IT'S MARDI GRAS!

See our new Interactive Parade Routes

It is New Orleans' premiere party season! It's time to enjoy life, party, and have a good time! It's irresistibly fun, vibrant, sarcastic, and sassy! If you understand how this city hums during the day and sings at night, you may be able to envision its celebration of Mardi Gras.

Perhaps it's the anticipation of the merriment, the excitement of catching throws, the extravaganza of the parades, getting dressed up in costume, or going to a Ball -- but a frame of mind takes over the Big Easy and says "forget your problems and have fun!" If you are planning a visit to New Orleans to celebrate Mardi Gras with us, check out the links below!

Tips for your visit! | Mardi Gras Balls | Mardi Gras Throws
Mardi Gras Colors | Mardi Gras Dates

Tips and Recommendations:

Plan ahead: Most of the Central Business District and French Quarter hotels require 4 or 5-day minimum stays, and they steadily book blocks of rooms beginning in August. Make your reservations now!

Okay, so it's February, and you decide you want to go....should you try? Yes! It is worth it, but just be prepared to spend a lot of time on the phone! Keep calling. Hotels have cancellations; there are waiting lists....so if you are persistent, you just may find a place somewhere!

Hotels are often solidly booked by December, so reserve ahead of time.. check out recommended hotels close to the action or with Mardi Gras packages. If they are sold out, many hotels we also recommend are listed on BestNewOrleansHotels.com.

Don't wait until January! Waiting to make reservations usually isn't a good idea if you have definitely decided to enjoy Mardi Gras in New Orleans. You might get lucky, but there is no guarantee. If you'd like to gamble, and do not want to reserve the minimum night stay required at our hotels, you can wait until those hotels who have not sold out relax their minimum night stay requirements. But there is no guarantee this will happen. You definitely don't want to come to New Orleans looking for a room.

Plan your transportation! If you are driving in for the day from a suburban hotel, remember that the French Quarter during Mardi Gras weekend is closed to vehicular traffic. Only French Quarter residents and hotel guests with special parking passes can get by the police barricades. Off-site commercial parking lots are expensive and fill up fast, so get there early! Make sure you know how far away your hotel will be ... and remember: taxicabs are more difficult to find at this time of year.

It is a good idea to get a map of the city, and study the areas you'll be visiting. New Orleans is a "checker board city"--safe neighborhoods can be within blocks of unsafe areas. Your hotel concierge or front desk can help you with route times, traffic and parking.

If you stay in an outlying hotel, don't depend on them to supply you with transportation to the French Quarter or the parade routes. Although some have shuttles to New Orleans, they are often not in use during Mardi Gras season. Traffic during Carnival is unbelievably congested, and standard routes are often barricaded to redirect the traffic flow.

Even public transportation can be difficult--bus and streetcar routes and schedules often change during Carnival season, so plan ahead, and make sure you know when and how to get there and back!

Watch out for parking tickets! Do not double-park or park in driveways, on neutral grounds (medians), in front of water hydrants, within 15 feet of curb corners, too far from the curb, or on the Parade route within 3 hours of a parade! Your car will get towed away and/or you'll receive a fine of Biblical proportions.

Get there early! Parade routes can look empty one moment, but the crowd size can swell fast within an hour or two of the parade, making that front row spot four or five people deep. For the biggest parades rolling in the evening the weekend before Mardi Gras, plan to get there about 4 hours ahead of time to get yourself a great spot!

For the Sunday Night Bacchus Parade, we're at our spot (drum roll here).....at 6:00 am! You can find us on St. Charles Avenue near Napoleon Avenue near the beginning of the parade. We sit wrapped up in a blanket, and enjoy people-watching. That Sunday, several afternoon parades also roll by as the crowds swell for one of the biggest parades of the season--Bacchus. I save the spot until my family shows up ... so they can make another area parade taking place in Mid-City! All of this for a parade scheduled to roll at 6:00 p.m.

Don't be late! If you get there too late, do not move unoccupied chairs or ladders along the parade route to claim a good spot...it isn't open space just because you can't see anybody there! Families tend to congregate at the same place year after year, save their spots, and get to know their Parade Route neighbors pretty well. Somebody is watching that spot! If you move their chair or ladder, it won't go unnoticed. Don't worry, tho.....once the parade starts, there's always a place for everyone.

Respect the police! These guys are overworked during Carnival. They are the world's best at crowd control, and during Mardi Gras they have to be tolerant of usually unacceptable behavior. Long shifts, Parade Duty, drunks, traffic accidents, lost kids, fights, rowdy crowds, nuisance complaints and a myriad of other incidents keep them busy 24 hours a days. If an officer tells you to do something...cooperate!

It's okay to consume beer openly on the streets as long as it's in a can or cup, no glass or bottles....however, there is a drinking age and it is enforced.

Don't be sassy or contrary. The police on duty have an efficient system for arresting, booking, and carting off to Central Lock Up. It keeps them available for street duty, and the troublemakers out of the way.

Don't get overly drunk, be obnoxious, or behave irrationally in public; it is not amusing to police, and is a very easy way to get arrested. If anyone told you that's what Mardi Gras is about, they were wrong .... and they missed out!

Dress in costume! It's the one season of the year you can dress up as anything imaginable! There are contests for costumes in every part of the city....and the crowd-watching is as much fun as the parades! Bring an inexpensive camera, one you won't fuss over, or need to protect.

Check the weather forecast. It can be very warm or it can be very cold. Whether or not you costume, it is a day outdoors, so plan accordingly: wear comfortable shoes, sunscreen, and layered clothing.

Catch Mardi Gras throws! Enjoy jumping up to catch beads, doubloons, cups, stuffed animals--whatever! Yell at the float riders "Throw me something, Mister!" Bring a large, sturdy plastic or cloth bag to hold all the treasure you'll be catching - if you try to put all of your beads around your neck, you'll have a hard time standing up straight! Be prepared: some people get so overcome with excitement they will occasionally jump in front of you to grab what a rider has thrown to you. Don't get into a tug-o-war....there are many more floats on the way! If you're from far away, some visitors hold up a sign saying where they are from.. our local riders love to see people from far away have a good time and will throw to them to make sure they do!

Don't reach down to pick up beads, doubloons, etc. unless you are very careful! I guarantee your fingers will never be the same! Put your foot on it, and when it's safe (between floats), you can bend down to pick it up. Everyone who grew up in this area knows how dangerous it can be; kids just have to have those throws and they're not thinking about the next float!

Do NOT run into the street between floats for a trinket! Floats cannot stop on a dime; and accidents have occurred. Wanna get chased by a cop? Just jump over a barricade, get in a band's way or start marching in it, aggravate anyone in the marching units or hang on a float, and you are sure to be arrested!

Be careful near the floats! You may decide to put your child or your wife on your shoulders so they can catch special throws from the costumed riders. But be careful, the crowds can swell forward suddenly and unexpectedly, making it easy to get knocked over. Make sure your children do not get too close to the floats when reaching for throws!

Bring the family! The city and suburban parades are for families, too! (Not the French Quarter!) You can bring blankets and picnic baskets, and get there early to enjoy the day! As parade time nears, the crowd will gather everywhere, and you'll have to put up the blanket and ice chest--don't be surprised if someone jumps on it to reach a pair of beads!

Plan your meals ahead! Restaurants on the parade route are usually full on the nights of the most popular parades and on Mardi Gras day, so make your plans early with those that accept reservations. If they don't, plan to wait a while to get a table, eat street vendor food, or pack your own snacks and sandwiches--it will be a long day, so plan ahead! Also, bring wet wipes or tissues with you to clean up before eating. Your hands will get very dirty, and it won't be easy to find a sink and soap. Public toilets area available, but they are crowded and not usually very clean.

Practice ladder safety! Ladders are popular and a great way for a good view....but if you bring a ladder, it has to be behind a barricade or as far away from the street as the ladder's height in the event the ladder is knocked over. Many people have built seats on the top of the ladder so their children will have a great view!

Have a meeting place! Mardi Gras is huge, thousands of people are on the street, and it is very easy to get separated. Make sure everyone knows where to meet in case anyone gets lost; and give your children note cards with your name, address, hotel phone numbers, and pre-arranged meeting place on them just in case. Instruct your children to go a police officer if they become lost--they know what to do, and will return your child quickly.

Do not take your children to the French Quarter during Mardi Gras! Although this is the area highlighted by the news media, it really has nothing to do with the Mardi Gras celebration. Those of us who grew up here often felt guilty going to parades once we were a little older ... and couldn't wait to have kids so we'd have an excuse to go! Unfortunately, the media often presents Mardi Gras from the French Quarter where no parades occur.

At this time of year, it is simply an adult area where the risque' behavior of many visitors to Mardi Gras is tolerated; i.e., revealing costumes and flashing for beads. You do NOT even have to visit the French Quarter to totally enjoy Mardi Gras in New Orleans as the rest of us locals do!

Be careful! If you visit the Quarter at night during Mardi Gras, hide your wallets well -- even the front pocket doesn't work! -- and wear shoes that can get dirty. Don't wear expensive jewelry, and don't carry a purse. Make sure you get a bathroom pass or wear your wristband if you're staying in a French Quarter hotel.

Watch the parades! The best part of the celebration takes place on the parade route watching the crowds and the floats pass by. You can also enjoy special packages put together by businesses along the parade route offering food and a front row spot for the passing parade... or enjoy celebrity entertainment parties after some of the biggest parades which travel along the beautiful St. Charles Avenue where the parade first rolls.

No risque' behavior elsewhere! You may see some people get carried away outside of the French Quarter--this is not a good idea! The police will politely remind them that they are in a family area, and if they don't stop, they can be arrested. You should also be careful ... it is distracting to kids and some adults -- I know a man very well who decided to take a picture and was hit in the head by a float. :)

Shop! It is a festive time in New Orleans! During the day, listen to the jazz musicians as you shop the French Quarter, the Riverwalk and the Brewery, or see the Aquarium (check out NewOrleansCoupons.com for discount coupons for riverboat cruises, New Orleans attractions and restaurants). Before you know it, it's time for a night parade!

Mardi Gras Balls | Mardi Gras Throws | Mardi Gras Colors | Mardi Gras Dates