Travoliners– There are many beautiful beaches just a short drive away from NOLA that are the perfect place to get away when you’ve seen all of the city’s sights. Many families in the area have been going to the Gulf Coast’s beautiful beaches for a long time. Now, more and more tourists, many from across the country, are discovering them and coming to enjoy the soft, white sand beaches and warm, relaxing waters of the Gulf of Mexico.
Plus, you can still get back in time for a late dinner at one of New Orleans’s best restaurants or a drink at a great bar after a day at the beach. Or, you might want to make a weekend of it and spend a night or two at one of these great places, where you can enjoy food and drinks inspired by the area as well as lots of Southern kindness. Every beach in the Gulf says it’s the best and friendliest, so get out there, drink some drinks, and work on your tan. Then, pick your favorite beach from this list of the best beaches near New Orleans.
Bay St. Louis
It takes one hour to get from New Orleans.
This unique place celebrates the history of the Coastal Mississippi area and is known as one of the best small beach towns in the country. You can park for free at the public beach, which has calm, warm water and white sand.
Only a few places to stay are available. The Pearl, a boutique hotel with 59 luxury rooms and the highly regarded Thorny Oyster restaurant, might be the most notable. With its seaside feel, the Bay Town Inn is a charming bed and breakfast.
Starfish Cafe’s healthy food, Sycamore House’s fancy dining, and The Blind Tiger’s breezy outdoor seating are all great places to eat. Check out The Mockingbird Cafe, which is known for its unique art gallery and fresh brunch food.
Pass Christian
It takes one hour and fifteen minutes to get from New Orleans.
This small beach, which some people call “The Pass,” is a good place to get away from the crowds and enjoy some peace and quiet by the Gulf. There are old oak trees, historic homes, and cute shops in this small town that is easy to get around on foot.
Cat Island Coffeehouse is a fun and interesting place to go because it has a great selection of books and great views of the Mississippi Sound. The first Shaggy’s is right in the middle of the harbor. It’s popular for its island-style feel, views of the water, and deep sea fishing trips. At Bacchus on the Beach, you can get fresh crabs, muffulettas, and other delicious food.
Since this is a small town, there aren’t many places to stay. The Hotel Pass Christian has ten rooms and a terrace with a view of the harbor. The Hotel Whiskey is a cozy, low-cost choice with a modern steakhouse on the ground floor.
Biloxi Beach
Mississippi has 62 miles of coastline with a lot of different towns. But Biloxi is the most famous of them all. Families love Biloxi Beach’s soft white sands and calm, clear water that’s great for swimming thanks to the barrier islands. Even though the beaches are nice, most people come to Biloxi for the club life and fun. Head to the Beau Rivage Casino or the Hard Rock Hotel and Casino, both of which are on the beach, with a group of friends for a pool party, show, or fancy dinner.
There is a lot of cheap buffet and fast food in Biloxi, but the best food can be found at places like Half Shell Oyster House, which is known for its New Orleans-style dishes; White Pillars, which serves a mix of Gulf Coast and New American dishes in a grand Greek Revival-style mansion; and McElroy’s Harbor House, which is a favorite for seafood with views of the water.
A number of new sites and activities have helped bring more people to the area. In partnership with the Maritime & Seafood Industry Museum, Biloxi Schooners takes visitors on a 300-year journey through the city’s past. Biloxi was once known as the “Seafood Capital of the World,” and the tour includes a sail on an old oyster schooner.
The theme park Margaritaville Resort Paradise Pier Fun Park has 15 rides with a nautical theme and three restaurants. The rides and restaurants are all on top of a huge deck with beautiful views of the Gulf of Mexico. Fans of music are finding Ground Zero Blues Club, which hosts both national acts and local artists and is co-owned by Morgan Freeman, who is from Mississippi.
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Ocean Springs
It’s an hour and thirty minutes from New Orleans.
The mega-casinos in Biloxi, which is only five miles away, make this ancient coastal town feel much farther away. The charming downtown area is less than a mile from Front Beach, a two-mile stretch of soft white sand. It is lined with one-of-a-kind shops and live trees that are hundreds of years old.
Festivals like the Peter Anderson Arts & Crafts fair, which happens every year and is the biggest fine arts fair in the state, draw big crowds. There are also the Walter Anderson Museum of Art and Shearwater Pottery, which are both interesting places to visit. The complex, always-changing sample menus at Vestige, which was nominated for a James Beard Award, set a high standard for food. The locally inspired Evergreen is another great place to eat in the area. Other great places to eat include Tatonut Donut Shop, Blue Dog Bistro (for breakfast and lunch), and Murky Waters BBQ.
Inside a historic bank building, the Hemingway is a quirky hotel right in the middle of downtown. Each of the four rooms has its own style and personality. The Gulf Hills Hotel & Resort has been around since 1927 and has been the home of famous people like Elvis Presley, Marilyn Monroe, and Al Capone. You can walk to both the beach and downtown from The Roost, an expensive boutique hotel, and The Springs, a charming newcomer to the area’s hotel scene with 15 rooms.
Gulfport
It’s an hour and thirty minutes from New Orleans.
The beaches near Mississippi’s second-largest city are well-kept and have soft white sand. The water is clean but a bit darker than at the more popular beaches to the east. After a day at the beach, you can take a boat trip to historic Ship Island, a barrier island 12 miles from the coast that is part of the Gulf Islands National Seashore. You can also stay in town and check out the unique downtown, which includes a public art scene that is always changing in an old fishmonger’s alley.
In keeping with the water theme, the Mississippi Aquarium (a new pedestrian bridge over Highway 90 safely connects the aquarium to the beach), the Institute for Marine Mammal Studies, and Gulf Islands Water Park are some of the most popular places to visit. Gulf Islands Water Park is the largest water park on the coast and has 11 different attractions, each of which includes landmarks from the area.
Most of the places to stay in the area are cheap chain hotels. The Courtyard by Marriott and Holiday Inn Express are right next to the beach, while The Almanett is the best place for a more unique stay. Consider staying at historic Centennial Plaza, a 48-acre resort complex that used to be a military base and has a water park right next to the beach for a more full stay.
Gulfport’s entertainment area, which includes a lot of the waterfront, harbor, and downtown, lets people leave a bar or restaurant with an alcoholic drink in a go-cup, just like in New Orleans. Some popular places to get fresh fish and have a good time are Patio 44, The Chimneys, and Shaggy’s.
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Gulf Shores and Orange Beach
On the Alabama coast, there are 32 miles of soft white sand made up of broken quartz that came down from the Appalachians thousands of years ago. Don’t sleep there. The most well-known beaches are in Gulf Shores and Orange Beach, which are six miles apart and divided by Gulf State Park, which is great for families. Both Gulf Shores and Orange Beach have beautiful white sand beaches. Gulf Shores is bigger and has more coastline than Orange Beach. These beaches are generally less busy and cheaper than the Florida beaches close by.
The Gulf Shores Public Beach is the main attraction in town. It’s close to a lot of fun bars and dining places. A lot of people have loved The Hangout, Pink Pony Pub, and The Beach House Kitchen & Cocktails for a long time. The owners of Orange Beach’s famous Flora-Bama have opened a new seaside restaurant called CoastAL Orange Beach.
It has beautiful views and two types of food: high-end and quick bar bites. The huge patio at Cobalt, The Restaurant, and the fish that was just caught at The Gulf, which is housed in shipping containers, are also very popular. For a taste of New Orleans, Orange Beach has its own Ruby Slipper location that serves fancy lunch foods.
A free bike-share service makes it easy for active tourists to get to the Hugh S. Branyon Backcountry Trail, which is known all over the country for being great for biking. It’s 28.2 miles long and runs through Gulf State Park. Renting a boat to fish or watch dolphins is another popular thing to do in the area.