French Quarter Walking Tour by National Park Service

Graham was awesome tour guide. And, booking agent stayed on the phone with me while I was lost on my way to get there!!Graham enforced safety rules in a nice manner. He really knew his history and made the tour interesting. Wish we would have been able to go in the stops but it was great anyway. Thanks Graham

Another 5 stars for Ranger Jim and his free 1-hour walking tour. Jim is wonderfully engaging -- the kind of guy you just want to sit back and listen to no matter what the heck he might be talking about. He paints a rough sketch of New Orleans history for those without a clue. It's a nice level of detail, though I would have loved even more.One cautionary note: this is no longer a true French Quarter tour -- the Park Service has apparently been strong-armed by the commercial tour services, and the tour is now limited to the peripheries. That doesn't mean you shouldn't do it; it just means you may want to supplement with a paid tour. Jim recommends the one by the Friends of the Cabildo for $15.Other tips: the gate opens at 9am and the tour starts at 9:30. Sometimes it fills up fast (25 spots total, I think), so you might consider getting there right at 9 or even a few minutes before. Once you pick up your ticket to lock in your spot, you can run over to Cafe Du Monde, get your bag of beignets, and get back to the tour by 9:30. Don't forget to make a donation to the Park Service.

The only national park that preserves music. Everyday Ranger Karin does an amazing Job at telling the story of music! Followed by a little concert in the hall. It is all free. They also offer yoga jazz in the park. A real secret treat. I advise everyone go!

Wait? People are complaining about a FREE tour? And it's not one of those "Free" tours that expect tips at the end and people still can rate it less than 5 stars? This is a free tour from the US Park Services. Tickets were handed out at 9.30, but we arrived at 9.20 to be sure to get one of them and then walked around to get some drinks and snacks before the tour started at 10. It's an interesting tour that's a relatively short walk around the waterfront of New Orleans. There's cool bits of history and you'll end up at the end near the church and Cafe du Monde. Afterwards, we walked up to the Farmer/Flea market where you'll find some cool art and good local produce and food. If you can get up without being too hung over, I highly recommend this tour.

Free is good. History is good. Ten million screaming children pouring into the aquarium while the Ranger is trying to talk...not so good, but unavoidable. Pellet rifle...would have been good. Back in the day the Rangers did a walking tour of the French Quarter. I loved that tour and went every time I came to New Orleans. I was surprised that the tour had changed to a Riverfront walking tour with three stops. I didn't think I'd enjoy it as much, but I was wrong. The information is not what you will hear on any other tour. I loved it. They explain the history behind New Orleans in a more "social studies" kind of way. While I did get tired of standing a little, I'm really glad I took the tour. And free is a price I can always deal with!

There are a variety of walking tours in this most special of cities, but the one conducted by the National Park Service is absolutely top notch! Their Visitor's Center on Decatur offers a number of historical and cultural exhibits, illustrating the time line of various waves of people moving into the Crescent City and the surrounding area, from French explorers and early settlers to the Spanish, from African slaves to German and Italian immigrants, and more. The walking tour itself is filled with historical, architectural, cultural information that I've never found elsewhere, and never would have known were it not from the guy in the Smokey-the-Bear hat. (Indeed, I learned things on that tour that many locals never knew!)And -- it's free! (Limited to 25 people, though.)

Went on the Ghosts and Vampires tour with Dylan. He's a good story teller. We had fun.

This is the best tour in the city because it is free. I probably shouldn't be spilling the beans on this one but everybody else did, so I don't mind. You've got to go early, which is a difficult thing to do in this party-centric city where the bars only close for two hours or so. My favorite part of the tour was when Ranger Jim asked our tour group if we knew much of Andrew Jackson. The BF piped up something to the effect of: "Andrew Jackson was a murdering pillager/rapist whose exploits have been bowdlerized and who's life has escaped the true and just gaze of history." I howled. The rest of the crowd was not amused.

Mary was an amazing tour guide. Very knowledgeable and friendly. Just wanted to take her home with us!!!

We just did this tour yesterday and it was fantastic. Our guide was Rachel and she gave us SO much information. This tour is a must for anyone who is interested in understanding the history of the area and New Orleans itself. Definitely get there early because the tickets do go fast. We arrived about 40 minutes early and there were already a few folks ahead of us (and this was on a weekday). The Visitor Center was also nice to check out. While the pics, etc. seemed a bit dated - it was still informative and interesting. Plus the site of the Visitor Center is historic and is in a nice courtyard with clean bathrooms.