Clandestine New Orleans Events

We worked with Clandestine for my 40^th birthday celebration. Since some of the guests were from out of town, we had a 2 night celebration and accommodations booked and party planned through Clandestine. It was an absolute fantastic time. It has been called the Party of The Century;) Everything was so perfectly coordinated and executed and cannot say enough good things about Cate and Kelley! We will certainly be using them again.

Clandestine was great! I worked specifically with Kelley, but I am sure the entire team is just as helpful.
I contacted Clandestine in hopes of getting some help in planning my destination wedding in New Orleans. Kelley immediately had great ideas about venues, food, flowers, etc. I was trying to do everything on a budget and also wanted a non-​traditional type of wedding (no formal reception, more of a nice dinner then an awesome party) and Kelley managed to give me great ideas on how to best do that.
Ultimately we did not end up working with Clandestine (ONLY because of our own decisions/budget/didn’t want Clandestine to work too hard on our small little dinner, ha AND MUCH, MUCH thought) but Kelley and Clandestine were so supportive of our decision. They did not pressure us to continue to work with them and made me feel as though I could still contact them shall I need anything.
You know you are doing good business when you work with Clandestine :)

Clandestine, these ladies weave magic.
Pros: Local unique experience that would hours, weeks, months to plan on your own, they did in 2 hours & continues to do thru out weekend.
Cons: pricey however these ladies are willing to work and give you breaks as they can & give tips to keep you in budget
I was searching for a unique local experiences in NOLA for a birthday weekend, this was for someone who visits NOLA often and I wanted to create a different experience for them that’s when I came across Clandestines website the night before we were due in town, the weekend of 11/​15/​2013 ending 11/​18/​2013. I shot them an email and woke to a response that although short notice they we’re already on the case and have a plan of action already in the works. I just needed to hit the go button & I must say I am so glad I did. You see I am a planner and to give control over can be tricky and again, I am SO glad I did. here’s a peek into what was created and redrafted throughout the weekend to accommodate us, a group of 5 both men and women.
Here’s that peek into some of the details these brilliantly creative women weaved for us on a few hours notice (i cant imagine what they could do if they had more time)
1^st night there they were helping to host the opening of H&M, of which they got us all into before we were sent off to an amazing dinner to then cap the night with a local music venue, the next day and the day after that did not disappoint either, from great local shopping tips, a private tour mixed with history, cultural & drinks, to enjoying a dinner at the chef’s table, landing in a club member only lounge, wigs & tutus blended into a saints game. I can go on & on & on. I will conclude that they had on the spot tips, an amazing organized pdf of the weekend events, they were ALWAYS available to help direct, redirect and make those calls that take time do. All I had to do was call or text and our wishes and desires happened
I can not wait for them to host us again, shall we say JAzzFest.

I have had the pleasure of working with Kim and Clandestine on several occasions. First they help me make a company meeting a memorable experience for the CEO and the leadership team of my company. They were able to arrange a great band and singer to play as we were all, 125 people, eating and having a cocktail hour. They were able to give great recommendations and make arrangements for any one who wanted to enjoy a more locals side of New Orleans.
After that Kim was instrumental in pulling off the best surprise party I have thrown in my life. All I had to do was tell her when and where and she had everything I needed to surprise my wife. She even gave us great cake as a surprise for her birthday. I can’t recommend Clandestine more highly. This is who I turn to when I want to surprise myself.

Kelly and the Clandestine team literally made our JazzFest spectacular!
From the exclusive all access pass she arranged for us, to the hand picked venues, restaurants and local haunts we would never find on our own, each experience was top notch!
However her team really went above and beyond when they noticed the rainy weather and began to scour the New Orleans area looking for all but sold out shrimp boots for 10 of us. Shrimp boots you ask? Well she correctly assumed the fair grounds would be a muddy disaster and she was right! While the rest of the tourists were slopping around in the mud like WoodStock in ’69 my krewe was blasting through those puddles right to the front of the stage like a monster truck rally champ!

Clandestine did an amazing job for a family party in NOLA this January. Though just a guest, and not the organizer, I can say with total authority that everything ran like clockwork. Kelley was on-​site and massively attentive to every detail, but it was also clear she had spent a ton of time and effort preparing and organizing ahead of time, She was like a duck on a pond… maybe she was paddling like hell, but it all looked smooth and calm from up above. The party was a total smash, and everyone had a great time.
But an important part of visiting New Orleans is getting a little help on where to go, where to stay, where to eat… and where not to. Weeks before the event, Clandestine emailed all the guests suggestions on lodging, restaurants, music, museums, etc., so even first time visitors had the inside track on the ‘best of the best.‘
Kelley recommended Hotel Mazarin for my wife and me – what a find. It was a perfect little oasis, just a half block off Bourbon that we probably wouldn’t have chosen without her prodding.
At one point, the day got away from us (imagine that) so at 4PM on Friday we realized we’d forgotten to make dinner reservations. I texted Kelley and within 20 minutes we had a 7:45PM reservation for 6 people at Muriel’s @ Jackson Sq. Think about that: the height of dinner rush, on a Friday, at a popular restaurant, on the first weekend of parades, and with great weather… and she nails us a reservation in less time than it takes to smoke a cigarette. How the hell did she do that? Without Kelley, we might have ended up eating Lucky Dogs on the street. Not that there’s anything wrong with that. We’ve all been there.
She’s is a true insider who knows the city and its people. If I were coming to town just for kicks and giggles — or throwing a huge event for the Board of Directors, Clandestine is now on speed dial.
Thank you Kelley! We’ll be back soon.

Clandestine Events is the absolute best. If you are planning an event in New Orleans, your first call needs to be to Kelley.
My husband and I decided that New Orleans would be the destination for a party celebrating his 40^th birthday this January. We invited his closest friends to join us, thinking maybe a few other couples would actually be able to leave their families to make the trip with us for a long weekend.
Imagine my surprise when 24 people RSVP’ed yes, and I came to realize once I started to call for hotel accommodations, dinners, concerts, etc., that it was «Super Gras» — Mardi Gras plus Super Bowl weekend in New Orleans and that I was crazy to try to pull this off from 2300 miles away in San Francisco. Lots of places were already sold-​out, booked up or laughed at me on the phone for my rookie mistake. Plus, I didn’t want to look like a tourist and had only been to New Orleans once before. I started to panic.
Enter Kelley at Clandestine. She was amazing. From our first phone conversation she had lots of ideas for our big crew and was so calm and reassuring. Within a few days we had a reservation for our large party at Jacques-Imo’s, tickets to Dirty Dozen Brass Band at the Maple Leaf Bar, and plenty of suggestions for local/​not-​touristy bars, restaurants and live music on Frenchmen St. She also hooked us up with a contact for a limo shuttle who expertly got our crew around town. We received a professional package with 20 pages of recommendations and maps, with something for everyone from beignets to back-​alley pubs to voodoo tours and last-​minute concerts. She was in constant contact over the course of the weekend making sure everything was executed perfectly. This, during one of the busiest weekends in New Orleans and I’m sure she had plenty of clients to tend to.
Everyone who joined us said it was the best time they’d had in recent memory and we are still talking about our trip. I don’t believe I could have pulled it off without Clandestine Events. Kelley made me look like an expert event planner for our group, when really she was the person behind the scenes making everything possible. If you want to experience New Orleans like a knowledgable local, give Clandestine a try. We’re already excited about our next trip down there, and Kelley will be my first call.
Thanks Kelley!

Kelley was recommended to us by a mutual friend. We were planning a Thanksgiving family vacation in New Orleans for a party of 10 people, ages ranging from 86 y/​o to 12 y/​o. We had already arranged our own accommodations 1 block from the French Quarter nearly a year in advance.
New Orleans is a unique city and we wanted to experience it like a local while hitting the touristy destinations that everyone should see at least once (several of us had been there and had our own favorite experiences) — so deciding what we could pul off financially within in a week and getting reservations became a daunting task. Luckily I mentioned this to a neighbor in Miami Beach (where I live) and he immediately told us about his friend Kelley. He assured me she could help sort it out.
Having traveled a lot, I’ve had mixed results using the concierge services at hotels so I would have never sought out a concierge service. Often in tourist destination cities like New Orleans I’ve been steered to places off the beaten path that were not good at all, or tourist destinations where the experience was sub par. I have come to the conclusion that recommendations often are based on where the concierge can get the best reward for the referral, rather than what the best place for my particular needs might be. By hiring Kelley this fear quickly disappeared.
Given the extraordinary service provided, her fee was nominal and she put together a 10 page customized brochure for us with a map of the city highlighting the places she was suggesting specifically for us. Every suggestion was based on knowledge she had gained about the individual likes and dislikes of members of our group — no easy task to please diverse needs when dealing with strangers.
One example of value she added — she pulled strings to get us inside the clubhouse on the finish line at the Fair Grounds for Thanksgiving Day for «opening day at the track» a New Orleans tradition we 1. would have never considered and 2. couldn’t have pulled off on our own, as this books up in advance (she has connections). At her suggestion we all dressed up for the occasion and we fit right in. Great fun!
Private dining rooms for 10 at Jacques Imo and Café Atchafalaya don’t just appear out of thin air — she booked these for us and made it all happen. That little cocktail bar tucked away in a hotel just around the block from us became a regular hangout during down time — we would have NEVER found it if she hadn’t clued us in.
A couple of weeks before our trip one member of our party was hospitalized and it was touch and go whether or not we would be able to take the trip at all. We still hadn’t finalized dinner reservations. I advised Kelley to hold off finalizing anything as I didn’t want her to go to the trouble of making bookings she might have to cancel. A week before the trip everything was a go. Fortunately she had already taken the initiative to book us in the most popular places we had discussed to ensure we wouldn’t be out of luck.
During the trip we texted her for on the spot suggestions and help several times. She was always responsive, friendly and helpful. She even texted us during the trip a couple of times to let us know about just announced musical experiences and festivals in the Quarter.
I could go on and on, but let’s just say the adults had the experiences they wanted, the kids had plenty to do and had a great time, the mobility issues of one member of our party were taken into account by Kelley: She came up with a pedi-​cab bar crawl (just ask her) so he could enjoy bar hopping without walking and advised us where to valet to avoid long walks at each destination. Everyone has raved about every suggestion she made.
I finally met Kelley in person at the track, on Thanksgiving Day. It’s great to have a knowledgeable, trusted friend who lives in a city your visiting. If you’re headed to New Orleans and want to experience it like a local, I’m confident Kelley will create a memorable, personalized experience for you whether your a party of 1 or a major corporation. We felt guilty accepting her services at the fee she charged so we adjusted it to a price we could afford, but still know she put in hours of work beyond what we paid her. I can’t recommend her highly enough.
Clandestine sounds like it could be a bit naughty. Well, that’s New Orleans for you. It also implies a secret — well, I’m letting the cat out of the bag.

I thought I knew NOLA pretty well for a tourist — from beignets at Café du Monde to the best jazz at House of Blues. That was until Clandestine showed me the real New Orleans, lying just outside the French Quarter and unknown to even the most savvy of travelers. Kelley and her team planned every aspect of a one-​of-​a-​kind experience tailored specifically to our interests and wants. She made our reservations but also gave us options so we didn’t feel tied to a schedule. We were introduced to shopping and food trucks Uptown and the best BBQ of our lives at Bullets, where we saw and heard the legendary Kermit Ruffins. We felt like true locals, which is no easy easy feat for any tourist. I can’t wait to get down to New Orleans again for my next Clandestine adventure!