New Orleans · Month comparison

March vs April

April ranks #1 overall vs March at #4. Jazz Fest weekend (late April): the city's other peak event — 500,000 people, 12 stages, the best live music in America.

New Orleans March — French Quarter ironwork balconies in spring morning light

March

#4 of 12 months

Best match

Spring arrives and the city recovers from Mardi Gras with St Patrick's Day parades and warming temperatures.

  • ↑Post-Mardi Gras calm: crowds drop sharply after Fat Tuesday but the city's bars and restaurants remain fully alive
  • ↑St Patrick's Day parade down Magazine Street is a genuine neighbourhood event, not a tourist spectacle — locals line the route for flying cabbages and moon pies
New Orleans April — Louis Armstrong statue near Jazz Fest at the Fairgrounds

April

#1 of 12 months

Best match

Jazz Fest weekend (late April): the city's other peak event — 500,000 people, 12 stages, the best live music in America.

  • ↑New Orleans Jazz & Heritage Festival (last weekend of April, first of May): 12 stages at the Fairgrounds with everyone from local brass bands to international headliners — the world's greatest concentrated live music event
  • ↑26°C and low humidity: the single most comfortable weather window of the year for outdoor eating, walking, and the festival grounds
FactorMarchApril
Weather score
7
8
Value score
6
5
Crowd score
6
4
Events score
7
9
Atmosphere
8
9
Avg high temp22.1°C26.4°C
Monthly rain121mm105mm
Daily sunshine7hrs7.8hrs

March trade-offs

  • ↓121mm of rainfall means showers are frequent — jazz clubs and covered courtyards become your fallback
  • ↓If Mardi Gras falls late (March), expect the hotel premium to carry over; check the calendar
  • ↓Jazz & Heritage Festival (late April) is weeks away — the city is good but not yet at its musical peak

April trade-offs

  • ↓Jazz Fest weekend: hotels within 20 blocks of the Fairgrounds sell out months in advance; prices spike 60–80%
  • ↓The city is genuinely packed during both festival weekends — book Commander's Palace, Dooky Chase, or Cochon weeks out
  • ↓105mm of rain: April showers are real — the Fairgrounds becomes muddy in wet years; bring boots
See all 12 months for New Orleans →March in detail →April in detail →
Scores compare months within New Orleans. Climate data: Open Meteo ERA5 30-year normals (1991–2020). Methodology →