Insider’s 3-Day Cocktail, Culinary & Jazz Tour of New Orleans | 2026 + 2027
This will be a comprehensive, three-day tour focusing on the cocktail, culinary and jazz offerings of some of NOLA’s best venues in its iconic French Quarter. Three nights of lodging are included at the famous Royal Sonesta right in the heart of things on Bourbon Street. Please scroll down to read the specifics but in the meantime, dates and registration info is directly below. Each tour maxes out at 52 guests.
DATES
Tour #1: October 18-21, 2026 ~ SOLD OUT
Tour #2: November 1-4, 2026 ~ SOLD OUT
Tour #3: November 8-11, 2026 ~ SOLD OUT
Tour #4: November 15-18, 2026 ~ SOLD OUT
Tour #5: February 28 - March 3, 2027 ~ 16 SEATS STILL AVAILABLE
RSVP
Send an email to chris@winevaultbistro.com with everyone in your party’s:
1. Full names
2. Cell phone numbers for everyone and best date/time to call for your credit card info
3. Email addresses for everyone in your party
4. Whether you want one or two beds in your room
5. Which tour you want to be on
COST
$1,825 per person based on double occupancy
$265 single occupancy upcharge
DEPOSITS
30% non-refundable initial deposit due upon registration
70% non-refundable final payment due 90 days before tour start date
INCLUDED IN COST
1. Three nights of lodging at Royal Sonesta Hotel right in the heart of the French Quarter
2. Welcome cocktail reception with appetizers
3. Horse-drawn carriage ride through the French Quarter, cocktail in hand
4. Steamship cruise on the Mississippi River including dinner, wine, cocktails and live jazz
5. Cajun cooking class including light breakfast and lunch
6. Cocktail seminar including four sample cocktails
7. Private live jazz sets including a cocktail at both Fritzel’s and Mahogany Hall jazz clubs
8. Breakfast at Brennan’s
9. Finale dinner with unlimited wine and cocktails at Restaurant R’evolution
NOT INCLUDED IN COST
1. Airfare and ground transportation getting to and from New Orleans
2. Gratuities for the horse-drawn carriage drivers (plan on $10 per person)
3. Breakfast Monday morning (but the cooking school will have biscuits with traditional cane syrup = yum)
4. Gratuities for the musicians at Fritzel’s and Mahogany Hall (plan on $10 per person at each venue)
5. Dinner on Monday night (many iconic restaurants are walking distance from the hotel for you to explore)
6. Lunch on Tuesday (but you definitely won’t be hungry after breakfast at Brennan’s)
PHYSICAL ABILITY
The sidewalks in New Orleans are notorious for their unevenness, cracks, holes and loose pavers. Please do not make a reservation if that is going to be an issue as this tour involves a fair amount of walking.
TRIP INSURANCE
I cannot even begin to stress how strongly I recommend that you get trip insurance. I’ve made arrangements with a reputable local travel professional I’ve known for years who can provide that service if you don’t already have your own travel agent. He can also help with flights and pre- and post- tour accommodations. If you’re interested, I will provide his information once you sign up.
HOLD HARMLESS AGREEMENT
Upon registration you will be required to accept the conditions of our hold harmless agreement before your reservation will be finalized.
MENU ABERRATIONS
Please try to keep menu aberrations to an absolute minimum ... but definitely let us know when you RSVP (not after the tour starts) if you’re allergic to anything or have any other dietary restrictions.
ITINERARY CHANGES
While we don’t anticipate having to make any changes to the itinerary, we reserve the right to do so at our discretion if necessary.
TOUR OUTLINE
Here's the blow-by-blow itinerary. A few of the venues are still tentative so we reserve the right to make changes if necessary but, by and large, it’s pretty accurate. Depending upon where you’re flying out of, you may want to consider arriving a day early.
SUNDAY
We’ll meet in the hotel courtyard in the afternoon for a meet ‘n’ greet cocktail reception with appetizers and then walk 9 minutes to Jackson Square where we’ll board horse-drawn carriages for a tour through the French Quarter. We’ll make a quick pit stop at Lafitte’s Blacksmith Shop (the oldest bar in America) for an authentic Hurricane “roadie.”
The carriages will drop us off very close to the boarding area for the steamboat Natchez. Once on board, we’ll head to the ship’s dining room for dinner. (Unlimited premium wine and cocktails are included for the entire cruise.) After dinner we’ll cruise the Mississippi River for about two hours while enjoying live jazz and more libations.
Upon returning to port, we’ll walk 9 minutes back to the hotel for the night.
MONDAY
We’ll meet in the hotel lobby and walk 6 minutes to the cooking school where we’ll learn how to make (and then eat!) some New Orleans classics like gumbo, jambalaya, pecan pie and pralines.
After lunch we’ll take an old, restored school bus across town to meet up with my friend and famous cocktail historian Chris McMillian for a “seminar” on how to make four of NOLA’s classic cocktails. (Naturally, we’ll have to have samples of each of the cocktails during class.)
Afterwards we’ll bus back to the hotel and then walk 7 minutes to Fritzel’s, one of my favorite jazz venues, for a private jazz set with a cocktail. After that the evening is yours to have dinner at any of the many iconic restaurants within walking distance or to simply “graze” at several establishments, sampling as many of the local specialties and libations as possible. (I’ll provide a list of some of my favorites as we get closer.)
TUESDAY
Everyone’s heard about the legendary “Breakfast at Brennan’s” at one time or another but very few have ever experienced it. After this morning you will be one of the few who have. I had the humble honor of working with their staff to fine-tune and re-create this one-for-the-record books, completely over-the-top, decadent 5-course cocktail breakfast that includes Brandy Milk Punch, crab cakes, French 75’s, seafood gumbo, Bloody Bulls, Eggs Hussarde, a Corpse Reviver, Bananas Foster and chicory coffee. (Needless to say, you won’t be hungry for lunch.) Thankfully, Brennan’s is a mere 3-minute walk from our hotel.
After breakfast, the afternoon is yours to explore the boutiques and antique shops on Royal Street (don’t miss Harris Antiques with their stellar collection of WWII telescopes and Berlin Wall era periscope binoculars if that sort of thing interests you) or take the streetcar to the Garden District (Commander’s Palace for a quick nip, anyone?) or to do pretty much whatever you want before we meet again that evening.
After a relaxing afternoon on your own we’ll meet up in the hotel lobby and walk 6 minutes to Mahogany Hall, an upscale jazz venue, for a private jazz set with a cocktail. After a relaxed hour or so of jazz and cocktails, we’ll walk back to the hotel for dinner at Restaurant R’evolution. The restaurant is conveniently located just past the courtyard of our hotel so there will be a whopping 60 seconds of travel time (which everyone will be thankful for after dinner!) We’ll start with a pre-dinner cocktail reception with an open premium bar with whatever you want followed by a leisurely dinner served with premium wines. (On a personal note: When Mary and I were there when it first opened in 2012, we were so impressed with some of their timeless kitchen designs that we plagiarized a few of them when we designed the kitchen in our own home.) Anyway, it should be an amazing finale to an amazing three days. And the best part is you only have to walk across the courtyard back to your hotel room!
WEDNESDAY
The tour is over when you wake up but we’ll make arrangements for preferential hotel pricing if you want to extend your stay (or arrive early). Thanks for reading and we hope to see you in the Big Easy!
HOUR-BY-HOUR ITINERARY
SUNDAY
Prior to start of tour: Check into Royal Sonesta any time before 3:15pm. You may need to arrive a day earlier on your own depending upon where you fly out of ... or start your trip early someplace cool (like Nashville or Houston or Tampa) a day or two earlier that has short direct flights to New Orleans Sunday AM. A taxi from the airport to the hotel takes 20-30 minutes and currently costs just under $40.
03:15pm Cocktail + appetizer reception in Royal Sonesta courtyard
04:15pm Reception over; walk to Jackson Square
04:30pm Arrive Jackson Square; board horse-drawn carriages for a one-hour tour through the Quarter
04:45pm (carriage stop at Lafitte’s Blacksmith Shop for a Hurricane “roadie”)
05:30pm Carriages drop everyone off close to Steamboat Natchez
05:45pm Line up at Steamboat Natchez
06:00pm Dinner starts on board with premium wines and cocktails included
07:00pm Steamboat departs (2-hour jazz cruise with unlimited wine and cocktails)
07:15pm Dinner over; adjourn to jazz bar or other seating areas on the boat as you wish
09:00pm Steamboat returns; walk back to Royal Sonesta
09:30pm Arrive Royal Sonesta for the night; tour over for the day; sleep good!
MONDAY
08:45am Meet in lobby; walk to New Orleans School of Cooking
09:00am Cooking class at New Orleans School of Cooking
11:30am Cooking class over; walk to pick-up point 3 minutes away
11:45pm Arrive pick-up point
12:00pm Bus picks everyone up
12:15pm Bus drops everyone off at cocktail seminar
12:30pm Cocktail seminar with Chris McMillian
03:00pm Bus picks everyone up from cocktail seminar
03:15pm Bus drops everyone off back at the hotel; regroup and freshen up for a few minutes
03:45pm Meet in lobby; walk to Fritzel’s
04:00pm Fritzel’s for private jazz set with a cocktail
05:00pm Jazz over at Fritzel’s; walk back to hotel
05:15pm Evening and dinner on your own
09:30pm +/- Arrive Royal Sonesta for the night on your own; tour over for the day; sleep good!
TUESDAY
09:30am Meet in lobby; walk to Brennan’s
09:45am Breakfast at Brennan’s
11:45am Breakfast over; walk back to hotel
12:00pm Arrive hotel; regroup; free time until 5:45
05:45pm Meet in lobby; walk to Mahogany Hall
06:00pm Jazz set and cocktails at Mahogany Hall
07:00pm Jazz set over; walk back for dinner at Restaurant R’evolution
07:15pm Pre-dinner cocktails
08:15pm Dinner starts
10:15pm Dinner over; back to Royal Sonesta for the night; sleep good!
08:45am Meet in lobby; walk to New Orleans School of Cooking
09:00am Cooking class at New Orleans School of Cooking
11:30am Cooking class over; walk to pick-up point 3 minutes away
11:45pm Arrive pick-up point
12:00pm Bus picks everyone up
12:15pm Bus drops everyone off at cocktail seminar
12:30pm Cocktail seminar with Chris McMillian
03:00pm Bus picks everyone up from cocktail seminar
03:15pm Bus drops everyone off back at the hotel; regroup and freshen up for a few minutes
03:45pm Meet in lobby; walk to Fritzel’s
04:00pm Fritzel’s for private jazz set with a cocktail
05:00pm Jazz over at Fritzel’s; walk back to hotel
05:15p Evening and dinner on your own
09:30pm +/- Arrive Royal Sonesta for the night on your own; tour over for the day; sleep good!
TUESDAY
09:30am Meet in lobby; walk to Brennan’s
09:45am Breakfast at Brennan’s
11:45am Breakfast over; walk back to hotel
12:00pm Arrive hotel; regroup; free time until 5:45
05:45pm Meet in lobby; walk to Mahogany Hall
06:00pm Jazz set and cocktails at Mahogany Hall
07:00pm Jazz set over; walk back for dinner at Restaurant R’evolution
07:15pm Pre-dinner cocktails
08:15pm Dinner starts
10:15pm Dinner over; back to Royal Sonesta for the night; sleep good!