Pros

  • Within walking distance of French Quarter attractions and museums
  • Large, trendy lobby with bar serving coffee, cocktails, and small plates
  • Chic, modern rooms with comfortable beds, flat-screen TVs, and stylish bathrooms
  • Rooftop pool with plush loungers and cabanas
  • Bright fitness center with a wide array of machines
  • Extensive meeting facilities and business center
  • Free Wi-Fi in lobby
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Cons

  • Some rooms and bathrooms are small
  • Fee for Wi-Fi (free for SPG Members) and reports of slow connection
  • Pricey parking
  • No in-room coffee/tea facilities
  • Some AC units can be loud
  • Internal noise issues from thin walls and room doors that slam
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Bottom Line

The Le Meridien New Orleans is an upscale hotel located in New Orlean's Central Business District, within walking distance of both the French Quarter and the Museum District. The 410 stylish rooms and suites are outfitted with comfortable beds, large work desks, flat-screen TVs, and mini-fridges. In-room Wi-Fi incurs an extra fee, however, unless you’re a SPG Member. The outdoor rooftop pool is a guest favorite, with a large sundeck, padded loungers, and cabanas. The massive, trendy lobby is another popular spot, where coffee, wine, and small plates are served. Ample meeting facilities, a business center, and a well-equipped fitness center round out the amenities here. Travelers seeking something closer to the French Quarter might want to consider the comparable Hyatt French Quarter New Orleans.

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Oyster Hotel Review

Le Meridien New Orleans

Scene

Upscale hotel with hip and stylish interiors, but a few flaws

Following a $29 million renovation, this former W reopened as the Le Meridian New Orleans in Dec. 2014, and offers a stylish, upscale stay in the Central Business District. It's suitably trendy and modern throughout, though the building itself is older and it shows in places -- room doors that slam, AC units that can be noisy, some rooms with awkward, small layouts. There are also some surprising service lapses for a hotel of this category, including slow expensive Wi-Fi, no in-room coffee facilities, and room cards that multiple guests have complained too easily demagnetize. 

Still, for most the positives will outweigh the negatives. The location is still convenient to the French Quarter nightlife without being in the thick of it, and the decor does live up to upscale standards. The hotel reinterprets the traditional lobby experience, offering guests a chic space -- the Hub -- with plenty of seating areas and a daytime coffeehouse vibe that transmutes into a "wine-inspired" environment in the evenings. Cool, contemporary couches and armchairs are clustered around coffee tables in cozy nooks throughout the space, partitioned by bookshelves displaying various tomes and knickknacks, while a wall covered in cartography-inspired designs provides a hip backdrop. The cool, neutral color palette cloaking the lobby favors grays and blues, with brighter hues dotted throughout providing some vibrant accents.

See More Scene

Location

In the Central Business District, within walking distance of French Quarter and Museum and Warehouse districts

The hotel is located right on the border of the Central Business District and the Warehouse District, across from Harrah’s Casino and a couple of blocks from the Shops at Canal Place. French Quarter attractions, including the action along Bourbon Street, are around a 10-minute walk away, but far enough for nights to be quieter. Streetcars running along Canal Street, St. Charles Street, and Port New Orleans Place can be found within a three-minute walk. The Louis Armstrong International Airport is about a 25-minute drive away.

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Rooms

Chic and modern -- though smallish -- rooms and suites with stylish bathrooms

These stylish rooms feature modern furnishings and a peaceful color palette of neutral grays paired with crisp whites. Comfortable pillow-top mattresses are topped with high-thread count sheets and goose down duvets, while gray sofas by the windows offer pleasant seating areas. All rooms have flat-screen TVs, minibars, alarm clock radios, work desks, and electronic safes, but no tea or coffee facilities. In-room Wi-Fi incurs an added fee (though its free for SPG Members). Bathrooms are chic and modern, with white subway tile paired with brown accent walls, as well as large vanities and walk-in showers. Much like the rooms themselves, the bathrooms are small, but make efficient use of space. Suites have separate living rooms with contemporary gray sofas and dining tables.

Some guests have complained of noisy AC units, and the doors lack automatic closers and bang shut.

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Features

Lovely rooftop pool with cabanas and loungers, large and hip lobby with bar, fitness center, meeting facilities, and more

The hotel’s outdoor rooftop pool is located on the fourth floor, adjacent to the fitness center. It is big enough for a few short laps, but most guests come here to relax in the sun on the spacious sundeck lined with padded loungers or in one of the poolside cabanas, which are outfitted with ceiling fans and flat-screen TVs. Another highlight here is the hotel’s lobby, or Le Meridien Hub, a vast and stylish gathering space with plenty of seating areas and a bar serving coffee in the mornings as well as cocktails, wine, and small plates in the evenings. Breakfast is served daily in the chic LMNO restaurant (included in some rates), plus 24-hour room service is also available.The 24-hour fitness center is well equipped and full of natural light courtesy of large windows overlooking the city. Business travelers are well catered for with over 20,000-square-feet of meeting facilities and event space as well as a business center with two computers and a printer. Wi-Fi is free in the lobby, however, it incurs an extra fee in-room (unless you’re an SPG Member), though there have been some complaints of slow connections. Parking is valet-only and expensive.

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Things You Should Know About Le Meridien New Orleans

Also Known As

  • W New Orleans
  • Hotel New Orleans Downtown

Address

333 Poydras St, New Orleans, Louisiana 70130-3215, United States

Phone

(504) 525-9444

Website

Oyster Hotel Review

Le Meridien New Orleans

Scene

Upscale hotel with hip and stylish interiors, but a few flaws

Following a $29 million renovation, this former W reopened as the Le Meridian New Orleans in Dec. 2014, and offers a stylish, upscale stay in the Central Business District. It's suitably trendy and modern throughout, though the building itself is older and it shows in places -- room doors that slam, AC units that can be noisy, some rooms with awkward, small layouts. There are also some surprising service lapses for a hotel of this category, including slow expensive Wi-Fi, no in-room coffee facilities, and room cards that multiple guests have complained too easily demagnetize. 

Still, for most the positives will outweigh the negatives. The location is still convenient to the French Quarter nightlife without being in the thick of it, and the decor does live up to upscale standards. The hotel reinterprets the traditional lobby experience, offering guests a chic space -- the Hub -- with plenty of seating areas and a daytime coffeehouse vibe that transmutes into a "wine-inspired" environment in the evenings. Cool, contemporary couches and armchairs are clustered around coffee tables in cozy nooks throughout the space, partitioned by bookshelves displaying various tomes and knickknacks, while a wall covered in cartography-inspired designs provides a hip backdrop. The cool, neutral color palette cloaking the lobby favors grays and blues, with brighter hues dotted throughout providing some vibrant accents.

See More Scene

Location

In the Central Business District, within walking distance of French Quarter and Museum and Warehouse districts

The hotel is located right on the border of the Central Business District and the Warehouse District, across from Harrah’s Casino and a couple of blocks from the Shops at Canal Place. French Quarter attractions, including the action along Bourbon Street, are around a 10-minute walk away, but far enough for nights to be quieter. Streetcars running along Canal Street, St. Charles Street, and Port New Orleans Place can be found within a three-minute walk. The Louis Armstrong International Airport is about a 25-minute drive away.

See More Location

Rooms

Chic and modern -- though smallish -- rooms and suites with stylish bathrooms

These stylish rooms feature modern furnishings and a peaceful color palette of neutral grays paired with crisp whites. Comfortable pillow-top mattresses are topped with high-thread count sheets and goose down duvets, while gray sofas by the windows offer pleasant seating areas. All rooms have flat-screen TVs, minibars, alarm clock radios, work desks, and electronic safes, but no tea or coffee facilities. In-room Wi-Fi incurs an added fee (though its free for SPG Members). Bathrooms are chic and modern, with white subway tile paired with brown accent walls, as well as large vanities and walk-in showers. Much like the rooms themselves, the bathrooms are small, but make efficient use of space. Suites have separate living rooms with contemporary gray sofas and dining tables.

Some guests have complained of noisy AC units, and the doors lack automatic closers and bang shut.

See More Rooms

Features

Lovely rooftop pool with cabanas and loungers, large and hip lobby with bar, fitness center, meeting facilities, and more

The hotel’s outdoor rooftop pool is located on the fourth floor, adjacent to the fitness center. It is big enough for a few short laps, but most guests come here to relax in the sun on the spacious sundeck lined with padded loungers or in one of the poolside cabanas, which are outfitted with ceiling fans and flat-screen TVs. Another highlight here is the hotel’s lobby, or Le Meridien Hub, a vast and stylish gathering space with plenty of seating areas and a bar serving coffee in the mornings as well as cocktails, wine, and small plates in the evenings. Breakfast is served daily in the chic LMNO restaurant (included in some rates), plus 24-hour room service is also available.The 24-hour fitness center is well equipped and full of natural light courtesy of large windows overlooking the city. Business travelers are well catered for with over 20,000-square-feet of meeting facilities and event space as well as a business center with two computers and a printer. Wi-Fi is free in the lobby, however, it incurs an extra fee in-room (unless you’re an SPG Member), though there have been some complaints of slow connections. Parking is valet-only and expensive.

See More Features

Best Rates

Amenities

  • Air Conditioner

  • Airport Transportation

  • Basic Television

  • Business Center

  • Cabanas

  • Cable

  • Concierge

  • Cribs

  • Dry Cleaning

  • Fitness Center

  • Internet

  • Jacuzzi

  • Kids Allowed

  • Laundry

  • Meeting / Conference Rooms

  • Mini Bar (with liquor)

  • Pets Allowed

  • Pool

  • Poolside Drink Service

  • Rental Car Service Desk Onsite

  • Room Service

  • Separate Bedroom / Living Room Space

  • Tennis Court

Disclaimer: This content was accurate at the time the hotel was reviewed. Please check our partner sites when booking to verify that details are still correct.