We had a blast and have spent the better part of today recovering from the experience. Although we’ve been to New Orleans a number of times, pre and post Katrina, we’d never been to “Jazz Fest,” as the event is called for short. My wife bought our tickets during the Christmas holidays and the five-month wait was well worth it.
For those of you unfamiliar with Jazz Fest, here’s a little background. First held in 1970, this multi-day event is held during the last weekend in April and the first weekend in May. Despite New Orleans’ reputation as a city that never sleeps, Jazz Fest is currently held between the hours of 11 a.m. and 7 p.m. at the New Orleans Fair Grounds, the oldest site of horseracing in America still in operation.
You don’t have to be a fan of just jazz music to enjoy the festival. While there are a lot of jazz acts at the event, you’ll find something to suit any musical taste. This year, there were 12 performance stages set up at the Fair Grounds with acts continuously playing at each. We attended the festival on Saturday and heard The Eagles, Better Than Ezra and others. Other big names that performed throughout Jazz Fest this year included The Beach Boys, Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers, Cee Lo Green, Bruce Springsteen and the E Street Band, Cowboy Mouth, Jimmy Buffett, Zac Brown Band, the Foo Fighters, The Neville Brothers and Bonnie Raitt.
My wife and I are already talking about going again next year, and now that we’ve got our first Jazz Fest under our belts, we’ve learned a few lessons about how to properly enjoy the event.
No. 1: Bring plenty of cash. While we didn’t have to pay for parking, we did have to park about a mile from the Fair Grounds entrance to find a free space. If you want to park closer, it’ll cost you between $10 and $45. Also, if you find yourself short of cash in the Fair Grounds, you’ll have to use an ATM, where the service fees were an additional $4 per transaction. If you enjoy beer, there’s plenty to be had, but they’re between $5 and $7 per can. There’s also a wide variety of food at the event, but it’ll cost you.
No. 2: Bring a chair, that is, a collapsible chair in a bag. Most folks at the event set up camp at one of the main stages and stay there most of the day. It reminded me a lot of how tailgaters set up at Alabama and Auburn football games minus the cars and BBQ grills.
No. 3: Be prepared for the sun. If I could change anything about yesterday, I would have worn a baseball cap and put on plenty of sunscreen. Alas, my wife and I did neither and we look like a couple of boiled lobsters today.
In the end, we did have an extremely good time, and we are planning to go again next year if at all possible. How many of you have ever been to Jazz Fest in New Orleans? What do you think about this event? What tips would you offer about getting the most out of the event? Let us know in the comments section below.
For more information about Jazz Fest, visit its official Web site at www.nojazzfest.com.
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