This place is everything it looks like and better. A perfect little creole cottage in the Bywater. Comfortable bed, lovely linens and towels and bikes! We used the bikes constantly; being there during Mardi Gras meant that (for us) driving was silly. We could bike down into the Quarter and then Uptown with ease (it's amazing how bike-friendly N.O. is becoming). Having said that, parking was easy once we picked up a rental car for the second half of our trip. Also, we walked several times back and forth to the Quarter; it's about 20 minutes. The Bywater is so vibrant and fun with great restaurants and shops within blocks of the house...but mercifully a bit quieter than a terrace on Royal! Betsey and John were absolutely wonderful. They even invited us over for Mardi Gras brekkie before we headed out for our day of marching in a local krewe.

Some folks get a little twitchy about safety in New Orleans; if it worries you at all, John and Betsey have a great alarm system - but I can say with experience (my husband is from the area) - this area is really safe and our large, mostly female wedding party felt very safe, even in the evenings.

Finally, some of the older cottages in this area can be a little cold or hot (depending on the season) as they are so old...but they have a great dual-cycle conditioning system in the unit and we were warm and cozy during the very cold snap that came through N.O. during Mardi Gras this year.

This place is really perfect - especially for a couple; two couples would be a tad cramped, but they do have a nice futon for an addition person. There was even a bottle of wine and some snacks waiting for us upon arrival. So great.

Hope to come back and stay with them again soon.