City Park

City Park is all you imagine "the South" to be, with stunning oak trees draped in moss and covered in vines. Some of the trees are more than 600 years old! Stone bridges arch over a serene bayou. A traditional bandstand centres it all. Don't miss out on magical Storyland, where you walk amongst large sculptures of fairytale scenes in the forest. Carousel Gardens is also fun, with old-fashioned amusement park rides amongst the oak trees- you really feel like you're in a movie with a town carnival set in the South! The New Orleans Botanical Garden is filled with an abundance of flowers, sculptures, and gorgeous architecture- the tropical area with waterfall is especially lovely. The train garden inside the Botanical Garden made my daughter super happy! You can also visit the New Orleans Museum of Art, or walk on the scenic path surrounding Big Lake. There are plenty of bike paths to keep you busy as well. The Besthoff Sculpture Garden has artwork in pleasant surroundings and you can enter its gates for free. You can play mini-golf at City Putt. There are also several playgrounds- the one near Storyland is a space-age one. The playground near the bandstand is colorful and popular with plenty of equipment.
Celebration in the Oaks is a twinking display of thousands of lights in the park, from Nov 29-Jan 4. I don't recommend Morning Call, the concession cafe in the Casino Building. The food is horrible fried beignets made by park employees. You will have to drive or walk somewhere else to find food because the park only has concessions, no independent cafes.

Directions

City Park is located at 56 Dreyfous Dr, New Orleans LA 70124. Celebration in the Oaks costs $8 per person (buy tickets online to avoid waiting in long lines), and is only open from Nov 29-Jan 4. Closed Dec 24 and 31. Hours are Fri-Sat 6-11, Sun-Thurs 6-10.

Click on map for interactive view