New Orleans’ #1 Small Craft Hotel
Nobody lies on their deathbed smiling about that time they got drunk on Bourbon Street. They probably spent their whole life trying to forget it. La Belle Esplanade is here to help you make good New Orleans memories that will last you the rest of your life. You have two friends at New Orleans #1 small craft hotel. We’re here for you.
I know five of the people in that header photo. Two of them were our guests. You should stay at La Belle Esplanade when you’re in New Orleans. You never know what’ll happen.

VISIT NEW ORLEANS LIKE YOU LIVE HERE.
There is more to New Orleans than Bourbon Street. Ask us. We live here. You can live in New Orleans off the tourist radar, too, at least for a three or four glorious days to remember.
Nobody ever says their visit to New Orleans is too long. It is always too short. If you have the time to visit New Orleans like you mean it, you are on the right website. Our availability calendar is here.
Our small hotel is a twenty-minute stroll from the French Quarter, far enough way to get a good night’s sleep and really feel what it means to love authentic New Orleans.

For five years in a row, TripAdvsior has called La Belle Esplanade the #1 small hotel in New Orleans. We’ve also been ranked #2 in the U.S. and #16 in the world. You can stay in a colorful mansion on a beautiful and historic New Orleans street famous all over the city, if not in the guidebooks. We take being New Orleans goodwill ambassadors seriously.
What do you want to know about New Orleans? We’re here to answer your questions and help you navigate this wonderful city we call home. If you want to write to us with questions before you arrive, no worries. We are excellent pen pals. My usual advice is to not overplan.
Check in, let us get to know you, and then we’ll be able to tailor our recommendations. Real New Orleans, where live, isn’t in any guidebook. We make recommendations based on first-hand experience, not off top-ten lists.

YOU CAN CHOOSE A LOT WORSE THAN THE #1 SMALL CRAFT HOTEL.
In the vast scheme of New Orleans’ 19-million-annual-visitors hospitality industry, La Belle Esplanade is microscopic. We only have five suites. As I write this, there are 36,000 hotel rooms and about 10,000 AirBnB rooms in New Orleans. Only a lucky few can stay at La Belle Esplanade to experience New Orleans like they live here. It is very nice in our part of New Orleans. We’re not moving. You should visit. You belong here.
Price is what you pay and value is what you get when you stay at La Belle Esplanade. Here is a link to our calendar to see what rooms we have available. Personalized recommendations off the usual tourist radar are what we are all about. We know a lot about New Orleans and we will be happy to share what we know with you. New Orleans can be confusing. We’ve got your map.
BE AN NEW ORLEANIAN WHILE YOU ARE HERE.
You should visit the French Quarter. It really is beautiful and interesting, with all kinds of bars, restaurants and historical sights. You should go to Frenchmen Street to listen to jazz. Jazz is the soundtrack of a New Orleans day. A brass band passed by La Belle Esplanade this afternoon:
This is what it is like to live in real New Orleans. Stay at La Belle Esplanade and you’ll discover the real New Orleans. There is tourist New Orleans and there is real New Orleans. If you are looking for real New Orleans, you are on the right website. La Belle Esplanade offers spacious suites and a complimentary breakfast of neighborhood delicacies and good conversations to get you started on every day’s adventure.
Read our blog to learn more about our neighborhood and what’s going on in the city. We also sponsor a sister blog that is written to keep lovers of New Orleans in a New Orleans state of mind. That blog is called, unsurprisingly, A New Orleans State of Mind. Follow that one, too.
You should follow La Belle Esplanade on Facebook, too, if you’re so inclined. We post on our Facebook page 2, 3, 4, 5 times a day depending on what we come across that we think our friends will find interesting. La Belle Esplanade also has a YouTube channel if you want to see your humble narrator talk off the cuff about all things New Orleans.
If you want to sign up for our occasional newsletter, the form for that is at the bottom of this page. Fill in the fields and you’ll occasionally receive fresh New Orleans news when it’s interesting. We won’t spam you with nonsense the rest of your life. La Belle Esplanade is the small New Orleans hotel that respects your intelligence. When it is time for you to make some good New Orleans memories that you’ll want to last the rest of your life, you are the right website. Make a reservation today. We only have five suites so we tend to fill up early during busy seasons. You won’t regret it. You belong here.
“La Belle Esplanade is a gem of a place. Seriously, don’t stay anywhere else in New Orleans.
It is a fairly short walk, along a beautiful street, from the French Quarter and given how crazy parts of the town can be, the distance was welcome.
The property has only 5 rooms all of which are individually designed in a style that is truly unique, creative and extremely comfortable. Big beds with gorgeous bedding, roll top cast iron bath tubs and complementary drinks and snacks provided in the room.
Over a delicious breakfast, Matthew and Melanie will help you plan your days and make sure you make the most of your time in town; their suggestions were invaluable and their company was delightful.
Breakfast was a taste of the neighbourhood with fresh bread, jams, pastries and southern breakfast treats ‘curated’ from local sources… all very tasty.
Their high rating is absolutely justified. This is a wonderful place to stay.”
-UK TravelGirl, Hong Kong, China. April 2018.


