Palmetto Island State Park

We arrived Thursday afternoon and the entrance road did the orientation work. Big oaks overhead, then the campground opens into an easy loop. Sites are gravel with full hookups and the usual setup pieces, but what mattered more was the screening. Palmettos, brush, and trees break up sightlines, so it feels private even when the loop is full.

The park had a social baseline. People were outside cooking and using their sites, and the hosts had their space set up for long stays. Even with that activity, the nights stayed quiet. Frogs carried most of the sound.

Our days stayed simple and repetitive in a good way. We used the short trail network like a set of connectors. Walks, runs, quick bike loops, and then back to camp. We caught up on laundry, read at the site, and did a camera session practicing aperture priority. We only left once, for a delectable seafood dinner at Dupuy’s. (Opened in 1869)

🧭 The Lay of the Land

• Location: Vermilion Parish, Louisiana · 29.8692, -92.1517 · [Google Maps]
• Official site: [Palmetto Island State Park]
• Landscape: Vermilion River · Bayou lagoons · Coastal hardwood forest
• Vibe: Private · Calm
• Our stay & conditions: Feb 2026 · 5 nights · warm, humid stretch with foggy mornings and a cooler, breezier turn late stay

🏕️ Camp Setup

• Site types: RV back-in · RV pull-through · Tent
• Arrival & setup: Easy
• Hookups: 💧 / ⚡ / 🚽 | 🧻
• Connectivity: 📶 AT&T ⚠️ | 📶 Verizon ⚠️ | 📶 T-Mobile ⚠️ | 📡 Starlink 🟢 | 📶 Park Wi-Fi ⟂
• Facilities: Restrooms · Showers · Laundry · Trail access

Legend:
🚽 = sewer at site · 🧻 = dump station
🟢 = solid for work · ⚠️ = usable with limits · ❌ = unusable

Park Highlights

This park is built around a specific south Louisiana look. Dwarf palmettos, cypress, hardwoods, and wet ground that stays close to the surface. Even the short trails feel like they are threading through a living edge rather than a forest interior. Louisiana State Parks calls it a “jungle-like environment” with native hardwoods, cypress, and abundant dwarf palmettos, and that description matches what you see on the ground.

The trees carry a lot of the experience here. The palmettos create a dense understory and the bigger hardwood canopy gives the place that older Gulf Coast character. When the sun is low, the light catches the trunks and the waterline at the same time, and the whole place feels calmer and more detailed.

At Fontainebleau the live oaks and Spanish moss are the headline. Here the palmettos and swamp edge do more of the shaping. Same region, different emphasis.

🚴 On the Ground

• Activities available: ● 🥾 Hiking | ● 🚴 Biking | ● 🐕 Dogs | ● 🚣 Paddling | ● 🎣 Fishing | ● 🐦 Wildlife / Birding | ○ 🏊 Swimming | ● 📸 Photography | ● 🏕️ Camp-centric | ○ 🧗 Climbing
• Trail mileage available: 🥾 1.4 mi | 🚴 6.0 mi | 🚣 Canoe Trail
• Crowd level: Steady

Legend: ● = available · ○ = not available

⚡ TL;DR

• Park highlight: Bayou paddling through interior lagoons with a boat launch to the Vermilion River
• Best for: Quiet Louisiana wetlands atmosphere with easy biking loops and short trails
• Skip if: You need reliable signal or want longer trails
• Worth planning around?: Yes

Final Takeaways

Palmetto Island State Park is an easy place to settle in. The campground has real privacy and the trails are small but repeatable in a way that fits daily life. The biggest payoff is the landscape itself. Oaks, palmettos, and swamp water that looks completely different depending on whether the sky is gray or clear. We barely left the park and did not feel like we missed anything.