Every summer, travelers face the same dilemma – go somewhere new or re-visit an old favorite? This summer, however, it’s a new dilemma travelers are trying to deal with – cost. Traveling to many places is more expensive this year than it’s been in a long time, and that can really put a damper on your vacation plans. If you can’t afford a trip outside the US this year and you think that means your only options are boring ones, let us introduce you to New Orleans.

While steamy New Orleans may not be ideal for a summer trip, it’s not too early to start checking on flights to New Orleans for the fall. In fact, visiting in the late fall or even the winter months is a great way to escape the worst of the heat (it’ll still be humid) and the crowds. There are cheap New Orleans hotels in various parts of the city, but if you’re visiting outside the busiest months you’ll have a better chance of scoring a deal on a hotel right in the heart of the French Quarter or Garden District.

Above the budget considerations, New Orleans offers something that few US destinations can – the feeling that you’ve left the country. From the combination of European and Caribbean influences to the constant flow of foreign visitors (and therefore foreign languages), it’s possible to walk the streets of New Orleans and imagine you’re no longer on American shores.

You can visit New Orleans without a guidebook, showing up and getting the information you need from the helpful concierges and tourism offices in the city, but it’s also a place where you’ll get much more out of it if you do a bit of research in advance. Along with picking up a good guidebook, consider taking walking tours in the city (it’s a great way to put history into perspective), and here are some more handy New Orleans travel tips you might find useful.