Get Into Cajun Country for Fall or Winter Frolic

Take it from us, you definitely don’t want to visit Louisiana in the depth of summer. But as fall and winter approach, anyone in the market for a memorable budget vacation should cast an appraising eye on Cajun country, the French-flavored hinterland of prairies and bayous west of New Orleans.

Considered to cover about 22 parishes (counties), the core region of Cajun country--referred to locally as Acadiana--centers on the city of Lafayette, about a two-hour drive out Interstate 10 from New Orleans. Lafayette itself is for the most part nothing much to look at except the usual sprawl, but within an hour’s drive you’ll find the small towns that are the heart and soul of French Louisiana:

St. Martinville, with its 162-year-old church and restored farm and plantation houses.

Breaux Bridge, which bills itself as the “Crawfish Capital of the World.”

Opelousas, birthplace of zydeco music and celebrated chef Paul Prudhomme, as well as home to several absorbing museums and religious sites, including a couple of classic Louisiana-style cemeteries and the Church of the Holy Ghost, reportedly America’s largest black Catholic congregation.

Washington, crammed with antiques stores and charming bed-and-breakfasts.

Eunice, where it’s definitely worth visiting the Cajun Music Hall of Fame and Acadian Cultural Center.

Mamou, a tiny town whose main claim to fame is Fred’s Lounge, where every Saturday morning you can take in several rollicking hours of Cajun music sent out over radio station WKVP.

Even Lafayette has some interesting sights, particularly a couple of reconstructed “folk villages” that give visitors a fair idea of what life was like generations ago.

The music is the big draw for many in Cajun country, though, and you can catch it on weekends for a $5 or $6 cover charge at clubs like Richard’s and Slim’s Y Ki Ki, both in Opelousas. Saturday morning is prime time for free music, not just at Fred’s in Mamou but farther south when locals jam at Savoy Music Center, on the road between Eunice and Opelousas.

You can also hear music every night of the week by stopping by one of a trio of restaurants/dance halls in and around Lafayette: Randol’s, Prejean’s and Mulate’s. The food’s just average and not particularly cheap, but you can order a beer or soda at the bar and listen to your heart’s content.

To stay in Acadiana on a budget while you’re taking all this in, you’ll find economical lodgings and eateries abound along the Evangeline Thruway, Lafayette’s busy stretch of U.S. 167/90, exit 103-B from I-10. All the chains are here, as are some independent standouts.

Top of the list is the Plantation Motor Inn, telephone (800) 723- 8228, a very attractive 87-room motel on U.S. 90 (exit 1-B), where doubles go for $30 a night with breakfast (coffee and doughnuts).

Other places in the $35 to $45 range include the Town House Motel in Opelousas, tel. (318) 948-4488, and Howard’s Inn in Eunice, tel. (318) 457-2066.

Favorite budget dining picks include friendly Clambeaugh’s in St. Martinville, tel. (318) 394-3949; Mathilda’s wonderful barbecue shack in Eunice, tel. (318) 546-0329; and the Picadilly Cafeteria in Lafayette, tel. (318) 232-4317.

For more information: Louisiana Office of Tourism, Inquiry Dept., P.O. Box 94291, Baton Rouge, LA 70804; tel. (800) 99-GUMBO, Internet https://www.louisianatravel.com.