I stayed here with my partner for 4 days 3 nights during Mardi Gras. We booked a balcony room overlooking St Charles Avenue to watch the parades, and while expensive, IMO there is no better way to enjoy the Mardi Gras season. It’s close enough to the street-level to catch beads thrown by floats, and just high enough to avoid having to elbow your way through the crowds and chaos. Sitting on the private cast iron balcony with my partner was the most romantic experience, and when we were done we could just go back to our room or relax down at the hotel bar, which also had street-level views. Watching the massive crowds downstairs separated by just a pane of glass, we were so glad to be safe and comfortable inside! Natalie Trosclair the hotel manager was amazingly helpful and communicative with us from the moment we booked months in advance, and all throughout her stay. She went above and beyond, when I emailed her in advance to ask if we could have a very specific but relatively inexpensive bottle of sparkling white wine waiting for us in the room, she said she would do her best but couldn’t promise as it’s a small hotel with a limited wine list. Instead she delivered a bottle of actual champagne without any excess charge. Zero complaints about the upgrade, thank you Natalie! I regret that I don’t remember the name of the bartender, a tanned balding fellow with dark eyebrows, but he was so friendly and accommodating, service was immaculate and we were so impressed considering how busy he was, seemingly there around the clock! Overall we have nothing but good things to say about all the staff, from reception to housekeeping. Some minor negatives: 1. If you are sensitive to noise, as other commenters have noted this is not the room for you. We read these reviews and decided to book anyway, because we cared more about the view and prime location. Noise is the tradeoff for the balcony. 2. Food wise, we wished there were more appealing vegan options. If you’re here during Mardi Gras day and even a couple days before/after, it can be very hard to find restaurants that are open, accepting bookings, let alone transportation or a route through closed off streets. So if you have special dietary requirements, you must plan in advance, know that food options will be very limited and at certain times of day you can barely even exit the hotel to get through the crowds. 3. The balcony rooms overlooking St Charles Avenue (parade route) are available only with 2 queen beds. For us the beds were a little small, we would’ve liked the option of a single King bed, but those rooms don’t have balconies. The hotel should consider IMO some more flexibility on that front. Other than all that, a huge thank you to Natalie and her team for a magical Mardi Gras experience!
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