Jim_M 5
26 Oct 2021
My wife and I contacted Isabelle, owner of Tours by Isabelle, the day prior to our scheduled Tuesday tour. Isabelle told us that she had been trying to reach us because there was only one other party of 2 that wanted to take a tour, but the tour was a different one than the one we scheduled. There was nobody else scheduled for the tour we were interested in. How sad it was to learn that! The Covid-19 coronavirus was obviously taking it’s toll on tourism in New Orleans. Isabelle then offered to provide us a private tour in her vehicle for an additional amount, rather than the planned 14-passenger van that we expected to be nearly full of fellow tourists. The additional amount was very reasonable so we agreed, and she told us she would pick us up at 11:30am the next day. Isabelle also told us that St Joseph Plantation was closed because of damage from Hurricane Ida, but she had booked another tour to Destrehan Plantation to go along with visiting Laura Plantation. That change was fine with us.
Promptly at 11:30am on Tuesday, Isabelle picked us up at our hotel, showed us a large plastic-laminated map of the metropolitan area on one side and the locations to which we would be traveling on the other, and we were on our way. As we made the approximately one hour drive to Laura Plantation, Isabelle explained to us the types of industries, the types of vegetation, and a brief history of the areas we were passing through and answered our questions. Isabelle also told us something we had never heard before: The City of New Orleans is an island!
When we arrived at Laura Plantation, we joined only one other couple in the tour of the plantation hosted by guides in period dress. The hour-plus tour began by describing the history of the plantation and its owners while we toured the main house where we saw several rooms with period furnishings. We then toured the grounds behind the main house and learned about the slaves that were on the plantation and also toured a small building that once housed slaves. We learned that in 1872 the plantation was renamed in honor of Laura Locoul, a great granddaughter of the original plantation owner whose “Memoires of the Old Plantation Home” describe the plantation and those who lived there.
Isabelle then drove us for about 40 minutes to Destrehan Plantation where we had another guided tour hosted by guides in period dress and, with again, only one other couple. In the Plantation Home, we saw a number of rooms with period furniture and learned that the original Home was completed in 1787 making it the oldest Plantation Home in the lower Mississippi River Valley. Our small group also saw some other buildings and slave cabins on the grounds. The Destrehan Plantation property closed at 4:30pm, and Isabelle had us back to our hotel by 5:30pm as she had originally estimated. Isabelle then texted me 9 pictures of my wife and me in various situations while we participated on the two tours. What a nice surprise!
We strongly recommend that anybody who wants to see 2 plantations in the Lower Mississippi River Valley in one day choose Tours by Isabelle. Isabelle has been a small business tour owner for over 40 years since she first arrived in New Orleans, and she knows the City of New Orleans and the surrounding area very well. Also, if Tours by Isabelle is an option for another Viator tour you are considering, we recommend you choose Tours by Isabelle. You will be very glad you did!
If you want to take a tour in the New Orleans area, this would be a good time to do it. The crowds are small, but the locals, like Isabelle, are very eager and capable to provide visitors engaging and long-remembered experiences.
