Culture in Donaldsonville Louisiana

When you make a list of all the unique things Louisiana has to offer visitors, you quickly see the long-lasting influences of our French, Spanish and African ancestry. Our past is well-preserved in our architecture, music, food and lifestyles—which include our amazing festivals—and of course in our museums of history and fine arts.

It is not an accident that Louisiana clings to the phrase "Laissez les bons temps rouler," meaning "Let the good times roll". Let yourself get lost in the traditions passed down through generations. Come visit us during Mardi Gras when costumed riders parade and magnificent balls are thrown from New Orleans and Baton Rouge to Houma, Lafayette, Lake Charles, Shreveport and beyond. Peek back across the centuries, as you walk under lavish ironwork and through the lush courtyard gardens of a meticulous French Quarter hotel. Touch history with a tour of a plantation where the daily activities of the past are recreated. Let nature's mysteries inspire and awe you via a boat tour through a cypress studded bayou.

Here, in Louisiana, history and lore don't merely live in books on a shelf; they're reflected in our everyday lives.

After a long day of touring plantations, nothing could be more satisfying than setting up camp in Donaldsonville and sitting down to a nice meal, well-paired with a glass of wine. Here’s where world-renowned Chef John Folse's manufacturing plant is located along with his Bittersweet Plantation and Lafitte’s Landing restaurant. Donaldsonville is known not only for its place in Louisiana culinary lore but also for its political significance. It served as the state capital in 1830 when the seat of power was first moved from New Orleans – because the more countrified legislators had become scandalized by the Crescent City’s laissez-faire approach to moral conduct. Though the capital ultimately moved to Baton Rouge, Donaldsonville has maintained the quiet, small-town appeal that first inspired Louisiana legislators to move there. Indeed, the state has designated Donaldsonville as one of its Main Street communities, and it is also home to the intriguing River Road African American Museum.