Fun Things to Do While RVing in Louisiana

We decided to make a few stops in Louisiana on our Summer 2019 RV trip. We had never been to Louisiana before so we wanted to take a look at the area.

Baton Rouge

Baton Rouge in French means “red stick.” We spent several days in the Baton Rouge area and checked out some local food and the area. We stayed at the Baton Rouge Holiday KOA and found it to be a very nice RV park. One note, not all of the sites are shaded. If you go, ask for a shaded site if possible. The pool is nice, the staff is friendly and the facilities are nice and clean. They have activities beyond the pool such as a game room and mini-golf. 

Jeep Problems

While we were on our way to Baton Rouge from Texas when we encountered a problem with our Jeep. We had replaced the battery in the Jeep before we left Colorado. I was driving our Jeep in Texas on our way out of town (we hadn’t hooked up the Jeep yet to the RV) when the battery light came on. I had a gut feeling that the alternator went bad (one of the causes of battery failure can be an alternator not performing correctly – over or undercharging the battery). 

Thankfully, we were able to get to a fuel station and hook up the Jeep to tow the rest of our way to Louisiana. 

We arrived in Baton Rouge on a Friday – in the early afternoon. I was able to find a shop called Affordable Auto and Transmission in Denham Springs, LA. They got us in right away and even had the Jeep repaired the same day! The bonus was the repair cost us much less than it would have in Colorado! So a very minor hiccup that turned out to be a blessing in disguise. 

USS Kidd

We visited the USS Kidd which is a retired Battle Ship. This was a lot of fun touring the ship and seeing all of the histories that went along with it. The Kidd saw heavy action in World War II, participating in nearly every important naval campaign in the Pacific after her 1943 commissioning. She was decommissioned in December 1946. A bit of interesting history, this was the first battleship to have an Ice Cream maker on board. 

New Orleans

Our next stop was New Orleans. We stayed at the KOA in New Orleans. A note that all sites at the NOLA KOA are back-in sites. The staff was friendly and recommended several different activities and provided maps of the area. 

We visited the French Quarter in the afternoon/evening of our first day in the area. We took a carriage ride to explore more with a tour guide who could share about the area. 

 A few of my  thoughts on The French Quarter: 

• Not the most “kid-friendly” place although we did take our kids and enjoyed beignets at Cafe Du Mondé
• There is a TON of history – however (at least what we heard from our tour guide)  the history of the French Quarter is not exactly “kid-friendly” (I was surprised the tour guide didn’t tone down the graphic nature of things with kids along)!
• Very historic in the sense most of the buildings are over 300 years old. 
• TAKE CASH! Several of the places don’t take credit cards. 

Steamboat Natchez

We had a lot of fun on the river cruise aboard the Steamboat Natchez. This is a paddle-style riverboat that goes up and down the Mississippi River. We ate lunch at the buffet (some GREAT red beans and rice!) and enjoyed being able to take a look at the engine room and explore all 3 decks. This was a great activity for the whole family and the kids loved it. The narrator on the ship was great at pointing out different landmarks and history along the way up and down the Mississippi River. There was plenty of seating and air-conditioned areas. 

Cajun Encounters – Swamp Boat Tour

We had a BLAST with Cajun Encounters and their swamp boat tour. Our guide (Captain Ron) was very knowledgeable sharing about the ecosystem of the swamp and sharing a lot of Cajun jokes along the way. 

“One day old Boudreaux was out fishing and had two fish in a bucket of water. The game warden came along and asked to see his fishing license. Old Boudreaux (not having a fishing license) said, “Why warden these here are my pet fish and I was taking them out for a swim. I just put them in the water and when I whistle for them, they jump back in the bucket.” 

So the warden asks old Boudreaux to show him how this process works. Boudreaux puts the fish in the water. Then the warden asked him to whistle to make the fish come back. To which Boudreaux replies “what fish?” 

We saw alligators (tons of them!) a snake, raccoons, and lots of tree and plant life. It was fun learning about the Pearl River and the kids loved it. This was probably one of the most fun tours we’ve done and if you’re ever in the area, it’s a MUST-do! 

We enjoyed our time in Louisiana and it was fun adding another state to our map!