This was my first time in Louisiana, so loving history, I booked this tour hoping to get a real look into life outside the city. The airboat tour was okay (thank you, Isabelle, for reminding us to bring a jacket!); we only saw one small gator in the water, but I think it's not a great time of the year for them....regardless, if you bring a jacket, it's a fun ride! Early December is a fantastic time to visit; it was sunny and in the 70s all day.
I loved the Laura plantation; while Houmas House was beautiful, the Laura plantation tour guide really did an excellent job bringing the history of the family and slaves who worked the land to life. I appreciated that she didn't shy away from the historical truths of what happened to slaves (Houmas House didn't mention it at all). The two plantations couldn't have been more different; Laura was a smaller Creole plantation, and Houmas was very well-restored, packed, and decorated for Christmas. I got more historical information at Laura, but plenty of people would enjoy the more traditional looking plantation at Houmas. I definitely felt like it was a day well spent.
Rene was a great guide with a ton of information on Louisiana in general, history, and had plenty of recommendations for restaurants, places to go, and things to do in the city. The van was very comfortable and well-equipped for COVID (the driver's area was divided by plastic, and there was hand sanitizer by every seat). My group was only 7 people total, which was a great size; two of the participants were from France, and Rene easily communicated with them in French (and was able to get them a French tour at Laura) while still being sociable with the rest of the group. Pickup was arranged at my Warehouse district location despite not being in the French Quarter or downtown, which made things easy, and Isabelle sent lots of clear communication ahead of time.
Thanks, Isabelle and Rene, for showing this Californian a wonderful time!