Visit New Orleans

The historic core laid out by the French in 1721, the Vieux Carre fits in a rectangle of 13 streets by 6 that is walked on foot. Jackson Square and St Louis Cathedral, the cast-iron balconies of Royal Street, the antique dealers, the French Market and Cafe du Monde with its beignets form the daytime loop. In the evening, Bourbon Street is loud and touristy; the traditional jazz set at Preservation Hall, with no alcohol or air-conditioning, means arriving by 5pm.

The historic St Charles Avenue streetcar, running since 1835, climbs in 20 minutes to the Garden District, a wealthy American neighbourhood built after 1830. There you see the columned mansions, Lafayette Cemetery No. 1, with its above-ground tombs and compulsory guided visit, then the six miles of shops and restaurants on Magazine Street. Continuing Uptown, Audubon Park and its live-oak avenue line the river. Half a day.

Just downriver from the Vieux Carre, Faubourg Marigny and Bywater line up colourful Creole cottages, street art and cafes. Frenchmen Street, three blocks of clubs, is where locals go to hear live music between 8pm and midnight, often with no cover charge but a tip jar for the musicians. Crescent Park follows the Mississippi. In late April, Jazz Fest fills the racetrack over two weekends and packs the whole city.

45 minutes to the south, a boat trip in a Barataria basin bayou reveals alligators, bald cypress and Spanish moss. To the west, along the River Road, the former sugar-cane plantations are an hour's drive: the Whitney Plantation is the only one telling the site from the viewpoint of the enslaved people, Oak Alley for its avenue of 200-year-old oaks. As in New York, a car opens up the surroundings.