Fodor's Travel Talk Forums - best rentals on Gulf Coast, Louisiana

I am hoping to get some ideas from people about where to stay for our summer vacation. We are two families with 5 adult children between us and a teenager road tripping hopefully to Louisiana...we thought about New Orleans but we really love staying on the water (typically a lake) but we are very open to something like the Gulf. We don't know the area, how far things are to New Orleans, which would be great to visit as well for a day, things to do in areas and must see places too. I've looked on VRBO and other sites for vacation rentals but I am hoping for more personal thoughts about staying in the areas, any experiences that were great or horrible...but mostly, any places you think would be great to rent! Thanks in advance!