Chicago/New Orleans

[G-FFC]

Heading to Chicago, New Orleans and Vegas in September this year. 3 days, 4 days and 3 days in each but looking to extend Vegas to possibly 5 to try and catch Boxing/UFC on the Saturday and NFL on the Sunday. 
 

Been watching plenty vlogs on both but any suggestions for these places? 

[TxRover]

New Orleans, the Honey Island Swamp tours are pretty cool, but for visitors without a car a wee bit expensive for the hotel pickup. I recommend Dr. Wagners (https://www.honeyislandswamp.com) tours. Lots of fun, and can be pretty warm. New Orleans is a rough city these days, so stick to the known tourist areas in the evening and night, and be careful during the day (Guided tours of areas are a good choice for safety). You can expect hustlers like the teens telling you they can tell you “where you got those shoes” (answer: on Bourbon Street, in Naw’Lins).

The food can be amazing, especially if you find some of the less touristy eateries. The plantation tours are interesting, but like the swamp tour will eat up a lot of a day. Certainly recommend a visit to Blaine Kern’s Mardi Gras World (https://mardigrasworld.com) since you are visiting outside Carnival season, and they offer a free shuttle from the French Quarter area. A ride on the St. Charles streetcar is a nice and easy way to see a lot of the old homes and character of the city.

Here’s the Tourist Bureau link: https://www.neworleans.com

[carpetmonster]

10 hours ago, G-FFC said:

Heading to Chicago, New Orleans and Vegas in September this year. 3 days, 4 days and 3 days in each but looking to extend Vegas to possibly 5 to try and catch Boxing/UFC on the Saturday and NFL on the Sunday. 
 

Been watching plenty vlogs on both but any suggestions for these places? 

I’ve lived in Chicago since 2016; September is a decent time to come. Weather will still be hot but it’s not as bouncing as the height of summer. 
 

Touristy bits - don’t bother with the Sears Tower, it’s $25 to get up and there’s only a gift shop at the top. The John Hancock Center is free and there’s a bar on the 96th floor with floor to ceiling windows; the view is almost as good and you can spend your $25 on booze (which will only be two beers; you do pay for the view, but hey). Field Museum is excellent but plan in advance what you want to see; you could spend the whole day in the place and not see half of it. Shedd Aquarium great with kids, should take about 3-4 hours. Museum of Science & Industry similar but a bit of a pain in the arse via public transport, take an Uber.

There will be lots of free things happening in Milennium and Grant Parks - not quite as many as pre-Labor Day but do check the calendars for those places. Do312.com is a good source for listings on the daily when you get here.

Chicago is worth getting out into the neighborhoods. The Loop can be a little dead after hours and River North is terrible bars full of yuppies. West Loop and Fulton Market are the hottest areas for eating and drinking just now and the Guinness brewery at FM should be open by the time you’re here. Navy Pier is a shitty tourist trap, avoid, although the Children’s Museum is excellent if you have sprogs age 3-8. 
 

Hiring a Divvy bike and going up the Lakefront Path is excellent on a nice day. 
 

Hang on; the baby’s yelling; I’ll come back in a bit 

[TxRover]

New Orleans, Aquarium of the Americas is excellent…but closed until this summer, so hopefully back open for your visit. (https://audubonnatureinstitute.org/aquarium) Hopefully they still display the model of the Cognac oil platform next to the huge tank…always liked that there as my dad designed it. The WW2 Museum is also an interesting visit (https://www.nationalww2museum.org), especially for UK residents to see the slightly different perspective taken by U.S. museums.

[Stu]

The architecture boat tour is worth doing. Chicago has some amazing buildings.

[BillyAnchor]

This is my fav Chicago bar, great music (if you like alt-country anyway). I'd Uber to this one.

 

https://hideoutchicago.com/