The Best Lake Charles Festivals — Your Top 5

This one's a unique family celebration highlighting Louisiana’s traditions, food, music, and lifestyle collectively in one event. The event is designed to embrace the diversity of the state of Louisiana, and share the extraordinary to locals and visitors alike.  Food, fun, entertainment, in a nutshell.  What's not to love?

• Culture – Presented through locally created arts, crafts, and an education corner
• Food – Creole and Cajun dishes showcased by vendors, restaurants, and notable chefs
• Music – Zydeco, Cajun, Blues, and local talent

So what festival DOESN'T offer fun, food and games?  But how many festivals raise money for schools?  How many are dedicated to children while still providing a ridiculously good time and great music? Twenty-two years ago, a group of parents, school teachers and administrators were concerned for the youth of Hackberry, La. These various groups of this northwestern Cameron Parish town were trying to provide a way to fund various school, church, and community organizations. Through these efforts, the Marshland Festival was born, and it's one of Lake Charles' finest events!

Twelve hours of the best fun you have had in a long time.  You’ll find crawfish cooked every way possible, funnel cakes, pizza, sno-cones, shrimp on a stick, barbecue, turkey legs, fish, homemade pies and so much more. Also purses, T-shirts and jewelry will be available as well. Enjoy the best music,the best food and more fun than you can handle. Come out and bring the whole family to the best Crawfish Festival in the state!

Once a year during the first two weeks in May, the city of Lake Charles, La., returns to rollicking, swashbuckling days of the pirates and buccaneers who once sailed the area's lakes, rivers, and bayous. Legend has it that the notorious pirate Jean Lafitte buried his contraband treasure somewhere along the Southwest Louisiana's plentiful waterways. The celebration of this historic figure and his adventures has grown into a twelve-day extravaganza of unmatched festivity.