An interactive museum with over 30,000 square feet of art, music, science, math, health, and role-playing environments, the Louisiana Children’s Museum is a local favorite. Activities include the “Little Port of New Orleans,” where kids can pilot a towboat down the Mississippi River or serve a make-believe meal in the cruise ship galley. The museum is located in the Arts District (Warehouse District), a historic neighborhood with cool art galleries and restaurants.

Located on the Mississippi River adjacent to the French Quarter, the Audubon Aquarium of the Americas is a favorite destination for families. The 400,000-gallon Gulf of Mexico Exhibit includes a walk-through tunnel featuring gigantic sharks, tarpon, and rays. Other highlights include live penguins, a sea otter and parakeet feeding opportunity.

Spread out over 1,300 acres in the heart of the city, City Park is bustling with family-friendly fun, including the Carousel Gardens Amusement Park, Storyland—a theme playground filled with 20 larger-than-life storybook sculptures featuring classic fairytale characters, The Historic New Orleans Train Garden snuggled inside the Botanical Garden, and CityPutt, a 100% ADA accessible mini golf complex showcasing streets and iconic themes from around the city.

Imagine the costumes, floats, and décor of New Orleans’ Mardi Gras parade without the crowds of drunk revelers. This tour is an excellent option if you are in New Orleans outside of Mardi Gras season. To be clear, this isn’t a museum, but rather a warehouse filled with memorabilia. Don’t worry though, there are plenty of Instagram-worthy photo ops with all of the props and costumes. Each tour ends with a slice of King Cake (which is hard to find out of season).

Many locals believe the best way to see New Orleans is from the water. As the only steamboat in New Orleans, Steamboat Natchez takes visitors on an old-timey tour of the Mississippi River, as the captain shouts through a hand-held megaphone and a band plays vintage jazz music. You can have lunch aboard the ship or buy ice cream from the gift shop, as the tour guide points out an area of historical significance and industrial points of interest like a sugar factory.

Kids love the spacious layout of this museum that sprawls out over a large campus where they have the opportunity to climb aboard a Sherman tank as well as ride on the world’s only fully-restored combat-veteran PT boat in operation today.

Head to the Audubon Insectarium where all the creepy, crawly creatures are on display. Touch stations welcome the brave to learn about beetles, larvae, and more. Our favorite spot was Bug Appétit where you can try out ranch or barbecue-flavored crickets along with other bug treats. The immersive butterfly garden was a real treat with these gorgeous creatures surrounding you as you walk through the exhibit.

There’s so much art on display in New Orleans from street art covering the buildings to artists selling their creations around Jackson Square. JAMNOLA celebrates this creative spirit by immersing you in 17 art exhibits where you can see how a Gatorade bottle can be turned into a lamp and so much more. Kids will love climbing inside a crab pot to be cooked along with the crawdads and then checking out their reflection in the mirrored wallpaper.

Right along the waterfront is this fun, immersive activity that your whole family will enjoy. Vue Orleans gives you a taste of New Orleans history through interactive exhibits and then sends you up to the top floor for a 360-degree view of the city down below. Kids will love trying their luck at navigating a barge through the Mississippi River in the interactive game and you can snap some great pics from the indoor and outdoor levels.

Even those who are not necessarily jazz aficionados will enjoy listening to a traditional New Orleans jazz performance in this ultra-small venue that has been open since 1961. Shows last 45 minutes and you’ll want to line up in advance as seating is open within the section you purchased. You can even meet some of the musicians after the show!