We didn't spend long enough at New Orleans City Park, the 1300-acre park with so much to see and do. We stopped off at a couple of cool spots including the incredible 1907 Peristyle. There were so many amazing views, things to see, sculpture gardens to visit and botanic gardens to frolic in that I am going to have to come back to New Orleans just to spend time here. I love parks and gardens so much I wish I had an entire week to explore!
We purchased a Groupon for Surreys at City Park and decided to take the trolley over one afternoon. The trolley is the most economical way to go, but it took forever, so I would recommend Uber coming and going. The park itself is beautiful, and there is an Art Museum inside. We rode around the park, but there really isn't anything much to see or do. There is a small lake and you can rent peddle boats in addition to the surreys and cruisers. I would recommend bringing a picnic lunch and taking a break to just sit and enjoy the scenery. It's definitely a walking, riding and running park. We were going to visit the museum, but my husband misread the ticket info on their website and thought it was $69 to get in, when it is really only $12.00 for adult admission. Sorry we missed that. We waited 1/2 hour for the returning trolley, and being it is at the end of the line, it was packed.
Little ponds with ducks and other birds which the kids enjoyed watching. Sculpture garden was interesting. Got beignets and coffee at the cafe near the sculpture garden. Art museum was closed the day we were there (Mondays). Was too cold to do the paddle-boats but you can rent one and paddle around a nice lake. Streetcar line stops right at edge of park which allows easy transport back to your downtown/French Quarter hotel.
This is a sprawling, scenic park located only a few miles from the French Quarter but well off the radar screen of most tourists. With a variety of attractions, it lends itself to wandering and exploring. We specifically set out to see the Couturie Forest (good for a brief hike), the Besthoff Sculpture Garden (which was delightful), and the Carousel Gardens amusement park (which for some reason was closed). In the process, we also stumbled upon the pedal boat rentals (at Wheel Fun) and the City Putt miniature golf course. We enjoyed lunch in the park at Morning Call, a Cafe du Monde-like coffee stand that also features lunch fare. (Bring cash, though, as they don’t take plastic and the ATM inside was not working).
We took a three hour tour and luckily it included this beautiful park. There where so many oak trees to see and beautiful garden areas. We had a stop at Morning Call which serves the most delicious beignets. As we were eating along came two geese checking out the intruders to their area. We saw a very interesting bridge and sculptures and Storyland which looked interesting if you have young ones. We also saw Big Lake where you could rent kayaks,paddle boats and gondolas.
On a return visit to New Orleans we will take the red trolley back to the park and rent bicycles so we can personally tour the park area.
