From the Gulf of Mexico, to the Cajun Prairie, Vermilion Parish is huge. Over 1500 square miles of land, marsh, lakes, and bayous.
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Alison Miller, the Tourism Director of Vermilion Parish says there's so much you can still do outside, without many restrictions! "Just south of Abbeville, I guess what you can call it, is our Cajun Outback. Where you can see crawfish ponds, rice fields, and maybe catch a glimpse of some alligators, plenty of birds because you know we're on a migratory flyway. We also have Palmetto Island State Park, so you can do some hiking and fishing, so there's a lot of outdoor activities that you can enjoy right here in South Louisiana."
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But it wasn't easy during the lock downs and tourism did slow quite a bit. So they needed to change their strategy. Miller adds, "We took our marketing dollars on a smaller drive market, more like a 30 minutes to a one hour drive. Kind of advertising more in New Orleans and Baton Rouge area to try to get the immediate visitors."
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But what about festivals that are just around the corner? "Most of our spring festivals have postponed until next spring, just because it takes a long time to plan. But most of our summer and fall festivals are kind of just waiting, making preparations, maybe scaling back the festivals a little bit. If we can get the all clear and do it safely, then we're ready to go.
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And why choose most Cajun Place on Earth? Miller says, "We're an affordable trip, just a few short hours from our major cities. We're a quick drive to where you can get some really great food and hopefully come this fall, some really cool festivals!"