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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Itinerary
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.
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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
)
4 expert-led lectures
12 expert-led field trips
3 performances
An experienced Group Leader
7 nights of accommodations
Taxes and customary gratuity
Road Scholar Assurance Plan
Day
1
Check-in, Orientation, Welcome Dinner, Jazz performance
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, 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 the day with an introduction to New Orleans aboard a motor coach as our instructor points out significant sites and reveals 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.
Lunch:
We will dine at the famous Dooky Chase restaurant. After opening its doors in 1941, the restaurant has since been a meeting place for music and entertainment, civil rights, and culture in New Orleans.
Afternoon:
Following lunch, we'll board our motor coach and visit 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. We will return back to the hotel via motor coach, and have an afternoon lecture provided by a local expert historian. The presentation will cover the history, cultures, traditions, and differences between Cajun and Creole people.
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
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 motor coach; driving 200 miles, approximately 4 hours total riding time. Getting on/off water vessels.
Breakfast:
At the hotel.
Morning:
After checking out of the hotel, we will board the motor coach and head our way down into the bayou. At our first stop, we will visit a shrimp factory and learn about various types of vessels used in catching shrimp. We'll also learn about the supply chain and how the shrimp is processed and unloaded, and transported to local stores.
Lunch:
At a local restaurant.
Afternoon:
Following lunch, we will make our way via motor coach to a local ecological park filled with alligators, snapping turtles, nutrias, etc. We will then trek into the swamps on a watercraft with a local expert to learn about the creatures, and hear more about life on the bayou. Following this tour, we will make our way back to Houma via motor coach to stop by our hotel and check in for our night’s stay.
Dinner:
At the local visitor center, we will take part in a local seafood boil featuring fresh crab, crawfish, & shrimp. Specific dietary needs will be accommodated. As we enjoy our feast, we will be serenaded by a local Cajun musician.
Evening:
At leisure. Prepare to check out of the hotel the next morning.
Day
4
Tabasco Factory, Rip Van Winkle Gardens, Chitimacha Museum
Location:
Lafayette, LA
Meals:
B,L,D
Stay:
Drury Inn & Suites Lafayette, LA
Activity Note
Getting on/off a motor coach; driving 140 miles, approximately 3.5 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 motor coach and drive to the nearby Rip Van Winkle Gardens on Jefferson Island. Here, we will see beautiful semi tropical gardens surrounded by oak trees.
Lunch:
We will dine at a restaurant located at the Rip Van Winkle Gardens.
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.
Day
5
Creole Class, Vermillionville, Acadian Culture Center
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:
This morning, we will start the day with a class and hear about the origins of the French Creole language. With a local expert, we will learn and practice some key phrases and terminology. We will then drive by motor coach and will make our way 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. We will also attend a Cajun dance lesson while on site..
Lunch:
We will dine at a restaurant located in Vermillionville.
Afternoon:
Following lunch, we will board the motor coach to venture to Eunice, LA to visit the Prairie 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 people’s origins, settlements, and culture. 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:
At leisure, prepare to check out of the hotel the next morning.
Day
6
Zydeco breakfast, Old State Capitol, Baton Rouge City Tour
Location:
Baton Rouge, LA
Meals:
B,L
Stay:
Hampton Inn & Suites Baton Rouge Downtown
Activity Note
Getting on/off a motor coach; driving 10 miles, approximately 3 hours total riding time. Walking over 2 miles throughout the day on city sidewalks during field trips.
Breakfast:
We will tap our toes and dance to live music as we experience a Zydeco Cajun breakfast.
Morning:
After breakfast, 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.
Lunch:
At a local restaurant.
Afternoon:
Following lunch, we will be met by a local expert guide who will take us on a 2 hour city overview tour of Baton Rouge. We will then check into our hotel. .
Dinner:
Dinner is on your own this evening to explore and experience whatever cuisine you desire.
Evening:
At leisure.
Day
7
History Class, New State Capitol, Whitney Plantation
Location:
Baton Rouge, LA
Meals:
B,L,D
Stay:
Hampton Inn & Suites Baton Rouge Downtown
Activity Note
Getting on/off a motor coach; driving 100 miles, approximately 2.5 hours total riding time.
Breakfast:
At the hotel.
Morning:
We will start our day with a lecture on the history of Baton Rouge. Next, we will venture over to 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.
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 to Whitney Plantation.
Afternoon:
After lunch, we will have a guided tour of Whitney Plantation. An active plantation from 1752 to 1975, the plantation 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.
Dinner:
At a local restaurant in Baton Rouge. Share favorite experiences and enjoy camaraderie with new Road Scholar friends during our farewell dinner.
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 motor coach; driving 68 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:
This morning we will take a group transfer back to New Orleans. Departure from Baton Rouge is scheduled for 8:30 a.m. with expected arrival at Louis Armstrong New Orleans International Airport (MSY) by 9:45 a.m. Following the airport drop-off, there will be a second drop-off on the intersection of Canal and Royal Street in New Orleans near the French Quarter. 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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