Traveling to Louisiana in December (New Orleans, Baton Rouge: appointed, restaurant, prices)

[ReluctantGardenStater]

Hello, all.

I'm driving to the New Orleans area of LA in late December (a day or so after the Christmas holiday) and will be coming from Northern New Jersey.

Since I'm unfamiliar with driving this particular route, can anyone tell me:

A) Which states the interstate is going to lead me through

and

B) What I can expect from the New Orleans area at that time in terms of weather/amount of people/etc.

Any help would be greatly appreciated.

[5trillion]

Travelling the most direct route from northern New Jersey, you'll probably take I-81 south which traverses through the states of Pennsylvania, Maryland, West Virginia, Virginia and Tennessee. After that, it's a myriad of interchanges taking you through Alabama, Georgia (briefly), Mississippi, and finally Louisiana where I-10 will take you directly into New Orleans.

Weather Underground has a cool trip planner guide that gives a historical overview of the weather of a given city. Here's the one for New Orleans for December 26th (You can change the date).
History : Weather Underground
I'd say to expect temps between 60 F and 70 F based on recent averages.

Between December 1st - 30th, there's a festival called "Christmas New Orleans style" French Quarter Festivals Inc., New Orleans - Christmas New Orleans Style . Check it out.

Hope this helps

[darylwi]

I like I-81, it was an easy drive from Slidell up I-59 and then I-81 all the way to PA and then NYC. No problems and plenty of rest areas north of Alabama. The drive through Virginia is the best.
On I-59, the highway through MS isn't great and is generally wooded, likewise I-10 in New Orleans East is horrible, bumps and sharp turns coming towards the high rise at Chef Menteur Hwy (I hate those turns).

If the weather is anything like last Christmas, it was 75-80 here in BTR. It was 'hot'. The four or five years before, it would generally get cool or cold right before Christmas and then warm up for New Years. I think the past 5 or 6 New Years have been pretty warm for us. Never mind it did snow on us last year on Dec. 11. Then it was summer time again by Christmas Eve. Typical south Louisiana weather I'm afraid. But if you're wanting warm weather, you have a pretty good chance of catching it here. Pack a sweater though just in case. When it is cold, downtown NOLA is coldest because of the wind tunnels of the buildings with breezes coming off the river and lakefront.

NOLA will be busy between X-mas and Near Years but not like Mardi Gras busy. There is the post holiday shopping, Sugar Bowl and of course New Years itself. NOLA puts on a good fireworks and such for New Years. And of course the city will be decorated.

[ReluctantGardenStater]

I appreciate both your responses. The reason I was inquiring is due to my unfamiliarity with driving through the Gulf states area around Alabama/Mississippi.

Never been to LA, and the end of December/beginning of January seems like a good time to take a trip. I know I did not want my first time in NOLA to be with all the Mardi Gras chaos. Escaping the weather of the Northeast which can be bitter even in December will also be an added bonus.

I'd like to see how the Superdome is faring and possibly catch a Saints game (been checking ticket prices online). Plus, I'm a food junkie, and I'm hoping the cuisine won't let me down.

[darylwi]

It's a straight shot. If you get on I-81 anywhere up north, you can follow that down until Tennessee, then you run into I-40 to Knoxville where you catch I-75 down to Chattanooga and then you're on I-59 straight to Slidell. There aren't many turns to get lost if you pay attention to road signs and even on a map, it looks like a straight shot. It really is. We drove nonstop from Baton Rouge to Slidell and up to Harrisburg and over to NYC in about 21 hours.
You can bypass Birmingham on I-459 and see the miniature statue of liberty (although it's easiest seeing it going northbound on the bypass).
You might have to bypass Knoxville. When I passed in 2007 they were prepping for some major I-40 work in the middle of town, would shut it down for a year or so. But I-40 southwest of Knoxville is open freeway now.
Ice storms can happen usually above I-20 but they're rare. I wouldn't expect them. What you might expect down here especially around NOLA in the winter is fog. Driving at night, it can get really foggy down here during the winter.

The Superdome looks great since the renovations. Saints games are generally fun to go to, especially nowadays. And unless you're picky, you're going to love the food down here. Even people who aren't food connoisseurs love it down here so I doubt you're disappointed. There are too many good places, but my favorites are Margaritaville and Galatoires. Tujaque's and Mulate's are good as well. And of course there's ACME Oyster House. You'll probably stop by Cafe du Monde at least once but you could also check out Cafe Beignet for a more local flare.

[SacalaitWhisperer]

Find Mothers' Restaurant in New Orleans!

Make sure you eat there at least once, if you can keep it to just once... that is.