Booking choice: The Lafitte airboat ride, from $50 per person. Check dates Compare the options below
The big question about an airboat tour is not the boat. It is how you get to it. The docks sit in Marrero, Lafitte and Luling, outside the New Orleans grid, and some tours put a coach in the price while others leave it to you.
Below is every dock with its street address, the pickup windows that apply and the rules operators set on the listing.
The quick answer
A tour with transport costs more but covers a 30 to 45 minute drive each way. The Lafitte airboat ride starts at $50 with transport as an add-on at booking. The large tour includes the coach at $90.
Do you need transportation for an airboat tour?
Not if you have a car. A tour with no transport means meeting at the dock, and the price drops to match.
No airboat dock is in the city. Without a car, pick a listing that includes the ride or lets you add it: the large tour, the small-group tour and the bayou van ride include it, while the Lafitte ride and the Gray Line ride sell it as an option.
Where are the airboat docks?
Marrero at 9706 Barataria Blvd, Lafitte at 5145 Fleming Park Rd and Luling at 10090 US-90.
The Marrero dock belongs to Louisiana Tour Company. The Lafitte address serves Airboat Adventures and the Gray Line self-drive ride, near Jean Lafitte National Historical Park. The Luling site is the private swamp run by Ragin Cajun Swamp Tours.
| Dock | Address | Tours that leave here | Drive from downtown |
|---|---|---|---|
| Marrero | 9706 Barataria Blvd, Marrero, LA 70072 | The small-group boat, the large boat | About 30 to 45 minutes; one guest wrote 45 |
| Lafitte | 5145 Fleming Park Rd, Lafitte, LA 70067 | The Lafitte ride, the six-passenger boat, the Gray Line ride | Guests report roughly 45 minutes |
| Luling | 10090 US-90, Luling, LA 70070 | The private swamp tour | Out on US-90, check a map for your start |
A private swamp with no other boats on the water, and hotel pickup if you ask for it.
Check dates for the private swamp airboat tourWhen does the hotel pickup leave?
Louisiana Tour Company coaches pick up at 8:00, 10:20 and 12:30, with a 3:00 pm slot in season.
Each pickup has a 30-minute window, and the listing is firm: be out front at the start of the window or the bus will leave. One guest on the small-group tour wrote that communication around pickup could be clearer, so save the confirmation and keep your phone on. The van tour gives an exact pickup time in advance and does not collect from the airport, New Orleans East, Slidell or the North Shore.
Can you take a taxi or rideshare to the dock?
Not reliably. The Lafitte listing states that taxis and ride shares are not available in the area.
A rideshare out is the easy half. A ride back is the problem, since few drivers want an empty trip home from a bayou dock. Either rent a car or book a tour that puts transport in the ticket.
How do you find the Lafitte dock?
Turn right on Texas Street, not Fleming Park Rd, as the listing says.
The meeting point at 5145 Fleming Park Rd, Lafitte sits near the Jean Lafitte National Historical Park, where the visitor center closed for repairs in February 2026. The tours leave from commercial docks. On the National Park Service page for the Barataria Preserve the Barataria Preserve visitor center and most trails are shut.
How long does the whole trip take?
About four hours door to door on the hotel tours, while the airboat ride itself is 1 hour 40 minutes or so.
The large tour lists 4 hours 15 minutes with about two hours at the swamp. Add your own drive on a dock-only ticket: the small-group Marrero boat is 1 hour 40 minutes on the water, plus 30 to 45 minutes each way behind the wheel. Pickups on the Lafitte listings start 1 hour 15 minutes before tour time.
A nine-guest boat with the coach built in and a 1 hour 40 minute ride.
Explore the small-group airboat tour with hotel pickupWhich listings include transport and which do not?
Large, small-group, van and Oak Alley tours include it. Lafitte, Gray Line, six-passenger and private-swamp listings make it an option.
The Marrero dock tours do not offer it at all, so you meet the guide at 9706 Barataria Blvd.
| Tour | Transport | Pickup note |
|---|---|---|
| The large airboat tour with hotel pickup | Included | Windows from 8:00, 3:00 pm in season |
| The small-group airboat tour with hotel pickup | Included | Same windows as the large tour |
| The small-group bayou airboat ride | Included | Van, downtown, French Quarter, uptown, Westbank |
| The Lafitte airboat ride | Optional, chosen at booking | Starts 1 h 15 before tour time |
| The Gray Line airboat ride | Optional | Self-drive leaves from Lafitte |
| The private swamp airboat tour | Optional | Or go straight to Luling |
| The small-group Marrero airboat tour | Not available | Meet at the Marrero dock |
| The large Marrero airboat tour | Not available | Meet at the Marrero dock |
Who should choose which?
No car or a short stay: take the coach. A rental and a flexible schedule: take the dock-only ticket and keep the saving.
- Without a car: The large airboat tour and the small-group version both come with the whole price shown.
- Driving yourself: the small-group Marrero boat for nine guests, or the large Marrero boat for the lowest price.
- Wanting the choice at checkout: the Lafitte ride, then add or skip the transport.
The price guide sets the totals side by side.
Frequently asked questions
How far is the swamp from New Orleans?
Guests report 30 to 45 minutes each way to the docks in Marrero and Lafitte.
Is hotel pickup included in an airboat tour?
On the large, small-group, van and Oak Alley tours, yes. On the Lafitte, six-passenger, Gray Line and private-swamp listings it is chosen when you book.
Can I take an Uber to the airboat dock?
It is not reliable. The Lafitte listing says taxis and ride shares are not available in the area.
What if I miss the pickup?
The Louisiana Tour Company listing says to be out front at the start of the 30-minute window or the bus will leave.
Ready to book
Choose your airboat tour
Every option here can be cancelled for a full refund; the deadline is on each listing. Prices are from-prices in USD and move with the season.
New Orleans Airboat Ride, Lafitte
- An airboat ride with a local guide in the swamp near Jean Lafitte National Historical Park
- Ear protection and a seat with unobstructed views
- Meet at 5145 Fleming Park Rd, Lafitte, or add round-trip hotel transport when you book
Large Airboat Swamp Tour with Hotel Pickup
- About 4 hours 15 minutes door to door, with pickup windows from 8:00 am (a 3:00 pm slot in season)
- Hotel pickup and drop-off by air-conditioned coach
- About 2 hours at the swamp on an airboat with a professional guide
Small-Group Airboat Tour, Marrero Dock
Nine guests and the same boat as the hotel version, with no transport
