jbee

Hi all,
I'm in the stages of finalizing an itinerary for our southern Louisiana trip and I'm looking for feedback on places to stay. We travel slowly and like to set up a "home base" so I'm trying to find somewhat central locations to all area attractions.

We're flying in/out of New Orleans and will have a car. Here's how it's looking:

November 13 - 15: River/Plantantation Area
** Which side of the river do we want to drive down? I'm leaning toward the south and we won't have time to do both sides..
** I'd like to stay in a smaller town south of Baton Rouge. Suggestions? Plaquemine? White Castle? Donaldsonville?
** I've never seen the Mississippi River, so I'd like a great place to just experience it's majesty. Ideas?

November 16 - 18: Cajun Area
**I'm leaning toward setting up base in New Iberia as that gives us centralized access to the Tobasco factory, Lafayette, swamp tours, etc.
**I'm debating on Breaux Bridge, though. Would it be better to split our time between the two?

November 19 - 20: Bayou
**Houma - is this a good place to set up base for bayou tours, etc? What else is worth seeing around here?

November 21 - 24: Big Easy
** Hotel already booked, so I'm good here!

The other thing I wanted to do was follow the Mississippi River to the end, but I don't know if we have time for it. We could potentially skip or shorten one of the areas (except New Orleans) to fit it in if it's worthwhile. Any thoughts on that?

Thanks in advance! I appreciate any advice from travelers or locals on where to stay or what not to miss.

november_moon

When we were in cajun country a couple years ago, we stayed at the Cajun Country Cottages just outside of Breaux Bridge. It was a nice place - on a small lake, we had a kitchen so we cooked one night and had a nice evening in, very quiet and relaxing place. It was a little bit of a drive into Breaux Bridge (10 minutes, maybe 15). After a week in New Orleans, we wanted some piece and quiet, so being outside of town suited us just fine

The area is compact enough that I would definitely just pick one place to stay and see the area from there rather than splitting the lodging. We like to choose a homebase to explore from as well rather than moving more than necesary.

When you are in the area, I highly recommend Cafe des Amis in Breaux Bridge - others on this board recommended it to us, so we went and are glad we took their advice. Great place - terrific food, nice people.

The Tabasco Factory was fun, but doesn't take terribly long to see. On Avery Island is also the Jungle Gardens which are really neat - we spent a few hours there.

Near New Iberia we took a swamp tour of Lake Martin - highly recommend that, great scenery, great for wildlife, we went with Butch Guchereaux's tour, which we really liked.

For the River Road portion, I don't have any lodging recommendations - we stayed at the Holiday Inn Express in Gonzales, which was fine, but Gonzales didn't seem to be particularly interesting. While we were there though, we went to Alligator Bayou, which was really neat. My husband got to fullfill his dream of holding an alligator - yeah, whatever - LOL.

Our favorite plantations along the River Road are Houma House and Laura. Houma House is really well done - it was built in 3 sections and 3 different times and it is really neat to see the construction. It is also furnished very well, the guides are great, and the gardens are really extensive. Laura is very different from the standard plantation houses that we expect since it is an old Creole plantation - plus a lot is known about the family and the guides to a terrific job.

dfr4848

We prefer the south side of the river, where Oak Alley and Nottoway are located. But don't overlook the north side totally. For ex, you can easily see Houmas House, which is across the Sunshine Bridge from Donaldsonville.

White Castle or Donaldsonville would be fine for a base.

As far as views, remember that most of the Miss. along this stretch is lined with levies so you'll have to walk or take one of the roads on top of the levy to get direct views of the Miss.

New Iberia would be fine for a base, but as noted above a visit to Breaux Bridge is worth it. With only 2-3 days, I wouldn't split my time between the two.

IMO there's not a lot in the Houma area. Can't help with the bayou tours, but googling should turn up some options.

As far as lodging, keep in mind that you can stay at many of the plantations. We spent an anniversary at Nottoway (the suite we had in one of the out buildings had its own private outdoor pool). Much more interesting than regular motel.

As far as driving to the end of the Miss., you really can't. You can go only as far as Venice which is still about 20-30 mi from the actual mounth. Since it's about 70 mi from New Orleans, we've never taken the time to go there. It was almost completely destroyed by Katrina, but I don't know how much rebuilding has been done.

jbee

Thanks so much for your replies - great information! I'm still undecided on setting up base in Breaux Bridge or New Iberia, but it sounds like either one is fine. I *really* want to stay in one of the plantations now that you mention that - dfr4848! I'll have to put that on the list to look for.

november_moon - thanks for the recommendations on food, lodging, and the swamp tour. I am looking forward to the gardens on Avery Island so it's good to hear they're neat!

I've been googling swamp/bayou tours and wondering if we could just do one out of New Iberia or if it's different terrain in the Houma area. Does anyone have any experience with that?

Also, does anyone know of any river cruises or boat tours of the Mississippi between New Orleans and Baton Rouge that you've enjoyed? Would anyone recommend driving down the Mississippi as far as you can or is that not worth it?

Thanks again!

november_moon

The Jungle Gardens was a surprise highlight of our trip - we went to Avery Island for the Tabasco Factory and decided to see the gardens since we were there. We would have stayed longer, but after a few hours, we got hungry and left in search of food. My advice is to take snacks

For swamp tours, we've been on the one at Lake Martin and also on one out of Lafite with Capt Nick's - that one was about 7 years ago, so I don't know if he is still around - it was a good tour though. Anyway, there were similarities and definite differences.

Lake Martin is a lake that is open in the middle with lots of swampy areas at the edges - the edges are filled with cypress, lilly pads the size of a dinner table, all sorts of stuff - and tons of wildlife from birds and dragon flies to turtles and 10' long alligators.

The area near Lafite (which I think it similar to Houma, but someone correct me if I am wrong) is also a swamp with much of the same flora and fauna, but unlike Lake Martin, this area has channels of water running around higher dry ground, so rather than touring around a lake, you travel through the bayou. This water is connected directly to the gulf and gets more brackish as you get closer to the sea water - it is basically the wetland belt that naturally protects the areas further inland from storm surges and from feeling the full force of the hurricanes - unlike a lake, there are water currents. We saw a lot of wildlife, but not in the same concentration as at Lake Martin.

Whether you should do a tour in one or both areas really depends on your level of interest. Some people would be perfectly happy with one and would see a second tour as just more of the same. Others are more into the outdoors and would appreciate the subtile differences between the areas. I think it also depends on the amount of time you have and what trade offs you would need to make in order to do two swamp tours.

jbee

November_moon - thanks again! My DH is a photographer, so I'm interested in everything scenic. It sounds like there are distinct differences between the two areas, so I'll have to poke around to see if we can afford tours of both. I can't say I've ever seen a lilly pad that big (or at all for that matter), so it's definitely a draw.

Snacks at the Jungle Gardens... Check! Man, I'm getting excited now!

dfr4848

jbee - the swamp tours out of New Iberia and Houma shouldn't be materially different. The major differences will be in areas as november-moon describes where you'd have more lakes/bayous versus swamps. I'd pick the one that sounds the most interesting to you.

If part of your trip takes you over I10, note that much of the drive between Lafayette and Baton Rouge is built on a causeway over the swamps of the Atchafalaya Basin - not unusual to see alligators etc down in the water. It's very interesting and an engineering feat. [In fact when it was built, this stretch of freeway was the most expensive per mile built in the US at the time].

My comments on driving to the end of the Miss. wasn't meant to discourage you, but rather to suggest that you do some further research as to current conditions (roads, fuel and good supplies, etc). That whole area was in the direct path of Katrina and I haven't gotten any recent info from friends as to status of reconstruction. That drive might actually be quite interesting if you have the time.

november_moon

Since your husband is a photographer (mine is too - I feel your pain) when you are in French Quarter in New Orleans, head to the area downriver of Jackson Square (toward Esplanade). This area is more residential than the end of the FQ closer to Canal - more creole cottages, shotgun houses, iron lacework, etc. and less signage from businesses. My husband esspecially likes to shoot that area in the evening when he can really capture the flames in the gas lamps. He has gotten some really terrific shots there.

jbee

I'm really undecided on driving to the end also because of the committment. If it's just more of the same area, I'm not sure it's worth it anyway, so no worries! Everything looks pretty sparse down there based on my research, hence the question.

Alligators in the wild... That's so weird to this desert rat! I believe we will be taking I-10 for a stretch, so now I have an interesting fact to share on the way. Swamps are just sooo intriguing to me - maybe that's the tour I should focus on then. Thanks again for the tips!

november_moon

Here is a link to some photos my husband took at Lake Martin (the 1st 5 are actually from Alligator Bayou - the rest are Lake Martin). There is a picture in there of the big lilly pads.

http://www.flickr.com/photos/mh_corr...7600471653917/

jbee

Thank you so much for sharing those - Lake Martin looks stunning! The sign about not picnicking next to the water with the alligator underneath made my day...

dfr4848

This may be what you're planning, but one suggested route we recommend for someone who has a few days is to take the River Road out of NO to Baton Rouge (with appropriate stops along the way), then I10 to Lafayette, then Hwy 90 down through New Iberia etc back to NO (or vice versa).

Footnote on the I10 route segment - as it's the most southern transcontinental route, it's VERY busy. Because it's elevated, the shoulders aren't very wide so pulling over if you see anything interesting isn't really an option. Regardless, it is a very interesting and different drive, especially if you're not use to swamps.

jbee

dfr - that's pretty much exactly what I'm planning! Going back east out of New Iberia we'll probably take some side roads, etc. (hopefully we don't get too lost) and just meander on over to NO. I might cut out the Houma area and spend more time in the Lafayette/New Iberia area after researching more. It's a bummer there's not more room on I-10 to pull over, but I'm the passenger so woo-hoo!

November_moon - I missed your earlier post about your husband being a photographer. Thanks for the tips on NO - he's in charge of planning for that so I'll pass it on. BTW, he discovered if he puts a camera in my hands, he can shoot longer... He may be the professional, but I sure enjoy it as a hobby!

suewoo

I stayed in Thibodaux, just up north of Houma, for 2 weeks after Katrina. I stayed with the Naquins at their B&B home. They were so great, the accomodations were comfortable and welcoming, and the breakfast was delicious every day.Frank and Joyce grew up there and have many stories and recommendations. It's worth going out of your way a little.Here's the link.
http://www.naquinsbb.com/

bkluvsNola

I wished I had seen this sooner so I could have commented earlier. In any case, here's my 2 cents...

Okay, in regards to your question about "basing" yourself in New Iberia or somewhere else, I'd recommend somewhere else. New Iberia is not very scenic unto itself. I would recommend either St. Martinville or Breaux Bridge as suggested earlier. Another option would be to stay at Madewood Plantation, which would give you reasonable access to all the areas. If you did that, you would be reasonably close to all plantations and to Cajun Country.

The west side of the MS river (south) is far more scenic than the east side (north). The Sunshine Bridge, as mentioned, is the best way to cross back and forth. The views on that bridge are wonderful.

There are subtle differences between the different swamp tours, and let me point them out. The further South you get, the more brackish the water becomes and the more likely the scenery will be marshland (i.e. tall salt water type grasses in water) versus swampland (i.e. cypress trees in fresh water). The differences between freshwater lakes and freshwater bayous were described above, but there are also brackish lakes and brackish bayous. I personally would think a swamp tour of a bayou (whichever one you choose) would be more scenic for you for the first time, so that would be imperative on a first trip, especially since you are from the desert. I think the combination of wildlife, water, and trees would be far different than what you're used to. If you wanted, you could also book a lake or marshland tour to understand the differences.

Please note, however, that depending on the temperature of when you're there, the gators may be hiding. The temperature must be above around 75 when you're there if you want to see the gators. In mid November, you can still get those temps, but only in the afternoon, so I would plan for that. If you happen to get a cold front and coolish temps (below 70), you won't see a lot of alligators, if any at all, but you will still see plenty of birds and other wildlife. Advice: bring insect repellant, especially if it's not windy.

As far as going all the way down the Mississippi River to its mouth: Because of the levee, you will not be able to see the MS River from New Orleans all the way south. The river is probably 10 to 15 feet higher than the area behind the levee. My advice if you really want to see the "end of the earth" is to take LA1 South to Grand Isle. Please note that this road is now a toll road and it only accepts a Geaux Pass tolltag, which you can get at any convenience stores. I think the toll is $2.50 over the Leeville Bridge. This route will give you a very pretty road over the marshland south of Houma to Grand Isle. You'll get to see the Gulf at Grand Isle, although it will be too cool to swim. Eat at one of the restaurants in Grand Isle and come back up LA1.

jbee

bkluvsNola-
Thanks so much! Your post isn't late at all.I am (for some reason) dragging my feet on the planning, so all your information is great.

It's funny you mention Grand Isle. I was *really* trying to fit in a night or two down there, but we cut 3 days off our vacation earlier so out it went. We might still drive down there if we have time since you've recommended it and I was drawn there anyway.

As an update, I discovered I get a major discount on Marriott hotels, so all hotels are booked and the path is planned. Here's my updated itinerary:

November 13 - 14: Arrive late, stay by airport
November 14 - 15: Cajun & Bayou Area (Base: Houma)
November 15 - 18: Cajun & Bayou Area (Base: South Lafayette)
November 18 - 21: River & Plantation Area (Base: South Baton Rouge)
November 21 - 24: Big Easy

We had to reverse our itinerary based on hotel availability, but I figure either direction works out fine!

I wasn't planning on pre-booking a tour, rather I was hoping to find one once we get there. Is this a bad plan? Typically I'm a planner, so "winging it" isn't my strong suit... I was hoping for a more intimate tour with a quiet boat instead of the 20 person bus boat things. Any suggestions on a company and location for a bayou?

Thanks again to everyone! I can't believe how fast this vacation is coming up!

bkluvsNola

I wouldn't recommend winging it on a swamp tour - best to have that booked in advance. Fall is peak season in New Orleans and there are lots of tourists, especially from cold northern regions that are here to enjoy Louisiana's spectacular fall weather. Swamp tours are in high demand this time of year.