What to Wear in New Orleans？

No matter which country you are in, you are sure to have heard of the city of New Orleans! Food, music, Mardi Gras... New Orleans always has something to attract you! Many people regard this city on the downstream Mississippi River as the most unique city in the United States, so it would be a pity not to visit it once!

Mother's Day is coming, and there's no better gift for Mom than an exciting trip to New Orleans! It is impossible not to take some photos when traveling. But you may be struggling with the temperature: New Orleans in May is already very hot! So, what can you wear to look stylish and keep cool when traveling in New Orleans?

The Weather and Events in New Orleans in May

When packing your luggage, especially the clothes you want to take on a trip, the weather forecast is definitely the most commonly used and useful accordance. If you are too busy to pay attention to the weather forecast every day, it doesn’t matter. We will summarize the climate characteristics of New Orleans in May as detailed as possible for your reference.

In general, New Orleans has a humid subtropical climate. In May, the average daily temperature will hover around 30 degrees Celsius. The temperature difference between day and night in New Orleans is not very large, so the temperature at night can reach around 25 degrees Celsius. Therefore, you also need to pay attention to heatstroke prevention and cooling at night.

The city has heavy rains in the summer, but they have not yet begun in May. New Orleans remains cloudy for most of May, with rainy days being as rare as pure sunny days. Although the temperature in New Orleans in May is not particularly high and the rainstorms are not frequent, you will probably still feel stuffy. Due to its proximity to the Gulf of Mexico, the air humidity in New Orleans is very high, with an average humidity of around 70% - 80%. High humidity can make people feel stuffy and sticky even if the temperature is not particularly high.

May is the peak season for New Orleans tourism, because in this month, there are not only all kinds of flowers in full bloom, but also many activities or celebrations. If you come to New Orleans this month, you can participate in the following events:

🏵️New Orleans Jazz and Heritage Festival: This is New Orleans' annual celebration of music and culture, which runs from late April to early May. If you are a fan of blues, jazz or music of other styles, then do not miss this festival!

🏵️Cinco dy Mayo. This is a traditional Mexican patriotic festival falling on 5th May. New Orleans is a city with diverse cultures, and Mexican immigrants and their descendants have a certain scale in New Orleans. Cinco de Mayo gradually spread in New Orleans with the arrival of Mexican immigrants. Now, it has also become a good opportunity to taste Mexican specialties. Many restaurants and bars in New Orleans will offer Mexican specialties and drinks on this day. If you love delicious food, take action to go there!

🏵️Greek Fest. Greek Festival is usually held in late May. If you miss the Cinco de Mayo in early May, then enjoying the atmosphere of Greek Festival in late May is also a very good choice! Greek Festival is popular in New Orleans for similar reasons to Cinco de Mayo. On this day, you can also watch Greek music and dance performances and taste Greek food!

Distinctive Clothing Features of New Orleans

The attire of New Orleans residents is closely related to the local climate and festival customs, which is why we have introduced these two aspects in such detail in the previous section.

First of all, because New Orleans has a subtropical humid climate, the temperature is relatively high many days during a year. Therefore, people prefer light, breathable, sweat-absorbent fabrics such as cotton and linen because they can help people stay cool and dry to a great extent. On the other hand, New Orleans is a very tolerant city to every culture. Since the mid-19th century, New Orleans has become the most attractive city in the South due to its excellent port and convenient transportation conditions. The descendants of immigrants from almost all countries in the world can be found here, so New Orleans has become a veritable cultural melting pot. Therefore, another notable feature of New Orleans residents' clothing is its diversity. It is not surprising to see clothing with characteristics of any ethnic group appearing here.

The festive costumes in New Orleans are even more distinctive. The festive costumes in New Orleans are even more distinctive. The Mardi Gras in New Orleans is famous all over the world. During this festival, residents often wear purple, gold, green clothes because in local culture, purple represents justice, green represents faith, and gold represents strength. In addition, masks are also an important element of the Mardi Gras, which are usually decorated with feathers, sequins, beads, etc. People participating in the parade will also wear extremely gorgeous and exaggerated costumes. Brightly colored feathers, beads and gorgeous headdresses are important elements of the costumes.

What to Wear to Different Attractions?

Just as what you wear to work is definitely different from what you wear to a party, it is also necessary to give dressing suggestions for different scenarios. For different attractions, different costumes should be worn.

🏵️To Jackson Square. Jackson Square, with a history of more than 200 years, is definitely one of the must-see attractions in New Orleans. In addition to the landmark buildings and the statue of Andrew Jackson, the square also gathers many painters, musicians and street performers. Therefore, the most suitable style to visit Jackson Square is the retro literary style. To create an outfit in this style, you can choose a red shirt with leg of mutton sleeves, a brown corduroy skirt, a pair of black leather shoes and a hairband with polka dots. Leg of mutton sleeves, corduroy, and polka dot headbands are all very typical retro literary styled fashion items. This set of looks will help you fully immerse yourself in the leisure atmosphere of Jackson Square.

🏵️City Park. Founded in 1854, New Orleans City Park is one of the oldest city parks in the United States. There are large green land, lakes and gardens here, which are very suitable for walking, picnics, leisure and relaxation. Here, you can dress elegantly or more casually. For an elegant outfit, nothing is better than a white chiffon dress. It can be a shirt dress, a slip dress, a slit dress, or a tiered dress. If you emphasize more on the comfort of the outfit, you can also choose a sporty look. Just combine a tank top, a pair of sweatpants and a pair of sneakers. Their combination not only makes you feel comfortable, but also visually lengthens your legs.

🏵️Mardi Gras World. Although Mardi Gras in New Orleans already ended before May, you can still immerse yourself in the festival atmosphere by visiting Mardi Gras World! Here you can learn about the production process of festival floats for the parade and try on Mardi Gras costumes. Here, you can wear all kinds of clothes that would be too exaggerated anywhere else. You can even dress yourself up as Snow White!

Accessories You Can Take during Your New Orleans Trip

During your trip to New Orleans, there are a few accessories that are essential to bring along, as they are not only practical but will also complete your look.

First of all, you need to take a bucket hat or a straw hat. Although New Orleans will have cloudy weather for about half a month in May, once it is sunny, the sunshine will last for a long time and be very strong. So a bucket or a straw hat is necessary to protect you from the sunburn. In addition, a bucket or a straw hat can also provide you with more sense of relaxation when you visiting the French style streets in New Orleans.

A pair of sunglasses is also an option that can be brought. In terms of function, sunglasses and hats are similar, but they complement the look in different ways. Therefore, even if you have worn a hat, you can also wear a pair of sunglasses at the same time. Square or round sunglasses play a very important role in the creation of a retro look.

When choosing jewelry, you can combine your preferences with the unique style of New Orleans. For example, if you like to use long earrings to modify your face shape, you might want to choose long earrings with feather elements that often appear in festival outfits in New Orleans. If you want to wear a necklace, you can choose a necklace with a musical note pendant, which will be more in line with the atmosphere of the Jazz and Heritage Music Festival.