Louisiana has a lot to be passionate about. Stop your car anywhere, roll down your window and the odds are that you'll hear great music. Food is taken seriously, too, not just at fine-dining establishments but at hole-in-the-wall restaurants all over. And with abundant hiking, fishing, biking, birding and nature trails, you can see why the state’s nickname happens to be ‘Sportsman’s Paradise’. Then again, with more than 500 festivals each year, Louisiana’s unofficial motto might be even more apt: ‘Let the good times roll!’
Louisiana Highlights
You'll know you're here when
... you start hearing a Cajun French accent rather than a southern drawl—and there’s music everywhere.
Don't leave without tasting...
- Andouille and boudin sausage in Lafayette
- A sloppy roast beef po’ boy at Mother’s in New Orleans
- Boiled crawfish in Breaux Bridge; a bowl of gumbo everywhere (every bowl will be different)
- Alligator sauce picante in Thibodaux
- A muffaletta sandwich in the French Quarter
- Fried catfish at Middendorf’s
- The pecan waffles at Camelia Grill in New Orleans.
Put these events on your calendar
- February/March: Mardi Gras isn’t just in New Orleans but all over the state and each city puts its own flavour and traditions into Mardi Gras
- April: New Orleans Jazz Fest, Festival International (Lafayette), Louisiana Strawberry Festival (Pontchatoula), Contraband Days (Lake Charles)
- May: Mud Bug Madness (Shreveport)
- September: Shrimp & Petroleum Festival (Morgan City)
- October: Angola Prison Rodeo and Art Festival, Festival Acadiens (Lafayette)
- December: Festival of Lights (Natchitoches).
Must-see museum
- National World War II Museum in New Orleans
- New Orleans Plantation Country: eight historic antebellum plantation houses telling all of the stories of plantation life along the scenic Mississippi River.
Want to stay up late?
Go anywhere in New Orleans—there are no set closing times, so the bars and clubs stay open until the customers decide to leave.
Your child will always remember…
Pulling the rope that makes the calliope (a musical instrument resembling an organ, but with the notes produced by steam whistles) blow on the Natchez Riverboat.
If you want to fit in…
Don’t say N’Awlins (it’s pronounced New Or-leens) and don’t ask for anything that’s ‘not too spicy’.
Don’t overlook this…
In the town of Eunice, you can visit the Cajun Music Hall of Fame or go to a live Cajun music broadcast at the Liberty Theater.
Feeling romantic?
Many of our plantation homes are fabulously romantic B&Bs (and available for weddings).
For your first visit…
Sit on the ‘Moon Walk’ walkway in the French Quarter eating a muffaletta, drinking a cocktail and watching the boats sail by on the Mississippi River while a street musician plays jazz or blues in the background.
Trip Ideas in Louisiana
