New Orleans: Helicopter City Tour with French Quarter & River Views

4.97

(170 reviews)

What’s the experience like?

The first thing I noticed was how small everything looked as we lifted off from Lakefront Airport—like someone had shrunk New Orleans into a model city. Our pilot, Marcus, had this easy way of pointing out landmarks without sounding like he was reading from a script. “That’s the French Quarter coming up,” he said, and I pressed my forehead to the glass. The rooftops were patchwork, and you could just make out the spire of St. Louis Cathedral poking up between them. I didn’t expect to feel so floaty—my stomach did a little flip when we banked over Jackson Square.

Bourbon Street looked nothing like it does from ground level—no crowds or neon chaos, just a narrow ribbon winding through old buildings. The city noise faded away up there; all I heard was the steady hum of the helicopter blades and Marcus’s voice in my headset. He joked about how locals can always spot tourists by their beads (guilty). Then we swung out over the Mississippi River, which shimmered brown and wide in the afternoon sun. It smelled faintly of fuel inside the cabin, but outside everything felt fresh and open. I tried to spot steamboats but got distracted by how long that Causeway Bridge actually is—it just keeps going.

I kept thinking about how different New Orleans looks from above—almost peaceful, even though you know there’s music somewhere below. We looped back past City Park and Dillard University (Marcus pointed out where he went to college), then drifted toward the airport again. I waved at some tiny people fishing near the lake—I doubt they saw me. After landing, my legs felt wobbly but in a good way. Not sure I’ll ever see those streets quite the same again.