland's fairy-tale sets and the antique carousel at Carousel Gardens sit under thousand-year oaks. Ages two to nine; the amusement rides open seasonally.
Steamboat and swamp tours
A two-hour paddlewheeler cruise with a calliope suits ages four upwards; airboat swamp trips out towards Slidell want six and up and ear defenders.
Bourbon Street and buggies
Royal and Frenchmen are fine with children; Bourbon after dark is not. Flagstones and buckled pavements defeat strollers, so a carrier travels better.