Explore Louisiana

What Explore Louisiana does

Explore Louisiana (explorelouisiana.com) is the official travel authority and digital tourism marketing platform for the State of Louisiana. It is operated by the Louisiana Office of Tourism, a division of the Louisiana Department of Culture, Recreation & Tourism, under oversight from the Office of the Lt. Governor. The entity serves as the state's primary destination marketing instrument, providing domestic and international travelers with curated information on attractions, accommodations, dining, events, festivals, outdoor recreation, and cultural heritage across Louisiana's cities and regions. Its core audience is prospective tourists, with a secondary audience of tourism industry partners (hotels, attractions, restaurants, event organizers) who submit listings and content to the platform.

The platform is built on a content management system with a microsite architecture supporting more than a dozen themed trails and sub-brands, including the Louisiana Culinary Trail, Louisiana Libations Trail, African American Heritage Trail, Louisiana Film Trail, Louisiana Music Trail, Louisiana Civil Rights Trail, Louisiana Paddle, Bike Louisiana, Louisiana Birding, Louisiana Byways, and Louisiana Golf Trail. Distribution is digital-first through the central website, complemented by co-branded international landing pages on Visit The USA across 12+ country markets (Australia, Brazil, Canada, China, France, Germany, India, Japan, Korea, Mexico, UK), social media channels (Facebook, YouTube, Pinterest, Instagram), and a free annual physical Louisiana Official Travel Guide distributed by mail.

The business model is not commercial in the conventional sense. Explore Louisiana does not charge end users — the website, eNewsletter, and travel guide are free — and the platform generates no disclosed revenue. Operating costs are funded through state government appropriations via the Louisiana Office of Tourism. Pricing is freemium to the traveling public, with no transactional monetization layer. As a result, the entity functions as a public-sector destination marketing organization whose primary KPI is tourism visitation and economic impact rather than top-line revenue, and whose governance structure is a state agency rather than a corporate entity.

Name

Explore Louisiana

Legal name

Louisiana Office of Tourism

Website

https://explorelouisiana.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

2009

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

51–100 employees

Short description

Explore Louisiana is the official state tourism marketing platform for Louisiana, operated by the Louisiana Office of Tourism. It provides free digital travel-planning content, themed trails, and an annual travel guide to domestic and international travelers visiting the state.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Tourism Marketing & Destination Promotion

SIC

Services-Amusement & Recreation Services (7900)

akta.pro primary industry

Permitting, Reservations & Visitor Information Services (Passes, Booking, Visitor Centers) (THAAAGAD)

Keywords

• State tourism marketing
• Destination promotion
• Travel information platform
• Official travel guides
• Visitor trip planning

Headquarters

HQ city

Baton Rouge

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Marketing or Sales, Operations, Technology or R&D, Others

Revenue model

1. State Government Tourism Funding: Operated by Louisiana Office of Tourism under the Louisiana Department of Culture, Recreation & Tourism, funded through state government allocations and potentially federal tourism grants.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion2 records

Distribution channels3 records

Marketing channels6 records

Core offering

Explore Louisiana operates the official state tourism website (ExploreLouisiana.com) for the State of Louisiana, providing comprehensive travel planning content covering attractions, dining, accommodations, festivals, outdoor activities, and themed trails (Culinary, Libations, Film, African American Heritage, Paddle, Bike). The platform distributes a free annual Louisiana Official Travel Guide and supports international visitors via localized landing pages across 12+ countries.

Product overview

Explore Louisiana operates as the official digital travel authority for the state, functioning as a content-driven platform with multiple themed microsites and sub-brands. The core product is the ExploreLouisiana.com website complemented by specialized trails including the Louisiana Libations Trail (craft beverages), Culinary Trail (food experiences), African American Heritage Trail, Louisiana Film Trail, Louisiana Paddle (water activities), and Bike Louisiana. The platform also distributes the annual Louisiana Official Travel Guide publication. Additional digital services include an eNewsletter subscription, Social Hub user-generated content feed, and Virtual Visitor Center. The architecture consists of a central hub with branded sub-domains (byways.explorelouisiana.com, libations.explorelouisiana.com) and linked initiatives like the Louisiana Civil Rights Trail and Louisiana Music Trail.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• Louisiana Libations Trail: A themed trail promoting Louisiana craft breweries, distilleries, and wineries with a check-in rewards program.
• Louisiana Culinary Trail
• African American Heritage Trail
• Louisiana Film Trail
• Louisiana Civil Rights Trail
• Louisiana Paddle
• Louisiana Birding
• Louisiana Byways

Products and services

• ExploreLouisiana.com Website

Quantifiable outcome

• 2,500+ films shot in Louisiana highlighted on Film Trail
• +1 more outcomes

Segments3 records

Ideal customer profiles2 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Partnerships

Seven partnerships are on record, tiered core and minor.

• Visit The USAcoreGTM or Marketing PartnerExplore Louisiana maintains international presence through localized Visit The USA landing pages for 12+ countries including Australia, Brazil, Canada, China, France, Germany, India, Japan, Korea, Mexico, and United Kingdom. These co-branded pages serve as entry points for international travelers.
• Louisiana Office of TourismcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerExploreLouisiana.com is operated by the Louisiana Office of Tourism under the Louisiana Department of Culture, Recreation & Tourism. The site serves as the official travel authority website for the state.
• Louisiana Department of Culture, Recreation & TourismcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerParent government agency overseeing ExploreLouisiana.com operations. Provides state funding and strategic direction for Louisiana tourism promotion.
• Office of the Lt. Governor of LouisianacoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerThe Lt. Governor's office holds oversight responsibility for Louisiana tourism initiatives, with Explore Louisiana operating under this leadership.
• Louisiana Civil Rights TrailminorGTM or Marketing PartnerCross-promotional partner covering Civil Rights heritage sites in Louisiana. Explore Louisiana links to the dedicated Louisiana Civil Rights Trail website.
• Poverty Point World Heritage SiteminorGTM or Marketing PartnerUNESCO World Heritage Site in Louisiana featured on Explore Louisiana with external link to official Poverty Point website.
• Destinations InternationalminorOthersIndustry association membership providing professional resources and networking for destination marketing organizations.

Scale indicators2 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Direct peers

• Visit Florida: Florida's official tourism marketing corporation, structurally similar state-level DMO with themed marketing campaigns, international outreach, and partnership-driven content strategy. Highly comparable operating model and revenue approach.
• Visit Dubai: Government-backed destination marketing organization with sophisticated digital presence, themed campaigns, and event-driven tourism promotion. Comparable for digital-first DMO strategy and government ownership structure.
• Tourism New Zealand: National tourism organization operating with similar DMO mandate but at country level. Comparable for international marketing sophistication, themed experience campaigns (100% Pure NZ), and content-driven destination positioning.
• Pure Michigan: Michigan's state tourism brand, operating under Michigan Economic Development Corporation. Comparable as a US state DMO with themed trails, outdoor recreation focus, and iconic brand-led marketing campaigns.
• Travel Texas: Texas's official tourism promotion entity, comparable as a large US state DMO with similar themed trail approach (BBQ, wine, music), regional organization, and government-backed structure.
• Visit California: Official state tourism marketing organization for California, operating under similar government-backed DMO structure with multi-channel digital strategy, themed itineraries, and international marketing. Most directly comparable as a US state-level destination marketing authority.
• Visit Colorado: Colorado's official tourism office operating with similar state DMO mandate, themed outdoor recreation focus (comparable to Louisiana's Paddle/Bike trails), and digital-first marketing approach.
• Visit North Carolina: North Carolina's state tourism authority with comparable government-backed DMO structure, themed marketing campaigns, and partnership-driven content strategy across diverse regional experiences.
• VisitBritain: UK national tourism agency with comparable international marketing focus, themed campaign structure, and government-backed DMO mandate. Comparable operating model for international visitor acquisition.

Broad incumbents

• Brand USA: National destination marketing organization for the United States, and the parent platform that powers Explore Louisiana's 12+ international landing pages. Comparable as the umbrella partner and broader US tourism promotion entity.

Market position

Strengths4 records

Weaknesses4 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• YouTubeyoutube.com/@explorelouisiana
• Facebookfacebook.com/ExploreLouisiana
• Instagraminstagram.com/explore.louisiana
• Pinterestpinterest.com/explorelouisiana
• Xx.com/louisianatravel
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/louisiana-office-of-tourism

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles1 record

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Explore Louisiana