Louisiana’s Wildlife & Zoos Are Worth Exploring

Bring the family to experience a wildlife adventure at the Audubon Aquarium. Become one with nature and its friendly inhabitants. Have your pick from a wide array of incredible attractions that make it fun for anyone in your family or party.

You’ll find a zoo and an aquarium. Bug out at the Insectarium. Get yourself lost at the nature center, where you can explore the Adventure Trail and Discovery Trail. Take in the Planetarium if time permits. For the golf fans in the group, the Institute has a course for you as well as a clubhouse so prepare to perfect your swing.

For the adventurers in your family, head over to the Sabine National Wildlife Refuge. They offer hunting and fishing, and wildlife viewing and photography. Let your whole family learn about Refuge education, both off-site and on. Keep your eyes peeled if you happen to also see an alligator or two when you visit the Wetland Walkway.

Audubon Aquarium

Found on the banks of the Mississippi River in downtown New Orleans and at the edge of the historic French Quarter, the Audubon Aquarium of the Americas features exhibits and animals found throughout the Greater New Orleans region and the rest of North and South America.

Don't miss highlights like the Caribbean reef aquatic tunnel, the Amazon exhibit, which features macaws, piranhas, and anacondas, or the Mississippi River gallery, which details life from all of the river's various ecosystems. The aquarium is open from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. every day.

Sabine National Wildlife Refuge

Spread across over 120,000 acres, the Sabine National Wildlife Refuge is an outdoors person’s paradise, set in southern Louisiana, minutes from Sulphur and Lake Charles. The refuge the largest coastal marsh found along the Gulf Coast, and is also home to over 200 types of native birds.

Visitor activities include hiking, wildlife viewing, and photography while exploring the` the Blue Goose Trail. Be sure to check out the Wetland Walkway – a 1.5-mile path leading to the observation deck near the refuge’s center.