Mumbai15 Feb 21 1 Traveller Economy
Showing International Flight from New Orleans
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About New Orleans
New Orleans is a popular tourist destination in the United States of America. It is known for its Creole cuisine and European-style architecture. The city is known for its dynamic music scenes, too. You will hear a lot of jazz, rock 'n' roll, blues and Zydeco music in the city. Mardi Gras is one of the main reasons for tourists to plan a trip to New Orleans. Parties are happening in the city throughout the year with or without Mardi Gras. You can head to the clubs at Bourbon Street if you want to go partying till the wee hours. There is always one festival or another happening in the city. The city has also been victim to environmental disasters like Hurricane Katrina, BP Oil Spill and Hurricane Isaac, but it stands strong. A lot of tourists prefer taking a walking tour of the city. You can walk through the French Quarter and other major architectural sites. You can end your day with a delicious plate of jambalaya and a couple of drinks. You will have the time of your life in New Orleans.
Best Time to Visit New Orleans
February to May is a popular time to visit New Orleans, majorly because of Mardi Gras. Make sure you book a hotel in New Orleans several weeks in advance because not only will the hotels be packed but also, you will find it difficult to get cheap flight tickets to New Orleans. Since it is also when Mardi Gras takes place, a lot of popular tourist attractions are shut. If you want to add sightseeing for your trip, it is best not to plan it during Mardi Gras. The temperature ranges from 10 to 29 degree Celsius and is quite pleasant. It is comfortably warm, though the days can get pretty hot towards the end of the spring season. While Mardi Gras is one of the most popular reasons for people to visit New Orleans, you can attend the other festivals in the city, too, during the spring season. Tennessee Williams/Literary Festival, French Quarter Festival, New Orleans Jazz and Heritage Festival and New Orleans Wine and Food Experience are some of the other popular events that you can attend during these months.
June to August is when summer kicks in and the days can get pretty hot. The temperature ranges from 24 to 33 degree Celsius. Since there is barely any precipitation leading to humidity, the heat will be quite uncomfortable and scorching. It also rains a lot in summer, so you will have to pack your umbrellas, too. It is not the best time to visit the city if you can't deal with the blistering heat. You can attend the Louisiana Cajun-Zydeco Festival, New Orleans Pride Festival, COOLinary New Orleans, Satchmo Summerfest and Red Dress Run in summer. Make sure you are well-hydrated and carry sunblock with you at all times. September to November is the autumn season in New Orleans, and it is an ideal time to visit the city. The temperature ranges from 13 to 30 degree Celsius. It gets colder towards the end of autumn, but there is also the risk of hurricanes from June to November. Despite the hurricane threat, there are quite a few events hosted in the city. You can book a hotel in New Orleans at a low price since it is not peak tourist season. You will also come across exciting flight deals to New Orleans online. You can attend events like the Louisiana Seafood Festival, Crescent City Blues and BBQ Festival, New Orleans Film Festival, Voodoo Music + Arts Experience, Oak Street Po-Boy Festival and Celebration in the Oaks.
December to January is winter in New Orleans and is another good time to visit the city. The temperature ranges from 8 to 17 degree Celsius, and the city gets relief from the scorching heat. This is the perfect time to get good deals on hotels, and you can also witness the festive spirit of New Orleans first hand. Sugar Bowl is a very popular event that has families hooked to their televisions. You will also find a lot of pubs and sports bars in the city screening it so that you can enjoy it with lots of beer.
Places to Visit in New Orleans
Bourbon Street is one of the most happening places in New Orleans. It is one of the oldest streets in the cities. If you want to go out partying, Bourbon Street has a lot of pubs and nightclubs. You can also go club-hopping here and have the time of your life. The French Quarter is another place in the city that is worth a visit. You can catch street performances here and a lot of historical buildings that you can visit like the St Louis Cathedral, Cabildo and Presbytere. French Quarter has a very Bohemian feel to it. Add a little spook to your trip by visiting the Voodoo Museum. It has historical and mystic relevance to it. It is believed that in the 1800s, an amalgamation between Creole culture and Voodoo dancing created jazz music. You can also visit the Moonwalk Riverside Promenade. Take a stroll by the Mississippi River and enjoy a romantic sunset. New Orleans also has a lot of museums for art lovers, nature lovers and history buffs. Make sure you attend the New Orleans Jazz Museum, too, if you are a fan of the genre.
Your sightseeing and outdoor plans might get affected a lot if you are heading to New Orleans during Mardi Gras. A lot of sightseeing spots are shut during Mardi Gras since the entire city wants to enjoy it and ensure that tourists do the same. The city also has a lot of beautiful swamps that offer activities like fishing, kayaking and air boating. Preservation Hall is a popular spot in New Orleans where a lot of live music events and jazz brunches are hosted. St Louis Cathedral is one of the most important landmarks in New Orleans and was built in the 1700s. The cathedral was destroyed twice but was rebuilt again.
Things to do in New Orleans
Mardi Gras is a big reason for people to fly to New Orleans. Apart from enjoying the carnival, you can also try a lot of things to spruce up your holiday. New Orleans has a very active and vibrant nightlife. Bourbon Street and Frenchmen street are quite popular party destinations. You can go partying or shopping at one or both of these places. You can also sign up for a sightseeing tour of the city or a New Orleans Swamp tour. As strange as it might seem, the city also organises cemetery tours. Make sure you also visit the Voodoo Museum for a spooky tour.
Foods and Restaurants in New Orleans
If you are planning a trip to New Orleans, make sure you give your diet a rest. It is a culinary delight, and you won't forget it for a long time. You can enjoy cuisines from all over the world in New Orleans. However, it is known for its Creole and Cajun cuisines. You can try traditional New Orleans dishes like red beans and rice and PO-boys, Cajun and Creole jambalaya and gumbo are some of the popular dishes you will find in menus here. Cafe du Monde is a popular cafe that serves the best Beignets in the world. It also got featured in the popular Hollywood film, Chef. The French Quarter has quite a lot of Creole restaurants and French restaurants, too. It is best to sign up for a food tour or attend one of the food festivals. You might come across discounts and offers on the menus during festivals. If you are in the mood for dessert, head over to Angelo Brocato Ice Cream. You can also try Olde Nola Cookery for traditional Cajun and Creole cuisine along with some seafood. Paladar 511 is popular for serving the best pizzas in the neighbourhood. Head over to The Rum House for the Caribbean and Latin food.
How to reach New Orleans (Transportation)
Louis Armstrong New Orleans International Airport is owned by the New Orleans city and is about 18 km from downtown New Orleans. The flight connectivity to New Orleans from India is quite good. KLM, American Airlines, United Airlines, Lufthansa have frequent flights to New Orleans with layovers at Amsterdam, London, Chicago, Dallas and Newark. If you book well in advance, you might get exciting flight deals to New Orleans from India. You will get a taxi or car rental service from the airport quite easily. The airport has quite a lot of facilities like premium lounges, restaurants, cafes, shopping areas, currency exchange and so on. You can also book a hotel in New Orleans near the airport if you have an early flight to catch or if you want to avoid the commute. You can also get cheap flight tickets to New Orleans if you book several weeks in advance or if you are travelling during the offseason.
About Virgin Atlantic
Virgin Atlantic which follows a trading name of Virgin Atlantic Airways Limited and Virgin Atlantic International Limited, is a British-owned airline that has its headquarters in Crawley, England. The airline was founded in 1984 under the name British Atlantic Airways, by Randolph Fields and Alan Hellary with flight connectivity between London and the Falkland Islands. However, the name was changed to Virgin Atlantic Airways as Fields sold his shares in the company. A disagreement between Fields and Sir Richard Branson regarding the management of the company resulted in Fields walking out of the airline. In the same year since its establishment, the airline had its first flight from Gatwick Airport in London to Newark Liberty International Airport in New Jersey. Virgin Atlantic is owned and operated under the holding company Virgin Atlantic Limited. The same holding company also controls Virgin Holidays. The holding company has 51 percent ownership of the Virgin Group while the remaining 49 per cent is owned by Delta Air Lines, a major airline of the United States of America.
Virgin Atlantic Airways Limited and Virgin Atlantic International Limited have both received the Civil Aviation Authority Type A Operating Licenses. The said licence permits both the airlines to accommodate passengers, cargo and mail on aircraft that comprises 20 seats or more. Virgin Atlantic's fleet is mixed with wide-body aircraft of Airbus and Boeing. The airline majorly has its operations in North American, Africa, Asia, the Caribbean and the Middle East. Its main base is at London-Heathrow Airport while its secondary hub is at Manchester in the United Kingdom. Virgin Atlantic also has seasonal flight operations from Glasgow and Belfast. The airline consists of three types of cabin, namely Economy, Premium (premium economy) and Upper Class (business class). In 2017, Virgin Atlantic expressed its intention to form a joint venture with Europe's Air France - KLM. However, in 2019, it was announced that the venture would not involve a stake in the British airline. Virgin Atlantic has witnessed tremendous losses over the years and has had to cut down operations to various international destinations, owing to the growing debts and losses.
In 2019, as part of its expansion plans, Virgin Atlantic announced that it had plans to go all out and hopefully create a second flag carrier in the United Kingdom, provided slot reforms were being considered in the airline's favour at the Heathrow Airport. With this, the airline planned to serve about 103 destinations in total with many domestic routes and international routes. They wished to add about 84 new destinations to their list of services, of which 12 catered to the domestic route while 37 are European and the remaining 35 being international routes. The 35 international destinations in Virgin Atlantic's list include Austin, Buenos Aires, Addis Ababa, Karachi, Tokyo, Cape Town, Beijing, Singapore, Bogota, Mexico City and Sydney. While the airline has already functioned in international routes catering to Cape Town, Vancouver, Sydney, Karachi and Tokyo, the remaining long-haul destinations that the airline plans to add would be completely new for them. It was reported that Flybe, UK's largest low-cost carrier regional airline, was supposed to join hands with Virgin Atlantic. However, the plans fell through as Flybe ceased operations in 2020.
Fleet size of Virgin Atlantic
As of 2020, Virgin Atlantic's fleet size stands at 35 aircraft. 22 aircraft are expected to join the fleet. The fleet comprises 17 Boeing 787-9s, 10 Airbus A330-300s and four Airbus A330-200 and Airbus A350-1000s respectively. All the aircraft operated by Virgin Atlantic are wide-body type. The airline accommodates a mixed fleet that comprises Airbus and Boeing wide-body aircraft. The Airbus A330-200s of the airline operate from London's Gatwick International Airport as well as Manchester Airport and connect to international routes of the United States and the Caribbean. There are seasonal routes connecting to Orlando International Airport in Florida, which is offered from Glasgow and Belfast International Airport. Much recently, the airline retired its Boeing 747s which catered to the seasonal flight operations to Florida. Virgin Atlantic's aircraft Airbus A330-300s, A350-1000s and Boeing 787-9s are used interchangeably on routes that fly from London's Heathrow Airport. In 2002, the airline became the first in the world to operate the Airbus A340-600.
Virgin Atlantic was supposed to add six Airbus A380-800s to its fleet, which they had ordered for in 2001. However, the order had to be cancelled for good. Instead, in 2019, at the Paris Air Show, the airline signed a deal to accommodate 20 Airbus A330-900neos to its fleet. With this move, the airline became the first United Kingdom customer for the aircraft. The airline does plan to replace its older Airbus A330-200s and -300s from the fleet with deliveries of newer models that will be joining the fleet between 2021 to 2024. Much recently, the airline retired its long-running A340-600 with its last service taking place between Lagos to London Heathrow. Simultaneously, the airline has also retired seven of its Boeing 747-400 aircraft from the fleet.
Baggage Allowance
Baggage allowance on Virgin Atlantic depends on the destination the passenger is travelling to and from as well as the ticket type. Economy class tickets allow one checked bag which should not weigh more than 23 kg and should be within the dimension of 90 x 75 x 43cm. Premium cabin class tickets' baggage allowance on Virgin Atlantic enables two pieces of baggage which cannot exceed 23 kg and should be within the dimension as mentioned in the economy class. The Upper class or business class tickets have a baggage allowance of up to three pieces of bags that should not weigh more than 32 kg. The dimensions of all the baggage should be 90 x 75 x 43cm and not more than the stated measurement. Interestingly, the airline recently made some changes to its baggage allowance policy for passengers travelling to and from Indian cities such as Mumbai and Delhi. They have allowed a free bag allowance which means passengers can carry two bags weighing 32 kg each for Upper Class. However, two pieces of bags are allowed for passengers travelling from premium class with a weight allocation of 23 kg. As for the economy class tickets, the airline has enabled two pieces of bags allowed with a weight permit of not more than 23 kg. These new rules are as opposed to the earlier ones which allowed more baggage allocation by Virgin Atlantic.
In-flight services
In-flight services experienced on Virgin Atlantic are quite exceptional. The airline brings forth some of the best seating accommodation. They have enhanced the seats with better leather and equipment such as a personal lamp, entertainment system, better overhead bin space and seats that recline with better legroom too. Depending on the cabin class chosen by the passenger, the facilities do change. However, the comfort measure remains constant in all the cabins. Virgin Atlantic's in-flight services also include in-flight meals which are inspired by global cuisine.
Popular routes and top cities for Virgin Atlantic
Virgin Atlantic caters to a handful of domestic routes and international routes. In fact, in terms of domestic routes, the airline doesn't have a strong game as it only caters to London and Manchester. Barring these two hubs, the airline doesn't have any destination flying within the United Kingdom. As for international routes, it is well-connected with North America and parts of Asian destinations. The airline doesn't have a magnanimous presence in a lot of destinations internationally. They have also terminated services with a slew of cities owing to the loss-making management structure. As of 2020, the airline caters to cities such as Antigua, Shanghai, Havana, Hong Kong, Mumbai, Delhi, Tel Aviv, Lagos, Johannesburg, Tobago, London, Belfast, Manchester, Atlanta, Boston, Las Vegas, Los Angeles, Miami, New York City, Orlando, San Francisco, Seattle and Washington DC. While the airline did have hopes to acquire more recognition and presence in the domestic market by tying up with Flybe, the deal didn't take off, and neither did Virgin Atlantic's plans to make a bigger UK reach.
Why travel by Virgin Atlantic?
Virgin Atlantic has been facing significant losses and important issues over the years. However, the airline is known and recognised for offering quality service and hospitality. Virgin Atlantic has grown into a favourable airline for passengers who wish to travel to destinations in the United States of America from London and the United Kingdom. The airline has also worked on improving much of its in-flight services and facilities that further enhance the experience of travellers. On the airline's official website, they have enabled booking a Virgin Atlantic flight without any conundrums. Following the same, the airline has also made web check-ins possible with up to date details concerning the flight status of the passengers. Virgin Atlantic's flight schedules are also added on the website along with constant updates. These facilities actually help passengers make the airline a viable option. Virgin Atlantic's flyer clubs also have some of the best amenities in the airport lounge as well as while booking the flight tickets.
