Hotel Villa Convento

The location is wonderful, and the staff were really nice. The room was very clean, with good air-conditioning and nice pillows. We had the loft with a king bed and three single beds. The singles were very comfortable, though the king mattress felt a bit uneven. The room had an authentic spooky vibe. Some drawers were missing, and the wooden floor under the carpet seemed broken. There were stairs on the way to our room that couldn't be avoided. Parking is in a garage about a 10-minute walk away, so unload anything you'll need before leaving the car.

The front desk staff were wonderfully warm, and my husband and I liked having strong, freshly brewed coffee downstairs each morning. But we spent three days there and could get a hot, or even warm, shower only once, in the late afternoon. We raised it with the manager, but nothing changed. It seemed like there was little hot water left for guests after housekeeping started the laundry. Maybe we just had a bad room, but cold showers made an already uncomfortable trip worse, especially with NOLA in the middle of record low temperatures in the 30-40°F range.

We had a homey, cozy weekend here and the walk to the French Quarter was easy. Parking is limited, but we got lucky and could use their garage a few blocks away. A little extra walking is good exercise anyway. I'd definitely consider staying here again.

Room #401 made for a great stay, and I definitely plan to return. The suite had two balconies, one shared with Room #400 and the fire escape stairs, plus a fully private one with patio furniture. From there and the room, I enjoyed lovely sunrises over the Mississippi River and sunsets behind the downtown skyline. There was a walk-in closet with an overhead light and a full-length mirror inside, along with a surprisingly large refrigerator/freezer for a hotel room. The bathroom mirror had bright lighting. Plenty of soft pillows and warm blankets, plus an efficient A/C unit and room-darkening curtains, made it comfortable.