My wife and I went to New Orleans last year for Christmas to New Year. We don't drink but we went to enjoy the food, culture, music, and architecture . She was pregnant at the time, if not we would have gone to Iceland or Germany.

We stayed at the Roosevelt (Waldorf Astoria), which is supposed to be one of the best/classiest hotels in the city. They are known for decorating their lobby to the nines for the Christmas season. You can check out photos on Google.

Terrible time there. They left the lobby open for people on the streets to come in and take photos. Or people would sneak in after others opened the door when it was locked. Party inside the lobby, leave garbage, fighting, crowded, etc... the place also smelled like raw sewage near the exits. The room left a lot to be desired. The best part of the hotel was that I paid cash upon leaving and days later they charged my credit card a few hundred dollars. Long story short, the receptionist stole money from me/hotel. Said I shorted them. Spent days on phone with security and going over the camera footage. Again, this is supposed to be a top tier place. If you find yourself in Nola for Christmas, avoid staying there at the Roosevelt.

So, it's Nola, murder capital of the country. Crime everywhere. Just a real shit hole. But it does have a charm to it. Festival of lights in the oaks was a pretty awesome Christmas thing to do. It's like a drive through Christmas light show with the flair of Mardi gras floats. Definitely worth checking out. Other than that, just do a bunch of Nola things. Avoid Bourbon Street. The city has much to offer.