New Orleans has eight state parks within 50 miles, and three of them make three very different days. Fontainebleau, 27 miles north across Lake Pontchartrain in Mandeville, has a lake beach and the brick ruins of an 1829 sugar mill. Tickfaw, 44 miles northwest near Springfield, puts you on boardwalks through a cypress and tupelo swamp. Grand Isle, 49 miles south at the edge of the Gulf, is a beach for surf fishing and birding. This is the outdoor half of the day. The eating half is at the end: one table on the way back from each park.
We run State Park Near Me, a directory of every state park in the country, and we are a guest here. Top of New Orleans asked for the parks. They supplied the restaurants.
The day, in order
All three parks open their gates at 7 a.m. Fontainebleau and Grand Isle close at 9 p.m. and Tickfaw at 10 p.m. The entrance stations are staffed from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. Sunday through Thursday and until 8 p.m. on Fridays and Saturdays. Entry is the same $3 a person everywhere. Halloween week is busy: Fontainebleau and Tickfaw both hold trick-or-treating on Saturday, October 24, and Tickfaw has a Fall Fest on October 31. If you drive to Grand Isle, the bridge on the way in charges a toll to southbound drivers, payable in cash or with a GeauxPass.
Fontainebleau
Bernard de Marigny de Mandeville, the founder of Mandeville, built a sugar mill here in 1829 and ran the land as a sugar plantation until 1852; he named it after the forest near Paris where French kings went to relax. The brick ruins of the mill still stand. Two historic markers note where the cabins of enslaved people stood and remember the Native Americans who lived here before European settlement. The park covers 2,800 acres on the shore of Lake Pontchartrain, with a sandy beach and water on three sides: the lake, Bayou Cane and Bayou Castine. More than 400 species live in and around it, and the 1.25-mile nature trail has signs to name the trees and shrubs. There is also a 4.8-mile hiking trail, and the Tammany Trace, an old railroad line turned into a trail, runs right through the park. On October 24 there is trick-or-treating and a Dig Into History program for National Archaeology Month.
Tickfaw
Tickfaw is a walk through four kinds of country on boardwalk trails: a cypress and tupelo swamp, a bottomland hardwood forest, a mixed pine and hardwood forest, and the Tickfaw River. The Gum Cypress Trail is a half mile and wheelchair accessible; the River Trail is the long one at 3 miles. In winter and spring the park holds floodwater when the river spills over its steep banks, which is part of what keeps the wetland alive. The nature center has an 800-gallon aquarium stocked with fish from the Tickfaw River. You can bring your own canoe or kayak for the river, and the park runs night hikes. The fall calendar is full: trick-or-treating and spooky campfire stories on October 24, a Fall Fest on October 31, the Rougarou program on November 14 and a night hike on November 27.
Grand Isle
Grand Isle is a beach ridge built by Gulf waves, a breakwater between the open Gulf and the inland channels that lead to the bayous of the Mississippi River. Fishing is the main event. Surf fishers catch speckled trout all year, and in fall and winter redfish move within reach of the surf. Thousands come for the Tarpon Rodeo every July, and the island is a launching point for deep-sea trips. You can also crab in the lagoon on the north side of the park, walk the 2.5-mile nature trail, or bring binoculars for the birds. The Gulf is warm enough to swim most of the year, but watch for rip currents and stingrays; shuffling your feet in the water helps send the rays away. Glass is not allowed on the beach, and a beach wheelchair is available first come, first served.
The full list
Directions, maps and the official site for each of these, plus the other state parks within 50 miles, are on our side. The state parks near New Orleans page on State Park Near Me lists all eight, closest first, with a page for every park.
Where to eat after
The parks sit in three directions, so here is one table on the way back from each, from three Top of New Orleans neighborhood lists: Mandeville, Mid-City and the Garden District. The scores are theirs, not ours.
Crazy Pig Southern Kitchen
Insider Score6.5
Southern · Mandeville
After Fontainebleau, in Mandeville before you take the Causeway home. A relaxed Southern lunch room: pulled pork and fried chicken anchor the menu, and the collard greens show the kitchen knows its vegetables.
Parkway Bakery and Tavern
Insider Score9.4
Po-boys · Mid-City
After Tickfaw, in Mid-City as I-10 brings you back into town. The roast beef po-boy earned a Michelin Bib Gourmand; the debris po-boy, made from the meat and drippings in the roasting pan, is the serious order.
Atchafalaya
Insider Score9.3
Seafood · Garden District
After Grand Isle, in the Garden District once you cross the river back into the city. Shrimp and grits, crawfish étouffée and praline bacon are ordered by name, with live music on weekend mornings.
Scores are Top of New Orleans Insider Scores. Restaurant photographs from Yelp.
Sources. Louisiana State Parks pages for Fontainebleau, Tickfaw and Grand Isle state parks, checked October 21, 2026. Distances are straight-line from the New Orleans town center, from State Park Near Me. Restaurant scores and notes from the Top of New Orleans Mandeville, Mid-City and Garden District guides, October 2026. Top photo: the pier at Fontainebleau State Park by Mark Holloway, Wikimedia Commons, CC BY 2.0; park photo credits are under each photo.
State Park Near Me writes for State Park Near Me. State Park Near Me lists every state park, historic site, beach and recreation area in the United States, with directions and the nearest other parks. Every park page links to the park's official site. This piece was written for Top of New Orleans.