Evening jazz cruise · New Orleans
A live band, the French Quarter skyline sliding past and a cocktail on the promenade deck, with a Creole-style dinner if you want one.
The band plays, the river slides past and the lights of the city come up along the bank.
Why a paddlewheeler
A sternwheeler carries a single paddle wheel at the back, and North America is where that design saw most of its service, above all on the Mississippi. The first Mississippi paddle steamer began working out of New Orleans in 1812, and landings in New Orleans went from 21 in 1814 to over 1,200 in 1833. Railways later took the passengers, but paddle wheels survive on excursion boats and floating restaurants, which is the job this boat does.
Jazz grew out of African-American communities in New Orleans around the turn of the 20th century. In the late 1910s the Streckfus excursion steamers hired New Orleans bands, and Louis Armstrong played on them in the band of Fate Marable. A band on a paddlewheeler is not a costume: it is one of the places the music grew up.
The ticket is a cruise with a live band, views of the skyline and the French Quarter from the river, a cocktail on the promenade deck and, if you choose it, a Creole-style dinner with time to dance afterwards. On the way back to the dock the boat passes Jackson Square. The guides below explain the options and the river you sail.
From the pilot's log
Read the evening as a pilot's log: the dock, the wheel, the band, the skyline, the square and the bridge. Six entries from the river, kept in the order of the evening.
At the dock
The boat ties up at the Riverwalk on the Poydras Street Dock, and the ticket booth stands next to it. The operator gives its address as 1 Poydras Street. Go straight to the booth with your confirmation, and read the start time there, because the booking calendar sets it.
The wheel
A sternwheeler has a single paddle wheel at the back, and roughly the lowest quarter of it turns under the water. The Mississippi is where the type did most of its work in North America. This boat is billed as an old-fashioned sternwheeler paddleboat, so watch the stern from the open deck.
On deck
The ticket includes a live jazz band. Guests describe traditional jazz standards played on the top deck. The lineup is a style, not a promise: the ticket names a band and the operator's page names none. On the dinner option there is time to dance in the dining hall after the meal.
The skyline
The French Quarter, the colonial-era heart of the city, runs back from the river between Canal Street and Esplanade Avenue. New Orleans was founded in 1718, and a fire in 1788 destroyed most of it. The Spanish rebuilt, so much of the Quarter shows more Spanish than French influence. The ticket promises views of the skyline and the Quarter.
Jackson Square
On the way back to the dock the boat passes Jackson Square. The square took its name in 1851 from Andrew Jackson, the victor of the 1815 Battle of New Orleans. St. Louis Cathedral stands at the centre of its north side, and a levee with a boardwalk on top now stands between the square and the water.
The bridge
Guests mention gliding under an illuminated bridge. The Crescent City Connection is a pair of cantilever bridges, the farthest downstream bridge on the Mississippi, and the river flows north where they cross. Which bridge a sailing passes is the captain's choice on the night.
The route depends on the river and the weather, and the cruise can be moved or cancelled for safety. This log describes what the evening is built around, not a fixed itinerary.
Deck by deck
The boat is billed as an old-fashioned sternwheeler paddleboat, with a promenade deck, a dining hall and a live band. This is how the parts of the evening fit together.
A 1919 riverboat band, the stern wheel of the Creole Queen, the skyline at night from a deck, the French Quarter, Jackson Square, a bridge, a traditional jazz band and Frenchmen Street. Photos name the Creole Queen where it appears; the band, the Quarter and the street are context, not the cruise itself.
New Orleans evenings compared
| Evening | What it offers | Best for |
|---|---|---|
| Evening jazz cruise on a paddlewheeler | About two hours on the Mississippi with a live jazz band, views of the skyline and the French Quarter, a cocktail on the promenade deck and an optional Creole-style dinner. The ticket is marked wheelchair accessible, and children aged five and younger join free. | Travellers who want music and the river together, seated, with the option of dinner. |
| Daytime history cruise with optional lunch | A narrated sailing on the same paddlewheeler, lasting two and a half hours,, downriver to Chalmette Battlefield, with a one-hour ranger-led tour on shore. The boat is wheelchair accessible, but the battlefield park is not. | Visitors who want the story of the river and the Battle of New Orleans, not a band. |
| Frenchmen Street live music walk | A guided three-hour walk to the music clubs and cocktail bars of Frenchmen Street, with VIP entry that skips the lines, a specialised cocktail and a shot. Guests describe four places and four musical styles in one night. | Travellers who want several bands on foot instead of one band on a boat. |
Music nights in New Orleans
The first card is the evening jazz cruise. The other two are separate listings for a daytime cruise and a walk through the music clubs, each with its own rating, fare and format.
About two hours on the Mississippi with a live jazz band, views of the skyline and the French Quarter, a cocktail on the promenade deck and an optional Creole-style dinner. The ticket is marked wheelchair accessible, and children aged five and younger join free.
See times and options ↗A narrated sailing on the same paddlewheeler, lasting two and a half hours,, downriver to Chalmette Battlefield, with a one-hour ranger-led tour on shore. The boat is wheelchair accessible, but the battlefield park is not.
See times and options ↗A guided three-hour walk to the music clubs and cocktail bars of Frenchmen Street, with VIP entry that skips the lines, a specialised cocktail and a shot. Guests describe four places and four musical styles in one night.
See times and options ↗More to book in New Orleans
Dock notes
The river, the band and the dinner: guides
Which ticket, with or without dinner How to book the evening jazz cruise on a Mississippi paddlewheeler: cruise only or with a Creole-style dinner, what the ticket covers, boarding and weather.
Read this guide → Why jazz and paddlewheelers belong together How steamboats and New Orleans jazz grew up on one river: the Streckfus boats, Fate Marable, Louis Armstrong and what a band on a paddlewheeler is today.
Read this guide →FAQ
The ticket says two hours and the operator's page says two and a half hours. Allow the longer time, and read the sailing time in your confirmation.
No. Dinner is an option, so you can sail without it. If it is missing for your date, the operator says that date's dinner places are sold out.
From the Riverwalk, on the Poydras Street Dock, with the ticket booth next to the boat.
A live jazz band. The ticket names a bandleader but the operator's page names no band, so treat the lineup as a style of music and not a promise.
Yes, alcoholic drinks are sold on board. You cannot bring your own food or drink.
The cruise can be moved or cancelled for weather and safety, and the boat may stay at the dock. Check the cancellation terms on your confirmation.
Yes. The GetYourGuide ticket carries free cancellation until a day before the cruise, and it lets you book now and settle the bill later.
No. This is an independent guide: the boat, the band and the dock belong to the operator, and bookings are made on GetYourGuide.
Fares on this page are adult prices in US dollars. The booking calendar can show them in your own currency.