Visiting New Orleans for Mardi Gras: Our Guide From a Week in the City

If you’ve been thinking about going to New Orleans for Mardi Gras, this guide should help you decide whether to go, when to go, and what to actually do once you’re there. If you’re planning the rest of your visit, our 3 day New Orleans itinerary walks through how to spend your time in the city beyond the parades.

Jess and I spent a full week in the city for Mardi Gras a few years back and have been to Mardi Gras parades in several other Southern cities since, so most of what’s below comes from real experience of standing on St Charles Ave at 6pm waiting for Endymion to roll, finding a vacation rental that doesn’t cost a fortune, and figuring out which parades are worth committing to.

Mardi Gras 2027 falls on Tuesday, February 9th, with Carnival running from Twelfth Night on January 6th. That’s one of the shortest Carnival seasons in recent memory at 35 days, compared to 43 days in 2026 and 58 days in 2025. So if 2027 is your year, the build-up to Fat Tuesday is going to be unusually compressed and intense.

 

Mardi Gras in New Orleans: Quick Verdict

Go. Mardi Gras is worth doing at least once, even if you don’t think you’re a “crowds and street parties” person. The floats are works of art, the parade culture is unlike anything else in the US, and there are quiet stretches of the city if you need a break from the noise.

The thing to plan ahead is where you’re going to stand for each parade. Which parades to catch matters less than you’d think (there are around 80, you’ll see plenty); the viewpoint is the decision that counts. Book a balcony or grandstand seat for at least one of the big nighttime parades, ideally a super krewe.

The one thing not to overthink is which parades to pick. Catch a daytime parade and a nighttime parade and you’ll have seen the full range. The rest is bonus.

One operational note before you start planning: Mardi Gras World is closed on Mardi Gras Day itself, along with Christmas, Thanksgiving and Easter. If you’ve earmarked Tuesday for the float warehouse, you’ll need to move it earlier in your trip.

 

What is Mardi Gras?

Mardi Gras is a French term that literally translates to “Fat Tuesday”. It’s based on a religious event and falls on the Tuesday before Lent begins in the Christian calendar. This date is also known as Shrove Tuesday.

The Wednesday is known as Ash Wednesday, which is the first day of fasting in the run-up to Easter, 46 days later.

In order to prepare for all those days of fasting, many people would traditionally eat a lot of fatty food in the run-up to Lent, and particularly on the last day. Hence “Fat Tuesday”. Obvious really.

In many parts of the world Mardi Gras has grown into a celebration in its own right, with carnival celebrations happening all over the world. Most famous of these is Mardi Gras in New Orleans, and the Rio Carnival in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, where hundreds of thousands of people descend on the cities to take part in the festivities.

The US custom of celebrating Mardi Gras started in Mobile, Alabama in 1703 by a Frenchman. Mobile still holds Mardi Gras celebrations throughout the year and has an excellent Mardi Gras museum, but New Orleans has definitely eclipsed Mobile as the US capital of Mardi Gras. Jess and I have seen Mardi Gras parades in various cities and states across the South including Baton Rouge, Mobile, Navarre and New Orleans. The largest event is definitely in New Orleans.

 

When is Mardi Gras 2027 in New Orleans?

Mardi Gras 2027 is on Tuesday, February 9th 2027, with the main celebrations happening in the two weeks leading up to the date itself.

The largest celebrations usually happen on the two weekends before Mardi Gras itself, which always falls on a Tuesday.

Because Mardi Gras is linked to a religious date, which is in turn linked to cycles of the moon, the date changes every year. The biggest parades in New Orleans happen on Mardi Gras Day, which is the Tuesday before Lent begins, 47 days before Easter. This date can fall anywhere from the 3rd February through to the 10th March.

For reference, the next five years of Mardi Gras dates are:

• Mardi Gras 2027 – February 9th 2027
• Mardi Gras 2028 – February 29th 2028
• Mardi Gras 2029 – February 13th 2029
• Mardi Gras 2030 – March 5th 2030
• Mardi Gras 2031 – February 25th 2031

Note that 2028 falls on the leap day (February 29th), which doesn’t happen often.

The main Mardi Gras parades happen on the Tuesday itself, with a good many other parades in the two weeks leading up to Mardi Gras Day.

There’s also a tradition of celebrating on the Monday, which has come to be known as Lundi Gras.

 

When to Visit New Orleans for Mardi Gras

If you’re planning on visiting New Orleans specifically for Mardi Gras, we’d suggest coming for at least the six days leading up to Mardi Gras to give yourself plenty of time for sightseeing as well as parade watching.

We came for a full week and were glad of it. The first half of the week gives you space to do the non-parade things (Café du Monde without the queue out the door, the museums, Longue Vue House if you fancy a half-day out of the city), and the back end of the week is when the big parades roll. Trying to compress all of that into three days is doable but you’ll be running between things rather than enjoying any of them.

 

How Long Does Mardi Gras Last in New Orleans?

Officially, Carnival starts on the 6th of January (Twelfth Night) and runs until Fat Tuesday. For 2027 that’s 35 days of Carnival running from January 6th to February 9th, which is one of the shortest seasons in recent years (for comparison, Carnival 2026 was 43 days and Carnival 2025 was 58 days).

In New Orleans, the majority of Mardi Gras celebrations are held in the two weeks leading up to Fat Tuesday itself. The biggest parades tend to happen over the weekend before Fat Tuesday, and on Fat Tuesday itself, so if you don’t have a lot of time, that would be the best time to go. There are parades from the start of Carnival through to the end, so there’s no bad time to visit.

 

What is the Parade Schedule for Mardi Gras 2027 in New Orleans?

There are normally around 80 parades scheduled in New Orleans during Carnival, running from the 6th January through to Mardi Gras itself. So whenever you visit, you should be able to see a parade.

Our recommendation is to try and see at least one parade by one of the “Super Krewes”, as these tend to be the most visually impressive. There are three super krewes in New Orleans: Endymion, Bacchus and Orpheus. Whilst there’s no formal definition, these krewes usually have at least 1,000 members and at least 500 riders participating in the parades, making for quite the spectacle of floats.

Normally the super krewes parade on the Saturday, Sunday and Monday before Mardi Gras Tuesday. For 2027 the expected dates are:

• Endymion – Saturday February 6th 2027 (Mid-City route, ending inside Caesars Superdome for the Extravaganza)
• Bacchus – Sunday February 7th 2027 (Uptown route)
• Orpheus – Monday February 8th 2027, Lundi Gras (Uptown / Canal Street route)

Exact parade times are usually confirmed by mardigrasneworleans.com in early January, so check closer to the date. The 2027 New Orleans Mardi Gras parade schedules and routes are available here.

You should also try and see at least one parade in the French Quarter. These are foot parades rather than vehicle-driven parades, so they have a different feel.

We’d also recommend trying to catch some of the other parades during your time in the city so you get the full experience. There are multiple parades a day following various routes, so you shouldn’t have difficulty finding one to watch.

 

Where to Watch the Mardi Gras Parades in New Orleans

This is the one decision worth thinking through ahead of your trip, and it was the biggest planning lesson we took away from our first Mardi Gras: figuring out where you’re going to stand for each parade matters more than figuring out which parades to see. The routes are long, the crowds can be deep, and a good spot can fill up hours in advance for the popular parades.

There are three ways to watch a parade: from the street, from a balcony, or from a purpose-built grandstand. Each has its place, and which you pick depends on who you are and what you’re after.

 

If You’re a First-Timer

Book a grandstand seat for at least one of the big parades. The grandstands on St Charles Ave (two in Lafayette Square, two at the St Charles and Poydras intersection) take the stress out of finding a spot, give you a proper view, and have their own portable restrooms.

Tickets need to be booked in advance via mardigrasparadetickets.com and you pay per parade. It’s more expensive than just turning up on the street, but it removes the “did we leave the hotel early enough?” question that otherwise hangs over the whole day.

Pair the grandstand with one street-level parade later in the week so you’ve experienced both. Lee Circle is a great street-level spot for first-timers because the parades curve through the traffic circle and you get a unique angle.

 

If You’re Travelling with Kids

Stay on St Charles Ave Uptown and on the daytime parades. The family stretches run from roughly Napoleon Ave through to Lee Circle, and the vibe is loud and busy but family-friendly throughout the day and well into the evening. We saw plenty of families with kids in this stretch and the crowd was geared accordingly.

Avoid Bourbon Street entirely with kids, especially after dark. Bourbon during Mardi Gras leans adult and rowdy; it’s safe enough as crowds go, just not where you want to be holding a five-year-old’s hand. The Muses parade (Thursday before Mardi Gras, an all-women krewe known for handing out hand-decorated shoes) is one of the best family-friendly nighttime parades in the calendar.

 

If You’re a Photographer or You Want Sit-Down Comfort

A balcony is the answer for both. Most of the balcony venues along the parade routes operate some sort of Mardi Gras package, and there’s invariably a fee. Advance booking is essential. Options to consider:

• The Avenue Pub – balcony directly on the St Charles Uptown parade route. One practical note on the hours: Mon-Fri 11am-1am, Sat-Sun open earlier from 9am, which matters if you want to settle in for a daytime weekend parade. Operating since 1987.
• InterContinental New Orleans – rooms on St Charles offer good views, and they have public viewing stands available as well
• Lafayette Hotel – balcony rooms available for watching the parade from
• JW Marriott – right on Canal St, most of the parades pass by and there are rooms with full balconies
• Royal St Charles Hotel – boutique hotel on St Charles with views of the parade route and a balcony area
• Holiday Inn Express New Orleans – right on Lee Circle, St Charles Ave. You can see the parade from some rooms and there’s a dedicated viewing area as well
• Courtyard By Marriott – this popular hotel on St Charles has some balcony rooms which are close enough that you should be able to catch throws from the parades as they go by

The trade-off with a balcony is that you’re elevated, so you’re slightly less in the action. Throw-catching is harder because riders aim at the ground-level crowd, not the balconies. For photography that’s a feature (you get the float in the frame without people’s heads blocking the shot) rather than a bug.

 

If You Want the Full Street-Level Experience

Watching from the street is free, it’s the most authentic version of Mardi Gras, and the throws really do work better here. Bring a chair if you can, or join the locals on a small step ladder (a Mardi Gras institution, and you’ll see plenty up and down St Charles).

Spots to consider:

• Lee Circle – the traffic circle gives you a unique view of the parades curving around as they head up and down St Charles. Right next to the Holiday Inn Express above
• Polymnia and St Charles – this intersection is by the Avenue Pub. If you don’t get a balcony spot, this street position is excellent, if very busy
• Canal Street – after leaving Lafayette Square, many parades turn onto Canal Street. Try to stay on the east side of the street, because once the parades start you can become stuck if you’re on the wrong side
• St Charles Ave Uptown – most of the parades run down St Charles, so a good option is just to wander down this street until you find yourself a spot

For watching a parade in general, we found that the further from Canal Street we walked, the better our chances of getting a good spot. The crowds thin out as you move uptown, but the parade is the same parade.

The most popular parades, especially the super krewes, will be very busy. The best spots can fill up hours in advance. If you just want to get some fun throws, head along to a middle-of-the-day parade and you’ll find yourself quickly weighed down with more beads than you’ll know what to do with!

 

If You Want the Bourbon Street Party

Bourbon Street is the costumed-revelry-and-bar-balconies version of Mardi Gras. The motorised parades stopped using Bourbon in the 1960s (too narrow), but the foot parades come through and the bars run their own party throughout the day until the city shuts things down at midnight on Mardi Gras Tuesday. The scene leans adult, so skip with kids.

Good Bourbon Street balconies include Bourbon Vieux and Cat’s Meow.

 

Which Parade to Watch (a Mini Krewe Guide)

With around 80 parades over Carnival, picking which to catch can be overwhelming. Here’s a short guide to the named krewes worth knowing about:

• Endymion – the largest of the three super krewes, parading Saturday night with around 3,000 riders and a route through Mid-City that ends inside the Caesars Superdome for the Endymion Extravaganza
• Bacchus – Sunday night, the krewe that established the celebrity-monarch tradition back in 1969 (Danny Kaye was the first celebrity king). Uptown route
• Orpheus – Monday night (Lundi Gras), co-founded by Harry Connick Jr along with his father and Captain Sonny Borey in 1993. Musically themed (Orpheus being the Greek god of music), with jazz floats
• Zulu – 8am Mardi Gras Tuesday, parading before Rex. Founded in 1909, with the famous hand-decorated coconut as the signature throw. Note that the coconuts are now handed directly to the crowd rather than thrown from the floats (a shift made after a 1980s lawsuit), so you need to be at the float rather than standing back
• Rex – 10:30am Mardi Gras Tuesday, the founding krewe of the King-of-Carnival tradition (and the one that fixed the green, gold and purple colours). Founded in 1872, originally to honour a visit from the Russian Grand Duke Alexei Alexandrovich and to lure post-Civil War tourism back to the city. (Comus, founded in 1857, is actually older, but Rex is the krewe that established modern Mardi Gras)
• Muses – Thursday before Mardi Gras (Jeudi Gras), the first all-female krewe to parade at night in Uptown New Orleans. Founded in 2000 by Staci Rosenberg, and famous for the hand-decorated high-heeled shoe throws (one shoe per recipient, decorated year-round by the krewe’s 1,500 members). Inspired by Zulu’s hand-decorated coconut tradition

If you can only catch a handful, aim for one super krewe nighttime parade, the Muses parade (one of the most fun nighttime parades regardless of who you’re with), and either Rex or Zulu on Mardi Gras Tuesday morning.

 

Things to Do in New Orleans During Mardi Gras 2027

Of course, New Orleans is focused almost entirely on Mardi Gras at this time of year, but we’ve found there’s still a lot of sightseeing to do in the city.

Just be aware many of the downtown roads are closed off for the parades at various times throughout the week or so leading up to the event, so driving and parking can be very challenging.

It’s worth bearing in mind that the day of Mardi Gras itself is a holiday in New Orleans, so not everything will be open. We’d advise putting that day aside to enjoy the festivities anyway.

Here are the MG-themed and food-and-culture stops we’d put at the top of the list.

 

1. Drink Coffee at Café du Monde

Easily the most famous café in New Orleans, Café du Monde at 800 Decatur St is known for its beignets (a type of doughnut) and chicory-blended coffee (which can be an acquired taste). It’s famous for people-watching and is incredibly popular, which means you’re likely going to be queuing.

Whenever we’ve wandered by, regardless of time of day or night, it has always seemed busy (it’s open 24 hours a day). If you just want to try the famous coffee and beignets, queue for the takeout line, which is often quicker than waiting for a table. Café du Monde has been operating in the French Market since 1862, so they have the queuing-and-serving operation down to a fine art.

 

2. Eat Beignets at Café Beignet

We didn’t eat beignets at Café du Monde because we were saving ourselves for the beignets at Café Beignet. The theory being that if a place has named itself after its main food offering, it should be a reliable place to eat them.

This turned out to be a good bet. The breakfast at Café Beignet was magnificent, with plenty of options to choose from as well as those powdered-sugar beignets. If you’re in New Orleans, you need to eat beignets, and this is a great place to do just that. There are five Café Beignet locations around the city (Canal, Decatur, Bourbon, Royal, Sheraton), so there should be one near wherever you’re based.

 

3. Try BBQ Shrimp at Pascal’s Manale

If you’re going to eat one proper sit-down meal in New Orleans during your trip, Pascal’s Manale at 1838 Napoleon Ave in Uptown is a strong candidate. The restaurant was founded in 1913 and run by the DeFelice family for four generations before joining the Dickie Brennan group in 2023.

It’s the place that invented New Orleans BBQ shrimp back in the 1950s (which, contrary to the name, isn’t barbecued at all, but poached in butter, olive oil, garlic and black pepper with the heads and shells on).

Handily for parade planning, Napoleon Ave is one of the main feeder streets for St Charles parades, so Pascal’s Manale doubles as a parade-route lunch or pre-parade dinner stop. They’re closed Mondays; otherwise Tuesday to Thursday 11am-9pm, Friday and Saturday 11am-10pm, Sunday 4pm-9pm. Reservations encouraged, especially during Carnival.

 

4. Visit Mardi Gras World

Mardi Gras is an essential part of life in New Orleans, and the best way to learn about it in the city is at Mardi Gras World at 1380 Port of New Orleans Place.

Important operational note: Mardi Gras World is CLOSED on Mardi Gras Day itself (along with Christmas, Thanksgiving and Easter). Open 9am-5:30pm seven days a week the rest of the year, with last admission at 4:30pm.

So don’t plan your Mardi Gras World visit for Tuesday, no matter how tempting the symmetry. We’d recommend going earlier in your trip, before the floats leave the warehouse for the big parades.

Operated by Blaine Kern Studios, this is a living workshop where the massive floats that make up Mardi Gras are created and stored (the company operates a network of warehouses around the city).

A guided tour includes a video, a slice of king cake, and the chance to see new floats being built, with the bonus fact that everyone who rides on a float has to buy their own throws, and a single float can cost upwards of $50,000.

One catch of visiting during Mardi Gras week (other than the Tuesday closure) is that many of the floats won’t be in the warehouse, they’ll be out parading. When we visited, the majority were out, but we saw them in full glory on the streets and still enjoyed seeing the workshops and sneak peeks of next year’s designs.

Mardi Gras World is about a mile from Canal Street with a free shuttle service (number on their website). Tickets via their site, or included on the Go City New Orleans Pass.

 

5. Visit the Mardi Gras Museum of Costume and Culture

If you’re more interested in the clothing and history of Mardi Gras, you’ll want to visit the Mardi Gras Museum of Costume and Culture at 318 N. Rampart Street in the French Quarter. Here you can learn more about the traditions of Mardi Gras and what goes into making the costumes.

You’ll also get to play in the “costume closet”, where you’ll have access to a whole range of outfits to dress up in for photos.

Hours are Thursday to Monday, 12pm-4pm, with the main show starting at 2pm (worth planning around if you want to catch it). Closed Tuesday and Wednesday. Tickets can be bought at the museum or in advance via their site, and you can opt for self-guided or guided; we’d recommend the guided tour as you’ll pick up a lot more knowledge from the guide.

 

6. Explore Jackson Square

Just near Café du Monde is Jackson Square, a historic park which sits in the French Quarter. The French Quarter is generally regarded as one of the prettiest parts of New Orleans, home to all those lovely houses with balconies which are so representative of the city.

Jackson Square has been at the centre of public life in New Orleans for hundreds of years, and is still frequented by painters, musicians, and street performers of all kinds.

It’s historically important too. It was in Jackson Square that the French handed over New Orleans as part of the Louisiana Purchase in 1803, a historic land sale that saw the US pretty much double in size overnight!

The centre of the Square is a lovely park, whilst the square itself is surrounded on three sides by historic buildings, including the Cabildo, the original Spanish City Hall.

There’s a lot to see here, and we loved wandering around, people-watching, sipping our Café du Monde coffee and taking in the street performers. You can also explore the French Quarter in traditional style with a carriage ride like this.

 

7. Eat King Cake

When you’re in New Orleans for Mardi Gras, you basically have to eat king cake. This is a brioche-style dough covered in sugar, with the twist being that there’s a figurine of a baby hidden inside. The theory goes that whoever finds the baby in their slice of cake has to throw the next party.

Whatever the obligations, king cake is good, it’s colourful, and it’s worth getting your hands on a slice when you’re in town!

 

8. Explore Bourbon Street During Mardi Gras

One of the more famous streets in the French Quarter is Bourbon Street, so naturally we had to explore this.

This is where one of the Mardi Gras myths needs to be dispelled. Before visiting I wasn’t entirely sure what to expect, and imagined an entirely adult environment with beads being bargained for clothes and revellers all over town.

The reality is different. The main parades are family-friendly throughout the day and well into the night (although there’s plenty of liquor about), and there are more than enough beads coming off the floats that you don’t need to give up your clothing for them.

Mardi Gras is also held relatively early in the year and, despite what you might think about Louisiana, New Orleans can get pretty cold in February. Most people are wrapped up fairly warm even if the sun is out.

If you’re after the more raucous version of Mardi Gras, Bourbon Street is the place to start. The main parades stopped running through the French Quarter long ago for fire and safety reasons, but the bars are stuffed full of patrons knocking back exotic-looking drinks, folks throw beads from the balconies, and there are still foot parades and floats (pushed by people rather than drawn by tractors).

Bourbon Street is a pretty street in its own right and worth exploring even when it isn’t jam-packed. But during Mardi Gras it’s where you’ll find the most adult-oriented street partying, all the way through to midnight on Mardi Gras Tuesday when the party officially ends.

 

Going to the Parades

This one should be obvious, but we went to New Orleans during Mardi Gras, so naturally we took in a few parades. There are a great many parades that run in the weeks leading up to Mardi Gras, winding their way on various routes through the city.

Each parade is operated by a “Krewe”, and can run to as many as forty-five floats in a single krewe, some of them doubles.

There are over thirty krewes that parade through New Orleans during Carnival, and seeing them all would be quite the effort. The mini krewe guide above is the short list of the ones worth prioritising.

All the information on the parade times and routes can be found on the official New Orleans Mardi Gras website. You can also download apps for your smartphone to get live updates on parade locations, which is very useful when you’re standing and waiting for them to start rolling by.

There are also a number of side events that occur throughout Mardi Gras. Two highlights for us were the Lundi Gras celebrations, which featured live music and evening fireworks, and the Bacchus Bash street party, which took place on the Sunday before Mardi Gras Tuesday, the same day as the Bacchus parade, and featured live music throughout the day.

 

While You’re in Town

New Orleans has plenty to offer outside of Mardi Gras itself, and if you’ve got a full week in the city, you’ll have time for some of the year-round attractions too. Most of these are worth a half-day or so each. We’ve since published a fuller guide to the best things to do in New Orleans, plus a dedicated 3-day New Orleans itinerary; for now, here’s a short list of what we did during our Mardi Gras week and recommend.

• Cemetery tour – New Orleans is built on a swamp, which makes traditional burial impractical, hence the city’s famous above-ground graves. We did this guided tour of St Louis Cemetery #1 (Voodoo Queen Marie Laveau’s burial site, alongside Nicolas Cage’s future tomb). A licensed guide is required to enter St Louis Cemetery #1.
• Swamp tour – we took a swamp tour out of the city and saw raccoons, wild pigs, and one baby alligator (February isn’t peak alligator weather). For more of a thrill, try a high-speed airboat ride. Most tours include hotel pickup.
• Longue Vue House & Gardens – a 1939 historic home with beautiful gardens, a calm break from the city centre. Bookable as part of this city combo tour, or take the tram and walk.
• Steamboat Natchez jazz cruise – the only steam-powered river cruise out of New Orleans. We did the evening dinner cruise with live jazz and a three-course meal as a last-night wrap-up. Daytime jazz cruises also available.
• French Quarter food tour – this 2.5-hour food tour covers the French Quarter classics with multiple food stops.
• River Road plantation day trip – between New Orleans and Baton Rouge is the historic River Road. We visited 12 of the plantations across a couple of days; for a single day from New Orleans, Jess’s River Road Plantations of Louisiana guide on our sister site is the place to start, or for the full slow-travel version Jess’s guide to staying overnight at Oak Alley covers the experience. You can also book a guided plantation day tour from New Orleans via GetYourGuide.

If you fancy a city overview tour rather than picking individual experiences, GetYourGuide also has a good range of New Orleans tours here.

 

Save Money in New Orleans During Mardi Gras

If you’re visiting New Orleans during Mardi Gras, you’ll have noticed that many things are quite expensive. One way to save money, if you plan on doing some sightseeing, is to invest in a city attraction pass.

The pass we’d recommend is the Go City New Orleans Pass. It covers a great many of the attractions in this article (Mardi Gras World, Mardi Gras Museum of Costume and Culture, the steamboat cruise, the swamp tour, Longue Vue House, cemetery tours, plus most of the major Plantation tours and city overview tours), plus a load of others.

Price it up against the individual ticket costs of what you’re planning to do, but if you’re packing your week with several major attractions, it usually pays its way.

The old New Orleans Sightseeing Pass that we previously recommended here is no longer in operation, so don’t be tempted by any leftover links elsewhere on the web.

 

Why You Should Visit New Orleans During Mardi Gras

Mardi Gras is one of those events that really does live up to the hype. People really get into the spirit, with awesome costumes in the crowd, and a real party atmosphere takes over the city. And that’s not even mentioning the floats, which are mobile works of art in their own right. You can also still see a lot of New Orleans during your visit, as we did.

New Orleans in any other week is a great destination. During Mardi Gras it’s louder, denser, and more alive than any other city event we’ve been to in the US.

 

Disadvantages of Visiting New Orleans During Mardi Gras

There are two main disadvantages to visiting New Orleans during Mardi Gras. First, it’s going to be very busy. If you’re not into large crowds of people, streets being closed off and all the things that go along with a city partying for a couple of weeks, this might not be for you.

The other disadvantage is price, particularly accommodation. A lot of people come to New Orleans for Mardi Gras, and this pushes accommodation prices through the roof. If you book early (six months out or more) and you’re willing to consider neighbourhoods slightly outside the core, you can still find reasonable rates; leaving it to the last minute means paying a serious premium for what’s left.

I wouldn’t let these two things put you off coming to New Orleans during Mardi Gras. Just be prepared for the experience and plan accordingly.

 

Our Notes for Next Mardi Gras

Having been once and worked out what we’d change, here’s what we’ve learnt for next time:

Stay closer to the action. We ended up in a vacation rental in “Old Algiers” on the south side of the river, which meant a ten-minute ferry ride into downtown. It was fine, but the ferry-and-walk added friction.

Next time we’d book somewhere within walking distance of the St Charles parade route, even at a higher price. Late-night parade returns are easier when home is fifteen minutes on foot rather than a ferry timetable.

Plan the parade viewpoints in advance. It’s the lesson we’ve repeated throughout this guide because it’s the one that matters: where you’re going to stand beats which parades to see. Lock in a balcony or grandstand for at least one super krewe and pre-pick street-level spots for the rest.

Come for a full week. Seven days gave us time for the non-parade things (museums, Longue Vue, swamp tour, plantations) in the first half of the week and the big parades in the second. Three or four days would have meant skipping half of it. We wouldn’t shorten the trip.

Book Pascal’s Manale early, especially if you want to slot a long Uptown lunch between two daytime parades on St Charles.

Book hotels six months ahead, not three. The gap between booking-six-months-out and booking-three-months-out is the difference between “reasonable for Mardi Gras” and “ouch”.

 

How to Find Accommodation During Mardi Gras in New Orleans

Finding accommodation in New Orleans during Mardi Gras can be a challenge. Mardi Gras is a seriously popular time of year to visit, meaning prices are going to be high and availability in New Orleans hotels will be low. Our advice: if you find a property you like the look of that falls within your budget, book it as soon as you can.

Rather than list every hotel in the city, here are four picks across price points and neighbourhoods that we’d consider first:

• SpringHill Suites by Marriott New Orleans Downtown – centrally located 3* Marriott. Buffet breakfast, rooms have fridges and microwaves. Solid value-pick for a downtown base.
• New Orleans Marriott – right on the edge of the French Quarter, a five-minute walk from Bourbon Street. If you want to walk to everything, this is the location to do it from.
• The Whitney Hotel – just off Lafayette Square and a short walk from the French Quarter, this well-reviewed historic 4* hotel is well located for many of the parade routes and Mardi Gras festivities. (Booked via Expedia rather than Booking.com.)
• Hilton New Orleans Riverside – 4* hotel right by the river so you can watch the paddleboats go by on the Mississippi. Within walking distance of the parade routes and the French Quarter, and good value for a 4* property in this location.

For vacation rental options like Vrbo, expect prices to double or triple during Mardi Gras, with limited availability. Book as far in advance as you can.

We stayed in a vacation rental on the south side of the river in the historic “Old Algiers” part of town. It was a ten-minute ferry ride across the river into the heart of downtown, so not too much hassle, and was a very quiet neighbourhood, so we were able to escape the hustle of the main Mardi Gras parties when we wanted to. As above though, next time we’d probably trade that for somewhere walkable from St Charles.

If you aren’t having much luck with your favourite vacation rental website, I’ve compiled a series of Airbnb alternatives for more options.

Otherwise, check the usual suspects for their New Orleans listings; Booking.com being our preferred option for hotels and apartments. Book as soon as you find a reasonable deal as they sell out quickly.

 

Mardi Gras in New Orleans FAQ

A few questions we get asked a lot, plus the things first-time Mardi Gras visitors usually want to know before they book.

 

When is Mardi Gras 2027 in New Orleans?

Mardi Gras 2027 falls on Tuesday, February 9th 2027.

 

How long is Carnival 2027?

Carnival 2027 runs from Twelfth Night on January 6th through to Fat Tuesday on February 9th, making it 35 days long. That’s one of the shortest Carnival seasons in recent years; Carnival 2026 was 43 days and Carnival 2025 was 58 days.

 

What’s the difference between Mardi Gras and Carnival?

Carnival is the whole season starting on January 6th (Twelfth Night) and ending on Fat Tuesday. Mardi Gras (literally “Fat Tuesday”) is the final day of Carnival. So technically all of Carnival isn’t Mardi Gras, even though “Mardi Gras” tends to get used colloquially for the whole party season.

 

What is Lundi Gras?

Lundi Gras is the Monday before Mardi Gras Tuesday. There’s a long-standing tradition of celebrating on the Monday too, including a riverfront celebration with live music and fireworks. The Orpheus parade also rolls on Lundi Gras evening.

 

When are the super krewe parades?

The three super krewes parade on the weekend before Mardi Gras Tuesday. For 2027 the expected dates are Endymion on Saturday February 6th, Bacchus on Sunday February 7th, and Orpheus on Monday February 8th (Lundi Gras). Times are usually confirmed by mardigrasneworleans.com in early January.

 

Is Mardi Gras World open on Mardi Gras Day?

No. Mardi Gras World is closed on Mardi Gras Day itself, along with Christmas, Thanksgiving and Easter. On every other day of the year they’re open 9am to 5:30pm, last admission 4:30pm. We’d recommend visiting earlier in the week, before the floats leave the warehouse to parade.

 

What is the best parade to watch with kids?

For nighttime parades, the Muses parade (Thursday before Mardi Gras, all-women krewe famous for the hand-decorated shoe throws) is a strong family pick. For daytime, any of the smaller weekday parades on the St Charles Uptown route are family-friendly. Avoid Bourbon Street with kids, especially after dark.

 

Should I book a balcony or grandstand seat?

If it’s your first Mardi Gras, yes for at least one parade. The grandstands on St Charles Ave book through mardigrasparadetickets.com per parade. Balconies are usually a hotel or bar package; book direct or as part of your hotel stay. Both remove the “where do we stand?” stress of the popular parades.

 

Can you watch the Mardi Gras parades for free?

Yes. Any spot along the parade route is free, and you can find a great spot just by being there a couple of hours early for a popular parade, or even fifteen minutes early for one of the smaller weekday parades. Bring a chair or a small ladder if you can.

 

How early should I arrive for a Mardi Gras parade?

For the super krewes (Endymion, Bacchus, Orpheus) and the Mardi Gras Day parades (Zulu, Rex), aim for at least 1-2 hours early at a good spot, longer if you want a kerbside view. For weekday daytime parades, 15-30 minutes is usually enough, especially if you walk a few blocks further Uptown from Canal Street.

 

Further Reading for Your New Orleans Mardi Gras Experience

We experienced Mardi Gras in New Orleans as part of a road trip through the Deep South of the USA. That adventure started in Charleston, South Carolina, and we went through four states, ultimately ending up in New Orleans for Mardi Gras.

You can check out all the posts from our southern USA road trip here. We’ve also written a number of other guides on travel in the USA and beyond, and we have some other resources you might find useful. In no particular order:

• If you’re planning on visiting any of the plantations along the River Road, check out our comprehensive guide to the River Road Plantations of Louisiana
• We’ve written a guide to how much it costs to travel in the USA
• If you’re planning on taking a road trip and are new to driving in the USA, this post will give you some tips for driving in the USA
• As well as New Orleans, we’ve written guides to other cities in the Deep South including Savannah, Baton Rouge, and Charleston
• We’ve visited a lot of other cities in the USA. See our guides to things to do in Austin, things to do in Albuquerque, things to do in Cambria, things to do in Huntsville, and things to do in Santa Fe to get started
• This is my South – a travel blog focused on what to see and do in this part of the world
• Lonely Planet’s guide to the American South covers New Orleans plus the broader Deep South region
• Our guide to the best Airbnb alternatives, to help you find the best lodging whatever your budget

And that’s the end of this post on visiting New Orleans during Mardi Gras. We hope you found it useful. As always, if you have any feedback or questions let us know in the comments, and feel free to share this post on social media if you found it useful.