New Orleans is one of the most stylistically unique cultural gems of the United States, delighting its visitors with a treasury of attractions: from the French Quarter to Saint Louis Cemetery, from the Preservation Hall Jazz Band to the unrivaled revelry of Mardi Gras.
Yet the Big Easy also serves as a great starting point for other regional destinations, including primal swamps, white-sand beaches and other natural sanctuaries as well as historical sites, small-town jewels and culinary hotspots. In short, the area offers much more outside of what is typically expected. For inspiration and planning convenience, we’ve rounded up the 10 top day trips from New Orleans.
1. Chalmette Battlefield & National Cemetery
- Distance From New Orleans: About six miles
The Chalmette Battlefield in Chalmette, LA, part of the Jean Lafitte National Historical Park & Preserve (named after the legendary French pirate who operated along the Louisiana coast in the early 1800s), marks the site of the Battle of New Orleans on January 8, 1815. That was shortly after the Treaty of Ghent established the conditions for ending the War of 1812, but before it had been ratified. Outnumbered American forces under General Andrew Jackson soundly defeated the British Army, a victory that, for some time after, saw the eighth of January celebrated as a national holiday in the U.S.
Self-guided exhibits, ranger-led talks, living-history events and the Chalmette Monument are among the attractions at the battlefield. Immediately downriver lies the Chalmette National Cemetery, which inters more than 15,000 American veterans of the War of 1812, Civil War, Spanish-American War, both World Wars and the Vietnam War.
2. Barataria Preserve
- Distance From New Orleans: 17.5 miles
Another unit of Jean Lafitte National Historical Park & Preserve, the Barataria Preserve is a wetland wonderland showcasing the ecological splendor of the Barataria-Terrebonne National Estuary. The preserve protects close to 30,000 acres of bottomland hardwood forest, swamp, marshland and bayou, explorable via hiking trails and paddling routes.
Wildlife is abundant here: More than 200 species of birds have been recorded in the Barataria, striking critters such as green anoles and nine-banded armadillos are commonly observed and there’s a very healthy and readily seen population of those lords of the Louisiana swamps, American alligators.
3. Honey Island Swamp
- Distance From New Orleans: 36 miles
Alligators also abound within the marvelous Honey Island Swamp, an enchanting swath of riverine swamp and bottomland hardwood forest widely regarded as one of the most pristine forested wetlands in the country. Gators aren’t the only megafauna here: The swamp’s a precious refuge for the elusive Louisiana black bear, too.
The location offers multiple options for guided boat and paddling tours into this spectacular waterlogged wilderness, much of which lies within the bounds of the Pearl River Wildlife Management Area. Keep your eyes peeled for the swamp’s very own cryptid, the Honey Island Monster.
4. Fontainebleau State Park
- Distance From New Orleans: About 40 miles
Set on the north shore of Lake Ponchartrain and edged by Bayou Cane and Bayou Castine, the 2,800-acre Fontainebleau State Park is another of the top New Orleans day trips and outdoor escapes. It offers a well laid-out visitor center with exhibits, hiking paths, the multiuse Rails-to-Trails Tammany Trace, a fishing pier, picnic grounds and one of the Big Easy area’s go-to beaches. History buffs will be intrigued by the ruins of Bernard de Marigny de Mandeville’s 19th-century sugar mill. Extend your Fontainebleau State Park getaway by overnighting in the campground or one of the lakefront cabins.
5. Abita Mystery House/UCM Museum
- Distance From New Orleans: 43 miles
One of the great roadside attractions in America is the Abita Mystery House, known as the UCM (“You See ‘Em”) Museum. It houses a head-spinning, eclectic (and eccentric) collection of folk art, memorabilia and good old-fashioned oddities. Those include more than a few stuffed part-alligator hybrid beasties: Pay your respects to “Darrel the Dogigator” and “Bufford the Bassigator.”
Situated in Abita Springs near the north shore of Lake Pontchartrain, the mystery house’s entrance beckons through a vintage gas station and the property also includes a historic Creole cottage.
6. The Whitney Plantation
- Distance From New Orleans: 46 miles
Not all preserved Southern plantations do a good job addressing the awful legacy of slavery that’s inextricably linked to their history. Luckily that’s not the case at the Whitney Plantation, managed by the non-profit Whitney Institute as a plantation museum expressly dedicated to educating visitors about the history of that terrible institution.
Established in 1752 as an indigo plantation by German immigrant Ambroise Heidel, the Whitney Plantation also produced sugar and rice over its long commercial existence; its surviving historical structures include the 1790-built Big House, multiple slaves’ quarters and a French Creole-style barn. The visitor center includes such exhibits as The History of the Transatlantic Slave Trade and Slavery in Louisiana and you can explore the grounds and ponder the lives of the plantation’s enslaved African-Americans on a self-guided multilingual audio tour or a guided walk-through.
7. Gulfport, Mississippi
- Distance From New Orleans: 78 miles
The second-biggest city in Mississippi offers one of the most popular beach getaways from New Orleans, with some six miles of sandy Gulf Coast strand awaiting. Take the ferry out to Ship Island—part of the National Park Service-managed Gulf Islands National Seashore—for additional beachgoing opportunities.
Other Gulfport attractions include the Lynn Meadows Discovery Center (a children’s museum), the Mississippi Aquarium and the Fishbone Alley artists’ quarter, plus a whole slew of restaurants, breweries and stores.
8. Baton Rouge, Louisiana
- Distance From New Orleans: 82 miles
Louisiana’s capital city has plenty to attract daytrippers from New Orleans, including some grand historical architecture, such as the “Louisiana White House” of the Old Governor’s Mansion. It also offers such cultural attractions as the Shaw Center for the Arts, the Louisiana Art & Science Museum and the Rural Life Museum. On top of that, Baton Rouge serves as an educational center, home to Southern University (the biggest historically black college or university in the state) and Louisiana State University; consider putting an LSU Fighting Tigers football game on your bucket list.
9. Grand Isle, Louisiana
- Distance From New Orleans: 108 miles
The only inhabited barrier island in Louisiana, Grand Isle is something like a slice of paradise on NOLA’s doorstep (relatively speaking). Expansive beaches are a top draw here, but there’s also some famously first-rate birding opportunities, like the Migratory Bird Festival, celebrating Grand Isle avifauna.
10. Lafayette, Louisiana
- Distance From New Orleans: 136 miles
Another of the best day trips from New Orleans, unquestionably, is the vivacious hub of Louisiana’s Cajun Country, or Acadiana: Lafayette. An epicenter of Cajun/Creole cuisine, Zydeco music and other regional touchstones, Lafayette includes the exhibits and interpretive programs of the Acadian Cultural Center (another of the Jean Lafitte National Historical Park & Preserve), concerts by the Acadiana Symphony Orchestra and so much more.
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