Carnival season · Wed 06 Jan to Tue 09 Feb 2027
The whole Carnival season on one page: every parade from Twelfth Night to Fat Tuesday, the big days, where to stay for each part of the route, and how parade tickets and grandstands work. All of it is free to watch from the street.
Mardi Gras is not one day. The season opens on Twelfth Night, Wednesday 6 January 2027, when the Krewe de Jeanne d'Arc processes through the French Quarter and the Phunny Phorty Phellows ride the St. Charles streetcar, and it builds across January: walking parades in the French Quarter and the Marigny first, then the big Uptown parades on the St. Charles Avenue route, until Mardi Gras Day itself, Tuesday 9 February, when Zulu and Rex roll in the morning and Carnival ends at midnight.
Three parades on this page, Joan of Arc, Chewbacchus and Muses, already carry dates confirmed by their organisers. The rest are expected dates taken from the official New Orleans and Company 2027 parade schedule, which flags that dates and final routes are still to be confirmed, and they are labelled tentative wherever they appear. Every parade links to its own page, where the official source and the check date are shown.
All 35 Carnival parades in the calendar, in date order. Roll times are shown where the organiser has published one; the rest are still to be announced. The area is the part of the city each parade rolls through; the full route is on the parade's own page.
| Date | Parade | Rolls | Where |
|---|---|---|---|
| Wed 06 Jan | Joan of Arc Parade (19th Annual Joan of Arc Procession) Confirmed dates | 7:30 pm | French Quarter |
| Wed 06 Jan | Phunny Phorty Phellows Tentative date | Not yet published | Uptown |
| Sat 09 Jan | Krewe Mosaique Tentative date | Not yet published | French Quarter |
| Sat 16 Jan | Intergalactic Krewe of Chewbacchus Parade Confirmed dates | 7 pm | Faubourg Marigny |
| Fri 22 Jan | Krewe Bohème Tentative date | Not yet published | French Quarter |
| Sat 23 Jan | Krewe du Vieux Tentative date | Not yet published | French Quarter |
| Sun 24 Jan | 'tit Rəx Tentative date | Not yet published | Faubourg Marigny |
| Sun 24 Jan | Krewe of Nefertiti Tentative date | Not yet published | New Orleans East |
| Fri 29 Jan | Krewe of Cleopatra Tentative date | Not yet published | Uptown |
| Fri 29 Jan | Krewe of Cork Tentative date | Not yet published | French Quarter |
| Fri 29 Jan | Krewe of Oshun Tentative date | Not yet published | Uptown |
| Sat 30 Jan | Knights of Sparta Tentative date | Not yet published | Uptown |
| Sat 30 Jan | Krewe of Choctaw Tentative date | Not yet published | Uptown |
| Sat 30 Jan | Krewe of Freret Tentative date | Not yet published | Uptown |
| Sat 30 Jan | Krewe of Pontchartrain Tentative date | Not yet published | Uptown |
| Sat 30 Jan | Krewe of Pygmalion Tentative date | Not yet published | Uptown |
| Sat 30 Jan | Legion of Mars Tentative date | Not yet published | Uptown |
| Sun 31 Jan | Knights of King Arthur Tentative date | Not yet published | Uptown |
| Sun 31 Jan | Krewe of Carrollton Tentative date | Not yet published | Uptown |
| Sun 31 Jan | Mystic Krewe of Barkus Tentative date | Not yet published | French Quarter |
| Sun 31 Jan | Mystic Krewe of Femme Fatale Tentative date | Not yet published | Uptown |
| Wed 03 Feb | Krewe of Alla Tentative date | Not yet published | Uptown |
| Wed 03 Feb | Mystic Krewe of Druids Tentative date | Not yet published | Uptown |
| Thu 04 Feb | Krewe of Muses Parade (Muses 2027 Parade) Confirmed dates | 5:30 pm | Uptown |
| Fri 05 Feb | Krewe of Bosom Buddies Tentative date | Not yet published | French Quarter |
| Fri 05 Feb | Krewe of Hermes Tentative date | Not yet published | Uptown |
| Fri 05 Feb | Krewe of Morpheus Tentative date | Not yet published | Uptown |
| Fri 05 Feb | Le Krewe d'Etat Tentative date | Not yet published | Uptown |
| Sat 06 Feb | Krewe of Endymion Tentative date | 4 pm | Mid-City |
| Sun 07 Feb | Krewe of Bacchus Tentative date | Not yet published | Uptown |
| Mon 08 Feb | Krewe of Orpheus Tentative date | Not yet published | Uptown |
| Mon 08 Feb | Krewe of Proteus Tentative date | Not yet published | Uptown |
| Tue 09 Feb | Krewe of Rex Tentative date | Not yet published | Uptown |
| Tue 09 Feb | Krewe of Zulu Tentative date | Not yet published | Uptown |
| Tue 09 Feb | Mardi Gras Day (Fat Tuesday) Tentative date | Not yet published | Citywide |
Six days carry the season. Krewe du Vieux opens the big parade weekends in January, and the final stretch from Muses on Thursday 4 February to Mardi Gras Day is the densest run of parades in the New Orleans year.
Krewe du Vieux is expected on Saturday, January 23, 2027, marching from the Marigny through the French Quarter. New Orleans and Company lists the parade on that date in its 2027 parade schedule, while noting that 2027 parade dates and final routes are still to be confirmed.
The Krewe of Muses parades Uptown on Thursday, February 4, 2027, with the krewe's own calendar listing the Muses 2027 Parade from 5:30 p.m. to 8 p.m. Muses is the first all-female Mardi Gras krewe to parade at night in Uptown New Orleans.
The Krewe of Endymion is expected to parade through Mid-City on Saturday, February 6, 2027, the Saturday before Mardi Gras. New Orleans and Company lists Endymion on that date in its 2027 parade schedule, while noting final dates and routes are still to be confirmed.
The Krewe of Bacchus is expected to parade Uptown on Sunday, February 7, 2027, the Sunday night before Mardi Gras. New Orleans and Company lists Bacchus on that date in its 2027 parade schedule, while noting final dates and routes are still to be confirmed.
The Krewe of Proteus is expected to parade Uptown on Lundi Gras, Monday, February 8, 2027, ahead of Orpheus. New Orleans and Company lists Proteus on that date in its 2027 parade schedule, while noting final dates and routes are still to be confirmed.
The Krewe of Orpheus is expected to parade Uptown on Lundi Gras, Monday, February 8, 2027, following Proteus. New Orleans and Company lists Orpheus on that date in its 2027 parade schedule, while noting final dates and routes are still to be confirmed.
Mardi Gras Day, Fat Tuesday, falls on Tuesday, February 9, 2027, closing a Carnival season that opens on Twelfth Night, January 6, 2027. Zulu and Rex parade in the morning, and Carnival ends at midnight.
Where you stay decides which parades are a walk away. The big Uptown parades, Muses, Bacchus, Rex, Zulu and the rest of the final week, roll on the St. Charles Avenue route through Uptown, so a base Uptown or in the Garden District puts the route at your door. The walking parades move through the French Quarter and the Marigny, so the French Quarter and the CBD suit those, and the CBD is also where Endymion finishes, at Caesars Superdome.
Book early. Carnival is the busiest stretch of the New Orleans year and rooms go quickly, the final week of 4 to 9 February first. The weekly note tracks the weekends worth planning around while rooms are still bookable.
Carnival days start late and the parades roll at set hours, which leaves the mornings for the rest of the city. These are the bookable staples around the parade schedule, sold by Klook at the same price you would pay there direct.
One pass that bundles the city's headline attractions, the Natchez cruise and the WWII Museum among them, for a run of sightseeing days you choose at checkout.
From US$84
Get the passvia Klook · affiliate linkA guided walk through the oldest streets in the city: the courtyards, balconies and stories of the Vieux Carré.
From US$29
Book the walking tourvia Klook · affiliate linkTwo hours on the Mississippi aboard an authentic steamboat, with a live jazz band and the city lit up behind you.
From US$58
Book the jazz cruisevia Klook · affiliate linkEat your way through the Quarter with a guide: gumbo, po'boys, pralines and the rooms they were invented in.
From US$79
Book the food tourvia Klook · affiliate linkThe famous oak-lined drive at Oak Alley paired with a swamp boat ride, the classic day trip out of the city.
From US$131
Book the day tripvia Klook · affiliate linkThe Quarter after dark: haunted houses, old murders and the stories the city tells about itself.
From US$17.60
Book the ghost tourvia Klook · affiliate linkWatching a parade costs nothing. Every parade on this page is free from the street: find a place on the route, arrive early on the big nights, and the floats, bands and throws come to you. No ticket is needed, and nobody needs to sell you one.
If you want a seat and a rail to catch from, paid grandstand and bleacher seating is sold along parts of the Uptown St. Charles route for the big parade days. It is sold by the stand operators and the krewes rather than by us, and each parade's page here links to that krewe's official site, which is where its seating and tickets are announced.
Some krewes hold ticketed extras once the parade ends. The best known is Endymion's Extravaganza at Caesars Superdome, where that parade finishes on Saturday 6 February. Those tickets are sold by the krewes through their official sites; start from the Krewe of Endymion event page.
The season sits inside a much bigger New Orleans calendar: Saints and Pelicans home games, club nights on Frenchmen Street, exhibitions and comedy, all running through Carnival. The full calendar carries everything in date order.
The Carnival season opens on Twelfth Night, Wednesday 6 January 2027, and Mardi Gras Day falls on Tuesday 9 February 2027. The densest run of parades is the final stretch, from Muses on Thursday 4 February to Fat Tuesday.
Yes. Every parade listed on this page is free to watch from the street. Paid grandstand and bleacher seating is sold along parts of the Uptown route for the big days, and some krewes hold ticketed balls and after-parties through their official sites.
Most of the big parades roll Uptown on the St. Charles Avenue route. The walking parades, among them Joan of Arc, Krewe du Vieux, Chewbacchus and Barkus, move through the French Quarter and the Marigny, and Endymion rolls through Mid-City to Caesars Superdome. Each parade's own page shows its route area.
Three parades carry dates their organisers have confirmed: Joan of Arc, Chewbacchus and Muses. The other 32 are expected dates taken from the official New Orleans and Company 2027 parade schedule, which notes that dates and final routes are still to be confirmed. They are labelled tentative everywhere they appear, and this page is updated as organisers confirm.
For the Uptown route, stay Uptown or in the Garden District. For the Quarter walking parades and for Endymion's finish at the Superdome, the French Quarter and the CBD are the walkable bases. Carnival is the city's busiest stretch, so book early, the final week first.
We count visits with Cloudflare Web Analytics, which sets no cookies. If analytics cookies are added later, they will only run if you accept. Your choice is stored on this device only. No personal data is sold. Privacy policy