I booked this hotel on Hotwire.com for $120. It came to $155 after tax. It was a busy weekend for the city and the hotel. This was December 30th. Carnival Dream and NCL Breakaway were in port. Carnival Triumph was coming the following morning. People were in town for New Year’s. People were in town for the Saints game. People were in town for the Sugar Bowl. I think this was one of the host hotels for the Sugar Bowl. I know the Sugar Bowl Press Conference was held there.

Valet drop off was behind the hotel on Fulton Street. I was happy about that because there was construction going on in front of the hotel on Convention Center Boulevard. Convention Center Boulevard is also where where you will find a lot of the port traffic. This hotel is practically next door to the Fulton Place parking garage so there would be a lot of cars in front waiting to park there on a port day like today.

Valet parking at the hotel is $39. There is a lot across the street where you can park for $25 or $30. If I were staying here pre-cruise I would probably book one night of hotel parking at Fulton for $20, then book their cruise rate for the duration of the cruise. After parking I would just bring what I need for the night to the hotel. In the morning I would walk over to Fulton, collect the rest of my luggage, and take their shuttle to the port.

I arrived at 11am and check-in isn’t until 4pm. I expected chaos with two ships in port and the Saints game starting in an hour. I didn’t expect to be able to check in this early. But there was only one person in line in front of me and I was able to get a room immediately.

The room is nice. The bed wasn’t my favorite but I slept a good 9 hours on it. I prefer the more modern bathrooms with walk-in showers to the tub/shower combo they have here.

The 55 inch TV was great for watching Sunday Night Football. That’s about the biggest TV I see in my hotel rooms.

Here are the NCL Breakaway and the Carnival Dream as viewed from my hotel room window. The Dream is pulling out now and the Breakaway will shortly.

At halftime I decided to walk across the street to the river walk mall and hit the Fat Tuesday for a daiquiri. 

7:15 the next morning. Carnival Triumph is in port.

I like that this hotel has a Starbucks downstairs.

I decided to grab my coffee and walk over to the port. Here’s a look at the walk. When you step out the door and look to the right, you can see Fulton Garage. At the corner is the Cajun Market which is the closest place to the port to buy wine. You’ll also see the NCL terminal on the way to the CCL terminal.

If you happen to be looking for wine in the River Walk Mall they have this place.

Here’s a look at the selection at the Cajun Market next to the Marriott.

Back to the hotel. The in room express checkout on the TV worked. Here’s a look at the hotel bar where I waited for valet.

And that was my stay. It’s a nice hotel convenient to the port and I wouldn’t hesitate to stay here again.