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Go To The Mardi Gras
Family-Friendly Fun: North & Central Louisiana
Whether it’s the Alexandria Zoo’s King Cake Party or checking out Float Loading Parties in Shreveport, north and central Louisiana offer plenty of festive family fun. Daytime and early-evening parades, like the Krewe of Dionysos in Natchitoches, children’s parades in Alexandria and Monroe, and the funky Krewe of Highland in Shreveport, make it easy for the whole family to enjoy Carnival revelry.
5 Coveted Throws
Shoes: Krewe of Muses, New Orleans
MoonPies: Krewe of Mona Lisa and MoonPie, Slidell
Hot Dogs: Krewe of Highland, Shreveport
Coconuts: Zulu Social Aid & Pleasure Club, New Orleans
Purses: Mystic Krewe of Nyx, New Orleans
Courir de Mardi Gras: Cajun Country
In Cajun southwest Louisiana, there are tons of ways to shake your tail feathers throughout the Carnival season. From the lavishly decorated costumes at the Royal Gala in Lake Charles to costumed riders on horseback and children chasing chickens at rustic Courir de Mardi Gras events throughout the region, Cajuns can show anybody how to pass a good time. Throw in some king cake tastings, street parades in Lafayette and red-hot Cajun accordion players at the Squeezebox Shootout in Jennings, and you’ve got yourself a party, cher.
Rolling Down the River: Baton Rouge & Plantation Country
Throughout Baton Rouge and New Orleans Plantation Country, revelers throw countless beads, as well as excellent parties. The bawdy and satirical Krewe of Spanish Town Parade rolls through one of the capital city’s most historic neighborhoods, and the parades rolling in Plantation Country (the parishes between Baton Rouge and New Orleans) offer big-city thrills without the hassle. Laplace’s Krewe du Monde is the largest parade in the area, boasting approximately 30 floats.
Mardi Gras Lingo
KREWE – A masqued group that parades during Carnival season
THROW – A trinket thrown by a Mardi Gras krewe
FAT TUESDAY– Mardi Gras Day, February 13
FLAMBEAUX – Pronounced FLAM-bow – masqued torchbearers signaling the beginning of a parade
DOUBLOON – Commemorative coins thrown by krewes
KING CAKE – Colorfully decorated cakes, often baked with a hidden baby or charm inside
New Orleans’ Other Side: Greater New Orleans
While New Orleans’ Krewes of Rex, Zulu and Endymion might capture the headlines, they represent just one aspect of the region’s vast Carnival experience. Women-only groups, such as the Krewes of Muses and Nyx, offer some of the most coveted throws of the season (hand-decorated shoes and purses), and Family Gras in Jefferson Parish offers an ideal location to see kid-friendly Mardi Gras spectacles, as well as take in local music and art.
