Prinvate Rentals are a Winner!

Ok, so by unanimous vote…we LOVED the condo that we rented for our NOLA trip!

It was all that we could have asked for, dreamt of and received…fabulous, fabulous.

I cannot say enough good things about this condo…check out the pics that I remembered to take:

Stainless steel appliances...and granite countertops…

Yep, those are 14’ ceilings….

A VERY open floorplan…

Perfect for what we were needing! I wish that we could go ahead and book it for next year when we’ll go back for Jazz Fest – that’s how much I liked it. And Mr. CC agrees whole-heartedly with me.

The owner of the condo met us when we got there and walked us through the maze of hallways between the parking garage, condo unit, and rooftop pool/hot tub (Yes, you’re reading that correctly), fitness center and main entrance in and out of the buildings. He was very friendly and nice, giving us some local tips and advice on close stores/restaurants. I was a little disappointed to find out when we got there that the condos backed up to the projects on one side, but the owner was quick to assure us that he’d not run into any problems. Although that didn’t really mean much to us since he admitted to only staying there a time or two so far, as the unit was brand new. We were anxious to get started on our vacation, which I’m SURE that he noticed, and he didn’t keep us tied up too long going through all the procedures and such, and it was very helpful to have him show us around and all.

Mr. CC’s sister is a semi-local (she lives just up the road in Baton Rouge) and she had warned us about how the city was getting busier now and crime was on the rise. And since when we got to the condo, we found out that it was on the northern-most edge of the Quarter, we were kind of worried with the projects behind us. But Mr. CC is a guy with lots of muscles and a mean glare, so I wasn’t too worried. We are smart – we know not to take shortcuts down alleys, to stay on the main paths and to not carry too much money or act like drunken tourists…so playing it safe was fine for that night. And we didn’t have any problems.

It ended up that once we got used to the area, the condo location was GREAT! It was one block off of the northern-most street of the quarter, which only put us 3 blocks from Bourbon street. Being off a little way was nice, due to the noise that can be generated in the Quarter, but everything was easily still within walking distance. And it ended up that we were about the same distance as we were last year when we stayed in a hotel just off of the Quarter. But for a cheaper price, and nicer more private surroundings, the condo was MUCH better than the hotel last year.

Our friends were also staying somewhere in the Quarter, but we didn’t know where until they got checked in and settled the next day. It turned out that they were on the opposite end of the Quarter, staying just off of the southern-most street in the Quarter. We would have maybe liked to be located a little closer to them, but really it wasn’t that far in the end. And it was nice to have our own little retreat to go back to.

We never heard any of the neighbors, but as the units were brand new, the owner had warned us that we probably wouldn’t see that many people. The security at the condo was good – passkeys were required to get in all doors from the outside, and there was a desk clerk/security guy at the main lobby front desk at all times. The parking area was secured and gated, and we had no problems with car security the entire time we were there, although to be honest, we only moved the car one time in the four days that we were there!

All in all, we loved it. Mr. CC would like to buy a unit in the building…but that’s probably not something that we’ll do anytime in the near future. But that’s how much we liked it. If I could, I would try to go ahead and book the unit for next year, but the owner actually has a long-term tenant moving in next month for the next year…oh well.

And the price was definitely right. We paid $150/night to stay here, along with a cleaning fee, totaling to about $500. I checked it out online, and any hotel close to the Quarter was running $179/night, plus 18% hotel tax and anywhere from $25-$35/day to park your car...which would have totaled to over $700!!!! I couldn't believe the money that we saved.

Have you ever stayed private over a hotel chain and loved it as much as we did? I can’t wait to decide where we’re going on our honeymoon and try to find a house or something like we did this time!