The Drifter

Hotel

So chill. Judgement free. Great staff. Relaxing. Good music.

Very cool place with amazing ambiance, great service, and a place where you can really be comfortable being yourself love the vibes and the heated pool is a great thing to have.

Great place, great vibe. Totally retro 60's /70's retro decor. Really nice pool. Love the bar. Knowledgeable bartenders. I live in New Orleans, just a few miles from The Drifter. I will definitely be back, Hell, I might become a regular!

This place has great entertainment. Plus if you need the perfect tan you must attend.

Really enjoyed our stay during the Labor Day holiday weekend. It was me and another female friend, so we were worried about how safe we would feel. Can’t say enough about how friendly the staff was and about how safe the premises was. They’re very upfront about noise level so we knew what to expect and planned accordingly. Such a fun experience and will definitely stay again!

The Drifter is amazing. The place is beautiful, rustic, and clean. This is my absolute favorite place to party or stay-cation. The entire staff is amazing and goes out of their way to be helpful and friendly. I have never been treated as well by anyone than when staying here. The pool, the people, and the vibes are out of this world. Can't recommend it enough! :)

I was there for an event. I was dismayed when I asked what the frozen drinks were and the bartender told me all they had was whiskey and frozen coke. Yuck. So I grabbed a water and returned to my friends who were all drinking a frozen drink with watermelon vodka. I did not return to the bar, I drank water the rest of the time, had some pretty good food from a pop up vendor. The pool was crowded and when they left it was cloudy and gross. I do not usually complain and I did hang out with friends and have a nice time. But the incident with the bartender made me just uncomfortable enough that I probably won't be back. Also parking there sucks.

Safe atmosphere of fun loving pool people and a dance floor. Drinks are expensive. There was a totally worth it cover charge of $10, and giant blow-up pool toys that made for a fun centerpiece of collaborative entertainment. Thank you for hosting!

I didn't stay in a room but the common area is a great, down-to-earth and carefree atmosphere. Easy to spend hours soaking up the sun, meeting new people, and sipping on well-made drinks from the friendly bartenders. Only negative is that the pool is not kept clean so I don't go in it.

This place is a diamond in the rough! A true gem! Locals, this spot is all YOU! This was me and my bf first time here, and we will Definitely be returning! Ask for Julian as your bartender! Tell him Madelin sent you! This is a spot you'll spend hours at! Amazing experience. Thank you Drifter Hotel for making our "newbie" experience a new local spot!

Sort of dingy, but nice vibe for night pool swimming. Rooms are pretty small and outdated but they serve their purpose, to sleep off the hangover. Bartenders were super friendly and attentive. The bummer part was that we thought friends of guests could hang out after closing, order drinks from the bar (more money for them, right? ) but nope, kicked us out (pretty rudely). Would be nice if they could do some kind if verification where if you're a friend of a guest staying there overnight that you could stay til at least 2.

The decor is on point. Too bad all the humans who work here treat the patrons like shit. Too expensive, too crowded, too douchey. Not worth your time to go out of your way up Tulane for! better pools and bars in the marigny, FQ, and bywater. Doesn’t feel like Nola, feels like NYC or LA, negative and toxic and expensive but hella stylish. Kinda horrible Not coming back.

Was so excited to have one of my best friends from out of town experience The Drifter!
Got there, less than 20 minutes, wasnot even able to get into the pool because an argument in the pool was happening and the pool was shut down. I couldn't even finish my rice bowl. We were so uncomfortable with the agression and hostility. We removed ourselves from the situation for fear of it escalating, was not even refunded or an apology given for such an awful experience. One star only for the rice bowl was awesome when I was able to finish it at an other bar.

1 Star for the Motel, 3 stars for the Pool/Bar. I checked in easily enough. The room was fine — nice hipster style but a little uncomfortable, not many soft surfaces. The floors are concrete and the sofa is an uncomfortable built-in futon. Loved the bath products. I had a series of bizarre interactions with the hotel staff. I walked in with my service dog the evening after I checked in. I showed my key upon entry, mentioned she was a service dog, and the husky man guarding the entry said "she better be a service dog, she's not allowed by the pool or alone in the room. If you break the rules, we kick you out. " This was shocking to me and I would have checked out had my stay been refundable. Instead, I nodded OK and felt uncomfortable and avoided staff for the rest of my stay. After check-out, I received an email and call from them saying I left the safe locked, but I didn't use it, or even know it was there. They put me on hold for a while, then I hung up. Again, bizarre. There's no separate motel entrance, so you're always shuffling through the entrance/cafe/bar/pool/bathroom area/drunk people to get to your room, doubling a more direct path they could easily make available. The pool is rowdy at all hours — 10am to 12am. Which is fine, but many of the pool guests are not respectful and leave cigarettes and garbage everywhere. Lots of loud drunk people. Again, which is fine, but all the rooms open onto the balcony corridor facing the pool.

Very ecclectic and exciting. Parties at night and activities during the day. Be prepared to welcome the weird and celebrate the odd fun. Doesn't have the highest of commodities but does well with what they offer.

My husband and I were at the drifter for a show. It's really cute and a fun, unique venue/hotel. The decor was a cross between modern and vintage. They had some security, a nice-looking pool with large pool deck, and a bar that could be accessed inside and from the pool. Can't speak to the rooms/service since we didn't really interact with anyone. The stage and audience area and are a decent size and they had a food truck with breakfast tacos. Definitely a cool place for a show.

I only visited to see a show, but the establishment was impressive. The service was great and it seems like a cool place to have fun and meet people.

We had no idea that there was no TV. Also, we didn't know that it was a party place for the locals, and that bathing suit tops are optional. Definitely not a place for 50 year old married couples. I will say though, the staff are very nice and the room is clean. There is no fridge or coffee pot either, so that is inconvenient.

Very friendly, very clean! really unexpected. Great prices! will definitely stay there again when I go back to New Orleans!

This place is one word; Groovy. A tiny chip of LA trendiness mixed with the warm spirit of NOLA makes this one happening place. Come for the vibes stay for the pool!

Everyone working there were completely kind and helpful to us during our two night stay. Great drinks and coffee, perfectly minimal rooms, unforgettable atmosphere. Great location that's far away enough from the crowds but within walking distance to great food and bars, or a short trolly ride to anything else.

This is a great place to go and relax at the pool for the day. It is a laid back place and the pool is only five bucks a person. The beers and cocktails are reasonably priced as well. The pool is topless optional for ladies. There is usually a younger hip crowd. It is a great place for a group of friends to hang out on a hot day or evening.

Ya paradise. Young adults, this is the spot y'all want.
We booked through Air BNB and stayed in room 13 for only $75 a night. Insane value for the fabulous experience we had.
Roll up to this cute art deco 1950's reimagined and redesigned hotel, looking like all the things on pinterest you've been swooning over in vintage tropical chic, grab a glass of sparkling rose or a shot or whatever your poison from the cute and hilarious bartenders behind the bar. Pass by the pool and try not to let your jaw drop as you push past jurassic park sized palms as the soundtrack of music and splashes from the heated pool under a disco ball fill the sunshine. Enter your room and the blast of cold air, the smell of clean sheets, and the sounds of jazz smack you with a smile. The room has a small, loud clock radio, but no TV, microwave, fridge, hairdryer, nothing extra. Just the most comfortable crisp and clean beds you can imagine (those pillows are made with pure dreams I swear), THE BEST SHOWER PRESSURE I have ever had in my 32 years on earth, and big fluffy towels. House keeping is kind and they are always around to tidy up and refill those marshmallow towels. Wake up a little early and get down to the pool if you intend on laying out, save up your chair bc if you roll down after 11 it's already packed. The pool area is also "tops optional" so theres a good chance you'll see some boobs. Chill out, don't be a dick and take pictures, and mind your own business.

I rented a room at The Drifter on AirBnB for its soft opening. When we arrived, there was no check in process or even a front desk. The staff didn't even check our identities to make sure we were the guests staying at the place. The room was somewhat expensive (about $100 a night), and the accommodations were certainly not worth that price. The room has no amenities of a typical hotel room — no hair dryer, no television, no coffee machine, nothing you would expect from a hotel room at that cost. When we arrived, we were told that anyone is allowed to use the pool there at a cost of $10, and if the pool party were to be too loud, the desk staff could find us earplugs. We gave the room our best try but decided that we would like to find another place. We had the room for 3 nights and they only refunded us for 2 after much haggling and calling all over the place, and they did not offer to find a replacement hotel for us. We left at 12am and were left to drive around New Orleans for 2 hours looking for another hotel room. The Drifter Hotel is definitely more of a spring break destination rather than a cool place to hang out and rest. I would only recommend it if you want to have a party in your hotel room.