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New Orleans Mardi Gras Although it is celebrated around the world, Mardi Gras in New Orleans is a party like no other. Mardi Gras (French for "Fat Tuesday") is the final day of Carnival, an entire Christian holiday season that begins on the Twelfth Night of Christmas and comes crashing to a halt on Ash Wednesday, the first day of Lent. On Mardi Gras day, the entrie city dons costumes, face paint, and masks, and takes to the streets of New Orleans for the final bash-of-a-celebration before Lent. If's an official city holiday, with just about everyone but the New Orleans police taking the day off. People roam the streets, drinking Bloody Marys for breakfast and switching to beer in the afternoon, and admiring one another's finery. Mardi Gras anthems are played by local bands throughout the New Orleans streets. Some dozen parades roll through the city's streets along various routes, enriching onlookers with plastic beads and trinkets.
Navigating the mammoth crowds and scope of New Orleans Mardi Gras can be a daunting task, and even careful plans may be disrupted by surprises. For good wholesome fun, Uptown district of New Orleans is a good place to feel Mardi Gras excitement. This district is the family zone. Most of the activities here are focused around the parades. The crowds along the uptown potion of the parade routes are thinner and more docile than those downtown. The corner of Napoleon and St. Charles avenues is a crowded place, but exciting place to catch this Mardi Gras parade. The Garden district of New Orleans is particularly family friendly. The uptown bars see some increased traffic during Mardi Gras season, but nothing compared with the downtown craziness.
For most visitors, they find themselves downtown during Mardi Gras, for the craziness and festivities. Things heat up along Bourbon Street and throughout the French Quarter. By Mardi Gras weekend, the crowds are so thick it is difficult to walk down bourbon. Drinking, exchanging beads, and exhibitionism are the primary activities along Bourbon, where lines form to enter the bars and drink prices are sky high. The side streets offer some degree of refuge while still sustaining a high party pitch: one hub of activity is along Decatur Street between Bienville Street and Jackson Square. Most parades roll down Canal Street at some point, and the crowds shift over accordingly to stock up on loot before ducking back into the bars or the street scene. Mardi Gras Safety:
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New Orleans, Louisiana
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