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Family-Friendly Mardi Gras in “The Other Side of Louisiana”

Thursday, March 3rd, 2011

Mardi Gras and Carnival are famously celebrated in New Orleans but many communities throughout Louisiana commemorate this festive season with live zydeco music, dancing, traditional Cajun cuisine, King Cakes, and float-filled parades with beads, beads, and more beads! Located in the Northwestern corner of the state (closer to Texas than New Orleans), Shreveport-Bossier touts itself as “The Other Side of Louisiana” and offers a family-friendly Mardi Gras celebration.

Mardi Gras Krewe of Centaur Parade Float Shreveport-Bossier Louisiana
A Mardi Gras parade float at a float loading party in Shreveport-Bossier, Louisiana

Why Choose Shreveport-Bossier for Mardi Gras?
During the current economic downturn, the Shreveport-Bossier area has actually seen an increase in Mardi Gras tourism with revelers seeking more affordable accommodations, libations, and dining options than what can be found in New Orleans. While there is no shortage of grown-up beverages at the larger parades and other Carnival activities, Shreveport-Bossier provides a more family-friendly Mardi Gras, with an absence of shirts being lifted in exchange for beads plus special parade route areas designated as alcohol-free. Many families with children of all ages attend the parades together.

Mardi Gras Krewe of Centaur Parade Shreveport-Bossier Louisiana
My friend, Linda Perry of Peachhead.net, and me (right) loaded down with beads at the Krewe of Centaur Parade

History of Mardi Gras in Shreveport-Bossier
Carnival season takes place each year a dozen days post Christmas through midnight on Mardi Gras (French for Fat Tuesday), the day before the commencement of Lent on Ash Wednesday. Mardi Gras is serious business for Shreveport-Bossier residents, bringing in over $2.7 million in tourist revenue each year. The first Mardi Gras parade of this friendly metropolitan duo took place in 1927 but went on hiatus during the Great Depression. Mardi Gras festivities returned with a parade thrown by the Krewe of Gemini in 1990 and has been growing each year since.

The community’s Mardi Gras traditions are organized by 15 krewes of various sizes and specialties. The two biggest, Krewe of Gemini and Krewe of Centaur each throws its own traditional parade featuring 30 to 40 floats from which over $100 thousand worth of beads, plastic drink cups, stuffed animals, and other trinkets are tossed to hooting crowds. Krewes are run and supported on a volunteer basis, with local companies sponsoring many of the floats.

Before the parade, I chowed down on traditional Cajun cuisine (including the best gumbo I’ve ever had!) prepared by local, Lila Davison

Pay to Be IN the Parade
Even if you’re not a local you can experience the thrill of hurling colorful goodies into a crowd of leaping partiers, but it will cost you. Out-of-towners can join the Krewe of Gemini for a $140 membership fee plus the cost of the beads, for a total of $465. Along with bead-tossing privileges, you receive a pair of tickets to the Twelfth Night Party and the Krewe of Gemini Ball. Float riders are also expected to purchase and don any costumes needed to wear in the parade.

Mardi Gras Krewe of Centaur King and Queen
Krewe of Centaur Mardi Gras King and Queen posing for photos before the parade while a zydeco band plays behind them

Mardi Gras Balls & Beyond
Smaller krewes are more specialized in nature and may pay to run a float in one of the larger parades. The Krewe of Justinian’s members hail from the legal profession. The Krewe of La Femme Mystique is made up women. The Krewe of Barkus and Meoux throws a mellow, family-friendly Mardi Paws Parade each year at RiverView Park along the Red River to raise money for non-profit pet adoptions. Costumed dogs, cats, bunnies, and ponies are the stars of this parade, many of which are led by children and adult owners in matching gear.

Mardi
One of the furry stars of the Krewe of Barkus and Meoux Mardi Paws Parade

Most krewes kick off the season with a Twelfth Night Party at the start of the season. All throw a formal ball complete with appointed royalty, in feather and faux jewel-adorned regalia costing participants up to $20 thousand dollars apiece. Krewe members attend meetings (at which a little fun and alcohol is typically involved), pay dues, design and build floats (which change annually), and ride in parades.

The Krewe of Gemini Royalty Chair Mary Louise Stansell bragged that while New Orleans celebrates specifically during Mardi Gras season, the krewes of Shreveport-Bossier party year-round. A highlight of the year for her and many other krewe members is when they dress up in their Mardi Gras costumes to visit all children patients in the three local hospitals.

Get a sneak peek of the current year’s floats at the loading parties, held the night before the parades when krewes load beads and other goodies for the festivities.

Willy Wonka Costume on display at the Krewe of Gemini Mardi Gras Museum

Mardi Gras Museum of the Krewe of Gemini
If you want to learn more about the history of Mardi Gras in Shreveport-Bossier and get an up-close look at the royalty’s costumes (which change theme each year) in all their sequined and feathered glory, head to the Krewe of Gemini Mardi Gras Museum. It’s open on weekends during Carnival season and by appointment throughout the rest of the year.

King Cakes
If you will be in Louisiana during Mardi Gras season be sure to stop by a local bakery, like Julie Anne’s Bakery & Cafe, to sample a King Cake. The tradition of King Cakes started in Europe to celebrate the coming of the wise men bearing gifts to the Christ Child twelve days after Christmas (on Twelfth Night or Epiphany). Europeans hide a small ceramic king, a bean, or a coin in the cake. It is said that a year of good fortune awaits the lucky diner who gets the figure.

Mardi Gras King Cakes
What kid wouldn’t want a cookie decorated in Mardi Gras colors or a King Cake filled with a toy surprise?

In Louisiana, a tiny plastic baby Jesus is buried in the cake and the “winner” must continue the festivities by throwing the next party and purchasing the next King Cake. While traditionally the cake is a simple ring with little decoration, Louisianans liven it up with frosting topped with Mardi Gras colors of purple, green, and gold. Julie Anne’s offers 22 King Cake flavors. The most popular is Pralines & Cream filled with cinnamon, pecans, and sweet cream cheese.

King Cakes can be found in any local bakery during Mardi Gras season or ordered ahead during the rest of the year. Even if you will be visiting Louisiana off-season, order one up and laisser les bons temps roulez!

Where is your preferred Carnival destination or what is your favorite Mardi Gras tradition? Please share your thoughts in the comments below!

Family-Friendly New Orleans on a Budget

Friday, February 12th, 2010

When my family gets itchy travel feet but our budget keeps us close to home, we head over to New Orleans, Louisiana for a weekend. The drive is a short scenic three hours away so it is perfect for a mini family vacation. When we travel to New Orleans, we love to just wander around and relax. We have been making this trip with our two children (ages three and five) for several years now and have found many ways to keep a family of four entertained in New Orleans without breaking the bank.

Jennifer’s daughter, Sera, eating a beignet along the Mississippi River in New Orleans in 2009

Hotel
When we travel, hotels are one of our biggest expenses. Finding an inexpensive hotel in New Orleans is not impossible. We have booked hotel rooms as low as $59 a night and the hotel reservation even came with a free parking coupon! Staying outside or on the outskirts of the French Quarter but still within safe walking distance can help cut hotel costs. The Queen and Crescent on Camp Street is just a short 10-minute walk from many of the famous attractions in the French Quarter. The Ambassador Hotel is just a few blocks away and although the Hilton Garden Inn New Orleans Convention Center is a little further in distance the price for both of these hotels is usually reasonable and parking is often included!

Activities
Our favorite free activities include walking along the Mississippi River, watching the street performers in the French Quarter, listening to the street performers sing or perform acrobatics, and wandering through the French Market Community Flea Market. The Community Flea Market is full of booths selling everything from New Orleans souvenirs to plumeria plants. You can walk along the river to hear the calliope on the Steamboat Natchez. My children listened for about 20 minutes before we could drag them away! Spend some time in Spanish Plaza at the Riverwalk Marketplace looking at the fountain and the boats on the river.

New Orleans is full of inexpensive family-friendly activities available for less than $10 per person. Visit the Louisiana Children’s Museum where children are encouraged to explore the exhibits and participate in imaginary play. Take a ride on the St. Charles Streetcar and see Tulane and Loyola University as well as beautiful homes. Wander the paths at the New Orleans Botanical Gardens or visit the Dreams Come True art exhibition with over 600 works of art from the Disney movies including Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs, Cinderella, Sleeping Beauty and several others, at the New Orleans Museum of Art.

If your kids are fascinated with animals and sea life like mine, you could splurge on an Audubon Experience package, which includes tickets to the Audubon Zoo, Aquarium, and Insectarium. You can purchase the tickets individually but if you plan to visit all three, you save money by buying the bundled ticket.

Eating
To save money for activities, my family makes sure that we cut costs in other areas, like dining out. We carry hearty snacks like homemade granola and snack mixes with us while we are exploring. We bring sandwich fixings to make our own lunches back at the hotel room. Also, my two little ones share a meal at dinnertime. When I think of New Orleans with my family I automatically think Decatur Street, which has lots of different restaurants and shops but is more family-oriented than Bourbon Street. We head to the Crescent City Brewhouse because we can enjoy a fancier fare than a fast food restaurant and our kids have always been welcomed. Although it is a chain restaurant, we like to eat at Bubba Gump Shrimp Company because it is loud so we don’t have to worry about our kids bothering our neighbors and it is the one place where both of my children will eat!

While wandering down Decatur Street, be sure to stop by Aunt Sally’s for a praline sample. Aunt Sally’s are the best pralines I have had. They are the only pralines my daughter will eat and I have yet to duplicate the recipe at home, even though I bought a cookbook with the actual recipe!

For a scrumptious snack or breakfast, walk to Café du Monde for beignets and chocolate milk. If it is crowded, skip the wait for a table and get in the take-out line. Often, an employee will take your order before you even get to the window. When you have picked up your beignets, walk to the Mississippi River to enjoy your treat with a view.

Why New Orleans?
When most people think of New Orleans, they picture beads tossed to a rowdy crowd drinking Hurricanes. I picture my kids covered in powdered sugar from their beignets, the smiles on their faces as they dance to the calliope, and the many adventures we have exploring the town as a family. For me, New Orleans is the perfect destination for a fun, affordable getaway with the kids!

Jennifer Close loves to explore and take new adventures with her family down the street, across the country and around the world. She writes about her adventures on her family travel blog, Two Kids and a Map, and writes about exploring Pensacola at Pensacola with Kids.

What is your favorite New Orleans attraction or activity? Please leave a comment below!