Louisiana travel guide: the 10 best things to do and see

Written by Anna, Product Manager

Louisiana has a way of surprising people. The food alone would be enough to justify the trip, but then you add the music, the landscape, the history, and the sheer warmth of the people – and it becomes one of those destinations that's genuinely hard to stop talking about once you've been. I've visited the USA over 10 times now, and the Deep South keeps pulling me back more than anywhere else.

Here are the 10 things I'd build a Louisiana trip around:

1. New Orleans' French Quarter
2. Live music on Frenchman Street
3. The Atchafalaya Basin
4. Food in New Orleans
5. Jackson Square and St Louis Cathedral
6. St Charles streetcar through the Garden District
7. Plantation houses along River Road
8. Baton Rouge
9. Mardi Gras
10. Lafayette
Plan your holiday with American Sky
FAQ

1. Get gloriously lost in New Orleans' French Quarter

The French Quarter is where almost every Louisiana visit begins, and there's a very good reason for that. This is the oldest neighbourhood in New Orleans – a dense grid of streets lined with Spanish Colonial and Creole townhouses, their elaborate cast-iron balconies dripping with Boston ferns and, during Mardi Gras season, cascading strings of purple, gold and green beads.

Get up early, before the heat and the crowds arrive, and walk without a plan. The French Quarter at 7am is a different creature entirely from its afternoon self. Bourbon Street gets the headlines, and an evening there is absolutely worth experiencing for the sheer carnival energy of it. But the Quarter's real soul lives on Royal Street's gallery-lined blocks, on the quiet stretch of Ursulines Avenue, and in the unmarked courtyard bars you discover entirely by accident.

Explore our New Orleans holidays

2. Experience live music on Frenchmen Street

If the French Quarter is where tourists experience New Orleans, Frenchmen Street in the Faubourg Marigny neighbourhood is where New Orleans experiences itself. On any given evening you'll find a dozen venues packed with world-class jazz, blues, brass band and Zydeco performances, most with no cover charge and a crowd that's genuinely there for the music.

The Spotted Cat Music Club and the Frenchmen Art Market spill out onto the street itself, and by 10pm the whole block has taken on the atmosphere of a block party that nobody organised but everyone instinctively showed up for.

3. Take a swamp tour through the Atchafalaya Basin

Louisiana's bayou country is one of the great natural landscapes of North America, and experiencing it from a flat-bottomed boat gliding through cypress-draped waterways is one of those travel experiences that recalibrates your sense of what the natural world looks like.

The Atchafalaya Basin – the largest river swamp in the United States – is the one to aim for. The cypress trees rise straight out of the dark water, draped in silver-grey Spanish moss. Local Cajun guides who have been navigating these waterways their whole lives make all the difference, turning a boat trip into something genuinely educational and deeply memorable.

Browse our Deep South self-drive itineraries

4. Eat your way through New Orleans (properly)

Louisiana has one of the most distinctive food cultures in the entire United States. Start every morning at Café Du Monde on Decatur Street – the combination of café au lait and beignets dusted with powdered sugar is a New Orleans rite of passage that genuinely deserves its reputation.

For serious eating, Commander's Palace in the Garden District is an institution in the truest sense. For something more casual but equally authentic, look for red beans and rice, a dressed roast beef po'boy from a neighbourhood sandwich shop, or chargrilled oysters from Drago's on Chartres Street. In Cajun country around Lafayette, shift your focus to crawfish étouffée, boudin sausage from a roadside butcher, and cracklins that will make you question every snack decision you've ever made.

5. Visit Jackson Square and St Louis Cathedral

Jackson Square sits at the heart of the French Quarter and remains one of the most atmospheric public spaces in America. The triple spires of St Louis Cathedral rise behind the great equestrian statue of General Jackson in a composition so perfectly proportioned it looks almost staged.

It was here that Louisiana was formally transferred to the United States as part of the 1803 Louisiana Purchase – one of the most consequential land deals in history. Step inside the Cathedral itself if you can – it's the oldest continuously active Roman Catholic cathedral in the United States, and a welcome respite from the Louisiana heat.

6. Ride the St Charles streetcar through the Garden District

New Orleans' historic streetcar network is one of the genuine joys of the city, and the St Charles line is the route to take. For $1.25 each way, you board a rattling, oak-panelled car and trundle through some of the most beautiful residential streets in America. The Garden District unfolds outside the window in a procession of antebellum mansions; Tulane and Loyola universities appear on the right; Lafayette Cemetery is worth a stop.

The whole journey to the end of the line and back takes about an hour and a half and costs $2.50. It is, without question, the best value experience in New Orleans.

View our beginner’s guide to Louisiana

7. Explore the plantation houses along River Road

The 50-mile stretch of River Road that follows the Mississippi west of New Orleans is one of the most beautiful and historically significant drives in the American South. Visit with your eyes open to the full story – the best plantation experiences now tell the complete history of these estates, including the experiences of the enslaved people whose labour made them possible.

Oak Alley Plantation is the most recognised, with its double avenue of 28 ancient live oaks creating a 250-metre canopy of extraordinary beauty. Houmas House, with its 38 acres of immaculate gardens, is equally rewarding.

8. Discover Baton Rouge: Louisiana's overlooked capital

Most visitors to Louisiana never make it to Baton Rouge, which means most visitors miss something genuinely worthwhile. The state capital sits about 85 miles northwest of New Orleans and repays a full day's exploration.

The Louisiana State Capitol is the unmissable anchor – at 34 storeys and 450 feet, it's the tallest state capitol building in the country, a soaring Art Deco monument to the ambitions of Governor Huey Long. Pair it with a visit to the Gothic Revival Old State Capitol and the USS KIDD Veterans Museum, where you can walk the decks of the only WWII Fletcher-class destroyer to retain its original wartime configuration.

Build your own Louisiana road trip

9. Attend Mardi Gras 

Mardi Gras in New Orleans is one of the most famous events in the world, and it is genuinely worth planning a trip around – but it helps to understand what you're attending before you arrive.

The season begins on Twelfth Night, 6th January, when the first krewes begin their celebrations. The energy builds steadily until Fat Tuesday, when the whole city celebrates at extraordinary scale. If you want to catch the main parades without peak-week crowds, the two weekends before Fat Tuesday offer some of the best spectacle with slightly more manageable logistics. Book accommodation at least six to nine months ahead.

10. Drive the Cajun prairie and discover Lafayette

Most itineraries treat Louisiana as New Orleans and then a plantation or two. The ones we're most proud of go further – out into the Cajun heartland west of Baton Rouge, where the culture shifts noticeably and the landscape opens into the flat, rice-growing prairies.

Lafayette is the capital of Cajun Louisiana and a city with a distinct cultural confidence. The food is spicier and more rustic; the music shifts to Zydeco and traditional Cajun accordion. The drive through small towns like Breaux Bridge and Eunice, with its live Cajun radio broadcasts from the Liberty Theatre on Saturday nights, is one of the great underrated road trip routes in America.

Plan your Louisiana holiday with American Sky

We've spent more than two decades curating Louisiana holidays for travellers from the UK and Ireland. Whether you want to base yourself in New Orleans and explore outwards, or fold Louisiana into a wider Deep South itinerary, we can build something that fits exactly what you're looking for.

Our Rhythms of the South escorted tour takes in the music heartland from Nashville through Memphis and down to New Orleans. The Southern Explorer gives you the broader sweep of the region with the reassurance of expert guides. And our Self-Drive Chicago to New Orleans itinerary is one of our most beloved routes – a proper American road trip that ends in exactly the right city.

Call us on 01342 331798 — our specialists have been there and would love to help you plan it.

Anna, Product Manager Anna has travelled to the USA 10 times and counting, with the Deep South firmly at the top of her list. She's drawn to the region's extraordinary mix of culture, food and music – and Louisiana in particular keeps pulling her back. From the live jazz spilling out onto Frenchmen Street to long lunches in the Garden District, she knows the South in the way that only comes from spending real time there. As Product Manager, she brings that first-hand knowledge directly into the trips she helps design.

Frequently Asked Questions

What is the best time of year to visit Louisiana?

October to April is generally the sweet spot – the heat and humidity are more manageable, and you'll catch the build-up to Mardi Gras season from January onwards. Summer is doable but genuinely hot and humid, so pack accordingly.

Do I need a hire car to visit Louisiana?

For New Orleans itself, no – the city is walkable and the streetcar network is excellent. But if you want to explore River Road, the Atchafalaya Basin or Cajun country around Lafayette, a hire car makes a significant difference and opens up some of the best the state has to offer.

Is Louisiana suitable for first-time visitors to the USA?

Absolutely, though it rewards a little planning. New Orleans is a very easy city to navigate, and the culture, food and music scene make for an immediately engaging introduction to the country. Pairing it with a wider Deep South itinerary is a popular choice for first-timers.

How long do you need to do Louisiana justice?

A minimum of five to seven nights gives you time to explore New Orleans properly and make at least one or two excursions beyond the city. Ten to fourteen nights is ideal if you want to include Baton Rouge, River Road and Cajun country without feeling rushed.

Can Louisiana be combined with other US destinations?

Very easily. New Orleans sits at the natural end point of a Deep South road trip – Nashville and Memphis make excellent starting points – and it also pairs well with cities like Miami, Houston or even a Caribbean cruise departure. Our specialists can build an itinerary around whatever combination appeals.