If you want a journey full of history and mystery, here is the post for you. The most beautiful plantations to visit in Louisiana, southeastern United States.
La Louisiana for me it has always been a fascinating state, even more so since I lived there for 6 months and I was able to live it intensely. A land that in the imagination is all swamps, Voodoo and Jazz, in reality it is much more, it is a place full of history, charm and mystery. There is a lot to say, but I would like to start telling it from an aspect that has fascinated me since before my departure.
Lousiana: the famous plantations
Louisiana, as well as the other neighboring states of the southern United States, was a rich territory commercially speaking. Thanks to the presence of the famous Mississippi River, navigable and still exploited today and a fertile land with wide spaces, as far as the eye can see. These are just some of the ingredients that have contributed to its history and have allowed the birth of famous plantations, still open to visitors and witnesses of the commercial past, but a US slaveholder.
1. Oak Alley: the most photographed in Louisiana
My favorite plantation? It is located in Vacherie and it was the first place I put on the list of things to see, perhaps the best known and most photographed: Oak Alley.
A name that comes from the most scenic point of the plantation, his avenue of 28 centenary oaks that perfectly frame a wonderful villa, the manor house.
The oaks reach 240 meters high, were planted in the eighteenth century and are still the most visited and most popular spot, especially for marriage proposals! Absolutely not to be missed is the visit inside the manor house: the guides, dressed in period clothing, will tell the story of the villa, its owners and curiosities. Did you know that to make a guest understand that it was time to leave, it was enough to serve him a whole pineapple?
2. Myrtle Plantation
In St. Francisville is Myrtle Plantation, one of the most haunted houses in America, the most suitable for the reckless, brave and not very suggestible.
It is said that twelve ghosts live among its twenty-two rooms, that ten murders have taken place within its walls and that the villa stands on an ancient Indian cemetery. Despite its paranormal reputation it attracts most visitors, the manor house is an architectural jewel built in 1796 and for the most part still original.
3. Laura Plantation
Also in Vacherie is Laura Plantation, built in 1805 by Guilliem Duparc for the sugar cane production. The guided tour allows you to retrace the history of four generations of a Creole family.
4. Evergreen Plantation
The first thing you notice about Evergreen Plantation is its imposing staircase, which seems to have come out of a fairy tale of princesses. Instead you are in the best preserved complex in the southern United States. Not only can you visit the splendid villa, but also there double row of 22 slave houses, perhaps even more suggestive because they are surrounded by typical willows, in contrast with the splendid symmetrical and well-kept French Parterre reserved for the owners.
Also inside the property there are two dovecotes, the house of the domestic slaves, the stable and the coach house.
5. Nottoway: Louisiana's largest plantation
Nottoway Plantation also has its particularity: it is in fact the largest plantation with 4900 square meters. Built in 1859, it has three floors, 64 rooms with 165 doors and 200 windows. Columns, marble, Baccarat crystal chandeliers and an all-white ballroom still fascinate visitors.
The villa was unique in its kind, both because once the works were completed the architect's projects were destroyed to avoid the rise of similar structures, and because it had modern and avant-garde comforts such as hot and cold running water, bathrooms equipped with flush toilet, gas lighting and a complex call structure for servants.
The property of almost 13 hectares, has accommodation options in one of the 40 rooms and 2 suites, it is used as a location for many weddings and offers a variety of facilities and dining options.
If you are planning a trip to New Orleans, make sure you don't miss the chance to visit one of the plantations and step back in history!
