10 Things to Do in New Orleans in September

September is associated with the end of summer, but in New Orleans this month is full of festivals and other cultural activities that will keep you entertained throughout your visit. As the month kicks off, you can celebrate sexual diversity with the Southern Decadence Fest or cool off with a visit to the Cool Zoo for its last show of the year on Labor Day.

If you're into underground cultures, September offers two attractions you won't want to miss: the New Orleans Tattoo Arts Festival and the Burlesque Festival. Each will give you the opportunity to meet the best tattoo artists and Burlesque dancers in the world.

For foodies, New Orleans and its surrounding areas have some great options to pamper your taste buds, with September's Beignet Fest and Alligator Festival, where alligator meat is the main dish. There's always plenty to see and do in New Orleans, but September will surprise you even more...

The last show of the year at Cool Zoo, the water park inside the Audubon Zoo, coincides with Labor Day (the first Monday in September), so if you want to take the opportunity to cool off one more time here, don't miss the chance! Tickets for the Cool Zoo can be purchased directly through the zoo's official website, from 23.80 euros.

Inside the Cool Zoo you'll find everything from a slide in the shape of a giant white crocodile, to aquatic areas dedicated exclusively to children. The Gator Run, a slow-flowing man-made river and the Roman Candy Shop are other attractions available.

The NFL season kicks off in September and in New Orleans this means that visitors to the city have the opportunity to go and support the New Orleans Saints in their first game of the year. Tickets for this game can be purchased from 129 Euros.

This first game is traditionally played at the Caesar's Superdome, the home of the New Orleans Saints and one of the most impressive sports stadiums in the world. However, I recommend that you book your tickets in advance, as tickets usually sell out weeks before the game.

French cuisine is central to the culture of New Orleans, so it's no wonder that every year in September, the city holds a festival dedicated to one of the most popular French desserts, the Beignet Fest. You can buy tickets for this event directly on the festival's website.

Head to New Orleans' City Park (the venue for the event) to sample different types of beignets, some sweeter than others, but all definitely delicious! And if you're looking for something more savoury, you'll be pleased to know that there are also food trucks and craft beers for sale at the event. During the day-long festival you can also enjoy live concerts.

If in addition to eating delicious desserts, you like to support social causes, then the Beignet Fest Foundation, which is responsible for organising this event, donates part of the money raised to organisations that help children with delayed development.

While you're on the subject of French culture, take the opportunity to explore one of the city's most interesting neighbourhoods with one of the guided tours of New Orleans' French Quarter, where you'll learn about the roots of the French and Spanish immigrants who arrived there, giving rise to the American city's Creole roots and cultural diversity.

Are you interested in the queer world and want to attend a festival that celebrates sexual diversity? Then you should visit New Orleans in September, exactly the week before Labor Day, when the Southern Decadence Festival takes place. This is the biggest gay event in New Orleans. Buy your tickets on the festival's official website.

For six days, the Southern Decadence Festival takes over the streets of New Orleans, filling them with colour (with the traditional bead throwing) and joy. The main attraction of this event is the big parade on the Sunday before Labor Day, which concludes in the French Quarter, perhaps the city's most visited tourist destination.

Other attractions of this event also include parties under the open sky and in the late-night bars at the intersection of Bourbon and St. Ann Streets. There, in addition to New Orleans cocktails, you can also enjoy dance shows with the city's hottest dancers, themed costume parties, and karaoke.

Held every year on a mid-September night, Martini Madness is one of the biggest attractions in New Orleans. Want to know every type of martini there is, from the traditional to some that require more elaborate alcoholic combinations? Well, here you'll find at least 30 varieties of martinis to try.

Tickets are available from €28.3 (non-drinkers) and €37.8 (drinkers).

Martini Madness takes place within the grounds of City Park, in a special event space where, in addition to drinking, you'll also enjoy live music and delicious hors d'oeuvres courtesy of some of the city's most popular restaurants. Also, near the end of the event, a public vote is held to crown the bartender who has prepared the best martinis of the night.

To attend Martini Madness you must be at least 21 years old. One thing you may be interested to know is that all the money raised during this event is administered by the Friends of City Park Foundation, which maintains New Orleans' Central Park, the city's natural jewel.

Culture lovers should know that September 17 is Smithsonian Museum Day, a special date in New Orleans, as during this day people will be able to enter for free to several of its museums. But for this you must first reserve your entrance pass on the Smithsonian Magazine's official website.

Among the options you have to choose from, my recommendation is to visit the World War II Museum or the New Orleans Museum of Art. Whichever you choose, you'll find extraordinary exhibitions of history and art respectively that will make your trip to this city a unique experience.

It's important to remember that for each free pass you have the option of taking one companion with you to the museum. So if you're going to New Orleans in September with your partner, a friend or a family member, you'll have the chance to visit two museums between you.

Visit the World War II Museum

If you go to the World War II Museum during Smithsonian Museum Day, you'll have access to several exhibits that explain the challenges the United States had to overcome in both the Pacific and European theatres to win the war. Each exhibit features a display of oral testimony, historical artifacts (such as weapons and uniforms), and much more!

The museum also offers two unique activities that will give you a closer look at the experience of being an American soldier in World War II:

• Replay of the film Beyond All Boundaries: projected in a 4D cinema, this immersive film experience uses sensory effects, such as temperature changes, impacts and even smells, to bring the viewer closer to the scenarios in which the North American army fought its part of World War II.
• Interactive tour inside the USS Tang: during this tour visitors will learn about the history of the most popular American submarine of World War II (renowned for sinking more enemy ships than any other). The tour includes a live re-enactment of the submarine's last mission.

Tour the New Orleans Museum of Art

Art fascinates you? Then use your free Smithsonian Museum Day pass to visit the New Orleans Museum of Art. Here you'll find everything from contemporary artists such as Jackson Pollock and Pablo Picasso to Japanese paintings from the Edo period and ancient African art, with an extensive display of masks and sculptures.

But in my opinion the most precious jewel of the museum is the exhibition dedicated to the Egypt of Queen Nefertari. It displays many of the 230 objects that make up the museum's collection of ancient Egyptian art.

Do you love adult entertainment and are thinking of spending your September holiday in New Orleans? Then don't miss the Burlesque Festival, a mid-month event that brings together the best Burlesque and striptease dancers in the world. Buy your tickets in advance on the festival's official website.

The Burlesque Festival is held in three different locations in New Orleans: the Civic Theatre, Harrah's Casino and the House of Blues. Throughout the event you can enjoy a variety of classic, modern and neo-burlesque shows. The Bustout Burlesque, another of the festival's main attractions, is a striptease show set to live jazz.

But the festival's central event is the Queen of Burlesque competition, in which several of the world's best burlesque dancers compete to see who is crowned queen of the genre for the year. Due to the explicit content and alcohol consumption during the event, you must be at least 21 years old to attend the Burlesque Festival.

Just a 25-minute drive from New Orleans is Luling, a Louisiana town that hosts the annual Alligator Festival during the last weekend in September It is a music and food festival held to raise funds to pay for the college education of underprivileged young people from Luling.

Organised by the Rotary Club of Saint Charles Parish, and hosted at Westbank Bridge Park, the festival features about 10 local bands each year, whose southern rhythms allow you to connect with Louisiana's deep roots for four days. The event also features a fair, selling everything from toys to clothing to jewellery.

But ultimately, Cajun cuisine is the festival's central attraction. The are the descendants of a community of French exiles from Canada who came to Louisiana in the early 18th century. Instead of joining their compatriots in the newly founded New Orleans, they decided to move to adjacent rural areas, mainly swampland.

The main Cajun dish to try, and the one that gives the festival its name, is alligator steak, which is eaten grilled or fried. Other typical Cajun foods available at the event include steamed shrimp, crab stew and jambalaya (fried rice mixed with meat and vegetables). Tickets for this event are available from 52.4 euros.

Towards the end of September the Mortuary Haunted House opens its doors for those who want to start celebrating Halloween early in the year. Tickets can be purchased online from 23.82 euros. Mortuary is located on Canal Street in New Orleans.

Among the attractions at Mortuary are animatronics in the shape of monsters and specially decorated scare environments. An additional interesting detail about this mansion is that it functioned as an actual morgue for almost 80 years.

Are you thinking of getting a tattoo but don't know any professional tattoo artists, are you a tattoo artist and want to buy new equipment for your studio, or are you an ink enthusiast and want to know more about the world of tattooing? If you answered yes to any of these questions, then the New Orleans Tattoo Arts Festival is for you.

Considered a tattoo mecca, this annual event takes place at the beginning of September. Tickets start at 18.94 euros; under 12s pay nothing.

This festival brings together the best local, national and international tattoo artists, so if you want to get a special tattoo, you're sure to find the right artist here.

During the event, the public can also enjoy exhibitions with the most creative tattoo designs of the moment, talks, live interviews, plus the traditional body suspension show that will test your nerves. Book your tickets here.

In September, summer is a thing of the past, but the seasonal heat is not yet over. Because of this, high temperatures in New Orleans in this month vary between 32 and 29°C, while the low rarely falls below 26°C.

Considering what the weather is generally like throughout this month, it's important to always stay well hydrated during your stay in New Orleans and wear sunscreen outdoors.

September is part of the off-season in New Orleans, so the city is less crowded with tourists. This lack of tourists means that demand for accommodation services is lower and prices in general in the city are considerably lower.

Travelling to New Orleans at this time of year can be a great option if you want to have a more affordable holiday, while still enjoying an excellent programme of activities, festivals and other cultural attractions.

Travel tips for September

Here are some other tips to help you make the most of your trip to New Orleans:

• Plan your trip to the Louisiana city and organise your New Orleans Airport Transfers well.
• To get to know the city and learn about its past, don't forget to check out our post on The 10 Best Guided Tours of New Orleans
• With the good weather in September, you might want to check out the best New Orleans Boat Tours or New Orleans Cruises.
• Or if you're travelling to the southern city for a few days, why not check out the New Orleans Excursions and Getaways

Enjoy the contrast and cultural diversity this city has to offer!