New Orleans Bike Tour: Cruising the Big Easy with Buzz Nola
Experience the City of Kings up close and personal on a New Orleans bike tour that hits all the must-see landmarks and historical sites.
The best way, in my opinion, to experience a new city is to take a guided bike tour. So when I found myself in New Orleans for three weeks on a housesitting gig, one of the first things I did was sign up for a New Orleans bike tour. And spoiler alert: it was amazing!
There are several bike tour companies in New Orleans and I actually did two different tours from two different companies. The Buzz Nola Creole Orleans E-bike Tour was by far my favorite. Not only did we cover more ground on the e-bikes, but if you’ve never ridden an eclectic bike, you should know that they are a ton of fun. You can’t help but giggle as you cruise down the street full-throttle.
Our Buzz Nola guide, Betsy, was also top-notch. She knew the history of the city and took us to all the major landmarks and historical sites. If you’re in New Orleans and looking for a guided tour around the city, I highly recommend doing it on (electrified) two wheels!
Buzz Nola Location + Hours
Buzz Nola Bike Tours is conveniently located near the French Quarter on Canal Street. They offer morning and afternoon tours 7 days a week and their shop is open daily from 9:30-4:30 for bike rentals/sales.
They are currently the only bike tour company in New Orleans to offer daily e-bike tours!
Buzz Nola Bike Tour Options
Buzz Nola offers several different bike tour options:
1. Electric Bike Creole Tour
- Tour duration: ~3 hours
- Tour cost: $79 per person
I did the Electric Bike Creole Tour, which covered the French Quarter and City Park area of New Orleans. The custom-built e-bikes are super comfortable and easy to use and even have a throttle if you get tired (or just want to have extra fun!)
2. Complete Crescent Tour
- Tour duration: ~3 hours
- Tour cost: $50 per person
The Complete Crescent Tour is the same tour as the e-bike tour above but on non-motorized custom cruiser bikes.
3. Garden/Quarter Combo Tour
- Tour duration: ~3 hours
- Tour cost: $50 per person
If you want to experience the Garden District of New Orleans with its mansions and beautiful gardens, sign up for the Garden/Quarter Combo Tour.
On this tour, you’ll learn about the American history of New Orleans, which is quite a bit different than the French and Spanish history of the French Quarter.
4. Self-Guided tours
If you want to do a self-guided bike tour of New Orleans, Buzz Nola has e-bikes and regular bikes for rent. However, you won’t get the in-depth knowledge and history lessons from their amazing guides!
Before you book a tour
Here are a few things to consider before signing up for a New Orleans bike tour:
- You will be riding in traffic, so you should comfortable on a bike. There are bike lanes and bike paths, but each tour has a different route and you may have to share the road with drivers.
- Riding while intoxicated is illegal. New Orleans is known for its drinking culture and open container laws, but riding a bike while intoxicated is illegal, not to mention incredibly unsafe. Just don’t do it.
- Summers get hoooot! I did my New Orleans bike tour in December and the weather was perfect. If you are visiting in the heat of summer, just know that it’s gonna be toasty. Bring lots of water, sunscreen, and a hat.
- Road conditions are terrible. The roads in New Orleans definitely have room for a lot of improvement. There are a lot of potholes, uneven pavement, broken glass, and other obstacles. Always look where you’re going, keep one hand on the handlebars, and don’t try to take a selfie!
Buzz Nola Creole e-bike Tour
Tour details
- Price: $79 per person
- Duration: ~3 hours
- Tour Includes: Bike tour guide, e-bike, helmet, locks, bottle of water
- Not included: Snacks, gratuity
Tour highlights
- Pedal through the French Quarter and learn about the founding of New Orleans, its unique architecture (like shot gun houses!), Creole history, and much more.
- See Frenchman Street, where you can return at night for great food and some of the best jazz music in the city.
- Explore Esplanade Avenue, a beautiful and historic boulevard lined with live oak trees and majestic homes.
- Visit the above-ground Saint Louis Cemetary and learn about New Orleans’ funeral traditions and the unique way the dead are cremated.
- Experience the beautiful and ancient live oaks in City Park and maybe even indulge in a sweet treat!
- Pedal past Bayou St. John, which was one of the original shipping canals.
- See Faubourg Treme, a historic neighborhood that is now home to artists, musicians, and history makers.
- Stop at the Tomb of the Unknown Slave and learn about the slave history of New Orleans.
Other New Orleans Bike Tour Options
If you can’t get a Buzz Nola Electric Bike Tour spot or you’re simply looking at all your options, here are a few other New Orleans bike tour companies:
FreeWheelin’ Bike Tours
I did the Original Creole and Crescent Tour with FreeWheelin’ Bikes and while I didn’t love it as much as the Buzz Nola e-bike tour, it was still great.
Our guide, Teddy, is a multi-generation local and he knows his NOLA history. I did find him a bit hard to understand because he talked really fast, but I still enjoyed the tour.
FreeWheelin’ Bikes is all about supporting the American economy, so their custom bikes are US-made. You can also rent bikes from them or do a self-guided tour.
Flambeaux Bicycle Tours
Flambeaux Bicycle Tours offers a 3-hour French Quarter and mid-city tour and a Heart of the City Bike Tour.
They also have bike rentals for you to explore on your own.
RELATED POSTS
Looking for some more two-wheeled inspiration? Check out these related biking blog posts:
Would you do a New Orleans Bike Tour? Which one? Comment below! If you’re looking for more city biking adventures, check out my City Biking archives
Hi Becky
We want to thank you for your kind words about our company as well as the other bike tour companies in New Orleans you wrote about. We love being ambassadors for this city so knowing that people enjoy the tours we provide.
I just subscribed to your blog and hope to read about some other great places to see by bike.
Thank you,
Buzz Nola Bike Tours & Rentals
Thanks for the great tour!