New Orleans

Airboat Tours

Climb aboard a unique airboat to explore Louisiana’s wetlands south of New Orleans in a truly unique fashion. Board an airboat just 30 minutes from downtown New Orleans, and listen to informative commentary as you zip through the bayou and squeeze into tiny canals hidden deep in the swamp. For 105 minutes, the captains at Airboat Adventures share some of the most beautiful and secluded areas of Louisiana. Wildlife such as alligators, turtles, and birds are common sights, but you never know what else might come out to visit! Round-trip transfers are available from New Orleans for guests without a car. Upon arrival, check-in to the Airboats Adventures facilities, before departing on the airboat to zip across the swamps. Grab a snack at the gift shop, or check out Sugar and Flour, the only albino alligators on the bayou. Picnic tables are available both inside and out, where you can relax before your airboat departure. The boats can hold between 6 and 27 people. Opt for a small boat, with capacity for 6-8 passangers, for a more personal tour, when the captain can spend more time with each guest. But even the large boats, with capacity for 15-27 passengers allow an up close experience with the wildlife of the Louisiana swamps. Sit back and enjoy the ride through a unique landscape, and listen as you captain feeds you fascinating bayou facts. You never know; he might haul in a ‘gator if the opportunity arises, or even let you hold a baby ‘gator!

Discover Louisiana on a guided day trip from New Orleans to the historical Oak Alley Plantation, with entry tickets included, and a bayou airboat ride. Benefit from round-trip transportation from your New Orleans hotel. Start your experience with hotel pickup, and relax on the drive to Oak Alley Plantation. Enjoy a guided tour of the plantation home by guides in period dress while you hear and learn about the times of slavery.  Take in the house's Greek Revival architecture, the antique farm equipment exhibits, and walk around the grounds where 28 evenly spaced, huge oak trees grow. Browse the blacksmith shop and souvenir shop, or stop for a snack (at your own expense) in the restaurant. Continue onto Barataria Basin for an airboat tour of the bayou swamplands, where your local captain will guide you through the swamps, marshes, and lakes. Travel at high speeds for an exciting ride, then slow down to spot local wildlife on this exciting airboat experience. Look out for alligators, birds, and other animals. Every airboat tour is unique, so you never know what you’ll see. Even in winter — when alligators hibernate — you’ll have a good chance of spotting these reptiles.  Back on dry land, return to the bus for the drive back to New Orleans, where you’ll finish off your trip with a convenient drop-off back at your hotel.

Embark on a high-speed adventure through the swamps and marshes just 35 minutes from New Orleans and experience the amazing scenery by airboat. Slow down or stop to take pictures and get a personal tour from your local captain. Avail of airboats with stadium-style seating so that the person in front does not obstruct your view. Be amazed as alligators come so close to the boat that you can stare into their reptilian eyes! Encounter magnificent birdlife, including bald eagles, pelicans, ospreys and owls. Every tour is unique and you never know what will be around the next corner! Reach speeds of up to 35 miles per hour, propelled by a huge fan that blows air from the back of the boat in excess of 200 miles per hour. Ride in shallow water and access areas where traditional boats cannot go.

Climb aboard a flat-bottomed airboat and prepare for an exploration of Louisiana's wetlands just south of New Orleans. Head 30 minutes from downtown and experience some of the most beautiful and secluded areas of the state while catching glimpses of alligators, turtles and birds. Set out on a 20,000-acre (8,095-ha) track of tidewater cypress swamp close to the Jean Lafitte National Historical Park and Preserve. Your boat is powered by an aircraft propeller to allow a fast, fluid trip through the shallow marshes. Feel the wind on your face as you zip into bayous lined with mossy cypress and tupelo-gum trees as your pilot points out a stunning variety of wildlife. Prepare to see plenty of alligators in the warmer months (and warmer days in winter) and your guide may even feed the gators, affording you amazing photo opportunities. As you zigzag through the soggy wetlands, keep your eyes open for turtles, snakes, egrets, herons and ibis. You may even catch sight of a hawk, owl, or bald eagle. In the cooler months, look for white-tailed deer, raccoons and the large rodents known as nutria.

After being picked up from your hotel in New Orleans in a 13-seater high-roof van, your enthusiastic historian driver-guide will take you on a scenic narrated drive out of New Orleans, preparing you for a pilgrimage back in time.  After crossing over the Mississippi River on a high bridge, you will arrive at a remote swamp to board a small airboat. With your Cajun boat captain, glide comfortably over marshes and deep into secluded bayous. Discover the swamp’s fascinating fauna and flora, including alligators, turtles, and exotic birds.  Next, you will drive upriver through sugar cane fields to arrive at Laura Plantation. Enjoy a guided tour of this Creole plantation dating back to 1804. Hear the compelling stories of Laura's family saga, as well as stories of the West-African, enslaved people who worked on this sugar plantation. At the end of the tour, visit the museum exhibit dedicated to "Slavery on Laura Plantation" in a restored overseer's cottage. Back on the old River Road, you will pass by Felicity Plantation, where "12 Years A Slave" was filmed, and St Joseph Plantation, where the "Queen Sugar" TV series was filmed. Stop in front of Oak Alley Plantation to admire its parallel rows of centuries-old oak trees. After crossing over the Mississippi River on the Sunshine Bridge, you will arrive at the iconic "Sugar Palace", Houmas House Plantation. Lunch will be served in their elegant dining room, with genuine Cajun cuisine. Then, enjoy a guided tour of the mansion with a guide dressed in Antebellum costume. After the tour, enjoy some free time to stroll around the splendid gardens, before you return to New Orleans. Sample Lunch Menu (subject to seasonal changes) Luncheon includes home-baked bread and butter, iced tea or soft drink, dessert, and coffee.  Choice of Entrees: Grilled Chicken Caesar Salad (gluten-free without croutons): Served with tender romaine lettuce, croutons, and parmesan cheese Crown Jewel Hamburger: Grilled 7oz burger topped with cheese, bacon, mayo, ketchup, lettuce, tomato, and onion served with French fries Shrimp Po Boy: Shrimp, crispy fried and served on New Orleans French bread with shredded lettuce, tomatoes, and Creole mayonnaise Breast of Chicken (gluten-free without grits): Skin-on breast of chicken, served with stone-ground grits, roasted veggies and rum-spiked Houmas House beehive honey glaze Vegetarian Pasta: Veggies and baby heirloom tomatoes with fettuccine pasta and parmesan cheese Choice of Dessert: White Chocolate Bread Pudding Turtle Creole Cream Cheese Cheesecake

Enjoy our Louisiana tour, which brings you from the historical sites of the Destrehan plantation to the remote swamps in Cajun Country. Narrated short scenic drive out of the city and along the shores of Lake Ponchartrain to Destrehan Plantation on the East bank of the Old River Road: a pilgrimage back in time to the Antebellum South. First you will be brought on a tour of Destrehan Plantation where guides in period costumes will bring to life the stories of generations who lived on and worked this rich land – both owners and slaves. They will share with you every detail of this mansion's history since 1787. Enjoy some free time to walk around under a spectacular canopy of live oaks around the mansion and the slave quarters. We then drive down to a remote swamp in Cajun Country for a thrilling high-speed 2-hour ride onboard 6-passenger airboats, comfortably gliding over marshes, deep into secluded bayous. You may even get to hold a baby alligator, feed giant catfish, or meet a nutria face to face.