New Orleans’ National World War II Museum

Louisiana’s largest city has plenty of great attractions but the National World War II Museum is one of the best things to do in New Orleans. At times, it’s difficult to see what people experienced at home and on the battlefields. War is never pretty and World War II was one of the ugliest. More than 15 million soldiers died in the conflict and 45 million civilians also lost their lives. More than 6 million of those were Jewish people who perished in the concentration camps in Nazi Germany. As hard as those number are to digest, it’s worth to take that journey. Here’s a list of things that made our experience great.

Getting there

The National World War II Museum is on Magazine Street, which is known for its great restaurants and shopping. We took I-10 and had no trouble finding it when we got off the exit and parked in a lot across the street. But there is also a parking garage that is just a short walk away.

We bought our tickets at the museum instead of online. The line was not too long and the staff explained everything we needed to know about our tour.

The Dog Tag Experience makes you part of the story

One of the best experiences at the museum is the Dog Tag Experience. When you enter you are given a dog tag from someone who served in some capacity during the war. Josephine Pescatore, a nurse who was one of the 59,000 who served as the Army Nurse Corps is the one I received.

Josephine tended to British soldiers in England before being shipped off to Normandy. She also cared for the wounded at the Battle of Bulge before she was sent back home to serve at the Walter Reed Army Medical Service. Josephine received a Bronze Star.

The doctors and nurses who served on the front lines played an important part in the war. According to information presented at National World War II Museum, only 4% of wounded who received medical care on the battlefield died.

The exhibits

You begin your journey on the Union Pacific train. You learn more about the person you chose for your dog tag experience. We really weren’t sure where we wanted to start so we meandered through the many exhibits in the Louisiana Pavillion first.

One of the highlights for me was seeing the newsstand with all of the papers that covered the war and their headlines. For those who don’t know, I am a full-time journalist who has been in the business for more than 30 years. At the National World War II Museum, I spent a lot of time at the newsstand noting the difference in style in both design and writing.

The Arsenal of Democracy gives visitors a glimpse into live on the homefront. I enjoyed getting an inside peek at the typical 1940s home. I liked the radio, which was the only other medium for the news during the war.

Across the street The exhibits depicting the campaigns were thorough and I learned something new in every one. In the Road To Tokyo, I learned that the soldiers experienced extreme weather conditions there. We also saw a replica of the U.S.S. Enterprise of the bridge, which was important during the battles in the Pacific Theater. Visitors can take the wheel of this famous Navy vessel.

Steve is an Air Force veteran and he loved seeing all of the airplanes in the George H.W. Bush Aviation Pavilion.

Our recommendations

I am not going to discuss every part of the World War II museum because I want to encourage you to visit it yourself. Here are some of our recommendations.

You don’t need to worry about food when visiting the museum. We had a tasty breakfast at the Jeri Nims Soda Shoppe. I love old-fashioned restaurants with the stools at the counter. The jukebox added a nostalgic touch.

Lunch was at the American Sector Restaurant and Bar. The restaurant has a lot of choices including these beignet fries we just had to try.

This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.