What kid wouldn't love Mardi Gras?

The festival seems like it was made for children, with floats derived from the depths of the most ingenious imaginations, costumes and masks that express an unending creativity, bold colors and joyous music abounding throughout the city. And, most importantly, the beads, doubloons and other treats thrown to the crowds from the floats are a child's delight.

There's no need to hesitate – Mardi Gras is a fine family event. Uptown is the best location for families to use as their base during Mardi Gras. While there is no lack of excitement, the location is calmer than the celebrations held in the downtown area. St. Charles Avenue is a great spot for families to settle before the parades begin. St. Charles Avenue becomes one long block party as families set up elaborate camps with picnics and barbeques.

Families gravitate day and night to the tree lined neutral ground where the streetcars are replaced by children on ladders fashioned into sturdy high chairs designed for catching the beads thrown from floats.

The Sunday before Mardi Gras is particularly family oriented, with Thoth parading down Magazine Street and Bacchus rolling later in the afternoon.

The Krewe of Barkus is a delightful dog parade that rolls the Sunday prior to Thoth. It begins in Congo Square and parades through the French Quarter and is remarkable fun for children of any age.

On Fat Tuesday, visitors are encouraged to join the local tradition of masking. Zulu, an African American parade, leads the long day of parades on Fat Tuesday, Mardi Gras itself. Children scramble for the much desired coconuts handed down by float riders. For a closer look at African American Mardi Gras experiences, North Claiborne and Orleans Avenue is the place to be.

Before Zulu rolls, see the Mardi Gras Indians and pick up some of the best soul and Creole food in the city.

Rex is always a beautiful parade with elegantly designed floats. After Rex come hours of giant truck floats, each designed by different extended families or neighborhood friends. The trucks blow their horns while recorded and live music blasts from the usually comically themed floats.

While in town for the parade, don't forget the many other educational and cultural opportunities available for families in the New Orleans. The Mardi Gras exhibit at the Louisiana State Museum is a great way to teach children about the celebration's history and traditions. The masks, gowns and costumes on display are sure to catch their attention and imagination. The aquarium, zoo and children's museum are just a few of the other family-friendly attractions awaiting you in the city.

Blaine Kern's Mardi Gras World (233 Newton Street, across the Mississippi River in Algiers; 361-7821), open daily from 9:30 am to 4:30 pm, is a great way to catch a glimpse of the behind-the-scenes production of New Orleans' biggest party: Mardi Gras. Make a day out of it by taking the Algiers Ferry across the Mississippi River and picking up the free shuttle at the terminal from 9:30 am to 4:30 pm. Children will delight in the tour of oversized paper maché floats and elaborate costumes. Free king cake and coffee is served along with a documentary showing the history of Mardi Gras.

To learn more about African American Mardi Gras and parading traditions, a visit to Sylvester Francis' Backstreet Cultural Museum (1116 St. Claude Avenue; 522-4806) is in store. Located just outside the French Quarter, in the historic district of Tremé, the Backstreet Cultural Museum is a place where Mardi Gras Indians and Social and Pleasure Clubs' second-line parades are celebrated and the traditions preserved.

Take a museum tour, sign up for an educational workshop, or if you are lucky, catch a live performance by an Indian tribe or neighborhood brass band. Call ahead to make sure the museum is open since its hours vary.

Always falling 47 days before Easter, future dates for Mardi Gras are:

February 5, 2008; February 24, 2009

February 16, 2010 and March 8, 2011. 

This material may be reproduced for editorial purposes of promoting New Orleans. Please attribute stories to New Orleans Metropolitan Convention and Visitors Bureau. Fall 2004.