The carnival season officially started on January 6th with the Joan d’Arc parade, but the action really heats up in New Orleans on February 15th. Here is a list of the parades for 2014:

February 15th:
Krewe du Vieux rolls its naughty self through the French Quarter starting at 6pm, followed by Krewe Delusion, a satirical parade with a secret theme.

February 16:
Krewe of Perseus will roll through Slidell at 1pm with it’s 2014 theme, “It’s 5 O’Clock Somewhere!”

February 21st:
Starts at 3pm in the French Quarter with Krewe of Cork, celebrating wine, food and fun. At 6pm, head uptown for the Krewe of Oshun parade, which is family-friendly, followed by the Krewe of Cleopatra, the first all-female organization on the Uptown.

February 22nd:
The West Bank will come alive at 11:45am with the Mystic Knights of Adonis, 200 male and female riders, 16 floats and family-oriented. Move to Chalmette  by 1:00pm to catch the Knights of Nemesis, a businessman’s group, or go Uptown for a series of parades all in a row, starting with the Krewe of Pontchartrain, then the Krewe Delusion, followed by  the Krewe of Freret. Stay uptown til 6pm, when here come the Knights of Sparta, followed by Krewe of Pygmalion. Also at 6pm is the Krewe of Caesar in Metairie and the Krewe of Olympia in Covington. At 6:30 in Slidell, see the Mystic Krewe of Titans, an all-male krewe whose throws include cups with the Mystic Krewe of Titans logo, medallion beads, footballs, t-shirts, lighted tambourines, foam batons and necklaces. Finally, The Intergalactic Krewe of Chewbacchus rolls through Marigney at 8pm, with its elaborate hand-made throws and sci-fi theme.

February 23rd (Family Sunday):
Head Uptown at noon for Krewe of Carrollton, followed by Krewe of King Arthur and Merlin, AKA “New Orleans’ Friendliest Mardi Gras Krewe” and then Krewe of Alla, whose throws are generous and of a good variety. Back in Slidell at 1pm, the Krewe of Dionysis rolls with 18 floats, including 11 double-deckers. At 2pm, choose between the dog-centered Krewe of Barkus in the French Quarter with its theme “DOGZILLA – Barkus Licks the Crescent City”, or the very unique Krewe of Tchefuncte BOAT parade in Madisonville.

We’ll continue the fun on the next post with the parades from February 26 – March 3, culminating this series with the parade list for THE BIG DAY itself! Don’t forget 1896 O’Malley House when looking for Mardi Gras lodging!