Such a great spot to get information on the area, meet up for the St. Louis Cemetery tour and the hop on/off tour bus. They have a cute gift/souvenir shop with coffee cups, magnets, t-shirts, hats, etc. Clean, accessible bathrooms. The staff here is so incredibly friendly and helpful. The adjacent lot has parking for only $5 for up to 10 hours . read more

What an incredible spot in New Orleans to rest and relax. There are lots of seating areas where you can cool off. Basin St. Station has a wonderful snack bar and a very nicely well-stocked gift shop. All the information about the trains in New Orleans was SO interesting. The old railway station is one of the main stops on the "Hop On-Hop Off" tour bus that we were using during our stay in New Orleans. It is also the spot where you can purchase tickets for the "official" tour of St. Louis Cemetery No. 1. read more

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We stopped in here for a bit before going on our tour of the St Louis Cemetary #1. This was a nice little treat with a little local history, as well as a gift shop, cafe, and visitor center to ask questions read more

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Nice place to stop in and read about some of the train history of NOLA. Get your over priced tickets to see a cemetery while your there read more

Basin St. Station - Cultural Center Near Me - New Orleans, Louisiana

Good resource, Great staff! Good meeting place for our walking tour at their dedicated kiosk inside this visitor center. It is complete with a Welcome Center, a staffed information center, educational exhibits, a small coffee bar that offered snacks and lite fare, a gift shop with a good selection of authentic NOLA souvenirs, and most importantly... restrooms! This visitor center is located just right across our next City Pass tour. We met our tour guide here for our Cemetery Walking Tour St. Louis #1. Parking cost between $5 - $10 depending on the day of the week but it was subject to change during special event dates and since we were there during Mardi Gras season parking cost $20 good for 24-hours. It was still a better deal compared to other parking lots or garages. Gets more expensive as you get closer to downtown or the parade routes. Left our car parked here while we walked to the downtown area and the French Quarter. If doing the Sightseeing Hop-on Hop-off bus tour it is Stop 5 around the city tour. Staff here were friendly and helpful. Gotta love that southern hospitality. Review #1717 read more

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We happened to stop in here because we parked at a lot right across the street from it to explore the French Quarter - by the way, recommend that lot since it is something like $5 for 9-10 hours of parking. There is a lot of great information in this building - history, music, art, etc. It's essentially a converted railroad station to museum with exhibits and an information center (friendly people there to help with questions). There is a small gift shot with New Orleans goodies as well as a place to get some water or a few other soft drinks/small snacks if you need. Plus, they had clean public bathrooms! We didn't spend too much time here, but definitely worth even a 10-15 minute stop if that is all you have. read more

This is where we met for the St. Louis Cemetery No. 1 tour. This station is neat and is extremely clean. It's equipped with bathrooms and a café. Although the museum-ish area isn't big it is a good way to pass time while you wait for your tour. There are some interesting music, art, and historical related topics to read about. As you can see from the other photos shared, there are few cool photo ops inside too, especially for train enthusiasts, like myself! Their gift shop has a lot of fascinating things to purchase. All the staff at this location were extremely nice and willing to help. The women at the front even had a print out of the parade route for Southern Decadence that she handed to us. read more

Basin St. Station - Cultural Center Near Me - New Orleans, Louisiana

I've been wanting to come and take a look around for some time now. Part railroad museum, part gift shop, part information center, part offices, part restaurant, full of interesting things. This is a stop on the hop on hop off city sightseeing tour and you get a break here. You can start your tour of the St Louis cemetery #1 here. Parking is reasonably priced. Everything is clean, employees are friendly. In the last month, I have been here as part of the On/Off bus tour and the St Louis cemetery #1 tour. Amazing both times. read more

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Great place to check out. Clean friendly tour information and staff. Cute gift shop and area history. read more

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This place is probably not even on the map for tourists, unless they are lost. Well, I happen to be one of them. The hard rock hotel collapsed and the roads are blocked, forcing me to walk on Elm to reach French quarter, and happen to notice this place. It's great to learn about the railroads and history of the area, and music genre, and good place for the railroad fans to take selfie with the fake train. They also have some tours that depart from here. They have a very clean restroom. read more

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Cute (free) tourist place worth stopping by for general information (free maps) about New Orleans. Basin Street Station is not actually a working station to catch a train. But there is some education learning opportunities about NOLA. Inside, this place does look like a train station though if you wanted to take with a train or a picture of you sitting on a bench. Employees here are friendly upon entering. They can help you sign up for a tour, provide information and help you if you are lost and trying to get to another location. Also the air conditioning is blasting in here, which is a nice place cool off in the summer (it is crazy hot and humid in NOLA in the summer, with August being the worse). The restrooms here are clean and very nice. Also this location is one of the pick up stops for the free Mardi Gras World Riverfront shuttle. Parking is not free, but if you are lucky (and willing), you can find free parking along the street (behind Basin Street Station). There is also a small gift shop here and you can even pick up a little snack (coffee and baked goods) here. read more

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Had my husband's birthday party here 11 years ago and people are still talking about how awesome it was! Great venue although it was small my guess fit perfectly, the overflow went to the balcony we had the entire place for the night. To keep people from just walking in to the party because he's quite popular we are at security and gave him a list at the elevators so he wouldn't let them up if they were not on the list. This worked out great. There's a nice size prep area closed off to the party room for your catering service. There's also a full bar for you to use (you must bring your own drinks). The room is awkwardly shaped and really not for a sit down dinner which I did have some tables out but we could only fit about 6 rounds of eight and a couple of smaller tables We had a live band and the stage area upfront worked out great. read more

A good place to figure out a plan for site seeing or picking up the tour bus! We didn't realize that they had changed the rules for visiting the cemeteries since our last visit to the quarter. When we went before it was open to the public during specific times of the day. Now you must have a tour guide and it costs 20 dollars a person. We found out all this info at the basin street station which assisted us in setting up a tour for the next morning so we could see the cemetery. The station itself offers a historic view of both the city and the quarter. They have a fair number of interactive maps and a good, short video on the city also. There is a small gift shop with a neat variety of merchandise, drinks and snacks. We grabbed a couple waters for the hot day. They also have a lot of brochures on places to eat, shop and visit. Keep in mind that a lot of brochures offer coupons with discounts, so grab them if they interest you! Overall: A Good place to pick up info. read more

Apparently this used to be some kind of train station in the past, but now it's been converted into a visitor's bureau, right across the street from one of the most famous cemeteries in the country. Admission is free, maps are free, and the staff is very helpful. They're a bit pushy about getting you to sign their book, which is a bit annoying if you go back to the same person for help after you've already signed their book, but apparently that all has to do with the fact that they get credit for how many people they help in the day. There are a couple of shuttles that leave from here for tours and other activities in New Orleans, but we skipped all of that part. There's a café with coffee and pastries, a gift shop, a little theater that goes through some of the history of New Orleans, and several interactive kiosks that draw your attention to some of the places you can visit in New Orleans. read more

Take a little break in your city discovery. They have a lot of information here, free maps, coffee shop and even a gift shop. The gift shop is twice as expensive as what you can find in the streets, just as a side note. They have bathroom available as well. read more

Great place to check in if you are a tourist. Friendly staff, air conditioning, clean restrooms, and a decent cafe!

Clean Restrooms. Check. Informative. Check. Helpful. Check. Friendly. Check. Gift Shop. Check. Parking. Check. This visitor's center is nice because it's like a little mini history museum. Lots of cool displays to look at and read about! Walking distance from the French Quarters, this information center is awesome. read more

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Basin St. Station is a solid restroom stop between St. Louis Cemetery No. 1 and Louis Armstrong Park, but I wouldn't spend all too long here. This is a welcoming and spacious building open to the public with well-maintained, classy bathroom stalls (but only three of them, at least for women), visitor information, plenty of tourist to-do packets, and a small gift shop where you can grab some high-priced water or souvenirs. I'd buy souvenirs elsewhere to pay less. They have a huge map of New Orleans in another room, and that's really helpful and interesting. Our tour guide for a French Quarter/cemetery tour brought us here and turned a compelling red light on for the map, which showed the areas of NOLA that were flooded by Katrina and by how much. So, stop in if you need to use the facilities or grab some information about the city, and be on your way. read more

A great place to visit right before St. Louis #1 Cemetery... mostly because there are restrooms and benches to sit on if you need a break. There is also a great display of the history of New Orleans, including a large map outlining what parts of NOLA were ruined and hit hardest by Katrina. Since this used to be a train station, there was also a film and display about trains if you're into that. read more

Clean restrooms, interesting exhibits, helpful and friendly staff. A great place to start tours in and around the French Quarter. read more

Basin St. Station - Cultural Center Near Me - New Orleans, Louisiana

Before taking a tour of the city we stopped in at Basin St. Station to use the bathrooms as well as grab pamphlets on the city. The building itself has an incredible history and the staff here was very polite. We enjoyed learning about the trolley lines in the city, the history of the French Quarter, as well as some of the best attractions in the town. In the end, this is a great place to stop at and there are some great parking lots in the area that are cheap and provide easy access into town. read more

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I recently visited this location for a special event. It's such a pleasant environment when you walk in here. There is a little museum of New Orleans downstairs that I think is pretty cool. Followed by a gift store. The staff is extra friendly and helpful. This is a good location to point tourist to start their New Orleans adventure in my opinion. Upstairs is surprising event space. That is not only spacious but cute with a little outdoor area. It could be great for special meetings, small to medium parties and more. It's also very great the fact that they have parking which is very important in my book. Looking for something all New Orleans? Start here. Not only will you get information but you can set up tours, even on a double decker bus. I saw lots of tourist getting off and on. Check out this building locals and tourist. read more

A great use of a cool old train station building. There's a free small self-guided museum about trains in NOLA. There's a film room where you can see a five minute film on the history of New Orleans. Cute gift shop. Also, a sparkling clean, open to the public, restroom. HURRAY. This space is home base to several tour groups, including Save our Cemeteries. read more

What a nice surprise. Comfortable, lovely restrooms, cafe, train museum, and kind staff. We were happy to have some respice before our graveyard tour. read more

Very UN-welcoming experience. I accidentally mistook the basin st station as the headquarters for another double decker red bus tour. I after realizing my mistake at the bus tour desk, I had asked the information desk if they were aware of the other bus tours' location or pick up points (assuming the info desk was independent of any tour company). I was treated very badly and told my car would be towed if I didn't move it. I understand this is one bad experience with two employees, but it left a lasting negative impression. As a lifelong resident, I was very disappointed in the welcome center. One of my good friends always says 'kindness should be spread like confetti' and I must say their was no confetti kindness spread that day by the employees at the basin street station. read more

Information center and museum with gift shop and restrooms. Nice break from running and not knowing where you are. Across the street from St Louis Cemetery No 1. I think they don't want you to park there and go to the cemetery, they threaten towing and booting car. read more

This was the first sight we visited in NOLA. The employee's are very courteous and helpful. There is a teeny tiny exhibit in here that is free. This is a great place to start if you have not preplanned your trip or been to NOLA before. read more

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I'm eager to go back during the day. I actually assisted at a wedding at this venue. I didn't know that events could be held there. It was beautifully decorated. There's an open balcony area which was very nice. The food from the cater was especially good. Will definitely be back for the first floor. read more

Great spot to take a breather and cool off from all the walking. When you walk in, you'll soon realize it's also a great spot to see and learn more about NOLA's history. It's like a mini museum. Staff is also very friendly and are always willing to answer any questions. My favorite part is the theatre with the benches showing vintage movies and documentaries. This is located right across from the St. Louis Cemetery. Definitely recommended. read more

I'm a local so the information here is not significantly useful to me, however the Basin St. Station is an excellent location outside the French Quarter. This tourism location is essentially brand new with clean bathrooms and helpful representatives to answer questions for you. There are several brochures of many typical tourist attractions in the city and a gift shop with all the overpriced items you could imagine. This center is very well put together and a great first stop for tourists. read more

I'm so upset by the service here. I am from out of town, and alone, and hadn't been able to find a bathroom for a while. I needed to use a bathroom so badly, so I popped into a gas station. They told me they didn't have one, and directed me to the "yellow building" across the street. I showed up as this place was closing. There were still plenty of people - customers and staff alike - inside, and I begged to use the bathroom. They said no. I was in tears I was in so much pain and they just told me to go away as I stood outside in the rain in tears. I told them earnestly that I JUST needed to use the restroom, that the gas station across the street had directed me here, and that I was alone, scared, and so far from home. The manager told me, "tough luck, try finding porta-potties." So I left. I just wanted to say I would never stay in a place that treats anyone like that. I understand being closed and not being able to provide services - I have worked in customer service many a time. But the rude, unkind communication was uncalled for, and frankly enticed me to leave my first ever negative review. I am so upset by the lack of empathy this place holds. read more

Charles was a fantastic tour guide! Very knowledgeable and entertaining!

Nice restore old train station with some local train history, gift shop, restaurant and bathrooms. Good place to start. Information, tours, rides etc. Easy parking. W/C accessible. Great view of the New Orleans from top floor restaurant. Cemetery right next door read more