The St. Charles streetcar is simultaneously a working public transport line and one of the most enjoyable tourist experiences in New Orleans. The green cars — heavy, wooden, original to the 1920s — run on a 13-mile loop from Canal Street through the Central Business District, along St Charles Avenue through the Garden District and Uptown, out to the university district and back. The round trip takes about an hour and a half and costs a few dollars.
The route runs through some of the finest residential architecture in New Orleans: the Garden District mansions on St Charles Avenue, the live oak canopy of Audubon Park, the Tulane and Loyola university campuses. You can hop on and off at will. The cars are often crowded at peak times, but the pleasure of riding them — windows open, ceiling fans turning, the car swaying on the old tracks — is independent of the crowds. Ride all the way to the end and back for a complete survey of New Orleans from its best streets.