Some New Orleans attractions ask you to stand still and read a placard. These four hand you 3D glasses, a tasting glass, or a paint-splattered warehouse floor instead.
JAMNOLA, Marigny
Founder Jonny Liss put roughly $750,000 of his own money into building this immersive funhouse during the pandemic, and more than 100 local artists made the 29 exhibits inside. About 85 percent of the materials come from repurposed and recycled sources.
Visitors walk through room after room of New Orleans culture rendered as installation art, including a bust of Big Freedia, a crawfish boil where the crawfish do the cooking, and a path paved in recycled Mardi Gras beads. Three-dimensional glasses handed out at the start make some of the artwork pop, and QR codes throughout link to background on each piece.
JAMNOLA moved from the Bywater to 940 Frenchmen Street in April 2025. Adult tickets cost $36.99 before tax and children 3 to 12 pay $22.99, with Louisiana residents saving about half on weekdays. Every visit runs on timed entry, so book ahead. It closes Tuesdays and Wednesdays.
Mardi Gras World, Riverfront
This is a working warehouse, not a display case. Float builders make Carnival parade floats here year-round, and the hour-long guided tour walks visitors through the process while artists are at it. Photography is encouraged throughout.
Guests can try on Carnival costumes and get a taste of king cake as part of admission. Recent listings put 2026 tickets at $29.95 for adults and $24.95 for children, seniors, and military, with children under 2 free. Buy timed-entry tickets in advance, since slots sell out in busy seasons. A free shuttle runs from a central pickup point, and on-site parking costs $20. Floors are concrete throughout, so wear comfortable shoes.
Sazerac House, Central Business District
Six floors on Canal Street cover the history of the Sazerac and New Orleans cocktail culture, with interactive exhibits, a working micro-distillery, and a historic apothecary. Museum admission and tours are free, and so are the tastings.
The programming goes deeper for anyone who wants it. A small-group Meet the Distiller tour takes guests behind the barrel with the people making the spirits, followed by a guided tasting of four expressions in a private room. Evening sessions like Science of Spirits run on a rotating calendar.
One rule shapes the visit: guests must be of legal drinking age to enter. The house sits at 101 Magazine Street at Canal, opens 11 a.m. to 6 p.m., and starts its last tour at 4:45. Reserve online and call (504) 910-0100.
Studio BE, Bywater
Artist Brandan Odums, who works as BMike, filled a warehouse at 2941 Royal Street with spray-painted portraits that rise up to twelve feet. More than 40 collaborating artists worked on it over six months, and coverage describes it as the largest single-site public art exhibition in the American South.
The scale is the experience. Visitors walk through 35,000 square feet across four structures and up to five stories, surrounded by images of Martin Luther King Jr., Malcolm X, Harriet Tubman, and everyday New Orleanians. A mural on the outer wall pairs a young girl radiating light with a poem by local writer Cleo Wade.
Admission runs $15 general and $10 for students, teachers, seniors, and first responders, with children 12 and under at $5. Hours run Wednesday through Saturday from 11 a.m. to 6 p.m. and Sunday from 2 to 6 p.m. Call (504) 252-0463.
