New Orleans

New Orleans is a buzzing city where live music of seemingly every style is heard along the streets of the famous French Quarter and the locals are as laid back and gracious as the very essence of the Louisiana city. There simply is no other place like it in America – maybe it is due to its geography; a port city where an influx of cultures over the course of its long history has welcomed diversity, alternate lifestyles and creative people, from musicians to artists.

Mardi Gras in the late winter has existed for more than a century and Carnival is taken very seriously by its residents. In New Orleans, when you party, you party hard. Even if you aren’t there during one of the many celebrations the city hosts throughout the year, the nightly party with live Dixieland and jazz to recorded rap and dance along Bourbon Street is roaring all year long.

Ride a streetcar and yell Stella! out the window as a tribute to Tennessee Williams -- author of Streetcar Named Desire -- who spent much of his life in New Orleans, or walk to Louis Armstrong Park where you are sure to hear echoes of the great jazz musician wafting through the trees. Next door is Congo Square, where people of the 18th and early 19th centuries would listen to music and gather on Sundays. From the French influence and Creole cuisine to Sezeracs and raw oysters, New Orleans will keep your belly full and your feet tapping to whatever music gets you moving.