Stepping into a museum is like entering a portal that transcends time, space and culture. The hushed reverence of its halls, adorned with masterpieces and artifacts, invites visitors into a realm where history, art and human creativity intertwine.

Acadiana has museums in spades, the perfect escape from the summer’s heat and an engaging experience for all ages. We’ll point you to a few, with options for day trips in the area.

Crowley

Plan an afternoon to enjoy the museums and theaters of North Parkerson Avenue in Crowley. Start at City Hall inside the three-story Crowley Motor Co. & Ford Building, built in 1920 by the Ford Motor Company. The building today, in addition to government services, houses four museums: the Rice Interpretive Center, History of Crowley, J.D. Miller Music Recording Studio and the Ford Automotive Museum. All offer free admission and are open weekdays. Another landmark beauty is the Grand Opera House of the South in the neighboring block. Built in 1901, this impressive theater saw the likes of Enrico Caruso, Babe Ruth, Clark Gable and former Louisiana Gov. Huey Long grace its stage. It’s open for weekday tours by appointment.

Day Trip: Acadia Parish is home to three unique attractions within cemetery walls. Near Church Point lies the gravesite of Charlene Richard, known as “the little Cajun Saint,” at St. Edward Catholic Church Cemetery at 1463 Charlene Hwy. Many believe Richard interceded on their prayers. The Istre Cemetery near Morse contains three small Acadian-style houses built over graves, all of which have been placed on the National Register of Historic Places and on the Louisiana Trust for Historic Preservation’s Endangered Places List. St. Joseph’s Cemetery in Rayne is believed to be the only Christian cemetery in the United States where the graves face north to south.

Lake Charles

Parents and eager children must wait until August until the Port Wonder Children’s Museum opens on the Lake Charles lakefront, the first new construction that’s occurred on the lakefront in nearly 20 years, said Matt Young, director of public relations for Visit Lake Charles. ¶ Until then, visits to the Historic City Hall Arts and Cultural Center is a must with its art exhibits and immersive arts and cultural programming.

“This is a three-story museum downtown that features rotating nationally traveling exhibitions along with local art galleries,” Young said.

The Artisans’ Gallery Spring Show is on display until June 15, then “Hit Me With Your Best Shot,” a national competition of bird photographs, arrives Sept. 27.

Day Trip: Take a trip back in time and ride the rails at the DeQuincy Railroad Museum — perhaps not literally, but a vivid imagination will do. The town’s old depot contains items from the railroad industry of the last century, along with a 1947 Pullman coach car, a 1913 steam switch engine and two vintage cabooses.

Opelousas

In the heart of Opelousas, at 315 N. Main St. in the circa-1820 Joseph Richard Wier Memorial Building, lies an impressive collection of images and artifacts that not only tell the story of St. Landry Parish history, but also the diverse cultures of the area.

“Lay your eyes on a colorful Peace Pipe crafted from stone, deer horn, turkey feathers and beads; it comes from the Chitimacha people,” said Patrice Melnick, museum director, who loves showing off her museum. “Check out the barbershop display that harkens back to 1934 when outlaw Clyde Barrow of Bonnie and Clyde fame got his last haircut before his final demise. Also notable are the Civil War room, historic doll collections and a music exhibit that airs a video about Clifton Chenier, a zydeco legend who was a native of the Opelousas area.”

The museum’s latest exhibit, “Free People of Color in St. Landry Parish,” tells the story of the parish’s educated entrepreneurs who laid the groundwork for modern St. Landry’s economy and culture.

Day Trip: Head west to Eunice where several museums are located in the heart of town: the Eunice Depot Museum housed in an old train station, the Cajun Music Hall of Fame and Museum and the Prairie Acadian Cultural Center of the Jean Lafitte National Historic Park and Preserve.

Avoyelles Parish

Children will be amazed at the items lining the shelves of the Adam Ponthieu Grocery Store and Big Bend Post Office in Moreauville. It’s an Americana time capsule from when the building was used as the community’s general store and connection to the outer world.

Nearby is the Sarto Old Iron Bridge dating to 1916. This unique engineering marvel that crosses Bayou des Glaises was the first bridge listed on the National Register of Historic Places in Louisiana.

Day Trip: Solomon Northup was a free man living in New York in 1841 when he was kidnapped and sold into slavery in Avoyelles Parish. Later freed, he wrote of his experience in the memoir, “Twelve Years a Slave.” Travel the Northup Trail today to see where Northup lived, worked and finally gained his freedom at the Avoyelles Parish Courthouse in Marksville by visiting byways.explorelouisiana.com/byway/northup-trail.

Lafayette

It’s easy to spend a day visiting all of Lafayette’s museums so it’s best to divide them into three. Downtown Lafayette offers the Children’s Museum of Acadiana and Lafayette Science Museum, both of which offer environments that allow kids’ imaginations to soar. For the art lover, the Acadiana Center for the Arts provides several exhibit spaces to explore. The Alexandre Mouton House, also called the Lafayette Museum, displays Lafayette history in the home of Louisiana’s 11th governor, Alexandre Mouton.

Over on the University of Louisiana at Lafayette campus, the Hilliard Art Museum provides several galleries showcasing the museum’s both resident and visiting artwork. The building itself is a sight to see, and at night it glows!

Two living history museums teach the story of Lafayette’s — and Acadiana’s — origins. Vermilionville Historic Village has assembled several historic buildings at its site along the Vermilion River and LARC’s Acadian Village has done the same on 32 acres on the west side of town.

Day Trip: Travel down Interstate 49 to Morgan City to walk on an authentic oil rig. The Rig Museum showcases “Mr. Charlie,” an oil rig used in countless oil explorations and drilling but now teaches visitors about the Cajun-born offshore petroleum industry.

Houma and Thibodaux

There are several Louisiana units of the Jean Lafitte National Park and Preserve and Thibodaux’s unit explores Acadian history “down the bayou” at the Wetlands Acadian Cultural Center. In addition to its historic exhibits, the center hosts boat tours of Bayou Lafourche, walking tours of downtown Thibodaux, live music, French circles and summer camps.

In Houma, the Bayou Terrebonne Waterlife Museum celebrates the industries and traditions that make up bayou life in South Louisiana. Art exhibits, history and oversized alligators — don’t worry, they’re stuffed! — are on hand for visitors to enjoy. The museum is open daily except Mondays.

Day Trip: It’s a bit of a trek down La. Hwy. 56 south of Houma to visit the outdoor Chauvin Sculpture Garden, but it’s worth the drive. Bricklayer Kenny Hill created more than 100 concrete pieces — we’re talking angels, people and a 45-foot-tall lighthouse — within his small plot of bayouside land. The Kohler Foundation with Nicholls State allows visitors to view this unique site. For more information, call the Nicholls State University Division of Art at (985) 448-4597 or visit nicholls.edu/folkartcenter/park.html