New Orleans For Dummies (Dummies Travel) [Paperback]

Julia Kamysz Lane (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: November 5, 2004 | Series: Dummies Travel (Book 19)

Mardi Gras. Cajun cooking. Jazz. If you're looking for a great party, a great meal, or some great music, New Orleans is the place to be. But how do you find your way around? Relax! This easy-to-understand guide is all you need to find the best of the Big Easy.

New Orleans For Dummies includes:

• The best hotels and restaurants for every budget
• Details on the must-see attractions
• Itineraries for those short on time or traveling with families
• Special Mardi Gras chapter
• Day trips to Cajun country, plantations, and the bayou

Editorial Reviews

From the Back Cover

Ease into the Big Easy with tips from a local!

From Jazz Fest & po' boys to Bourbon Street & beignets, hop on a streetcar and we'll drop you off at the Crescent City's best places to take it all in. The French Quarter and the bayou are merely a few stops away.

About the Author

Julia Kamysz Lane is a freelance writer and book reviewer whose work has appeared in numerous newspapers and magazines. She also is an editorial consultant at LSU Eye Center. She lives in a 1940s bungalow in Old Lakeview with three dogs, three cats, and one very tolerant husband.

Product Details

• Paperback: 332 pages
• Publisher: For Dummies; 3 edition (November 5, 2004)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0764569449
• ISBN-13: 978-0764569449
• Product Dimensions: 8.3 x 5.2 x 0.7 inches
• Shipping Weight: 11.2 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 4.2 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (4 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #3,242,031 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

Growing up in the Chicago suburbs, Julia was unfamiliar with New Orleans until the new girl in her eighth grade class wore Mardi Gras beads and talked about the food and music of her native Louisiana. Years later, she studied English and French at Tulane University and fell in love with the city. She and her husband moved there in 1996.

Julia was hired as a staff writer at the local alternative newspaper, Gambit Weekly, where she wrote award-winning feature articles and book reviews. She soon freelanced for a variety of publications, including The New York Times Magazine, Poets & Writers and Publishers Weekly.

Her favorite assignment involved interviewing Anne Rice in her opulent Garden District Mansion. Rice was a gracious host and invited Julia to join her for a limousine tour of the city the following day. During the ride, Rice pointed out important scenes for her books and passionately shared her knowledge of New Orleans history and its culture.

In 2004, Julia wrote her first travel guide, New Orleans for Dummies (Wiley). The following year, she was working on a manuscript for a new book, Memorable Walks in New Orleans (Wiley), when Hurricane Katrina threatened. She and her husband and their four dogs and two cats evacuated to her parents' home in the Chicago suburbs. Weeks later, they were allowed to return and found their Lakeview bungalow ravaged by eight feet of standing water. Anything that had survived the water was coated in blackish green mold.

Devastated, they salvaged what they could - including the author photo on this page - and stayed with her parents while frequently returning to New Orleans to gut their house. Nearly a year later, they moved into a nearby 1940s farmhouse where Julia began work on an updated, post-Katrina New Orleans for Dummies (Wiley, 2007).

Her latest ode to the city, New Orleans Day by Day (Frommer's) was published in 2010. It gives readers a chance to explore the Crescent City as never seen before, rising from the ruins triumphant while fiercely embracing its storied culture and traditions.

Julia, her husband and their mini zoo divide their time between New Orleans and the Chicago area.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

11 of 11 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Including the Post-Katrina Experience, May 4, 2008

By 

Judy K. Polhemus "Book Collector" (Louisiana) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: New Orleans For Dummies (Paperback)

New Orleans has one thing in common with Mecca--it simply is one place you must visit at least once in your life. Moi, cher, I've been numerous times and plan to take my great-nephew and two great-nieces this summer.

Lucky me! "New Orleans for Dummies" has an excellent section for "Families with Children" and a way to see children-directed places in three days, just the time we will stay. We will begin with breakfast at Cafe du Monde in the French Quarter, then go through the open air markets, St. Louis Cathedral and Jackson Square, and on to the Aquarium of the Americas for the rest of the morning and the City Zoo in the afternoon. Day Two allows a visit to the Mardi Gras float area to watch floats in the making, then a trip to the Museum of Art and City park. Day Three takes in Riverwalk Marketplace and the Children's Museum. (The Louisiana Nature Center and Planetarium and Six Flags were devastated by Katrina damage and are closed.)

What makes this guide book stand out is its attention to the damage all over New Orleans after Katrina. It even suggests a Katrina Tour of the devastation so that tourists will have an idea of its immensity and perhaps be monetarily supportive now or later.

Another stand-out is attention to travel details. For the inexperienced traveler, writer Julia K. Lane lines up everything the planner needs to do for a successful trip. Everything is clearly written and organized. This part alone is worth the price of the book.

All the key tourist places are described: location, hours, prices (at the 2007 publication), maps. Any with hurricane damage are so noted, eliminating potential disappointments.

Anyone planning a trip to New Orleans would do well to browse this book, mark places of interest, then go back and plan according to details. Personally, I use two guide books, a map, and a notepad when I plan a trip. "New Orleans for Dummies" will certainly get you there and show you a good time. "Laissez les bons temps rouler!" (Let the good times roll!)

6 of 6 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars The best of six, January 13, 2003

By A Customer

This review is from: New Orleans for Dummies (Paperback)

I borrowed and read six New Orleans travel guides from the library before our trip. This one was far and away the best. It's always good to read from more than one source before traveling, but if I were to pick just one for New Orleans, this would be it.

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Off the beaten path, December 15, 2009

By 

Christopher Balfer - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: New Orleans For Dummies (Paperback)

I highly recommend New Orleans for Dummies to anyone who plans to visit that city. I had previously been to New Orleans several times, but could never seem to manage to escape the confinements of the French Quarter and, most importantly, Bourbon Street. This was mainly due to the fact that I had no idea where to go or what to look for. New Orleans for Dummies solved this problem, as it allowed me to plan out my trip prior to my arrival. Several sites are suggested in the book for exploring the city, as well as a review of all the top restaurants and hotels to make you stay more productive and enjoyable. I highly recommend this book to anyone who plans to visit the historic and culturally rich city of New Orleans.