Avondale · $$$$ — PGA Tour host
Road trips · Louisiana
Louisiana road trips & hidden gems.
Louisiana is its own world — New Orleans jazz and Creole kitchens, Cajun bayous, and plantation oaks along the Great River Road. Spring festival season and fall beat the summer swelter. Let the good times roll.
Happening in Louisiana
Mardi Gras 2027
Barely two dozen marquee events hit the whole country in a year — and Louisiana has one this February. Roamward builds the trip around it: the scenic route in, the detours worth a slack day, and when rooms sell out.
Best time to visitSpring (festivals) & fall
Don’t missLive music in a New Orleans courtyard
Gem Hunt nominees10 candidates
Hikes10 curated
Scenic drives2
Gem Hunt nominees
What locals say you shouldn’t miss.
Community-nominated candidates. Add yours and vote to help choose the first published finalists.
Abita Mystery House
A gloriously weird folk-art museum packed with 50,000-plus found objects, homemade inventions, and oddball Southern dioramas, an easy 40-minute hop north of New Orleans in Abita Springs.
Rayne Frog MuralsThis Acadiana town leaned all the way into being the self-proclaimed Frog Capital of the World, painting vivid frog murals across its downtown brick walls between Lafayette and Lake Charles.
Madonna ChapelBilled as the world's smallest church, this 9-by-9-foot chapel sits along the River Road in tiny Bayou Goula — the key waits in a box by the door, so anyone can let themselves in to peek inside.
Atchafalaya Basin Swamp TourOut of Henderson you can board an airboat into the country's largest river swamp, gliding past moss-draped cypress and resident gators in the heart of Cajun Country.
Poverty PointIn Louisiana's far-northeast corner near Epps stand 3,700-year-old earthen mounds so significant they earned UNESCO World Heritage status, with a small museum and tram tours.
Bonnie and Clyde Ambush MuseumIn tiny Gibsland, the former cafe where the outlaws bought their last sandwiches now displays a "death car" replica, rare photos, and artifacts from their 1934 ambush nearby — a gripping true-crime stop.
Worth traveling for
Events that put Louisiana on the calendar.
Explore by interest
Everything else worth a stop in Louisiana.
Start with a few highlights, choose one interest, or explicitly open the full state guide.
Showing Hikes and Scenic routes highlights. Choose a category or Show all for the full state guide.
Scenic drives
Scenic routes through Louisiana.
Boots on
Best hikes in Louisiana.
From family-easy to bucket-list — trails worth the detour, great for the RV & camping crew.
Backbone Trail (Kisatchie)
mesa-and-pine country, the Little Grand Canyon of LA
Barataria Preserve (Jean Lafitte)boardwalks through cypress swamp and gators
Bogue Chittorolling hardwood trails and an oxbow lake
Caroline Dormon Trailthe backbone trail of the Kisatchie hills
Fontainebleau State Parklakeshore and old sugar-mill ruins on Lake Pontchartrain
Lake Chicota cypress-lined lake trail
Beyond the parks
Wild lands in Louisiana.
National forests, wilderness, and monuments — the big scenic public land between the parks and the gems.
Raise a glass
Breweries, distilleries & wineries in Louisiana.
The trip-worthy taprooms, distilleries, and wine country.
Abita Brewing
Louisiana’s craft pioneer (Purple Haze) across Lake Pontchartrain.
NOLA Brewinga New Orleans brewery-and-barbecue hall on Tchoupitoulas Street.
Parish Brewingan Acadiana brewery famous for the cult Ghost in the Machine DIPA.
Sazerac Housea free French Quarter cocktail-and-distilling experience on Canal Street.
Urban South Brewerya family-friendly New Orleans taproom near the river.
Where to eat
Road-trip dining in Louisiana.
Restaurants, diners, and food halls that fit the drive — curated by town, not scraped from a phone book.
Cecelia Creole Bistro
Downtown bistro where Chef Mark Reilly crafts authentic Creole and Cajun dishes praised for blackened redfish and crawfish etouffee.
Elsie's Plate & PieMid City Baton Rouge favorite named a top overall restaurant, an homage to grandma with savory pot pies and sweet slices.
Mansurs on the BoulevardRenowned Creole restaurant since 1989 with a lively bar and elegant dining rooms, known for cream of brie and crabmeat soup.
SoLouSouthern-charm-meets-modern Baton Rouge destination serving Louisiana-inspired farm-to-table plates, craft cocktails and bottomless brunch.
The Little VillageA Baton Rouge downtown dinner stop that gives the lower-river leg another real meal before the New Orleans finish.
Don's SeafoodLafayette institution serving Cajun classics since 1934, from boiled crawfish in season to char-grilled oysters and shrimp etouffee.
On two wheels (road)
Best cycling in Louisiana.
Scenic road rides, iconic climbs, and car-free rail-trails.
Sand & surf
Best beaches in Louisiana.
Family sand, surf breaks, wild shores — find your vibe.
Tee it up
Public golf you can book in Louisiana.
Patterson · $$$
Many · $$$
Lake Charles · $$$
St. Francisville · $$$
New Orleans · $$
Plan the Louisiana trip
Get the scenic route, the stops, and the timing.
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Where to stay
Find a place to stay near Louisiana.
Hotels, cabins, and rentals close to the action — compare and book for your trip.
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