We upgraded from an RV kitchen table to The InterContinental Hotel New Orleans

On one trip to New Orleans, we slept on a converted kitchen table in an RV on our way to JazzFest. I thought about that trip as I sunk into the luxurious linens in the bed of our suite at the InterContinental New Orleans where we stayed recently for another trip to JazzFest. This is better, I thought.

The InterContinental has 484 rooms, rooftop pool and two restaurants. The location, just a few blocks from Canal Street, is perfect for walking to Jackson Square, the Mississippi River and attractions like The National World War II Museum.

We were also steps away from the streetcar that runs to the Garden District and a few blocks from another line that runs up Canal Street. Fun fact: New Orleans has the oldest continuing streetcar line in the world.

We also rode the streetcar back from JazzFest. As we were leaving the festival Sunday and hoping to be able to get an (overpriced we were sure) Uber, I heard a drunk guy asking a security guard where he could catch the streetcar. It was a nice night so we decided to follow him with low expectations that our diversion of plans would pay off. Following drunk people down the street rarely has a positive outcome.

But in just a few blocks we spotted the streetcar, hopped on board and made our way back to the hotel.

A ride costs just $1.25. The easiest way to ride it is to download Le Pass, the app for RTA, the public transportation system. You can use your credit card to buy rides on the streetcar, bus and ferry.

One afternoon we walked down to the Mississippi and hopped on the ferry to Algiers and walked around this quiet riverside neighborhood.

Another day I walked to Jackson Square and around the French Quarter while Chris was attending a conference. One afternoon when he was free, we walked to The National World War II Museum and to Herbsaint, a restaurant where we had dinner.

The location on St. Charles Avenue in the Central Business District, besides being so convenient, is fairly quiet. We got a kick out of one guest who wrote a review complaining about the noise of a trash compactor that came on several times a day. That was the rumbling of the streetcar going by, a sound I found charming.

Luxury accommodations, amenities at the InterContinental Hotel New Orleans

We didn’t check into our room until after several hours at JazzFest and were delighted to see our suite on the 12^th floor with a view looking down St. Charles Avenue with tall ceilings that added to its elegant appeal. It was spacious and had two bathrooms, two TVs, two mini fridges and a large sitting area.

The sitting area was really nice to have when I shared a glass of wine with a former co-worker, Stephanie Oswald, who lives in New Orleans and came over one evening to catch up.

The main bathroom had my favorite unicorn of hotel rooms – a bathtub. Much to my sorrow, these are disappearing from hotels along with the shower cap. (We had those too!) I must be in the minority of people who still use both.

And I really appreciate a bath/shower with a clearly marked faucet where I don’t need an engineering degree to figure out how to regulate the temperature. On/off, hot/cold is all I need.

The InterContinental has 15 floors and out of the 484 rooms, 76 have balconies with views of a sculpture courtyard. There are four types of suites, ranging in size from 535 to 2100 square feet.

All the rooms have a writing desk with a pad of paper and a pen – something else that is disappearing, a mini fridge and Keurig coffee maker.

A lovely rooftop pool with a fleur de lis on the bottom – a symbol of New Orleans – is open from around May to September and has an overhang that provides some shade if you are no longer a person who bakes in the sun. It’s located right off the fitness center.

The Restaurants at the InterContinental Hotel New Orleans

The InterContinental has two restaurants: Pete’s and Trenasse.

I had breakfast at Pete’s, where the buffet is popular. If you’re ready to start the Louisiana-style feeding frenzy in the morning, opt for the Creole Chicken & Waffles or the Louisiana Ambassador Breakfast, which includes eggs, Creole beignets, bacon-wrapped shrimp, pepper jack grits, applewood bacon or sausage. Meals like this are what stretch pants were invented for.

After having indulged in several New Orleans dishes like soft-shelled crabs and jambalaya at JazzFest the evening before, I opted for the healthier Farmer’s Market Fold with egg white, spinach, feta, herbs and blistered tomato – yummy. It came with a yogurt parfait that would usually be all I eat for breakfast so I opted to take it back to our room where we had a separate mini fridge from the one that was packed with baby bottles of alcohol and mixers.

New Orleans is the only city in the world where I crave a Bloody Mary in the morning. I had planned on having one as my first indulgence at JazzFest, but sadly learned they don’t serve them there any longer, at least for us non-VIP people. I dampened my disappointment with pecan-encrusted trout.

I noticed the Cajun Bloody Mary on the menu at Pete’s, but the dawn of Monday morning had seen my craving pass.

In addition to breakfast daily, Pete’s serves cocktail and snacks Thursday – Saturday.

We tried the second restaurant, Trenasse, for lunch one day where our fellow diners included passengers with the American Queen Steamboat Company who were staying at the hotel prior to beginning their cruise up the Mississippi River. We had seen their group gathering earlier in the lobby, smiles of anticipation on their faces.

Trenasse serves contemporary Cajun-Creole cuisine. As the owners explain the name, “A trenasse is a man-made waterway to navigate the marsh to a favorite fishing spot or ‘honey hole.’ Trenasse pays homage to those who came before us and features fresh Gulf fish and shellfish, duck, lamb, beef, and frog.”

For you fans of 30A in Florida, Trenasse is the sister restaurant of Stinky’s Fish Camp in Santa Rosa Beach.

My husband, who will never get his fill of oysters, opted for the fried oyster salad and I had the Monday special of red beans and rice with Andouille sausage. Both dishes were good and filling.

Meetings at the InterContinental Hotel New Orleans

I’ve attended my share on conferences this year and was just in New Orleans to have fun. But if I was there for a conference or an event, I’d love to hang out in their meeting areas, which just underwent a $3.5 million renovation. It was the first time I had seen a fireplace and a piano in this type of space.

We stayed four nights at the InterContinental New Orleans and really enjoyed the beautiful suite, stellar location and delicious food.

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– Jan Schroder, Editor-in-chief