Uptown New Orleans: Things to Do on a Tulane Visit

Uptown New Orleans is the part of the city Tulane sits in, and most of what there is to do on a visit is within a short walk or streetcar ride of campus: Audubon Park, Maple Street, Freret Street and Magazine Street. This guide maps them from a student's point of view. A private Uptown New Orleans tour with a current student covers campus and the streets around it.

What is Uptown New Orleans, and where is Tulane in it?

Uptown New Orleans is the part of the city along St. Charles Avenue between downtown and the Riverbend, and Tulane's uptown campus sits in the middle of it at 6823 St. Charles Avenue, facing Audubon Park. Loyola University New Orleans is next door. The visitor bureau notes that the St. Charles streetcar "takes you right to the front doors of both Tulane and Loyola universities" (New Orleans & Company).

Locals give directions by the river and the lake instead of north and south. Uptown means upriver, downtown means toward the French Quarter, riverside means toward the Mississippi and lakeside means away from it. Around campus that gives a simple map:

Riverside: Audubon Park, then Magazine Street.
Uptown: Broadway Street, Greek row, then Maple Street and the Riverbend at S. Carrollton Avenue.
Downtown: Freret Street's restaurant strip, between Jefferson and Napoleon avenues.
Lakeside: the rest of campus, out to Yulman Stadium.

The campus itself is compact. "It's a really small campus actually," says Eliana, our Tulane Campus Lead, so the neighborhood starts the moment you leave it.

What is there to do in Audubon Park across from Tulane?

Audubon Park, directly across St. Charles Avenue from Tulane's Gibson Hall, has a 1.8-mile path, the zoo and a place to rest between campus stops. The park is open daily from 5 a.m. to 10 p.m. (Audubon Nature Institute, as of October 2026).

The loop path. Audubon calls it "a tranquil 1.8-mile jogging path." At an ordinary walking pace the full loop takes about 36 minutes.
Audubon Zoo. At the river end of the park, "Home to more than 2,000 animals representing hundreds of species," according to New Orleans & Company's guide to the area around Yulman Stadium, updated July 2026.
The walk to Magazine Street. From Gibson Hall, straight through the park to Magazine Street is about 18 minutes on OpenStreetMap foot routes.
Newcomb Art Museum. Back on campus, the same guide calls it "a small gem of a museum that presents original exhibitions."

Where do Tulane students go out in Uptown?

Tulane students go out on Broadway, next to campus, and on Freret Street, downtown, and Eliana describes both. Maple Street and Oak Street, a little farther upriver, round out the map. Our guide to safety around Tulane's campus covers who patrols Broadway and Freret and how students get home at night.

Broadway Street. "That's a lot of just frats. And then there's one, like the main bar is also right there," she says. That bar is The Boot, at Broadway and Zimpel Street, about 12 minutes on foot from Gibson Hall.
Maple Street. About 9 minutes on foot upriver from Broadway, by OpenStreetMap foot routes. The visitor bureau describes "3 staple bars all on one corner" there.
Freret Street. "To the east of campus on Freret Street, about a 20 minute walk. So definitely a little further, but like a lot more. Like restaurants," Eliana says. The visitor bureau calls Freret "a local hotspot known for its dining, drinking, live music scene."
Oak Street and the Riverbend. Past Maple, where St. Charles meets S. Carrollton Avenue, the bureau lists live music at the Maple Leaf Bar on Oak Street.

For families, the useful part is the distances. Broadway is close enough to see on a campus walk. Freret, about 20 minutes on foot, works better as a dinner stop. The full eating list for Freret is in our one-day Tulane visit plan.

Where should we eat in Uptown on a Tulane visit?

The places to eat in Uptown on a Tulane visit cluster on Freret Street and in the Riverbend, where St. Charles meets S. Carrollton Avenue, with Maple and Oak streets close by. All the names below come from New Orleans & Company's Yulman Stadium guide, updated July 2026; we have not ranked them.

Breakfast: Satsuma, which "focuses its efforts on creating fresh breakfast dishes," and Riccobono's Panola Street Café, which the bureau calls "tucked into a quaint neighborhood."
A New Orleans diner: The Camellia Grill, "a classic New Orleans diner on South Carrollton Ave."
Dinner on Oak Street: Jacques-Imo's Café, in the Riverbend-Carrollton district.
Contemporary Creole: Brigtsen's, which the bureau calls a "beloved Uptown neighborhood gem."
Southern contemporary: Boucherie, which it calls "fine dining for the people."

The Riverbend is upriver of Broadway, about 15 minutes on foot from The Boot, or a short drive. Freret's restaurants are about 20 minutes the other way.

On a game weekend, plan ahead. The same guide warns that "parking is limited on game day" near Yulman Stadium.

Is Magazine Street worth the walk from Tulane?

Yes, Magazine Street is worth the walk from Tulane if you have an hour or two to spare, because the walk itself goes through Audubon Park. From Gibson Hall, the route across the park to Magazine Street at its river side takes about 18 minutes on foot.

Magazine Street runs "six miles through Uptown New Orleans," in the visitor bureau's words, and a Tulane department page describes it as "full of restaurants and boutique shops" (Tulane political science, graduate housing).

How to fit it in:

Before or after the official tour: walk the park to Magazine, eat, and walk back the same way.
With little time: stay near campus. Broadway is 6 minutes from Gibson Hall and Maple Street about 14.
On a hot afternoon: the park has shade, but summer highs in New Orleans average about 91 degrees in July and August (NOAA 1991 to 2020 normals). Go in the morning.

To see Broadway, Maple Street and campus with someone who lives there, a private tour is $150 for your family, 60 to 90 minutes, any day of the week.

Frequently asked questions

How far is Uptown New Orleans from the French Quarter?

Uptown New Orleans, measured at Tulane's front door, is about four miles up St. Charles Avenue from downtown and the edge of the French Quarter, by the directions on Tulane's families page. The St. Charles streetcar covers it: board at Common Street and St. Charles Avenue, one block off Canal Street, for $1.25 a ride.

Is Audubon Zoo near Tulane?

Yes, Audubon Zoo is near Tulane, at the river end of Audubon Park, which sits directly across St. Charles Avenue from campus. Walking through the park from Gibson Hall to its Magazine Street side takes about 18 minutes. The visitor bureau says the zoo is home to more than 2,000 animals.

What is Freret Street?

Freret Street is a restaurant and bar strip in Uptown New Orleans, between Jefferson and Napoleon avenues, downtown of Tulane's campus. It grew from mostly empty storefronts to more than 30 businesses after 2009, per New Orleans & Company. Eliana, a current student, puts it "about a 20 minute walk" from campus.

Is Uptown New Orleans walkable from Tulane?

Yes, the parts of Uptown New Orleans students use most are walkable from Tulane. From Gibson Hall, Broadway is about 6 minutes on foot, Maple Street about 14, Magazine Street through the park about 18 and Freret Street at Jefferson Avenue about 19, by OpenStreetMap foot routes.

Sources, read October 2026: New Orleans & Company, near Yulman Stadium · New Orleans & Company, college visit itinerary · Audubon Nature Institute, park rules · Tulane political science, graduate housing