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Has anyone embarked out of New Orleans?  I am wondering how shuttle service is from airport to terminal and if coming in on early morning flight will I have to wait at airport or will shuttle take us down to terminal.  Is terminal close to downtown?  Is there anything to do if we arrive earlier than time to get on ship?  I know a lot of questions but living in Florida do not normally go out of New Orleans but when you find a 381 dollar balcony room per person you gotta jump on it especially a holiday cruise Dec. 31st departure.  

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Have sailed out of NOLA a few times (also on other cruise lines).  I have never flown to a NOLA cruise, always drive there, so no help on that subject.

The terminals are on the River behind and adjacent to the Convention Center.   Royal departs from the Julia St Terminal which is at the South end of the RiverWalk Mall.  All this is just south of the Aquarium as a reference.   It is an easy walk over to Bourbon Street and Jackson Square.

We actually like sailing from NOLA, wish Royal did it more.

There is a forum on the WWW That has a "Port of Call" section that has New Orleans information specifically.  A well versed poster there is named Saint Greg.  Good luck finding more info on your search.

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Love sailing from NOLA.  The sail down the Mississippi River is pretty neat.  You start with a river cruise and end up with an ocean cruise.

When I've sailed from NOLA I've stayed in a hotel near the airport then took a ride share in the morning to the ship.  Lyft tends to be cheaper than Uber, at this moment $40 for an Uber X vs. $35 on Lyft.

I'm not a big fan of a cruise ship shuttle from Royal because they wait and fill the bus before departing so you can sit for a while waiting.  Ride sharing goes right when you want to.

The cruise ship terminal is downtown and a short walk to the French Quarter.  Once you drop your bags there is enough time to walk to the mall next door or towards the French Quarter for beignets and a coffee.    

Uber estimator:

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Lyft estimator:

 

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I've also sailed out of NOLA, but have always drove since I'm about 5 hours from the port there. Parking was easy, lots of parking to be had, and porters as soon as you park in the garage so you don't have to drag your stuff far if you need assistance. I enjoyed sailing from that port and also wish RC did it more. The only ones we've done out of NOLA were Carnival. I would think it wouldn't be much of an issue to get from the airport to the port, and of course being NOLA there is tons of stuff to do while you wait. Loads of museums, great food, and the quarter, of course. Have fun!

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Can't vouch for the shuttle since I am also a driver when cruising out of NOLA. But as long as you are comfortable walking with your carry-ons, it's easy to drop off your luggage early at the cruise terminal and walk to the French Quarter. There's even a trolley stop at the port you can hop on to get down there. Riverwalk is the mall that was mentioned which is right next to the terminal. Harrah's casino is also right there.

I myself am eyeing some of those Radiance cruises. Love, love, love cruising out of NOLA!

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7 hours ago, AshleyDillo said:

Can't vouch for the shuttle since I am also a driver when cruising out of NOLA. But as long as you are comfortable walking with your carry-ons, it's easy to drop off your luggage early at the cruise terminal and walk to the French Quarter. There's even a trolley stop at the port you can hop on to get down there. Riverwalk is the mall that was mentioned which is right next to the terminal. Harrah's casino is also right there.

I myself am eyeing some of those Radiance cruises. Love, love, love cruising out of NOLA!

We were in New Orleans in June.  The trolley stop by the mall/convention center/cruise terminal was out of service for repair or upgrade.  It looked like it would be for a long time to me... probably at least a year.

Being there for a week and staying next to the Con. Center, we learned a couple of tricks.  The biggest one being, if you are walking from the Con Center/port area to Jackson Square/French Quarter, walk through the Convention Center out the end of up turn right and go up the escalator and then through the mall.  That gets you almost to the French Quarter and walking in the comfort of AC most of the time.  Otherwise that heat and humidity is oppressive.

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6 hours ago, roiemike said:

Thank you for responding, this community is always well versed in all things cruising.  I am excited to go out of New Orleans for first time.  The amazing rates were the intial attraction but the New Orleans scene sealed the deal.  Thank You again!!

We enjoyed NO.  Have been there twice in the last 5 years for business.  But, make no illusion, that city has real problems.  Homeless, open drug use, and dirty.  Maybe I'm a little jaded, but in the current atmosphere, I don't go into a lot of large cities, but the change in NO was stark over a 5 year period.

That said, if you are there, and you have time, the battlefield from the Battle of New Orleans is about 7 miles East and South of downtown,  It is worth your time.  The field itself is basically an open field.  The Muriel in the Visitor Center is awesome.  It shows the spot where Pakenham fell and Jackson triumphed. You can stand within a few feet of where it all happened.  For those who don't know, that was one of the most important military victories in World History, and the Americans dominated despite overwhelming odds against it.

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14 hours ago, AshleyDillo said:

I know the current dates don't line up with school schedules, but I'd love to see a NOLA sailing as a group cruise someday. Hint, hint @Matt.

RCB going to NOLA would change all conventional wisdom and opinions what a cruise vacation should be; finally realizing it’s the journey NOT the destination.

I hope it happens!

 

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Here are some NOLA embarkation related pics from January 2019 on Vision.

The cruise ship terminal is right beside the Riverwalk Outlet mall.

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Julia Street is also where the convention center is located.

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The mall is above the cruise terminal on the second level.

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The terminal is industrial looking given it's below and on the back side of the mall.  This area is technically below sea level so there are flood doors that can be closed where the cars are driving through.

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Bag drop across the street.

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I was early so before I went inside the terminal I had some time to kill.  I walked over to the Riverwalk mall.  Outside there are seating areas for bars and restaurants and a walking area that overlooks the river.  Turns out the ship is right there.

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With my thirst quenched it was time to walk back to the terminal.  Once inside it's a cruise terminal like many cruise terminals.

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Ah the good old days of muster 1.0.  I don't miss this.  However it shows you the proximity to the bridge across the Mississippi river.  This is as far as large ships can go up the Mississippi river as the bridge doesn't have a high clearance.

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Lots of river traffic, barges mostly and the famous Natchez belting out steamship whistle tunes.

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View from our ship to the old poop ship, now the Carnival Sunrise.  

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We turned and began our river cruise down the Mississippi.  In January the days are much shorter so sunset was upon us just after sailaway. Looking back at "downtown" NOLA.

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Already around the first bend in the river looking across at the bridge near the terminal.

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We were being followed.

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Pics don't do this justice.  Unless it's raining plan on being outside for the sail down the river.

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In January much of the cruise down the river to the Gulf of Mexico is in the dark due to the short days.  That doesn't photograph well but in places it's fun to look out and watch other ships coming up the river pass us by.

Come morning and sunrise we are in the Gulf.

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How awesome are those pictures, I am looking forward to sitting on balcony and seeing the Mississippi River for the first time on New Years Eve, just a note on the rate I got, when I called crown and anchor to reserve since i found online (387 per person balcony) the agent put me on hold for ten minutes and then came back and said, " we have to give you the cruise at that price."  It made me believe that there was an error in pricing as the next day it was 897 per person for a balcony room.  I felt lucky to find the low price but wish others could have shared in that pricing structure.  I am thankful for all the talk on this feed it really has made me more excited to visit new orleans and we are going to spend a day there on the way back before going home to enjoy what the city has to offer.  I continue to be thankful for the knowledge that is in this blog from the leaders of it to everyone else and their years of experience.  My wife and I read this all the time and continue to learn new things about everything cruising.  

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On 8/6/2022 at 3:21 PM, AshleyDillo said:

Can't vouch for the shuttle since I am also a driver when cruising out of NOLA. But as long as you are comfortable walking with your carry-ons, it's easy to drop off your luggage early at the cruise terminal and walk to the French Quarter. There's even a trolley stop at the port you can hop on to get down there. Riverwalk is the mall that was mentioned which is right next to the terminal. Harrah's casino is also right there.

I myself am eyeing some of those Radiance cruises. Love, love, love cruising out of NOLA!

I will be on The Radiance of the Seas starting Nov 26. My hotel is on the trolley line. Because I am coming to New Orleans on Amtrak, I will not have a car. I WAS going to Uber from my hotel on St Charles to the port but are you saying that I could just hop on the trolley from my hotel and end up at the port? .

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26 minutes ago, My3rdAct said:

 but are you saying that I could just hop on the trolley from my hotel and end up at the port? .

You would have to look at the trolley system map to make sure you know where the lines connect, but there is a line that runs along the riverfront. Even if the Julia Street station is closed for repairs as mentioned above, you can get off the trolley at the end of Canal and walk through the Hilton to the Riverwalk mall and all the way to the cruise terminal that way.  Really depends on your mobility and capabilities in handling your luggage.

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2 hours ago, Last Lion said:

Sailed out of NOLA (locals hate that phrase btw) many times on CCL.

Will be on the Rad December 1st.

We consider these cruises two vacations in one- the city and the cruise.

Highly advise spending at least two days in town at one end of the cruise. Ya won’t regret it!

Highly advise spending at least two days in town

That's what I thought too. I will be in New Orleans Nov 24th and I'm spending a day down in the quarter and I'm also going to take the trolley up St Charles, enjoying the beautiful homes and getting off at the Garden District, where I am going to walk down to The Commander's Palace for lunch. I've been there twice before and consider that the ultimate in "specialty dining"; a must-do. 

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