The nightlife is great on Bourbon Street. If you want a more local flavor, ask one of the bouncers at the Famous Door for a good local bar to hang out if you want some quiet. Bourbon Street is really loud but fun. Everyone is incredibly friendly. I ate at the Arnaud's Oyster Bar, and they were happy to be busy after the year they had. Everyone is very thankful for your business. There are a lot of good live bands. Drinks are little overpriced on Bourbon Street, but it is heavy in tourist traffic.

From what we saw of the French Quarter it is not a "dirty or dangerous" place. At 8:00 a.m. every morning, we watched the store owners and others power spray the entire French Quarter down, including streets and sidewalks. The place was a quiet and entertaining morning walk. But at night, the place is more than mildly entertaining and fun. You can partake of the entertainment ranging from so-so to excellent jazz, rock-n-roll, blues, and rap in any given area of Bourbon Street. At age 50+, we felt safe and enjoyed ourselves without harassment from others.

I've never seen anything like it - live music from every bar. Jazz, blues, zydeco, rock, pop, Kareoke, you name it. And everyone hangs out in the strip bars. Guys and girls alike, just having a good ol' time. Walking from bar to bar, with a drink in your hand.

Everyone has the Mardi Gras beads, hoping to get some girl to show her boobs - I earned my beads:)

There are so many bars in the French Quarter that I can't even begin to tell you which one will be your favorite. All I can tell you are the ones that I enjoyed. "Cat's Meow" was a lot of fun. Lots of flashing outside, top 40 music inside. And a lot of attractive girls. "Pat O'Brian's" was fun, but a little bit older (meaning the average age of the people there). You have to go to the "Tropical Isle" which is of course the "home of the hand grenade - the most powerful drink in New Orleans". My friend hooked up with a really hot girl there, so good luck. Unfortunately, I hooked up with a rather ugly and obese girl at Cat's Meow. Speaking of which, always carry a condom. There are so many other bars around, just walk into some and look around. I'm sure that you'll find something that you enjoy.