Overview
South Central Louisiana is a part of "Acadiana," the name given to the region of southern Louisiana that is the home of the Cajun (or "Acadian" as they were originally known) people. Everything that made Cajun culture popular came from this region: food, music, literature, and of course, the unique variant of French spoken here. This particular area, along with the Cajun Prairie, is effectively an enclave in the southern United States: an area that is predominantly French in background and culture, but still distinct from French culture in Metropolitan France or Quebec.
1 sights
Updated from Wikivoyage on 1 October 2026 · Something wrong or missing? Improve it on Wikivoyage
Best things about South Central Louisiana
Atchafalaya Welcome Center
Interactive displays, a short theater production, and a walking trail introduce you to the Atchafalaya Swamp that this welcome center sits in the midst of.
Plan your trip
Best time to visit & weather
Most comfortable: Oct–May. Summer highs reach about 92°F; winter lows dip to about 42°F. Very hot (Jun, Jul, Aug) — plan outdoor time for mornings. Wettest: Jun and Jan. (climate data from nearby Baton Rouge)
Blue bars: average daily high and low (°F). Purple columns: average monthly rain and melted snow (inches).
Getting there
- From you: to see whether to drive or fly, and how long it takes.
- LFT Lafayette Regional Airport, Lafayette — 2 mi away. Directions
- BTR Baton Rouge Metropolitan Airport, Baton Rouge — 56 mi away. Directions
- MSY Louis Armstrong New Orleans International Airport, New Orleans — 106 mi away (major hub). Directions
Sample 3-day trip
- Day 1: Lafayette — Lafayette Science Museum, University of Louisiana at Lafayette, Vermilionville.
- Day 2: St. Martinville — Longfellow-Evangeline State Historic Site, Saint Martin De Tours Church, Lake Fausse Pointe State Park.
- Day 3: New Iberia — Shadows-on-the-Teche, Alice Plantation, Cypremort Point State Park.
Built from the best-covered destinations in this region; open each for its own day plan.
Places in South Central Louisiana
Map
Every listing with a location. Tap a pin for its Google Maps link.
Cities
- Abbeville
- Arnaudville
- Breaux Bridge — the largest city in St. Martin Parish
- Henderson
- Kaplan
- Lafayette
- New Iberia
- Scott
- St. Martinville
Other destinations
- Avery Island
- Atchafalaya Basin (also known as Atchafalaya Swamp) - enormous swamp around the Atchafalaya River
See
Nearby
Rayne
City / town · 1 listings · 15 mi away
Church Point
City / town · 2 listings · 17 mi away
Opelousas
City / town · 2 listings · 22 mi away
Atchafalaya Basin
Park · 5 listings · 24 mi away
Krotz Springs
City / town · 7 listings · 27 mi away
Eunice
City / town · 7 listings · 30 mi away
Jennings
City / town · 5 listings · 38 mi away
Franklin
City / town · 7 listings · 42 mi away
My experience
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