Beignets Friday morning, Cozumel by Monday. Sail from the French Quarter.
No other cruise port starts the vacation before you board: the Julia Street and Erato Street terminals sit at the foot of downtown, a 15 minute walk from Jackson Square. From here Carnival, Norwegian and Royal Caribbean sail the Western Caribbean (Disney in select winters), and American Cruise Lines and Viking head the other way, up the Mississippi. SmartCruiser shows every sailing leaving New Orleans from every line, ocean and river, prices each one with taxes and fees included, and puts the sailings with SmartCruiser bonus onboard credit or instant savings at the top.
Three ways to sail from New Orleans
New Orleans is two ports in one: the Gulf to the Caribbean, or the river to Memphis. Pick a direction.
A 7 night Western Caribbean week
- Down the Mississippi at sunset, then Cozumel, Costa Maya, Roatan, Belize or Montego Bay
- Sunday departures on Carnival year-round, with Norwegian and Royal Caribbean in winter
- A day and a half of river and Gulf each way, so pack for the pool
Best for: families, couples, drive-in cruisers from Louisiana, Mississippi, Alabama and Texas.
4 and 5 nights to Cozumel
- Thursday to Monday on Carnival: a sea day, Cozumel, a sea day home
- 5 night versions add Progreso and the Mayan ruins, or Costa Maya
- Add a French Quarter night before and you have a week’s worth of vacation in five days
Best for: long weekends, first cruises, bachelor and bachelorette groups.
Up the Mississippi
- 7 to 15 nights to Baton Rouge, Natchez, Vicksburg, Memphis and on to St. Louis and St. Paul
- American Cruise Lines paddlewheelers and modern riverboats, Viking Mississippi; 180 to 390 guests
- Excursions, wine with dinner and a pre-cruise hotel night in New Orleans included
Best for: retirees, history lovers, anyone who wants a cruise without a passport or a sea day.
New Orleans deals: SmartCruiser picks first
Every sailing leaving New Orleans from every line, priced live with taxes, fees and port expenses included. The picks at the top are sailings where booking with SmartCruiser gets you something extra: instant savings, bonus onboard credit, a Special SmartCruiser rate, or a senior, resident or police & fire fare that beats the public price. Below them, every other sailing from New Orleans with full sorting.
SmartCruiser picks
Sorted by what you save, biggest firstEvery sailing from New Orleans
Stack any filters, then pick a sortPrices are per person, double occupancy, in US dollars, and include cruise fare, taxes, fees and port expenses as published by the cruise line at the moment you load this page. Fares are capacity controlled and change daily; the fare is confirmed when you book. Flights, hotels and transfers are extra unless the line’s offer says otherwise. SmartCruiser instant savings and bonus onboard credit are provided by SmartCruiser on top of the cruise line’s price and are not available when booking direct; amounts are per stateroom, vary by stateroom category and are shown for the lowest category offered. Special SmartCruiser rates are pricing SmartCruiser holds on that sailing for its clients, with extra onboard credit; you book your own stateroom and travel on your own. Senior fares apply to guests 55 and over; resident fares need proof of residency in a listed state or province at check-in; police and fire fares apply to active or retired police, fire and EMT personnel with ID. Qualifier-fare savings are measured against the best fare the cruise line offers the general public for the same stateroom category on the day the list was pulled, updated weekly.
Where ships from New Orleans sail
Pick a destination and the list above filters to the New Orleans sailings that go there.
Which line from New Orleans?
Four ocean lines and two river lines sail from the Crescent City. Our one-line take on each.
When to go
The ocean ships sail all year; the riverboats run March to December. Mardi Gras and the Jazz Fest move hotel prices more than cruise fares.
New Orleans cruise questions we answer every day
How much is parking at the Port of New Orleans?
The port’s own parking charges about $25 a day, paid by card on arrival and billed by the length of your cruise, so a 7 night cruise is about $175 and a 4 night about $100 to $120. Carnival guests park in the Erato Street garage attached to the terminal; Julia Street guests (Norwegian and Royal Caribbean) park at the 100 Poydras garage, a few blocks away, with a shuttle for you and your bags. Private lots on Convention Center Boulevard and Tchoupitoulas typically run $12 to $18 a day with a shuttle, and most Warehouse District hotels sell park-and-cruise packages.
How far is the airport from the cruise terminal?
Louis Armstrong International is 15 miles west of downtown, about 25 to 30 minutes on I-10. Taxis run a flat rate of $36 for one or two people to the port or any downtown hotel (about $15 more per extra passenger); rideshares are typically about the same. Carnival and Norwegian sell transfers as well, but with the flat rate a taxi is usually simpler.
Should I stay in New Orleans the night before?
Absolutely, and two nights if you can. The Warehouse District hotels on Convention Center Boulevard are a five-minute walk from the Julia Street terminal, and the French Quarter is fifteen. Have dinner at a classic, walk Royal Street in the morning, and roll your bag to the ship. We add the hotel to your booking; the riverboat fares include it.
Do I need a passport to cruise from New Orleans?
On a closed-loop Caribbean cruise that starts and ends in New Orleans, US citizens can sail with a government photo ID and an original or certified birth certificate. We still recommend a passport, since you cannot fly home from Cozumel or Roatan without one. Mississippi River cruises never leave the United States, so a driver’s license is all you need.
Are taxes and fees included in the prices here?
Yes. Every price on this page includes cruise fare, taxes, fees and port expenses, per person, double occupancy. Gratuities, drinks packages, excursions and parking are extra on the ocean ships; the riverboat fares include excursions and most drinks with dinner.
How long before we reach open water?
About six to eight hours. Ships leave the terminal at 4 pm and run the last 100 miles of the Mississippi past the refineries, the Chalmette battlefield and the delta marsh, reaching the Gulf after dark. It is the best sail-away in American cruising; get a river-side spot on the top deck with a drink and watch the pilots board.
Talk to a New Orleans cruise specialist
Tell us your dates and whether you want the Gulf or the river, and we price every line sailing from New Orleans side by side with the fares you qualify for. Monday to Thursday 9 to 6, Friday 9 to 5, Saturday 10 to 6 ET.