50 Minute Gondola Tour

My Husband and I were celebrating our 1 Year Wedding Anniversary. We had gone to Italy for our honeymoon but weren't able to take part in the Gondola ride in Venice due to the cold weather and the water freezing. We decided to take part of the Gondola ride in NOLA to celebrate our anniversary. I'm so happy we did. We had a little piece of Italy right here in NOLA. It was absolutely beautiful, peaceful, and serene. In addition, it was like being in NOLA yet not in NOLA all at the same time...as the scene from a boat's view provides a completely different perspective of the beauty that lies within City Park. It was a 50 minute escape away from the hustle and bustle of the world into calmness and serenity. In addition, Eddie Russo added that extra touch of class playing the mandolin. His music provided the perfect backdrop to our already beautiful scene. My husband and I are huge fans of Italian music...we find the music to be so stimulating and lovely. And, Mr. Russo played such great songs that we were all too familiar with providing us with nostalgic memories. He even took requests if we wanted him to play something in particular. Finally, the captain of the boat, Robert Dula, was so hospitable and thoughtful. He even took our photos all while steering the Bella Mae, as his Gondola is called. And, I must say Robert captured some beautiful shots. I would highly recommend this activity to any couple celebrating any occasion...be it a birthday, a wedding, an anniversary, a proposal, etc... It is truly a treat to treasure. We look forward to doing it again in the future.

This was by far the highlight of our visit to New Orleans......the natural beauty of the ride through city park at sunset combined with Robert's contagious passion and enthusiasm for gondolering as well as his amazing attention to exactly what goes in to making just that perfectly romantic trip far exceeded my expectations. This is something you just need to experience.....we are already looking forward to our next voyage on the beautiful Bella Mae!! Thank you so much, Robert for an unforgettable evening!!

Loved it so so much. Have already recommended it to several friends!!

My boyfriend and I booked the 2pm slot on a Saturday. It was by far our favorite part of our vacation! Robert was a great tour guide and provided us wine glasses (don't forget to bring a bottle along!), cheese, crackers and an umbrella since it was rather hot that day. We were both in awe of City Park's beauty throughout the tour and really enjoyed the cute tradition to kiss under each bridge. The music was lovely and the whole experience was just magical. I highly recommend booking the gondola tour! And if it's available, go for the sunset slot.

Roberto made an excellent host and would talk as much as you wanted, or as little. His boat is true Venetian and it made us smile to see people taking photos of us as we smoothly glided under the numerous bridges throughout the park. Years ago I took my wife to Venice, Italy and balked at the price of a ride then and decided not to do it. It was one of my regrets from years ago so I decided to try and make it up while on her birthday celebrations in New Orleans. Wonderful experience and would highly recommend for a couple!! THe cheese & crackers he provided as snacks were a nice touch too!!

A wonderful way to explore City Park, and a romantic way to celebrate our 40th anniversary. We highly recommend it and the gondolier!

We weren't sure what to expect, but we were pleasantly surprised! The gondola is much more beautiful in person, and our gondolier had a beautiful singing voice. It was magic as we rode under the bridges and his voice echoed. He opened the wine we brought, and served cheese and crackers. He was very interesting as he talked about his time learning to how be a gondolier, but we kept asking questions. If you want more quiet and privacy, he'll do that. This was definitely a first-class experience with personal service. If you're planning a marriage proposal, just be aware that one of the sculptures in the garden on the right is an upside-down man hanging from his ankles. I would plan for the bayou down further to pop your question. Our 5:00 mid-September time was a bit hot at first, but it soon became more comfortable. When we do it again around our anniversary in September, we will choose 6:00. We recommend daytime vs. nighttime so you can see the birds, black swans, and views of the park. There were several people who stopped to look and kids who waved. However, if you want privacy you may want nighttime. I'm not sure about the safety of the park at night, though.

A must do if you are looking to impress! Beautiful, romantic ride with an amazing gondolier!

My wife and I spent our 10th anniversary in New Orleans last weekend. After an awesome dinner, we took an incredibly romantic gondola ride at sunset. Robert was an exceptional guide, very personable, and humorous. The crackers, cheese, ice bucket, and champagne flutes were a wonderful bonus! We will definitely do this again. If you are visiting New Orleans for any romantic outing...this IS A MUST!

I cannot say enough good things about this! It was great. We got some awesome pictures and it was very romantic! Worth the money!!