Louisiana
On the Road: Cuisine & Culture in Acadiana Louisiana
Program No. 24834RJ
Discover Acadiana, where the past meets the present, and culture, language and flavor come together in the heart of southern Louisiana.
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DATES
& starting prices
PRICES
DATES
& starting prices
PRICES
Mar 10 - Mar 17, 2025
Starting at
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This date is available to book as a private experience for your group!
8 days
7 nights
18 meals
7B 6L 5D
1
Check-in, Registration, Orientation, Welcome Dinner
New Orleans, LA
2
Lecture, F.P.C. Museum, N.O. School of Cooking, City Tour
New Orleans, LA
3
Whitney Plantation, Old State Capitol, Huey Long Performance
Baton Rouge, LA
4
Class, Baton Rouge City Tour, New State Capitol
Baton Rouge, LA
5
Acadian Cultural Center, Vermillionville, Creole Class
Lafayette, LA
6
Tabasco Factory, Jungle Gardens, Chitimacha Museum
Lafayette, LA
8
Transfer to New Orleans, Program Concludes
New Orleans, LA
At a Glance
Dive into the history, natural beauty and flavors of southern Louisiana's vibrant Cajun and Creole communities. This is Acadiana — a true melting pot brimming with heritage, distinctive cuisines and lively zydeco beats. Learn about the Cajun, Creole and indigenous Chitimacha peoples while delving into Acadian history and picking up some Creole French along the way. Explore Baton Rouge’s new and old State Capitol buildings, and enjoy exclusive access to the Acadian Cultural Center. In other words? Laissez les bons temps rouler!
Activity Level
Keep the Pace
Walking up to 1-2 miles per day; some uneven terrain including city streets and uneven surfaces such as cobblestones. Getting on/off busses and a boat.
Best of all, you’ll…
- Enjoy a boat ride through the Louisiana bayou and learn about its wildlife, ecosystems and the impact climate change has had on this fragile environment.
- Discover the flavors of Cajun and Creole cuisine in a cooking demonstration with the New Orleans School of Cooking and explore the TABASCO® Factory & Museum.
- Take part in a seafood boil with locals while you dine to the tunes of live Cajun music.
Featured Expert
All trip experts
Samantha Morgan
Samantha Morgan is a former journalist and community advocate from Baton Rouge, Louisiana. After two decades in traditional news media, she launched the Downtown East Social Ride in 2019, a weekly bike exploration revealing Baton Rouge's hidden stories, landmarks, and diverse community narratives. Morgan also hosted a series for the Capitol Park Museum’s Green Book exhibition, exploring sites that once served Black travelers during the Jim Crow era. Her work includes restoring historic sites like the Lincoln Hotel and Lutheran Cemetery.
Please note: This expert may not be available for every date of this program.
Milton J. Carr
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Milton Carr was born in Tremé, a cultural center of New Orleans. After studying in San Diego, Milton returned home to New Orleans where he worked for Domino Sugars. During his 33 years at Domino, he became interested in sugar cane’s connections to slavery and the economic history of the city. Milton has been a licensed New Orleans guide since 2001, and is a one-of-a-kind expert on the city's unique music, history, culture and heritage.
Lyndel Brauninger
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Lyndel Brauninger, a native New Orleanian, is a retired educator who taught in the metropolitan New Orleans area for more than 30 years. Besides leading Road Scholar groups, she leads walking “foodie” groups in the French Quarter, where she has been a licensed exploration leader since 1996. Lyndel enjoys experiencing and learning everything the Crescent City has to offer, particularly the architecture, history, music, food, and amazing theater. She is thrilled to share her passion for New Orleans with people from all over the world.
Nathan Rabalais
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Nathan Rabalais is the Joseph P. Montiel Endowed Professor of Francophone Studies and Research Fellow of the Center for Louisiana Studies at the University of Louisiana at Lafayette, where he specializes in the folklore, literature, and popular culture of Louisiana and Acadia. Recent projects include feature-length documentary 'Finding Cajun' on the intersection of language and identity in Louisiana and his book, 'Folklore Figures of French and Creole Louisiana' (LSU Press). Nathan is also a poet whose work has appeared in a number of literary journals.
Samantha Morgan
View biography
Samantha Morgan is a former journalist and community advocate from Baton Rouge, Louisiana. After two decades in traditional news media, she launched the Downtown East Social Ride in 2019, a weekly bike exploration revealing Baton Rouge's hidden stories, landmarks, and diverse community narratives. Morgan also hosted a series for the Capitol Park Museum’s Green Book exhibition, exploring sites that once served Black travelers during the Jim Crow era. Her work includes restoring historic sites like the Lincoln Hotel and Lutheran Cemetery.
Faye Phillips
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Faye Phillips has led VF Phillips Consulting in Baton Rouge since 2012, after retiring as associate dean of libraries at Louisiana State University. Her career includes roles at the U.S. Senate, the National Archives, and the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. Phillips has authored eleven books, including 'Historic Magnolia Cemetery' (2019) and 'The Golden Band from Tigerland' (2016). A fellow of the Louisiana Historical Association and a member of several boards and commissions, she has also served as president of multiple archival societies.
Brian Altobello
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Brian Altobello is a native of New Orleans with a master’s degree in U.S. History and 29 years of teaching experience. He is an Army veteran and author of three books, including “Whiskey, Women, and War: How World War I Shaped Jim Crow New Orleans” (University Press of Mississippi, 2021). Married to a travel writing teacher, Brian currently works as a curriculum specialist in the New Orleans area.
Robin Rocque
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Robin Rocque's favorite city to share with guests is her hometown of New Orleans. Its diversely unique culture and musical background provides a lovely backdrop during its introduction. Robin has happily led groups in many cities and several countries. Robin has been a licensed New Orleans tour guide since 2004, and a certified international tour manager since 2011. She is an alumna of Vassar College, and recently served as a board member of a nonprofit organization that provides community support in and around New Orleans.
Lyndel Brauninger
View biography
Lyndel Brauninger, a native New Orleanian, is a retired educator who taught in the metropolitan New Orleans area for more than 30 years. Besides leading Road Scholar groups, she leads walking “foodie” groups in the French Quarter, where she has been a licensed exploration leader since 1996. Lyndel enjoys experiencing and learning everything the Crescent City has to offer, particularly the architecture, history, music, food, and amazing theater. She is thrilled to share her passion for New Orleans with people from all over the world.
Suggested Reading List
(6 books)
Visit the Road Scholar Bookshop
You can find many of the books we recommend at the Road Scholar store on bookshop.org, a website that supports local bookstores.
On the Road: Cuisine & Culture in Acadiana Louisiana
Program Number: 24834
Creole New Orleans Race and Americanization
This collection of six original essays explores the peculiar ethnic composition and history of New Orleans, which the authors persuasively argue is unique among American cities. The focus of Creole New Orleans is on the development of a colonial Franco-African culture in the city, the ways that culture was influenced by the arrival of later immigrants, and the processes that led to the eventual dominance of the Anglo-American community.
Bayou Farewell: The Rich Life and Tragic Death of Louisiana’s Cajun Coast
The Cajun coast of Louisiana is home to a way of life as unique, complex, and beautiful as the terrain itself. As award-winning travel writer Mike Tidwell journeys through the bayou, he introduces us to the food and the language, the shrimp fisherman, the Houma Indians, and the rich cultural history that makes it unlike any other place in the world. But seeing the skeletons of oak trees killed by the salinity of the groundwater, and whole cemeteries sinking into swampland and out of sight, Tidwell also explains why each introduction may be a farewell—as the storied Louisiana coast steadily erodes into the Gulf of Mexico. Part travelogue, part environmental exposé, Bayou Farewell is the richly evocative chronicle of the author's travels through a world that is vanishing before our eyes.
Nine Lives: Mystery, Magic, Death, and Life in New Orleans
Nine Lives is a biography voiced through the lives of nine characters spaning over forty years who tell their stories of living in this complex and facinating city. From outsider artists and Mardi Gras Kings to jazz-playing coroners and transsexual barkeeps, these characters are challenged to rise to acts of heroism or sink to the bottom as they face the devistation of two of Louisiana's most epic storms: Hurrican Betsy, which transformed the city in the 1960's, and Katrina, which nearly destroyed it. Dan Baum brings the kaleidoscopic portrait to life, showing us what was lost in the storm and what remains to be saved.
The Good Pirates of the Forgotten Bayous: Fighting to Save a Way of Life in the Wake of Hurricane Katrina
With a long and colorful family history of defying storms, the seafaring Robin cousins of St. Bernard Parish, Louisiana, make a fateful decision to ride out Hurricane Katrina on their hand-built fishing boats in a sheltered Civil War–era harbor called Violet Canal. But when Violet is overrun by killer surges, the Robins must summon all their courage, seamanship, and cunning to save themselves and the scores of others suddenly cast into their care. In this gripping saga, Louisiana native Ken Wells provides a close-up look at the harrowing experiences in the backwaters of New Orleans during and after Katrina. This is a story about the deep longing for home and a proud bayou people’s love of the fertile but imperiled low country that has nourished them.
Africans In Colonial Louisiana: The Development of Afro-Creole Culture in the Eighteenth-Century
A comprehensive assessment of the development of the Afro-Creole culture in colonial Louisiana. Created by slaves before 1731, the Afro-Creole culture encompass its own folkloric, musical, religious, and historical traditions that still survives today as a cultural heritage of tens of thousands of people of all races in the southern part of Louisiana. In this book, Gwendolyn Midlo Hall studies the overall history of Louisiana's creole slave community during the eighteenth century utilizing a variety of archival sources from Louisiana, France, and Spain across the disciplines of history, anthropology, linguistics, and folklore. She touches upon topics such as French slave trade from Africa to Louisiana, the ethnic origins of the slaves, and relations between African slaves and Native Americans. She gives special consideration to race mixture between Africans, Indians, and whites; to the role of slaves in the Natchez Uprising of 1729; to slave unrest and conspiracies, including the Pointe Coupee conspiracies of 1791 and 1795; and to the development of communities of runaway slaves in the cypress swamps around New Orleans.
The Cajuns: Americanization of a People
The past sixty years have shaped and reshaped the group of French-speaking Louisiana people known as the Cajuns. During this period, they have become much like other Americans and yet have remained strikingly distinct. The Cajuns: Americanization of a People explores these six decades and analyzes the forces that had an impact on Louisiana's Acadiana.
While we make every effort to ensure the accuracy of our published materials, programs are typically advertised more than a year prior to their start date. As a result, some program activities, schedules, accommodations, personnel, and other logistics occasionally change due to local conditions or circumstances. Should a major change occur, we will make every effort to alert you. For less significant changes, we will update you during orientation. Thank you for your understanding.
Duration
8 days
7 nights
What's Included
18 meals (
7B, 6L, 5D
)
3 expert-led lectures
14 expert-led field trips
4 performances
An experienced Group Leader
7 nights of accommodations
Taxes and customary gratuity
Road Scholar Assurance Plan
Day
1
Check-in, Registration, Orientation, Welcome Dinner
Location:
New Orleans, LA
Meals:
D
Stay:
Hotel Monteleone
Activity Note
Hotel check-in from 4:00 p.m. Remember to bring your nametag (sent previously). Easy walking inside hotel; at your discretion if you’d like to go out.
Afternoon:
Program Registration: 4:00 p.m. After you check in and have your room assignment, check the message board and join us at the Road Scholar table to register with the program staff, get any updated information, and confirm the time and location of the Orientation session. If you arrive late, please locate your Group Leader and let them know you have arrived. Orientation: 4:30 p.m. The Group Leader will greet everyone and lead introductions. We will review the up-to-date program schedule, discuss roles and responsibilities, logistics, safety guidelines, emergency procedures, and answer questions. We will learn from a series of local experts who will give lectures and lead field trips. Program-related travel and transfers will be via private motorcoach unless noted otherwise. Periods in the daily schedule designated as “Free time” and “At leisure” offer opportunities to do what you like and make your experience even more meaningful and memorable according to your personal preferences. The Group Leader will always be happy to offer suggestions. Program activities, schedules, personnel, and indicated distances or times may change due to local circumstances/current conditions. In the event of changes, we will alert you as quickly as possible. Thank you for your understanding.
Dinner:
At the hotel.
Evening:
After dinner, we will have a lively jazz concert by a local ensemble. The rest of the evening is at leisure. Live music fills the Carousel Bar & Lounge overlooking Royal Street right inside our historic hotel — a French Quarter landmark since 1886. The Carousel evokes a spirit of fun with the renowned Merry-Go-Round, the city’s only revolving bar. Continue getting to know your fellow Road Scholars, settle in, and get a good night’s rest for the day ahead.
Day
2
Lecture, F.P.C. Museum, N.O. School of Cooking, City Tour
Location:
New Orleans, LA
Meals:
B,L
Stay:
Hotel Monteleone
Activity Note
Getting on/off a motorcoach. Walking 1 block from hotel to bus for field trip.
Breakfast:
At the hotel.
Morning:
We’ll start our day at the hotel with a morning lecture by a local expert. In this introduction to New Orleans, we’ll learn about the history, cultures, traditions, and differences between Cajun and Creole people. We’ll board a motorcoach and make a visit to the Museum of Free People of Color. With a local expert, we will receive insider access to this historic house museum dedicated to preserving the culture of the free people of color in New Orleans.
Lunch:
We will dine at the world renowned New Orleans School of Cooking. Here an expert local chef will teach us how to cook Creole and Cajun cuisines, as they explain the difference. We’ll see the preparation of a traditional dish, then have it for lunch. For dessert, we may be able to sample the best pralines in town!
Afternoon:
Reboarding our motorcoach, we will continue our delightful introduction to New Orleans as our instructor points out significant sites and reveals more about the city’s people, traditions, and unique culture. We’ll make stops at highlights along the way, including Lake Pontchartrain, Bayou St. John, City Park with its magnificent oak trees and Sculpture Garden, and one of the famed and mysterious above-ground cemeteries where the departed — from pirates to voodoo queens — are interred.
Dinner:
This meal has been excluded from the program cost and is on your own to enjoy what you like. The Group Leader will be happy to offer suggestions.
Evening:
At leisure. Experience nightlife in the French Quarter. If you’re a music aficionado, there are lots of options. We have provided a voucher (drink included) for Fritzel’s European Jazz Club. The French Quarter has something to offer for almost every interest and taste. Prepare for check-out and transfer in the morning.
Day
3
Whitney Plantation, Old State Capitol, Huey Long Performance
Location:
Baton Rouge, LA
Meals:
B,L,D
Stay:
Hampton Inn & Suites Baton Rouge Downtown
Activity Note
Getting on/off a motorcoach; driving under 140 miles, approximately 2 hours riding time. Getting on/off water vessels; under 1 hour riding time. Walking 1 block from hotel to bus pick-up. Walking over 2 miles throughout the day during field trips.
Breakfast:
At the hotel.
Morning:
After checking out of the hotel, we will board the motorcoach and head out of New Orleans up to Whitney Plantation. An active plantation from 1752 to 1975, the museum contains many original historical structures, which are now a part of the National Register of Historic Places. The museum is dedicated to educating the public about the history of slavery in the U.S. and this site that produced indigo, sugar, and rice for over 200 years.
Lunch:
We will stop by Houmas House Estate and Gardens where we will dine at a historic plantation. Explore the beautiful gardens, if time allows, before we continue our way up to Baton Rouge.
Afternoon:
After lunch, we will drive to Baton Rouge, Louisiana's capital. We will first visit and have a guided tour of the Old State Capitol. Constructed in 1846, the State House served Louisiana's State Legislature until 1932. Designed like a castle, the building's focal point is a spiral staircase and stained glass dome. The Old State Capitol now serves as a history museum. Following this tour, we will check in to our hotel.
Dinner:
At a local restaurant.
Evening:
At the hotel, via a historical interpreter, we will learn about Huey Long, the famed Louisiana politician known as “The Kingfish.” After the one-man show, our interpreter will remain in character and answer questions about the former governor and U.S. senator.
Day
4
Class, Baton Rouge City Tour, New State Capitol
Location:
Baton Rouge, LA
Meals:
B,L
Stay:
Hampton Inn & Suites Baton Rouge Downtown
Activity Note
Getting on/off a motorcoach; driving 10 miles, approximately 1 hour total riding time. Walking over 2 miles throughout the day on city sidewalks during field trips.
Breakfast:
At the hotel.
Morning:
We will start our day with a lecture at the hotel on the history of Baton Rouge before boarding the motorcoach and heading out on an expert-led exploration of the city.
Lunch:
At a local restaurant.
Afternoon:
Our afternoon will start with a visit to the Old Governor's Mansion. Designed by Governor Huey Long, it was used as the state's gubernatorial residence from 1930 to 1963. It has been reported that Huey designed the building to look just like the White House so that he could be familiar with the house prior to becoming president of the United States. Next, we will continue our tour and visit Louisiana's State Capitol. The tallest capitol in the U.S., the building stands at 340 feet and hosts an observation deck boasting grand views of Baton Rouge and beyond. The Capitol also sits on 27 acres of beautifully landscaped grounds.
Dinner:
On your own this evening to explore what you like.
Evening:
At leisure. Prepare for check-out and transfer in the morning.
Day
5
Acadian Cultural Center, Vermillionville, Creole Class
Location:
Lafayette, LA
Meals:
B,L,D
Stay:
Drury Inn & Suites Lafayette, LA
Activity Note
Getting on/off a motorcoach; driving about 100 miles, approximately 2 hours total riding time. Walking over 2 miles throughout the day on paved and dirt pathways during field trips.
Breakfast:
At the hotel.
Morning:
Checking out of the hotel, we will board the motorcoach to venture to Jean Lafitte National Park to visit the Acadian Cultural Center. This site tells the story of the Acadians who settled in this region of marshes and bayous. With an expert park ranger, we will explore the site’s exhibits to learn about the Lafayette region people’s origins, settlements, and culture. After our visit to the Cultural Center, we will make our way down the road to Vermillionville, a 23-acre living history museum featuring historic homes and costume artisans. Here we will be met by a local expert to provide us with an overview of the historic area, before breaking off for a self-led exploration of this cultural melting pot of Native American, Acadian, Creole, and African people of the Attakapas region.
Lunch:
We will dine at a restaurant located in Vermillionville.
Afternoon:
After checking in at the hotel, we will get an opportunity to learn about the French Creole language. With a local expert, we will learn about the unique langue’s origins, and get an opportunity to learn some key phrases and terminology.
Dinner:
At a local restaurant.
Evening:
For those interested in live music, there will be a jazz or blues performance this evening at a local cocktail lounge.
Day
6
Tabasco Factory, Jungle Gardens, Chitimacha Museum
Location:
Lafayette, LA
Meals:
B,L,D
Stay:
Drury Inn & Suites Lafayette, LA
Activity Note
Getting on/off a motorcoach; driving 140 miles, approximately 3 hours total riding time. Walking up to 2 miles throughout the day.
Breakfast:
At the hotel.
Morning:
We will board our motorcoach and head out to Avery Island to visit the Tabasco Factory & Museum. It was here that the popular tabletop red pepper hot sauce was developed nearly 150 years ago. This self-directed visit will take us through the history and process of making Tabasco sauce. We will then reboard our motorcoach and take a guided tour of Avery Island's surrounding botanical gardens and bird sanctuary, Jungle Gardens. The 170 acre gardens is a roost spot for snowy egrets.
Lunch:
We will dine at a restaurant located at the Tabasco Factory.
Afternoon:
Our next step will be the Chitimacha Museum. The Chitimacha people were the first inhabitants of the region, and peaceful nation known for their living off the land, water, and basket weaving. Here at the museum, we will meet with a local expert who will show us many artifacts dating back to the 1600s, and the efforts to preserve their tribal language. .
Dinner:
At a local restaurant.
Evening:
At leisure. Prepare for check-out and transfer in the morning.
Day
7
Shrimp Industry, Bayou Exploration, Seafood Boil and Music
Location:
Houma, LA
Meals:
B,L,D
Stay:
Homewood Suites by Hilton Houma
Activity Note
Getting on/off a motorcoach; driving 200 miles, approximately 4 hours total riding time. Getting on/off water vessels.
Breakfast:
At the hotel.
Morning:
Following check-out, we will make our way down by motorcoach to the bayou. We will make our way to a local ecological park filled with alligators, snapping turtles, nutrias, etc. We will then head out into the swamps on a watercraft with a local expert to learn about the creatures, and hear more about life from a local on the bayou.
Lunch:
At a local restaurant.
Afternoon:
A visit to the south bayou isn’t complete without learning from a local expert about the shrimping industry. Here we will visit a factory and learn about various types of vessels used in catching shrimp, along with the processing/unloading, and finally how the shrimp makes its way to your local store and home. Following this tour, we will make our way back to Houma via motorcoach to stop by our hotel and check in for our final night’s stay.
Dinner:
At the local visitor center, we will be met by many folks of call Houma, "home." Here we will take part in a local seafood boil featuring fresh crab, crawfish, & shrimp. Specific dietary needs will be accommodated. Share favorite experiences and enjoy camaraderie with new Road Scholar friends. As we enjoy our farewell feast, we will be serenaded with local Cajun Music.
Evening:
At leisure. Prepare for check-out and departure in the morning.
Day
8
Transfer to New Orleans, Program Concludes
Location:
New Orleans, LA
Meals:
B
Activity Note
Getting on/off a motorcoach; driving 45 miles, approximately 1-1.5 hours riding time depending on traffic. Departure at 8:30 a.m.; expected arrival in New Orleans at approximately 9:45 a.m. We recommend scheduling flights that depart after 11:00 a.m.
Breakfast:
At the hotel.
Morning:
Traveling in and out of Houma without your own vehicle is difficult and time-consuming, so we have scheduled a group transfer back to New Orleans. Departure from Houma is scheduled for 8:30 a.m. with expected arrival at Louis Armstrong New Orleans International Airport (MSY) by 9:45 a.m. This concludes our program. If you are returning home, safe travels. If you are staying on independently, have a wonderful time. If you are transferring to another Road Scholar program, detailed instructions are included in your Information Packet for that program. We hope you enjoy Road Scholar learning adventures and look forward to having you on rewarding programs in the future. Don’t forget to like our Facebook page and follow us on Instagram. Best wishes for all your journeys!
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MEALS
18 Meals
7 Breakfasts
6 Lunches
5 Dinners
LODGING
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- Feb 10, 2025 - Feb 17, 2025
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- Oct 20, 2025 - Oct 27, 2025
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