New Orleans's Central Business District (CBD) is marked by high-rise hotels and office buildings and has little noteworthy retail, but down by the river, the area known as the Warehouse District does have a number of special art galleries and other cool shops. This area has less of a gay scene then the French Quarter or Magazine Street, but it's still worth a look for fans of retail.
If you're up for a day at the mall, check out the touristy but fun Riverwalk Marketplace, which more-or-less resembles any other mid-size shopping mall in any other city but for a handful of singularly New Orleans establishments, such as Bayou Riders, Blue Alligator Designs, an outpost of the famed coffee-and-beignet restaurant Cafe du Monde, Creole Delicacies food shop and cafe, New Orleans Books and Tours, and hokey but engaging souvenir shops like Mardi Gras Madness. There are a handful of eateries here (you can get snacks at Creole Delicacies, too), but the mall is dominated by chains, among them Aldo, Ann Taylor Loft, Banana Republic, Gap, Nine West, Body Shop, Brookstone, Rocky Mountain Chocolate Factory - you get the idea
.The better shopping, meaning things you won't find just anywhere, is mostly along Julia Street and environs, which comprises a miniature arts district. Here you might stop by Arthur Roger Gallery, which specializes in modern works and presents highly popular openings and shows. A bit north, in the CBD, Stella Jones Gallery is the city’s leading arts venue for the works of African-American artists. At the New Orleans School of Glassworks and Printmaking Studio, you get to see highly skilled glassblowing and printmaking artisans at work and then browse their wares.
