25-cent martinis and street jazz: inside America's ultimate music city

Listen up! Can you hear the soulful strains of a saxophone drifting through the steamy mid-morning air, punctuated by the rat-a-tat-tat of a snare drum? That's the soundtrack of New Orleans, one of the world's most musical cities. NOLA - a snappy abbreviation of New Orleans, Louisiana - is committed to good times, at all times of the day. Whatever you do, don't skip its one-of-a-kind vibes by jumping straight onto your river or ocean cruise. Spend at least two or three nights here (and you'll still wish for more). Here are the best ways to loosen up, swing those hips and fully embrace the fun-loving southern gateway known as the Big Easy.

If you touched down at the city's Louis Armstrong International Airport, you'll have worked out that New Orleans is the birthplace of jazz. In the French Quarter, you'll encounter musicians performing on street corners (don't be stingy - give them a tip!). Keen for a deeper dive? Grab tickets for a gig at Preservation Hall - a storied venue that famously has no air-con and no drink service but atmosphere aplenty. The Court of Two Sisters offers a daily live jazz brunch under its wisteria canopy (at its prettiest in March-April) in the open-air courtyard. Service can be brusque but it's a great starting point for taste-testing Creole cuisine: the buffet includes fried catfish, jambalaya, gumbo, turtle soup au sherry, red beans and rice, and stewed okra. Just beyond the French Quarter and the craziness of Bourbon Street is Frenchmen Street, lined with atmospheric clubs such as The Spotted Cat that hosts nightly performances. One of the most surprising places to hear music? That'd be the National Park Service's French Quarter Visitor Centre, which hosts free jazz performances in a dedicated space. courtoftwosisters.com; spottedcatmusicclub.com; nps.gov

Make the most of your Frenchmen Street explorations by booking a slot at JAMNOLA - an interactive "cultural funhouse" (JAM stands for Joy, Art and Music). Wander through 29 spaces that showcase the theatrical handiwork and unleashed creativity of 100-plus artists and collaborators, chat with the resident storytellers and snap some unforgettable selfies. jamnola.com

While New Orleans slings plenty of iconic carb-forward cheap eats - think po' boys and muffalettas (sandwiches) and Cafe Du Monde's beignets (square doughnuts crowned with a mountain of icing sugar) - it's also the place for a splash-out dining experience. Head to Antoine's - where Oysters Rockefeller was created - and save room at the end for its signature Baked Alaska (between courses, check out the displays of Mardi Gras memorabilia). Ride a streetcar to the city's moss-draped Garden District to while away hours at the striking teal-and-white Commander's Palace. Its "haute Creole" menu includes cognac-flambeed crawfish tails and, from Wednesday to Friday, 25-cent martinis to accompany your long lunch. antoines.com; commanderspalace.com

New Orleans knows a thing or two about inventing cocktails - it's the birthplace of the herbaceous, rye whisky-based Sazerac and the creamy Ramos gin fizz. Learn more about the drinks' origins on a cocktail tour or slide onto one of the 25 seats at Hotel Monteleone's rotating Carousel Bar - where another libation, the Vieux Carre, was invented - and take yourself for a spin through the city's creative cocktail history. Also, don't be surprised to see merry-makers wandering the streets of New Orleans with cocktails in hand - rather unusually for an American city, it's permitted to carry alcoholic drinks in a plastic "go cup" here. hotelmonteleone.com

Although you could take a short cruise on the Mississippi via steam-powered paddle-wheeler, if you're about to depart on a multi-day cruise, there are better ways to spend your time here. Go see the 'gators on a bayou tour through mysterious cypress swamps - those otherworldly waterscapes are surprisingly close to the city. The spooky-minded can take a voodoo tour or explore the intriguing above-ground tombs in cemeteries known as "cities of the dead". Boo.

The writer was a guest of Travel South USA