When is Mardi Gras 2027?

Fat Tuesday is 9 February 2027. The five days people travel for run from Friday 5 February.

Why do the dates move each year?

Mardi Gras is the day before Ash Wednesday, 47 days before Easter. Easter 2027 is 28 March, so Carnival ends on 9 February.

Is the French Quarter the right place to stay?

Not for the parades — they do not roll through the Quarter. Uptown and the Garden District put you on the route; the Quarter puts you in the party afterwards.

No. The parades are free and public. The only tickets are for krewe balls and for balcony or grandstand seats along the route.

Four at least: Friday to Wednesday. Arriving on Saturday means crossing a city that has already closed its main streets.

Mardi Gras 2027

Name: Mardi Gras 2027
Start: 2027-02-05
End: 2027-02-09
Location: St Charles Avenue parade route

New Orleans, United States

5–9 Feb 2027

Confirmed by organizer

Mardi Gras is not announced, it is calculated: Fat Tuesday falls 47 days before Easter, and Easter 2027 is 28 March, which puts Mardi Gras on 9 February 2027.

97days to go

Hotels for these dates

Right Weekend earns a commission when you book through links on this page. It never affects which days or districts we recommend.

Our verdict

Go: Friday to Tuesday, with Endymion on the Saturday and Bacchus on the Sunday
Stay: Garden District & Uptown
Book by: August 2026 — the French Quarter goes more than six months out

Carnival runs for weeks, but the part people fly in for is the last five days. Uptown and the Garden District put you on the route where families watch; the French Quarter puts you where the parades do not actually go.

Illustration: a night carnival parade on a southern avenue, lit floats under live oaks, crowds with arms raised, warm artificial light — Illustration — a generated image of the kind of scene, not a photograph of the venue.

Which days to go

Day	What happens	Hotel price	Our call
FridayFri 5 Feb	Krewe parades roll uptown through the evening; the city fills overnight	×2.2	Arrive today, not tomorrow — Saturday's traffic is the worst of the five days
SaturdaySat 6 Feb	Endymion, the biggest of the super-krewes, rolls through Mid-City	×3	The single busiest night; pick your spot hours early or watch from a balcony
SundaySun 7 Feb	Bacchus rolls uptown in the evening, after a full day of parades	×3	The best day for a first-timer — parades all day, and a route you can move along
Lundi GrasMon 8 Feb	Proteus and Orpheus in the evening; the quietest afternoon of the weekend	×2.6	Use the daytime for the city itself; everything else is closed on Tuesday
Mardi GrasTue 9 Feb	Zulu and Rex from the morning, and the whole city in costume until midnight	×3	Stay the Tuesday night; nothing moves out of New Orleans that evening

Hotel price is what the same hotel costs on these dates against its rate four weeks before the event. Crowd and price are our estimates from how the event has run, not live rates.

Where to stay

St Charles Avenue parade routeNorth is up. Numbers match the table.A number too close to read sits beside its dot, on a thin line.

#	District	To the venue	Price	What it is
1	French Quarter	15 min walk	$$$$	Walk everywhere, sleep through nothing; the most expensive beds of the year
2	Garden District & Uptown	10 min walk	$$$	The parade route runs past the door, and families claim the neutral ground at dawn
3	CBD & Warehouse District	15 min walk	$$$	The big hotels between the Quarter and the route; the practical choice
4	Mid-City	25 min tram	$$	Where the parades line up; residential, cheaper, and on the streetcar
5	Metairie & the airport	40 min drive	$$	Suburban chains with parking, for when the city is gone

Hotel	What it is	Book
French Quarter
Hotel Monteleone	The Quarter's landmark hotel, booked a year out for Carnival	Booking Expedia
Garden District & Uptown
The Pontchartrain Hotel	On St Charles Avenue, which means the parade passes the front door	Booking Expedia
CBD & Warehouse District
Ace Hotel New Orleans	Between the Quarter and the route, with a roof to retreat to	Booking Expedia
The Eliza Jane	Warehouse District, walkable to everything and quieter at 3am	Booking Expedia
Mid-City
Hotel Indigo New Orleans Garden District	On the streetcar, and priced for people who plan early	Booking Expedia

When to book

9 mo beforeMay 2026
French Quarter hotels and balcony rentals on the route
Already gone
6 mo beforeAugust 2026
The Garden District, Uptown short-lets and the CBD hotels
Already gone
3 mo beforeNovember 2026
Mid-City and anything on the streetcar line
1 mo beforeJanuary 2027
The city altogether; Metairie and the airport strip are what is left

Getting there

Louis Armstrong airport is thirty minutes from the centre, and the flights in on the Friday before Mardi Gras are the most expensive of the year into New Orleans.

Once you are in the city, walk or take the St Charles streetcar. Parade routes close the main avenues for hours at a time and no rideshare will cross them — if your hotel is on the wrong side of a parade, you are not getting there.

Everything shuts on Mardi Gras itself: shops, offices and most restaurants. Plan the day around the parades, not around meals.

Flights to MSY Trains and buses

Tickets

Parade schedule, krewe by krewe (neworleans.com)Official

Questions

When is Mardi Gras 2027?: Fat Tuesday is 9 February 2027. The five days people travel for run from Friday 5 February.
Why do the dates move each year?: Mardi Gras is the day before Ash Wednesday, 47 days before Easter. Easter 2027 is 28 March, so Carnival ends on 9 February.
Is the French Quarter the right place to stay?: Not for the parades — they do not roll through the Quarter. Uptown and the Garden District put you on the route; the Quarter puts you in the party afterwards.
Do I need tickets?: No. The parades are free and public. The only tickets are for krewe balls and for balcony or grandstand seats along the route.
How many nights?: Four at least: Friday to Wednesday. Arriving on Saturday means crossing a city that has already closed its main streets.

Updated 2026-10-29 ·See every event in 2027