New Orleans Revels as fat tuesday Brings Parades, Throws and a Midnight Walk
New Orleans marked the climax of Carnival with boisterous parades, elaborate costumes and a ceremonial midnight walk that officially closed Mardi Gras 2026. Revelers packed historic parade routes and the French Quarter for one last day of feasting, music and the hunt for coveted throws.
Streets lined early as parades rolled down St. Charles Avenue
By sunrise on Tuesday, Feb. 17, 2026, crowds were already staking out spots along St. Charles Avenue, hauling chairs, coolers and ladders to secure higher vantage points. Spectators leaned from wrought-iron balconies, yelling the familiar call, “Throw me something, Mister, ” as marching bands and massive floats passed. Costumes in the traditional Mardi Gras palette of green, gold and purple flashed beneath the winter sun — from sequined ensembles to intricate homemade creations.
Each krewe offered its own signature throws: strings of beads, doubloons, candy and stuffed animals flew into the audience. One of the most prized items, hand-decorated coconuts thrown by the Zulu krewe, glittered in the hands of lucky catchers and drew loud cheers when they changed hands along parade routes. Scenes ranged from the elegant — bejeweled Black Masking Indian suits topped with feathered headdresses — to the playful, with costumed marchers and onlookers dancing in the streets.
Good-natured revelry, local tradition and a celebrity arrest
For many longtime residents, Fat Tuesday is a ritual as much as a party. Some families walk the French Quarter to admire pageantry; others take part in regional customs such as the rural Cajun Courir de Mardi Gras, where costumed participants gather ingredients for a communal gumbo. The mood throughout the city was celebratory, with people trading stories, sharing food and choosing festive cocktails over the typical morning coffee.
The day included high-profile disruptions as well: a well-known actor was taken into custody during the festivities, an incident that added an unexpected news beat to the parade day’s stories. Despite isolated incidents, law enforcement and public safety teams maintained a visible presence to manage crowds and keep traffic flowing on the major routes.
Midnight walk signals the end of Carnival
As the clock turned, a ceremonial procession of city leaders, law enforcement and first responders led a midnight walk down Bourbon Street to formally close out the season. The walk commenced at 1: 00 AM ET on Wednesday, Feb. 18, 2026, and featured mounted officers and a line of uniformed personnel moving through the heart of the French Quarter. The gesture is a long-standing tradition intended to mark the end of Carnival and the approach of Lent.
For attendees, the midnight walk underscored the cyclical nature of the festivities: a single, exuberant day that follows weeks of parades, balls and neighborhood gatherings and then yields to the quieter season of reflection that begins with Ash Wednesday. Organizers emphasized that while Carnival draws tourists and global attention, it remains a deeply local, community-rooted celebration shaped by decades of custom and the creative spirit of New Orleanians.
As revelers packed up chairs and street vendors closed stalls in the hours after the walk, many voiced a familiar sentiment — Mardi Gras is an annual release, an intense shared experience that pulls the city together. For now, the floats are parked, the beads are counted and the city begins to fold the revelry into memory until the next Carnival season arrives.
