Private tour in New Orleans Leanne S
5.0
(23) reviews
3 hours
30 minutes
1
3 hours
30 minutes
1
Leanne S.
4.9
Guide rating
156
Reviews
Tours delivered
4 hrs
Avg. response time
Hi! My name is Leanne and I am a 6th generation New Orleanian. That means my triple G (great X3) grandpa came and settled in New Orleans in the early 1800's, a family history that runs back about 200 yrs. I really love New Orleans, I know I am so lucky to have my roots so deep in these swampy soils so many people and critters have been blessed to call home. For instance a secondline parade just rolled down my street yesterday with brass bands and thousands of people from a tradition that started in the early 1700's. And it's not Mardi Gras! :-) I'd love to tell you about it! And bring you to my family tomb in my neighborhood cemetery and give you a tour of my home through a historic shotgun home. My ancestors are tied into the rich food traditions of New Orleans; from my triple G grandpa selling boudin out of his Creole cottage window in the bywater in the 1860's to today at our local Frey family restaurant. I'm local through and through and that's why I wanna tell you all about this amazing city. I started giving swamp tours at the Science and Nature Center in high school and college. I've been giving tours for 20 years! Serving in West Africa for Peace Corps I learned even more intimately about the Central and West African ties to this city. It was there I learned the real story behind Voodoo and Gombo. During Hurricane Katrina, my house got 13 feet of water and my neighborhood is only about 40% rebuilt today. I talk about what's real and what's legend from a very local perspective. I have a passion for people, culture, my family history and having a great time with you in the Big Easy! I given hundreds of tours to thousands of people all over the city and working for myself it never gets old. This city on any day has something totally unique to share. Ive toured school groups, volunteers, business groups and travelers from around the world! I love people and I guarantee you will fall in love with my city and probably me too! ;-) But that's what New Orleans is all about, being real, friendly, taking it easy and letting the good times just roll. You'll meet strangers who become lifelong friends and this city will become your second home and Marie Laveaux makes sure people have to come back again and again and again! I hope to be a part of your New Orleans experience! - Tour guide license - Louisiana Master Naturalist
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I went to elementary school at Audubon Montessori off Broadway and later, Loyola University on St. Charles Ave in the Garden District. I will take you through my old stomping grounds! I lived near Magazine street in college during Hurricane Katrina. I can infuse the tour with my own experience as a local and, also stories dating back the the early 1800's when it was the city of Lafayette. We will start our tour on the infamous Neutral Ground on Canal street where the Americans and Creoles clashed in the early 1800's. We will take the oldest street car line still operating in the United States down St. Charles through mansions and talk about how the Garden District became the most wealthy neighborhood in the South. We will walk to Lafayette Cemetery that inspired Anne Rice's Interview with A Vampire and talk about Catholic and Voodoo traditions that influenced so much of our early culture and beliefs. Then we cruise Magazine street to get a local bite and drink before taking the streetcar back downriver.
Leanne was the perfect tour guide for our group. Her love for her city is obvious and her knowledge runs deep. She was perfectly in tune with our needs. We never felt rushed and she paced the walk as suited our group. Leanne answered all of our questions, often making the explanation richer with anecdotes from her own family stories. We all agreed that we would take another tour with her if we revisit New Orleans.
Loved our tour of the Garden District. Leanne extremely knowledgeable and engaging. Highly recommend. If we are ever back to New Orleans we will definitely use her services again.
Leanne is very knowledgeable and excited about sharing her love of New Orleans. I wish we had discovered her earlier so we could have taken more of her tours. We had a great time!
We had such a wonderful morning with Leanne! She is incredibly knowledgeable and is a gifted story teller and guide. We loved hearing her personal connection to the city. We would not hesitate to recommend her tour to anyone visiting New Orleans!
Leanne was extremely knowledgeable and presented information on the sites in a relaxed format. Our group of 6 enjoyed our time spent with Leanne and even invited her to have lunch with us. Leanne offers several tours and I will reach out to her when I return to New Orleans.
Was a fantastic tour - full of history and wonderful anecdotes, and curious and open to questions.
We start at Canal street and take the historic streetcar to the Garden district that will take us down St. Charles Ave and past the mansions. We will take a walk through the beautiful *Lafayette cemetery my favorite cemetery (except for the one where my ancestors are buried!) that is full of graves overgrown with trees and vines and inspired Anne Rice's Interview with A Vampire and we will talk about Catholic and Voodoo traditions and superstitions that gave New Orleans some of its most haunting history. We will tour the surrounding mansions and talk about their stories from past to present and end with a stroll down bustling Magazine Street where we can grab a local bite and drink, a streetcar ride back into the French Quarterniw optional. *Lafayette cemetery may be closed for maintenance, please message me and I'll update you, we can also tour another cemetery if it is still closed.
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Public streetcar and walking or biking.
New Orleans, Louisiana, 70130, United States
At the Monument to the Immigrant, closest address is at the Mississippi River next to the Steamboat launch at 400 Toulouse St, New Orleans, LA 70130
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3 hours
30 minutes
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3 hours
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If your tour is valued over $200 USD and booked at least 45 days before the tour date, you can book with a deposit!
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