Events in Port Allen Louisiana

Looking for top-notch, inexpensive family entertainment, great food, a beautiful outdoor experience and some of the best music in the world? Two words: Louisiana festivals.

More than 400 Louisiana festivals occur each year – which makes it easy to see why Louisiana is often called the Festival Capital of America. We celebrate just about every crop harvested, every indigenous dish, every type of music that's played here – ranging from Cajun and zydeco to Delta blues, New Orleans jazz, Louisiana's own swamp pop, country, salsa and more. Excellent Louisiana food is a given at any festival. And as always, Louisiana festivals offer abundant opportunities for meeting new friends.

Themed festivals range from a Strawberry Festival in Ponchatoula and Tomato Festival in Chalmette to the great Festival International in Lafayette; from the big Contraband Days Pirate Festival in Lake Charles to the Holiday Festival of Lights in Natchitoches. From the Red River Revel in Shreveport to the Catfish Festival in Washington. Of course, you'll want to visit the annual New Orleans Jazz & Heritage Festival, or the big family-fun French Quarter Festival.

And for the biggest of them all? That's right, Louisiana is home to Mardi Gras! But that's another story – and a very large one across the state!

Port Allen sits across the Mississippi River from Baton Rouge, but the mighty waterway does more to unite the two neighbors than separate them. As home to the Port of Greater Baton Rouge, the city is the northernmost deepwater terminal on the Mississippi and a busy crossroads with cargo moving from barges and trains to ocean-going vessels. Port Allen's Mississippi Riverfront Development park offers panoramic views of the Capital City's skyline along a pedestrian promenade lined with architectural features and ornamental lighting. The city's important location has fueled its rich industrial and cultural history, which are showcased at the West Baton Rouge Museum complex with its 1830s-era Aillet House and collection of slave cabins. Tour the Railroad Depot Museum with restored caboose and exhibits on 1940s railroad life; come to Sugarfest in October or the Lagniappe Dulcimer Fete Festival, a celebration of handmade musical instruments each March, draws travelers nationwide.