That reminds me that the last time I was at the Roosevelt, there was a second line through the lobby. Good times 
I believe you said the wedding will be in the Fall? There is a big (and getting bigger) music festival on Halloween weekend that you probably want to avoid. Young people would love it but it would complicate everything else.
I didn’t realize we were talking about New Orleans. I have a suggestion for a rehearsal dinner location that would be stunning.
Nothing is traded at the New Orleans Board of Trade these days, but they have a large, beautiful building and courtyard just down the river from the intersection of Poydras and Magazine. The building is actually located at the intersection of Magazine and Natchez. It is only two short blocks from Canal Street and the French Quarter, and is an easy walk from all of the major hotels.
I Googled it and found that they have their own caterer, and essentially can provide you will start-to-end service. It’s a beautiful building, with a large dome featuring paintings of scenes of Southern business and commerce that was a Works Projects Administration project.
My wife and I have both attended meetings at the Mason Dupuy Hotel, which is in the French Quarter on Toulouse Street away from the river, not too far from Rampart. It’s a very nice hotel and venue, and likely to be substantially cheaper than the Roosevelt or some of the other places being mentioned. Don’t let the “near Rampart” scare you. It’s nice and an easy and safe walk to Bourbon Street.
Good luck!
Unfortunately I was only in New Orleans for about 3 seconds, so I can’t be more help. I do remember music drifting out the windows and wishing I could have spent more time there. I hope it will be an enjoyable experience for all!
The Roosevelt is beautiful, but it is a Waldorf property and is $$$. We stayed there using Hilton points on holiday season that we went to visit DS, at xmastime, and it was stunning inside.
No need to make yourself crazy with other restaurant ideas (O sent you my suggestion for a fabulous place in the Quarter that IMO would be perfect) but should you want a side digression, the Tulane forum has lots of great discussions on places to eat in NOLA.
The Board of trade looks beautiful. The place I recommended to snowball is The Pelican Club, in the heart of the French Quarter. Its a hidden gem.
Having planned conferences in New Orleans, my best advice to you is get your hotel block NOW. The city is always hosting many events and if this wedding is on a weekend that the Saints are playing at home, you’re going to have a hard time finding Saturday night rooms. (This post is not intended to make you crazy but, rather, to warn you that it may not be easy to find ample rooms the longer you wait.) Good luck!!
Believe me, I have been working on the B&G to decide about rooms since this summer! I am giving them until this weekend to decide and will book my own if they don’t. I need to count my list and see how many rooms my guest will need and go from there.
I believe that many of the bride’s parents friends might wait until Saturday morning to come into town to avoid an extra hotel night as they are just a 3 hour drive from New Orleans. That said, they might want to come in Friday so they have time to “play.”
I’m thinking how one can best present an alternative in a way the bride would be most receptive to, if the first choice is a logistical nightmare for the people b&g want to have there. My difficulty can be with putting out too many ideas at once, so I’d try to avoid that. The idea of looking into as many options as you want, but presenting the one or two you feel are tops so it isn’t overwhelming to merely consider. Another thought is if she can look it over without you present in order to digest on her own (not feel put on the spot). Maybe mention toward the end of a phone call, hey, I have an idea I’d like to put out there. I’ll send you an email and you can look it over and tell me what you think. Be sure to list benefits to the b&g of going with the choice in the email so she’s aware why you’re thinking about it (doesn’t jump to any conclusion it’s to take control).
I don’t know. What have others done, BTDT experience, that is known to work, tried and true?
If the couple agree to the parents of the groom hosting a Friday night rehearsal/out of towner’s dinner, and there is nothing wrong with that at all, then the parents are entitled to plan and organize it. From a practical perspective, if you are considering doing cocktails and dessert only, you will probably lose a lot of people who will have headed to a later dinner upon arriving in town.
Charming as those chopped up, historic venues can be, the lack of consideration to the grandparents would make it a deal breaker if it were my checkbook.
I don’t think you are being unreasonable. The lack of hotel rooms will become your problem if they don’t act quickly. I would focus on that issue first. Pre Katrina we stayed at the Best Western St Chrisptopher just outside the French Quarter. It might be an option for those on a tighter budget. (The hotel makes me think back to the Farewell thread. I found that hotel via a tip from a old poster who had a S at Tulane. Can’t recall his name but at the time he was a regular poster and quite helpful.)
As a dad, it is fascinating to me that the wedding threads seem to carry as much angst and drama for the adults as the “chance me” threads do for the student applicants. Yet the former seems very gender specific, while the latter is very gender neutral (in other words, kids of both genders seem equally concerned about getting into their dream school). I’m just wondering why that might be. I certainly care about our daughter as much as my wife does. I just don’t see myself getting too worked up about the specifics of the wedding weekend when the time eventually comes.
We stayed at the Drury on Poydras with a wedding group several years ago. We’ve returned to it a couple of times. It’s often pretty reasonably priced and right on the streetcar line. It also had cheap parking by NO standards.
I’ve heard lots of good things about the Pelican Club.
Definitely give some thought to parking…
It’s hard for me to imagine that the elderly wouldn’t have a place to sit. Surely the younger folks will get up and let them sit. I went to a rehearsal dinner at a house and although there were not tables and chairs everywhere, there were enough seats or places to “perch” that it wasn’t horribly uncomfortable. I remember sitting on some stairs with my plate of food with my cousins, all dressed up. We were 40 years old, sitting on steps, but it was classy anyway! Good food, good conversation, it was a great time. My elderly aunt of course had a real chair in one of the rooms and we took turns visiting with her. I think she had a great time too. And I don’t thing a single person at that party could have taken a seat if she didn’t have one. So I wouldn’t discount the house/h’ordeurve thing just because it’s a house. There could be waiters walking around with the h’ordeurves and you just take as they come and you don’t even need a plate. And usually in that situation they come around so often that you leave very full. Now that I know it’s New Orleans, I’m trusting the bride’s judgment more for some reason.
Also, if I am flying into a destination wedding–no matter what my background-- I would not expect them to do things the way I am used to back home. For instance, if I went to Hawaii, a luau would be greatly anticipated, not a clambake, or a hotel sit down dinner or whatever. When in Rome.
New Orleans knows how to party. It might end up being the best wedding you ever went to.
^^^^ Funny, because now that I know it’s New Orleans I am more stressed out!
OP - here is a great link to some venues in NO. The wax museum could be interesting 
(I have dined at the Pelican and it was wonderful) http://www.neworleansparties.com
Some of those venues look awesome… I just wonder how much they would cost… I’m thinking $10,000 is not going to be enough for 200 people.
I hope you don’t think this is a ridiculous suggestion. If you end up at the historic house could you rent some of those fancy port o potties that they use at big tent weddings? If they were placed discreetly outside then guests wouldn’t have to go up stairs to a second floor. If the historic home says “no” to this arrangement you could use it as a deal breaker with your son and the brides family. Surely her parents would understand the age of your guests and would want the Grands to be safely attended to.
So sorry just read your updated post about facilities and rest rooms on the first floor. Just ignore my post.