Resting at the mouth of the mighty Mississippi River, this truly cosmopolitan city offers a veritable smorgasbord of fascinating cultures. Settlers from as far afield as France, Spain, Africa and the Caribbean arrived here during New Orleans’ heyday as the principal port of the American South. Each group lent something unique to the mix, resulting in a vibrant, bursting-at-the-seams melting pot of old masters, modernists, bohemian street artists and of course the city’s stunning array of museums and galleries. The attractions of New Orleans are the same as they have always been – riding rattling streetcars and the Algiers ferry, steamy jazz in colonial cafes, or simply admiring the stately architecture of the French Quarter. With the allure of its world-renowned cuisine, eclectic architecture and an atmosphere that can only be described as ‘magic’, many visitors are known to come for the spectacle of Mardi Gras and, quite simply, never leave!