Avery Island Things to Do Tips by grandmaR

Learn about Tabasco

The museum itself was very interesting. We saw how the TABASCO® peppers were picked and handled, and learned about the history of the company. You can even do some of this tour on-line now.

The seed peppers are still grown on Avery Island, but the production peppers are now grown in South America because there is no longer enough space on the island.

Young peppers are green, then turn yellow, orange, and, finally, deep red as they age. Pickers can gauge the color by comparing it to a small wooden dowel, “le petit bâton rouge,” painted the correct shade of TABASCO® red.

Address: McIlhenny Company, Avery Island, LA 70513

Phone: 1-337-365-8173

Website: http://tabasco.com/tabasco_history/hot_pepper.cfm

Tour the Factory

The website says When you’re ready to see how TABASCO® Sauce is made, you can take the factory tour. There's a short film on TABASCO® history and a guided tour of our bottling and packaging operations.

TABASCO® Pepper Sauce Factory Tour Information
Hours: Monday–Sunday, 9am–4pm
Closed major holidays

We went to the factory first, which was free. They have a tour every 20 minutes, and show a video tape about the McIllheny family and the production of Tabasco sauce. Then we get to go through the factory (which wasn't in operation because it was Saturday - also photos 3 and 4). At the end they gave each of us a tiny bottle of Tabasco.

Address: Avery Island, LA 70513

Directions: From Lafayette/US Hwy. 90 exit (Exit 103) from I-10. Follow US Hwy. 90 through Lafayette toward New Iberia. At LA 14, exit and turn left. At LA 329 junction, turn right. Stay on LA 329 until you reach Avery Island.

Phone: 318-365-8173

Website: http://www.tabasco.com/tabasco_history/visit_avery_island.cfm

Jungle Gardens

After we walked through the factory and museum, we drove over to the "Jungle Gardens" and Bird Island part. This is supposed to be a fantastic garden with all kinds of wildlife and a very old Buddha. Photos of the information about the Jungle Gardens is at photo 2, and the scale terrain map in the museum is photo 5.

When we asked the girls in the store/visitor's center what it would cost, they said, "It's $6.50 per person, and there are no birds or alligators" in a very dismissive tone. They obviously thought it was not worth the money, although it is given a "Must See" kind of recommendation in the AAA book.

So we took their word for it (I knew it had been too cold for the alligators to be out, and I figured I'd see them in the Everglades), and left without going.

Their website says: Jungle Gardens has a five-mile drive through live oak groves, along manmade lagoons teeming with plant and wild life, through an arch of old wisterias, inside an extraordinary row of hollies and a garden grove of camellias. There are other pleasures to be had when taking the short walks Jungle Gardens has to offer. There is the 800-year-old Buddha who sits on his lotus in a tiled pavilion, the ancient Cleveland Oak, the bird observatory platform and bamboos in Bird City to be discovered.

Open 9AM to 5PM Daily.

Admission: Adults, $6.25, $4.50 for children 12 and under.

Address: Hwy. 329 (Avery Island Road)

Directions: From New Orleans:
I-10 West to 310 South.
310 South to 90 West
90 West to Hwy 329 South at New Iberia.
Hwy 329 to Avery Island.

Phone: (337) 369-6243

Website: http://www.tabasco.com/tabasco_history/visit_avery_island.cfm