New Orleans on a Budget: How to Visit for $100 a Day or Less
Free brass bands, $1.25 streetcars, po’boys the size of your forearm and hotel rates that fall by half in summer. How to visit New Orleans on about $100 a day per person, from a team that lives here, with a sample budget and the splurges that are worth it.
You can visit New Orleans on a budget of about $100 a day per person if you travel outside Mardi Gras and Jazz Fest, share a room, use the $1.25 streetcars and eat where locals eat. Book a hotel or guesthouse in Mid-City, the Marigny or the Central Business District instead of on Bourbon Street, aim for June through September or December for the lowest rates, and fill your days with free things: brass bands on Frenchmen Street, Sunday second lines, Jackson Square, City Park’s sculpture garden and the national park’s free ranger programs. Spend your money on a few great meals instead of drinks on Bourbon.
New Orleans has a reputation as an expensive party town, and it can be. A weekend of hotel rooms in the French Quarter during a festival, cocktails on Bourbon Street and dinners at the famous old Creole restaurants can easily cost $500 a day for two. But the city is also full of locals who live on modest incomes, and their New Orleans is cheap and generous: music that costs nothing, food served in huge portions for less than $15 and a culture of celebrating in the street, where nobody charges admission. We live here, and this is how we would spend a week in our own city without draining a bank account.
- $1.25One streetcar or bus ride
- $0Second lines, Frenchmen Street music and Jackson Square
- 50%Typical hotel discount in summer versus spring
- $12–$18A full po’boy at a neighborhood shop
A realistic daily budget
| Expense | Shoestring | Comfortable budget | How to keep it low |
|---|---|---|---|
| Lodging (per person, sharing) | $35–$50 hostel bed | $60–$90 half of a $120–$180 room | Travel in summer or December; stay outside the Quarter |
| Food | $25–$35 | $40–$60 | Po’boys, plate lunches, happy hour oysters |
| Transport | $3–$5 | $5–$15 | Streetcar day pass; rideshare only late at night |
| Activities | $0 | $10–$30 | Free music, parks and ranger walks; one paid museum |
| Drinks | $5–$10 | $15–$25 | Happy hours and neighborhood bars, not Bourbon |
| Daily total | $70–$100 | $130–$220 | Excludes flights |
Your biggest variable is lodging, and that depends almost entirely on when you come.
Pick the right dates
Hotel prices in New Orleans swing wildly. During Mardi Gras, Jazz Fest, the Sugar Bowl, major conventions and the Super Bowl, rooms that normally cost $150 can top $500, often with three-night minimums. Prices are lowest in the hot months from June through mid-September, when many hotels cut rates in half and restaurants run summer specials, and in early December and the weeks after New Year’s. The trade-off in summer is heat, humidity and daily thunderstorms, plus hurricane season. If you hate heat, aim for weekdays in late October, November or January, when the weather is mild and rates are moderate.
Check the city’s convention calendar before booking. A big medical or industry conference can push up prices even in a quiet month. Weekdays, Sunday through Thursday, are almost always cheaper than weekends.
Where to stay for less
The French Quarter is the most expensive place to sleep, and Bourbon Street rooms can be loud anyway. Better-value areas include:
- Faubourg Marigny: Guesthouses and small inns a short walk from Frenchmen Street and the Quarter.
- Mid-City: Quieter, with B&Bs and rentals along the Canal Street streetcar line, close to City Park.
- Central Business District: Large chain hotels compete hard for business on weekends when convention travelers go home.
- Lower Garden District: Hostels and guesthouses on the St. Charles streetcar line, near Magazine Street.
New Orleans has several good hostels with private rooms as well as dorms. Watch for mandatory resort or “destination” fees at downtown hotels, which can add $20 to $40 a night, and for hotel parking, which can cost $40 or more a night. Our guide to resort fees explains how to spot them, and where to stay in New Orleans compares each neighborhood in detail. Be careful with short-term rentals; the city restricts them in many residential areas, and illegal listings can be canceled at short notice. Our vacation rental scams guide covers what to watch for.
Getting around cheaply
You don’t need a car in New Orleans, and you’ll save a lot by skipping one. Hotel parking is expensive, street parking is confusing and tickets are common.
From the airport, the E2 Airport Express bus runs to the edge of downtown for a few dollars, much less than the fixed taxi rate of about $36. It is slower and doesn’t run late at night, so check the schedule.
In town, the streetcars and buses of the Regional Transit Authority cost $1.25 per ride, with transfers available. A Jazzy Pass gives you unlimited rides for one day, three days or longer, and you can buy it on the RTA’s Le Pass app. Day passes have cost about $3 in recent years, which may be the best deal in American travel. The St. Charles line runs 24 hours a day, though less often at night.
Walk whenever it’s safe. The French Quarter, Marigny, Tremé and downtown are compact. Blue Bikes, the city’s bike-share system, are useful for longer flat rides. Use rideshare late at night or when going between neighborhoods after dark, even though it costs more; safety matters more than a few dollars.
Free music, every night
New Orleans may be the best city in the United States for free live music.
Frenchmen Street clubs often have no cover or ask you to buy one drink per set. Walk the three blocks between Esplanade and Royal and stop wherever you like the sound. Many bands play for tips, so bring small bills and drop $5 in the bucket if you stay for a set.
Royal Street in the afternoon turns into an outdoor concert hall when it closes to cars. Some of the city’s best young musicians play for tips here.
Jackson Square has brass bands, jazz trios and other performers through most of the day.
Sunday second lines are the best free entertainment in the city. From late August through June, social aid and pleasure clubs parade through their neighborhoods with brass bands for about four hours. Anyone can join the dancing crowd. WWOZ, the city’s community radio station, posts the weekly schedule on its website.
Free concerts are common in parks and plazas. The New Orleans Jazz Museum at the Old U.S. Mint, at the edge of the Quarter, hosts free and low-cost concerts, and Lafayette Square downtown has had free spring concert series. The New Orleans Jazz National Historical Park offers free ranger programs and performances.
Free things to do
| Free activity | Neighborhood | Best time |
|---|---|---|
| Jackson Square and St. Louis Cathedral | French Quarter | Morning, before crowds |
| Riverfront walk on the Moonwalk | French Quarter | Sunset |
| Besthoff Sculpture Garden | City Park | Any day, daylight hours |
| Garden District architecture walk | Garden District | Late afternoon light |
| Crescent Park | Bywater | Early morning |
| Barataria Preserve boardwalks | 30 minutes south of the city | Spring and fall mornings |
| Algiers Point levee views | Across the river, by ferry | Evening |
The Jean Lafitte National Historical Park and Preserve has a free visitor center in the French Quarter with ranger talks, and the Barataria Preserve south of the city has free boardwalk trails through cypress swamp where you will very likely see alligators in warm months. Several galleries at the Historic New Orleans Collection on Royal Street have free exhibits about the city’s history. Window-shopping on Royal and Magazine streets costs nothing, and so does people-watching on Frenchmen.
The ferry from Canal Street to Algiers Point costs about $2 and gives you a river crossing with skyline views that boat tours charge $40 or more for.
Free and cheap festivals
New Orleans holds a festival almost every weekend, and many are free. The French Quarter Festival in April is one of the largest free music festivals in the country, with hundreds of local acts on stages across the Quarter and riverfront. Satchmo SummerFest in August celebrates Louis Armstrong. Dozens of smaller food and music festivals, from the Creole Tomato Festival to neighborhood fêtes, cost little or nothing to enter. Even Mardi Gras parades are free to watch; only lodging is expensive. Our Mardi Gras guide explains how to enjoy Carnival without overspending.
Eat well for less
New Orleans is one of the best cheap-food cities in the country, as long as you leave the tourist blocks.
Po’boys. A full po’boy, roughly a foot long on crusty French bread, stuffed with fried shrimp, oysters or roast beef with gravy, can feed one hungry person or two light eaters. Neighborhood shops typically charge $12 to $18, and a half is often plenty.
Plate lunches. Small corner restaurants serve daily specials like red beans and rice (traditionally on Mondays), fried chicken, smothered pork chops and gumbo with sides for around $12 to $16.
Happy hour. Many restaurants offer discounted raw oysters during weekday happy hours, often around $1 each, along with half-price drinks and small plates. It’s an easy way to eat well cheaply in the late afternoon.
Crawfish season. From about February to May, boiled crawfish are sold by the pound with corn and potatoes at seafood shops and bars. A few pounds shared between two people make a cheap, very messy dinner.
Vietnamese food. New Orleans has a large Vietnamese community, and its bakeries and restaurants, especially in New Orleans East and on the West Bank, serve excellent banh mi and pho for less than most sit-down meals.
Grocery and breakfast. If your hotel doesn’t include breakfast, pick up pastries and coffee from a local bakery. Grab beignets once at Café du Monde; they are inexpensive and part of the experience.
Our New Orleans food guide lists the dishes worth trying, and how to eat cheap while traveling has strategies that work in any city.
Drink smart
Alcohol is the fastest way to blow a New Orleans budget. Bourbon Street drinks are expensive for what you get, and the oversized frozen drinks are mostly sugar and ice. Instead:
- Drink at neighborhood bars in the Marigny, Bywater, Mid-City and Uptown, where prices are lower.
- Use happy hours, which are common between about 3 and 6 p.m.
- Buy a go-cup from a corner store or bar and enjoy one drink as you walk, which is legal in the French Quarter as long as it is not in glass.
- Choose one classic cocktail bar for a splurge, such as a Sazerac at the Roosevelt, rather than paying tourist prices all night.
- Drink lots of water in summer. Heat plus alcohol is a bad mix.
Paid attractions worth the money
If you only pay for one or two things, make them count. The National WWII Museum costs about $35 for adults but can fill most of a day. Preservation Hall concerts run about $25 to $50 and are unforgettable. A swamp tour is worth it if you don’t have a car to reach the free Barataria boardwalks. Whitney Plantation is the most important history site outside the city. Look for discount days, student and senior prices and package deals; some museums offer free days for Louisiana residents only, so check before going.
A sample three-day budget plan
| Day | Morning | Afternoon | Evening |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Beignets, Jackson Square, Moonwalk | Free ranger talk, Royal Street musicians | Po’boy dinner, Frenchmen Street music |
| 2 | St. Charles streetcar, Garden District walk | Magazine Street, plate lunch | Happy hour oysters, Algiers Point ferry at sunset |
| 3 | City Park and the Sculpture Garden | Second line (Sunday) or WWII Museum | Crawfish boil in season, neighborhood bar |
Money-saving mistakes to avoid
Booking during a festival without checking. Prices can triple overnight.
Renting a car. Parking alone can cost more than your food.
Eating near Canal Street and Bourbon. Walk a few blocks for better food at better prices.
Ignoring hotel fees. Compare the full nightly price including taxes, resort fees and parking.
Skipping tips for musicians. Free music isn’t free to make. A few dollars is part of the deal.
Frequently asked questions
How much money do you need for a weekend in New Orleans?
About $300 to $450 per person for a three-day budget weekend outside festival season, sharing a room. Festival weekends cost much more.
What is the cheapest month to visit New Orleans?
July and August usually have the lowest hotel prices, followed by June, September and early December.
Is New Orleans expensive?
It can be, especially for lodging during events, but food, music and transit are cheaper than in most major US cities.
What can you do in New Orleans for free?
Hear live music on Frenchmen and Royal streets, follow a second line, explore Jackson Square and the riverfront, visit City Park’s sculpture garden and walk the Garden District.
Do you need a car in New Orleans?
No. Streetcars, buses, walking and occasional rideshare cover most of what visitors want to see.
Before you book
- Check the festival and convention calendar, then choose weekdays in a quieter month.
- Compare hotels in the Marigny, Mid-City and CBD, including all fees.
- Download the RTA Le Pass app and buy a Jazzy Pass.
- Find this week’s second line schedule on WWOZ.
- Budget for one or two splurges you’ll remember, and keep small bills for tips.
Eric Gamble
Eric Gamble is the founder of Travon Inc. and editor-in-chief of Travon Blog, based in New Orleans. He plans every guide around the questions travelers actually ask before they book: when to go, what it really costs, how to get around and what is worth skipping. Eric oversees research, fact-checking and the regular updates that keep each guide accurate.
