The Roosevelt New Orleans April 2010

[pianodinosaur]

The Roosevelt New Orleans April 2010

My wife's cousin celebrated her 60th birthday this weekend in New Orleans. We stayed at the Roosevelt New Orleans using an HHonors redemption for two nights. The Roosevelt is part of the Waldorf Collection and this was our first experience at a Waldorf Collection hotel. The hotel has been around since 1893 when it was the Gruenwald. Then its name was changed to the Roosevelt in the 1920s in honor of President Theodore Roosevelt. The hotel was later purchased by Fairmont and called The Fairmont New Orleans. Hilton acquired the hotel from Fairmont and restored its name to The Roosevelt New Orleans.

The bed was excellent and the room had antique furnishings. The bathroom was small but the shower was perfect. The food was expensive but you really got what you paid for. The Sunday Jazz Brunch in the Blue Room is the single finest experience we have ever had in New Orleans. There is beautiful Jesuit Church right across the street that reminds me of the churches we saw in Spain. The hotel is at the intersection of Canal Street and Baronne and is right across the street from the French Quarter and four short blocks from Harrahs. There is a very comfortable outdoor swimming pool and atrium on the 4th floor.

There were two wedding receptions during our stay at The Roosevelt. It is inconceivable that there would be a finer place to have a wedding reception in New Orleans than at The Roosevelt. My wife's cousin stayed at the Omni Royal, which is in the French Quarter. Other party celebrants stayed at the Omni Crescent. The Rib Room at the Omni Royal is excellent and somewhat less expensive than at the Roosevelt. However, the rooms a the Roosevelt are much nicer and so is the lobby.

We did not see any residual damage for Katrina during our visit. However, seven people were shot Saturday night on Canal Street during our stay and we got to see the police closing off the crime scene and direct traffic and pedestrians on our way back to The Roosevelt from the Rib Room.

This is a view of the Roosevelt from the intersection of Canal and Baronne.

This is the Baronne Street entrance to The Roosevelt New Orleans. The valet parking is on Univeristy which is the other side of the block.

 

[brp]

Thanks for the review. We will be going there later this month for Jazz Fest. We go every year, but this will be our first at the Roosevelt. We've been there for the several years after Katrina and there really never was any evidence in the tourist areas like the French Quarter and Garden District. First, they are on higher ground and had very little impact to begin with. Second, they're tourist areas and get fixed much more quickly than the poorer areas that still show substantial Katrina damage.

Cheers.