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The subject of this article is located on these scenic highways.
Planes, trains, and automobiles. New Orleans is one of the easiest places to visit in the country because of the abundance of easy transportation. However, how you get to New Orleans entirely depends on how you like to travel.
Flying into the New Orleans airport is easy, with over a dozen direct flight destinations and several major airlines servicing the airport. Riding Amtrak is easy with three routes leading to New Orleans from Chicago, New York, and Los Angeles.
This may be surprising, but driving is my favorite way to travel to New Orleans. Driving is simple, with three major interstate highways connected to New Orleans, one of which is an epic transcontinental route between Florida and California.
Which way do you prefer to travel to New Orleans? Leave me a comment below, along with your best tip for getting to New Orleans.
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Louis Armstrong New Orleans International Airport (MSY) is a convenient way to fly into New Orleans. The international airport is just 11 miles from downtown, making it closer to the city than many similar airports. In 2001, the airport was named in honor of Louis Armstrong, one of the most influential musicians in the early history of jazz.
Southwest, Delta, American, United, and Spirit serve the airport. In 2023, more than 12 million passengers flew through the airport. Delta, Southwest, and Spirit offer 12 daily direct flights between New Orleans and other cities, like Austin, Texas; Boston, Massachusetts; Burbank, California; Charlotte, North Carolina; and New York City.
Like many other natural features in New Orleans, the international airport sits at the lowest elevation of any airport in the country at 4 feet above sea level.
MSY is a small airport with three concourses spread throughout a single terminal. There is a total of 35 gates servicing a wide variety of aircraft.
The airport offers a notable selection of restaurants representing the best of New Orleans. Café du Monde, Bar Sazerac, and PJ’s Coffee are a great introduction to the city.
MSY has a great selection of rental cars that are perfect if you plan to visit the surrounding wildlife management areas or drive to Venice, the southernmost point in Louisiana, by car. Rideshares are easy to book with Lyft (iOS | Android) and Uber (iOS | Android) operating in New Orleans.
New Orleans is a central hub for Amtrak, with three routes connecting at Union Station. Getting on a train to New Orleans from Chicago, New York, and Los Angeles is easy. With additional connections, getting from almost anywhere in the continental United States to New Orleans by train is possible.
Union Passenger Terminal at the southwest edge of downtown New Orleans near Caesars Superdome, home of the New Orleans Saints NFL team. The staffed station features plenty of indoor seating, restrooms, ticket sales, and vending machines.
The New Orleans Regional Transit Authority (NORTA) UPT-Riverfront Streetcar has a stop at the train station. The streetcar connects to the Canal Streetcar and St. Charles Street routes.
Although the train station is within walking distance – a lengthy walking distance – of downtown hotels, restaurants, and attractions, I recommend booking a rideshare with Lyft (iOS | Android) or Uber (iOS | Android) to get around.
The City of New Orleans Route is 931 miles between Chicago, Illinois, and New Orleans. One train departs each direction every afternoon, taking about 25 hours to travel the entire route.
The trains include Superliner cars with roomettes, bedrooms, and bedroom suites for travel families or groups of friends. Each train includes a dining car with three meals prepared throughout the day.
The City of New Orleans Route has 19 stations between Chicago and New Orleans. Popular stops along the route include Memphis, Tennessee, and Jackson, Mississippi.
The Crescent Route is 1,300 miles long between New York City and New Orleans. One train departs each direction every day – the train departs New Orleans in the morning and New York City in the afternoon. Additional trains depart Atlanta and Washington, D.C. daily.
It takes about 30-40 hours to ride the entire route, making it one of the longest continuous Amtrak routes in the country. Trains include upgraded Viewliner cars with roomettes, bedrooms, and bedroom suites for traveling families and groups of friends. Each train includes a dining car with café service, serving three meals per day or four meals along the entire route.
The Crescent Route has 35 stations between New York City and New Orleans. Popular stops along the route include Philadelphia, Pennsylvania; Baltimore, Maryland; Washington, D.C.; Greensville, South Carolina; and Atlanta, Georgia.
The Sunset Limited Route is almost 2,000 miles between Los Angeles, California, and New Orleans. Three trains depart weekly in each direction, taking about 48-55 hours to travel the entire length.
The trains include Superliner cars with roomettes, bedrooms, and bedroom suites for traveling families and groups of friends. Each train also includes a dining car with café service, which prepares three meals daily.
Did You Know | From Los Angeles to San Antonio, Texas, the Sunset Limited and Texas Eagle routes share the same railroad. This gives you more opportunities to book a passage with a connection in Texas.
The Sunset Limited Route has only 22 stations, limiting the options to explore other places while keeping the travel time to just two nights aboard the train. Popular stops include Tucson, Arizona; San Antonio and Houston, Texas; and Lafayette, Louisiana.
Learn about the annual celebration of the National Park System and read my travel guides to national park units across the country.
Three interstate highways connect to New Orleans, making it an easy destination to drive to. During my visit to New Orleans, I drove Interstate 85 from Charlotte to Atlanta, Interstate 20 to Meridian, and Interstate 59 to New Orleans.
Alternatively, 5 U.S. Highways connect New Orleans to destinations from Texas to Maine, providing road trip opportunities.
Finally, the Great River Road – a national scenic byway – travel along the Mississippi River from New Orleans to Minnesota.
Interstate 10 is the southernmost transcontinental interstate highway in the country. The 2,460-mile highway stretches across the country from Jacksonville, Florida to Santa Monica, California. It’s the fourth-longest interstate in the country after I-90, I-80, and I-40.
Major intersections of I-10 include:
In Slidell, Louisiana, a large town northeast of New Orleans, Interstates 10 and 59 combine. The interstates cross a narrow end of Lake Pontchartrain. After the intersection with I-510, Interstates 10 and 59 pass through the residential outskirts of New Orleans.
Interstates 10 and 59 pass along the northwestern edge of downtown New Orleans, curving away from the city near the Caesars Superdome. Several exits provide quick entrance into downtown – Exit 235 leads to Canal Street, the main thoroughfare into downtown.
Interstate 55 is a major interstate highway bisecting the country through the Midwest. The 965-mile highway connects Chicago, Illinois, and New Orleans. It’s the primary route for traveling from the Great Lakes to the Gulf Coast.
Major intersections of I-55 include:
Interestingly, I-57 parallels I-55 from Chicago, Illinois to Sikeston, Missouri. The alternate route follows the same route as the City of New Orleans Amtrak route. I-55 passes through larger destinations like St. Louis and Springfield, while I-57 passes through Shawnee National Forest and central Illinois.
After crossing I-12 in Hammond, Louisiana, I-55 passes between Lake Pontchartrain and Lake Maurepas. In Laplace, a small town west of New Orleans, I-55 merges with I-10. From there, the two interstates travel along the edge of Lake Pontchartrain.
After the intersection with I-310, Interstates 10 and 55 pass Louis Armstrong New Orleans International Airport and travel into the residential suburbs of New Orleans.
Interstate 59 is a short connector interstate highway. The 445-mile highway connects Trenton, Georgia, and Slidell, Louisiana, cutting across Alabama. It’s the primary route for anyone traveling to New Orleans from Chattanooga, Atlanta, and Birmingham.
Major intersections of I-59 include:
In Slidell, Louisiana, a large town northeast of New Orleans, Interstates 10 and 59 combine. The interstates cross a narrow end of Lake Pontchartrain. After the intersection with I-510, Interstates 10 and 59 pass through the residential outskirts of New Orleans.
Interstates 10 and 59 pass along the northwestern edge of downtown New Orleans, curving away from the city near the Caesars Superdome. Several exits provide quick entrance into downtown – Exit 235 leads to Canal Street, the main thoroughfare into downtown.
U.S. Highway 11 travels through 10 states, making it one of the best road trip roads for exploring the eastern half of the United States. The highway travels 1,645 miles between the Canadian border in New York to an intersection with U.S. Highway 90 a few miles northeast of New Orleans.
The highway parallels interstate highways along almost its entire length. Through Virginia, the highest parallels Interstate 81 through the scenic Shenandoah Valley along a route blazed by Daniel Boone.
U.S. Highway 51 travels 1,286 miles from Roscoe, Illinois near Milwaukee and Chicago to Laplace about ten miles from New Orleans.
After crossing the Mississippi River in Cairo, Illinois, the highway loosely follows the Mighty Mississippi to New Orleans. The highway parallels interstate highways, including Interstate 55 from Memphis to New Orleans.
The 1,400-mile U.S. Highway 61 is one of the best highways for exploring the Midwest, the Mississippi River, and exciting destinations along the way. From the northernmost point near Minneapolis, the highway passes through St. Louis, Memphis, and Jackson to its termination in downtown New Orleans.
U.S. Highway 90 stretches 1,633 miles between an intersection with Interstate 10 in western Texas to the Atlantic Ocean near Jacksonville, Florida. It’s the best road trip for exploring the country’s Gulf Coast between Houston and Tallahassee.
The highway closely parallels Interstate 10, providing an alternative route for sightseeing to the fast travel along the interstate highway. It passes through dozens of exciting destinations, national park sites, and national forests.
U.S. Highway 190 is an 875-mile alternative route to U.S. Highway 90 between western Texas and Slidell, a small town northeast of New Orleans.
The alternative highway loosely parallels Interstate 10 further inland from the Gulf Coast than U.S. Highway 90. The highway passes through fewer destinations while still connecting to national park sites and national forests across Texas.
The Great River Road is a 2,069-mile National Scenic Byway and All-American Road exploring the outdoor recreation and destinations along the Mississippi River. The scenic highway begins at Lake Itasca in northern Minnesota, the definitive Mississippi River Headwaters.
The scenic highway’s meandering route passes along both side of the Mississippi River through 10 states. Many sections of the highway are two-lane rural roads far removed from big cities.
The highway passes through New Orleans and continues following the Mississippi River to Venice, Louisiana, ending the southernmost point in the state.
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