Things To Do
Mardi Gras World
Roy and his son Blaine built their first Mardi Gras float together on the back on a mule-drawn wagon in 1932. Unable to pay his mother’s medical bills, Blaine offered to paint a mural in the hospital, which caught the eye of a surgeon who was also the captain of a Mardi Gras Krewe. This captain invited Blaine to design and build floats for his Krewe, and Kern Studios was officially founded in its current form in 1947. One float led to another, and before long Blaine became the city’s leading parade designer and builder, working with Rex, Zulu and other legendary krewes. In 1984, Mardi Gras World was created as a tourist attraction to provide visitors a behind-the-scenes look of our work. Widely successful, the attraction draws hundreds of thousands of visitors from all over the world each year.
New Orleans Pharmacy Museum
"Since its founding in 1950, the New Orleans Pharmacy Museum has been acquiring, preserving and interpreting an extensive collection of artifacts and resources documenting the history of pharmacy and medicine in the 19th and early to mid 20th centuries, with a particular focus on New Orleans and Louisiana. The building that the museum occupies is itself a historic landmark – a classic creole townhouse in the French Quarter constructed in 1822-1823 that served as the apothecary and residence of Louis J. Dulfilho, Jr., the first licensed pharmacist in the United States, until 1855."
New Orleans Museum of Art
"New Orleans Museum of Art (NOMA), the city’s oldest fine arts institution, opened on December 16, 1911 with only nine works of art. Today, the museum hosts an impressive permanent collection of nearly 50,000 artworks. The collection, noted for its extraordinary strengths in French and American art, photography, glass, and African and Japanese works, continues to expand and grow, making NOMA one of the top art museums in the South. The twelve-acre Sydney and Walda Besthoff Sculpture Garden at NOMA is one of the most important sculpture installations in the United States, with over 90 sculptures situated on a beautifully landscaped site among meandering footpaths, reflecting lagoons, Spanish moss-laden 200-year-old live oaks, mature pines, magnolias, camellias, and pedestrian bridges."
City Putt Miniature Golf Course
We love adding playful competition to our relationship, and mini golf has always been one of our go-to date spots!
Audubon Zoo
Located in historic Uptown New Orleans, Audubon Zoo features exotic and endangered animals from around the globe. Amidst canopies of great oak trees, experience the wonder of nature in a shaded wonderland that includes beautiful architecture, delicious cuisine, kids' play areas, and more. Explore unique natural habitats such as the award-winning Louisiana Swamp and see white alligators before grabbing some jambalaya at the Cypress Knee Cafe. Or, grab an icy snowball treat and head over to Jaguar Jungle after passing iconic Monkey Hill. Audubon Zoo is consistently one of the country’s top-ranked zoos, voted as one of the top ten zoos in the country in the USA Today “10Best” reader poll and ranked as one of the top things to do in New Orleans.
Audubon Aquarium
If aquatic animals are more your speed, then New Orleans has an attraction for you! "Located on the Mississippi River adjacent to the French Quarter, Audubon Aquarium is consistently top ranked, voted as one of the top five in the country in the USA Today “10Best” reader poll and ranked as one of the top things to do in New Orleans. The Aquarium transports visitors to an underwater world from the Caribbean, to the Amazon Rainforest, to the waters that give New Orleans its lifeblood: the Mississippi River and the Gulf of Mexico. With more than 3,600 animals from more than 250 species, including endangered species, such as African penguins, and rare animals, such as white alligators, the Aquarium offers you an experience you’ll never forget."
Arnaud's Mardi Gras Museum
"The Germaine Cazenave Wells Mardi Gras Museum, named for successor and daughter of Count Arnaud, opened in the French Quarter restaurant on September 15, 1983. Wells reportedly reigned as queen of over twenty-two Mardi Gras balls from 1937 to 1968, more than any other women in the history of Carnival. The museum brings together more than two dozen lavish Mardi Gras costumes, including 13 of Mrs. Wells’ queen costumes, one of her mother’s and one of her daughter’s, as well The collection is enhanced by more than 70 vintage photographs, fabulous Carnival masks and faux jewels, elaborate krewe invitations and party favors. The traditional colors of Mardi Gras–purple, green and gold, symbolizing justice, faith and power–shimmer throughout. Viewing of the priceless collection and memorabilia is free to the public during restaurant hours seven days a week."