Top New Orleans Half-day Tours

Find out what all the fuss is about on this half-day food tour of some of the best food in New Orleans' famous French Quarter! Food and history mixed together. Your passionate and knowledgeable guide will escort you to experience traditional NOLA samplings in the French Quarter, including a few commonly mentioned in cookbooks. You will sample a variety of authentic tastings. Depending on your food tour time, options may include: Traditional Gumbo at a Creole restaurant, Seafood or Short Rib Po-Boys, Alligator Sausage, Muffuletta, Jambalaya, Char-Grilled Oyster, Pralines, buttery Praline cookies, and stroll past the famous Cafe du Monde. Learn about the rich legacy of fine food in the French Quarter and which hotspots to check out on your own later. You can even work with your guide to customize the tour to your interests or upgrade to a small-group tour with no more than 12 guests. Please note tastings are subject to change due to current availability.

Go beyond the typical city tour experience and see New Orleans like a local. This tour operator takes their guests beyond the typical tourist experience, relax in an enclosed air-conditioned minibus that runs every day. You'll get a great introduction to the history, culture and architecture of this magnificent city.

Experience the grandeur of New Orleans’ antebellum south on a half‐day tour of Oak Alley Plantation. Take a journey through time to the manicured estate and into the gorgeous home, built in 1839. View stunning architecture, oak‐lined esplanades, and enduring sugar cane fields while learning about the plantation’s fascinating – and often somber – histories from expert guides.

Come hang out with a local for 2.5 to 3 hours and find out why they are so passionate about living in New Orleans. There has to be a reason they'd choose to live in New Orleans, a city that is almost completely under sea level, right? Find out what makes locals and tourists alike love New Orleans so deeply. They've taken the 5 most popular tours in New Orleans and combined their best elements and turned it into one of the most exciting tours the city has to offer. Create a truly memorable experience when you take the French Quarter tour, Katrina History, Historic Cemeteries tour, Garden District tour, and New Orleans Architecture tour all together! Basically, if you're a history buff, then this tour is for you. If you're trying to figure out what to do while you're in New Orleans, well, this tour is for you too.

Spend an unforgettable 3 hours on our comfortable air conditioned Mini-bus and get an overview of New Orleans. Experience the history and culture of the Creoles with your licensed tour guide. No trip to New Orleans would be complete without seeing the highlights of our city and the some of the areas affected by Katrina’s flood waters.

Visit the Whitney Plantation of New Orleans and step back in time as you explore the 18th-century plantation museum, the only one of its kind in Louisiana. On this 5-hour tour (including travel time from New Orleans,) you’ll see museum exhibits, memorial artwork, and restored buildings. Learn about an important part of American history as recorded from first-person slave narratives.

Combining the history of Louisiana cuisine and New Orleans-style cocktails, this event is a feast for the senses!  Along with your guide you will visit up 6 locations: award-winning seafood restaurants, James Beard Award-nominated craft cocktail lounges, Creole restaurants, artisanal candy stores and more. Once inside you’ll sample up to 8 or more different dishes that represent the modern expressions of our culinary heritage: classic dishes like gumbo, and muffulettas, but also new interpretations like savory fried plantains and curried pork skins! We'll also enjoy 4 full-sized cocktails like the refreshing Pimm's Cup, the rum-heavy Hurricane, the classic Daiquiri and more! This 4-hour gastronomic odyssey is our way of showing you where we like to go now, and what we like to eat and drink once we're there. With so many dining and drinking options in New Orleans, why not try up to 6 different places in one fell swoop?! Note: all venues subject to change based on availability.

New Orleans is considered "The Most Haunted City" in the United States with rich paranormal history like no other. Allow our master storytellers to walk you through the realm of Ghosts, Voodoo, Vampires & More. While on tour, you will hear the story of New Orleans' most haunted & featured location, the Lalaurie Mansion. Delve into the bone-chilling story of Mad Madam LaLaurie, considered one of our most sinister historical figures. You will leave with feelings of excitement and trepidation as you continue on to explore the streets of the French Quarter. Please arrive 30 minutes prior to tour departure for check-in at the steps of the Supreme Courthouse. Refunds will not be issued for late arrivals. Each tour is unique and may or may not include all of the stops listed above or may stop at other locations, not on this list. Tthis is an outdoor walking tour and we do not enter any buildings. Tour groups run at a maximum of 28 guests or 15 guests for the VIP option.

Nowhere is Louisiana’s wildlife more abundant than in the swamps and bayous of New Orleans. Take a boat ride through these swamps and bayous and be on the lookout for alligators, raccoons, snakes, turtles and native birds. Hear stories from your guide about local Cajun culture and the mysteries of the swamps and bayous.

This New Orleans food tour has every culinary taste covered. With a history-savvy guide leading the way, you’ll walk from classic Creole restaurants and neighborhood sandwich shops to hot sauce bars and artisanal candy stores. Visit up to five locations to sample diverse foods representing the breadth of Louisiana’s culinary heritage, including dishes like seafood gumbo, po-boys, muffulettas and pralines. Learn about the historical origins of each cuisine and, when possible, hear the chefs discuss their influences. Enjoy plenty of food on this afternoon tour. Please note: all venues are subject to change based on availability. This tour features a set menu and does not have a gluten-free, dairy-free, pork-free or vegetarian option. However, please notify us of any food allergies (not aversions) during check-out.

Please arrive by 5:30pm for early boarding. Upon arrival, you'll be greeted by a ship staff member to take you onboard. Start the night off with a complimentary Champagne cocktail and get front row access to the Dukes of Dixieland before dining. After enjoying the tunes and maybe a little dancing, settle into your reserved table in the dining room for a dinner buffet featuring local favorites. If you are looking for a little more, upgrade your cruise to include an open call brand bar. After dinner, take a tour of the vessel led by the first mate. Don’t miss this opportunity to cruise through New Orleans in style on an exclusive VIP cruise that can’t be booked anywhere else!

Board your riverboat to the delightful tunes of the Steam Calliope. Experience the sights and sounds of river life that enchanted characters of history and literature - like Mark Twain's Huck Finn and Tom Sawyer - and see the bustling activity of America's second-largest port! Please note, the boat boards at 11:00am and departs promptly at 11:30am. We offer two seating times for lunch - 11:00 and 12:15pm. If you select the first lunch seating, please arrive around 10:45am and go straight to the dining room when you board the vessel.

Savor tasty cocktails in the French Quarter of New Orleans on a walking tour with an expert local guide. Visit hidden gems enjoyed by locals for centuries, learning from your fun and knowledgeable guide about the historic venues you see and legendary cocktails you sip. Discover the origins of the Daiquiri, learn the truth about absinthe, and sample a Sazerac concocted from a 19th-century recipe. Each stop features a classic cocktail, mixed by renowned bartenders who add a signature twist. It's a perfect tour for cocktail and culture enthusiasts!

Come take a journey back in time and see Louisiana's beautiful plantations.  Over the years, these plantations inspired many people to write books,screenplays and feature them in movies.  We pick up at all hotels in the Uptown, Downtown and French Quarter areas. If you are staying outside of this area, call to set up a pick up location. Seating is limited so reserve your tour.

I'm Paul, a born & raised native of New Orleans. I have given thousands of tourists from around the world my NOLA BIG 4 PRIVATE CITY TOUR: French Quarter • Garden District • Metairie Cemetery • City Park. I have taken many courses on New Orleans & read most of the books on her 300 year old history. I'm a Licensed New Orleans Tour Guide & have a B.S. in Marketing from The University of New Orleans. My tour is fact-based & comprehensive, designed to educate you about the people, culture & history of this unique city I call home, NEW ORLEANS! I do recommend one of the first things you do in New Orleans is TAKE A TOUR! This will acclimate you & help you understand New Orleans. Come along with me on my NOLA BIG 4 CITY TOUR to see & learn about The Real Big Easy! THIS IS A PRIVATE DRIVING (4 PASSENGER TOYOTA RAV4) CITY TOUR, ONLY YOUR GROUP WILL ATTEND. If a day/time slot is not available & for groups larger than 4, contact me, & I will try to accommodate you. nolabig4.c0m

Take a short drive from New Orleans to visit Honey Island Swamp, a wildlife preserve that is one of the last protected wetlands in Louisiana, during a 2-hour boat tour. Visit a Cajun village only accessible by boat; learn about the animals and plants in the lush swamps; and get close to wildlife with an expert local guide. This tour does not include transportation.

Do you believe there are things in this life that simply cannot be explained? Come take a walk through the haunted French Quarter stories that may leave you questioning what you ever thought possible. Our 8PM tour will be available with the VIP option of HELLVISION™! We use handheld projectors to bring the bloody images of New Orleans out of the archives and onto the streets for your tour. Our new 7PM tour is for those that prefer the road less traveled - an alternative to our popular main route, starting at the New Orleans Jazz Museum, telling oft-forgotten true crime gems. Tours go out rain or shine. Intoxicated travelers will not be permitted.

This tour begins with a ride to the famous French Quarter, boasting nearly 300 years of history. Your fully licensed tour guide will take you to popular highlights in "the Quarter" and the Treme, including Jackson Square, St. Louis Cathedral, Congo Square, along with some lesser-known gems, all while telling you fascinating stories about your surroundings. We then pedal to the charming oak-lined Garden District, stopping to admire the lavish historic homes of New Orleans, and talk about some of their most famous occupants. History, architecture, celebrities; this neighborhood has it all! Tour length: Approximately 9 mi. Paved Paradise Tours is a small, owner-operated company that provides a truly local perspective. When you ride with us you are riding with one of the owners, ensuring that your experience is of the highest quality. See the city through the eyes of someone who loves what they do, loves the City of New Orleans, and wants you to love it too.

Our master storytellers will walk you through the French Quarter where you'll discover its unique culture, architecture, and history. Hear stories of our Voodoo Queen and learn about the religion of Voodoo. Each guide is unique, and no two tours are the same! This tour does not enter any cemeteries, but does cover cemetery history and burial practices.

With our 1 day ticket, sightseers can discover New Orleans on this thoroughly enjoyable unlimited hop-on hop-off bus tour. You'll enjoy access to 19 tour stops along the route where you can experience the very best of New Orleans, including Jackson Square, the French Quarter, Canal Street, the Garden District, the Louisiana Superdome and much more! With the 1-day ticket you can really get stuck in to the local way of life!

Cruise into a brilliant and romantic sunset aboard the Paddlewheeler Creole Queen! Underneath enchanting skyline views enjoy the lively sounds from Sullivan Dabney, Jr. and the Muzik Jazz band while delighting your taste buds with a deliciously prepared Creole-styled meal (if option is chosen). Grab one or two classic New Orleans cocktails inside at the bar, then take a stroll outside along elegantly designed wrought iron trimmed railings for a night full of stars and warm banter. Become part of the city's unique energy and let the sweet Mississippi River breeze sweep you off your senses onto the dance floor atop our promenade deck for a night full of pure New Orleans magic. 

Taste Dat! Celebrating 12 years in New Orleans, Tastebud Food Tours is proud that our tours have earned 1251 5 Star reviews on TripAdvisor, earning TripAdvisors prestigious Hall of Fame Award and Travelers Choice for 2021! #1 in Nola! The City of New Orleans, like most American cities, has gone through extraordinary changes over the last several months. Legendary restaurants, historical sites, and local mainstays have been faced with nearly insurmountable odds. Overcoming those odds is what makes New Orleans special. We are a city of rebirth, and from hard times come our best times. In the spirit of the city’s motto – Laissez les bon temps rouler! (Let the good times roll!) –Your tour highlights what is quintessential New Orleans – Great food and history. We do this by offering the top-rated food tours in New Orleans, a walk through the heart of the French Quarter as you eat your way through almost 300 years of culinary history. Laissez les bon temps rouler! Come Hungry!

Take a thrilling airboat ride through the wetlands near New Orleans and plenty of alligators on this active, family-friendly tour. Travel over bayous and open waterways around the colorful, historic fishing village of Jean Lafitte, named after a 19th-century smuggler. Spy alligators in the wild -- as well as raccoons, native birds and large river rodents called nutria -- as your native guide provides commentary. Your 4-hour tour includes round-trip transport from New Orleans and 1 hour and 45 minutes on the boat. This tour is an easy way to get out and experience the rich natural landscape around New Orleans.