New Orleans Jazz Museum
The New Orleans Jazz Museum occupies the 1838 federal mint at 400 Esplanade Avenue, where the French Quarter meets Frenchmen Street, with a third-floor Performance Center and a balcony and courtyard used for early-evening concerts. There is no on-site public parking, so plan to walk in, and enter from the Barracks Street side. The French Quarter Festival puts music stages here and uses the Esplanade block as one of its six entry gates.
Before you go
- Indoor or outdoor
- Both: indoor galleries and a third-floor Performance Center, plus a balcony and courtyard used for concerts
- Official site
- nolajazzmuseum.org
- Next festival here
- French Quarter Festival, Expected April 2027
Worth knowing before you go
- Museums in the French Quarter have no on-site public parking, so arrive on foot.
- Use the Barracks Street entrances; the Esplanade entrance has a ramp.
- Last museum ticket is sold at 3.30pm and the museum is closed on Mondays.
- At the French Quarter Festival coolers, outside food and drink, tents, poles and pets stay outside the gates and bags are checked.
- Louisiana residents pay $13 instead of $15, and kids 6 and under go free.
Festivals here
Venue basics: French Quarter Festival stages and gate · No on-site public parking · Elevators to every level.
Is it for you
Choose it if
- You want festival stages inside a historic building with elevators
- You like early-evening courtyard concerts
- You are walking in from the French Quarter or Frenchmen Street
Think twice if
- You need to park at the door
- You plan a museum visit on a Monday or after 3.30pm
Getting there and parking
The museum is at 400 Esplanade Avenue in the historic Old U.S. Mint, at the meeting point of the French Quarter and Frenchmen Street. Enter from the Barracks Street side, which the museum recommends; the Esplanade Avenue entrance has a ramp.
There is no on-site public parking at Louisiana State Museum sites in the French Quarter, including the Mint, though accessible parking is near most museum entrances. The museum is open Tuesday to Sunday, 9am to 4pm, with the last ticket sold at 3.30pm, and closed on Mondays and some state holidays. Admission is $15 for adults, $13 for Louisiana residents and free for children 6 and under, with $2 off for seniors, military and students with ID and 10% off for AAA members.
Accessibility
The museum is ADA compliant and fully wheelchair accessible, with elevators to every level and a ramp at the Esplanade Avenue entrance. Service animals as defined under the ADA are welcome, and you are welcome to bring headphones, sunglasses or other aids for comfort.
Confirm your specific needs with the venue before you travel (louisianastatemuseum.org).
Camping
We don't yet have confirmed information about camping at the Jazz Museum. The venue's own pages are the place to check: nolajazzmuseum.org.
Food, water and what you can bring
Festival-specific · French Quarter FestivalNo coolers, ice chests or large containers, no outside food or beverages, no tents or sun shades, stakes or poles, and no pets inside the festival gates. Bags are checked at entry.
Sound and sensory
The third-floor Performance Center was renovated in 2025 with the Herb Alpert Foundation, designed by John Storyk of WSDG, and has one of the nation's premier sound systems and control rooms. For listed concerts admission to the Performance Center is free and seating is first come, first served.
Early-evening balcony concerts, from 5pm to 6pm, are heard from the museum's balcony and courtyard area, outdoors.
Recently at the Jazz Museum
Friends of the Cabildo Concert Series presents: Kristin Diable
From the venue · Sep 19, 2026
Hispanic Heritage Month Celebration: The New Orleans Jazz Museum & NOLAxNOLA504 present Son del Sur
From the venue · Sep 19, 2026
The Jazz Foundation of America (JFA) Present... Big Mike and the R&B Kings
From the venue · Sep 17, 2026
Quick answers
Is there parking at the New Orleans Jazz Museum?
No. Louisiana State Museum sites in the French Quarter, including the Mint, have no on-site public parking. Accessible parking is near most museum entrances.
Is the Jazz Museum wheelchair accessible?
Yes. The museum is ADA compliant, with elevators to every level and a ramp at the Esplanade Avenue entrance. The Barracks Street entrances are the recommended way in.
Can I camp at the Jazz Museum?
We don't yet have confirmed information about camping at the Jazz Museum. The venue's own pages at nolajazzmuseum.org are the place to check.
What are the museum hours and prices?
Tuesday to Sunday, 9am to 4pm, last ticket at 3.30pm, closed Mondays. Adults $15, Louisiana residents $13, children 6 and under free, with $2 off for seniors, military and students with ID.
Does the French Quarter Festival use the Jazz Museum?
Yes. Music stages are set up at the New Orleans Jazz Museum at the Mint, and the 400 block of Esplanade Avenue at the museum is one of the festival's six entry gates.
Can I bring a cooler or my own drinks to the French Quarter Festival?
No. Coolers, ice chests, large containers and outside food and beverages are not allowed inside the festival gates, and bags are checked.
Is the live music at the museum free?
For listed concerts, admission to the third-floor Performance Center is free and seating is first come, first served. Balcony concerts run 5pm to 6pm in the balcony and courtyard area.
Can I bring a service animal or sensory aids?
Yes. Service animals as defined under the ADA are welcome, and guests may bring headphones, sunglasses or other aids for comfort.
A little history
William Strickland designed the Old U.S. Mint, completed in 1838. It was the only mint to produce both American and Confederate coinage and the only one in the South to reopen after the Civil War, back in full operation by 1879. The museum inside holds more than 25,000 jazz artifacts, instruments and memorabilia and stages more than 365 musical acts and 15 festivals a year.
The French Quarter Festival, free to attend over four days each April, puts music stages at the museum and uses the 400 block of Esplanade Avenue as one of its six entry gates with security screening. The 2026 festival ran April 16 to 19, and the 2027 edition is April 8 to 11. The same organiser's Satchmo SummerFest is held at the museum each August.