Events in New Iberia Louisiana

Looking for top-notch, inexpensive family entertainment, great food, a beautiful outdoor experience and some of the best music in the world? Two words: Louisiana festivals.

New Iberia’s dedication to preserving its history has helped the community win accolades for its restored Main Street and historic downtown area. A walking tour of the National Register Historic District reveals the stomping grounds of famed Detective Dave Robicheaux, the main character in novels by New Iberia native and Pulitzer Prize-winning author James Lee Burke.

History is on display in the Bayou Teche Museum and at Shadows-on-the-Teche, an antebellum home once occupied by Union soldiers during the Civil War. New Iberia also is home to America’s oldest operating rice mill, Conrad Rice Mill/Konriko® Company Store. Also explore the Jefferson Island Rip Van Winkle Gardens boasting 15 acres of semi-tropical gardens nestled among 350-year-old oak trees and lake. You can explore the historic Joseph Jefferson Mansion which is open for tours.

In anticipation of the Lenten season each year, New Iberia throws a festive Mardi Gras celebration, with parades, balls and much revelry. Spring welcomes bibliophiles at the Books Along the Teche Literary Festival with a different Great Southern Writer featured annually. September brings the Louisiana Sugar Cane Festival, and in October, get ready for the World Championship Gumbo Cookoff. Whether dancing to a fiddle and accordion at a fais-do-do, or perfecting their culinary talents at year-round festivals, people in this area are dedicated to their signature slogan: Laissez les bons temps rouler! Let the good times roll!