Mardi Gras in New Orleans

When you think of Mardi Gras, you may not think “kid-friendly” but you would be wrong. We took our kids to New Orleans for Mardi Gras for the first time in 2024 and found the crowds to be full of families with grandparents, kids, teens and babies all in the mix. We hung out and chatted with the people around us and didn’t see one person flash for beads. Those days seem to be be long gone - or maybe relegated to the area around Bourbon Street, we didn’t venture over there.

When we asked out kids if there were any trips they’d like to repeat, Mardi Gras was at the very top of their list! I think they do appreciate the beauty of the city and enjoy the amazing food but what really drew them in was all of the “throws” tossed from the floats.

It’s not just limited to beads! The people riding on the floats toss all kinds of small items including socks, hats, small plushies, toys, balls, moon pies, chips, etc. It reminds me of a birthday party favor bag but much better and much bigger. And we all know how kids love favor bags!

This year, Mardi Gras fell on Presidents’ Day weekend and the kids had four days off. When we saw that we had a four-day weekend for Mardi Gras, we knew we had to go back!

The Flights

We booked our flights with Southwest as soon as the dates became available. We used 24.5k points per ticket to fly from Austin to New Orleans and 27.5k points to fly back to Austin or 52k points per round trip ticket. Since my husband and I each have a companion pass, the kids got their tickets for free - so this meant, that we paid 26k points per person. The cash rate for these flights was $650 each so we would have been out of pocket $1,352 for the four of us. Not something we would have paid for a weekend getaway!

This was our first time flying on Southwest since the new assigned seats went into place. We were able to select preferred seating for everyone in our party thanks to holding the correct credit card but we weren’t sure how boarding might work. Since moving to assigned seats, Southwest has instituted “boarding groups” where those who book a Choice Preferred or Choice Extra fare, earn it through airline status, hold the correct credit card or just pay for early boarding, board in earlier groups. This means, they get first dibs on the overhead bin space.

I’d read some horror stories of people not having bin space to store their carry-ons due to two reasons.

There are many more people taking carry-on luggage onto the plane as a result of the new paid checked baggage fee. In order to avoid the fee more people are opting for a carry-on and passing on checked baggage - and those carry-ons are growing larger. On fully booked flights it can be a struggle for everyone to secure bin space so Southwest will allow people to check a carry on at the gate for free (this will be announced during pre-boarding) and we saw several people take advantage of this offer. We also saw a few people who clearly planned on checking luggage at the gate (one with an oversized carry-on and one with an extra carry-on) which would allow them to avoid paying the checked baggage fee. For those of us with the correct credit cards, we enjoy one free checked bag on all flights but if you’ve been accustomed to free checked luggage and now have to pay, I could see how this workaround could be tempting. Unfortunately, if you check a bag at the gate, Southwest assumes that’s one less bag in the overhead bin space which may not be true if you’re one of those people who brought two bags with plans to check one at the gate.

The second issue reported with bin space and the new boarding policy, is people who are boarding first and are seated in the back of the plan but are opting to store their carry-on in the front of the plane. I understand that this makes it easier for them as they do not have to carry their luggage down a long aisle but it creates havoc for those seated in the front of the plane! Imagine sitting in one of the first few rows but having to store your carry-on towards the back of the plane. When it’s time to deboard, you would have to fight your way down the aisle to your luggage or wait for everyone else to get off of the plane. What a nightmare! Fortunately, the flight attendants on our flight were attuned to this issue and kept the bins closed if people were not boarding in that section or reminded passengers where it was ok to store their carry-on in relation to their seat. We experiences no issues with overhead space and all went smoothly.

The Hotel

We booked The Eliza Jane boutique hotel by transferring our Chase points over to Hyatt. We used 89k points for four nights (20k on Thursday and 23k per night for Friday - Monday). The cash rates were averaging $800 per night due to Mardi Gras so the total for this say would have been close to $3,320 after factoring in the daily $30 waived destination fee.

We were also fortunate to be able to apply a Guest of Honor Certificate to our reservation which allowed us to enjoy daily complimentary breakfast at Couvant, the lovely restaurant located just off of the lobby. While the Guest of Honor Certificate typically allows guests to order anything off of the menu with a $60 per person cap, The Eliza Jane offered only “The Eliza Jane Breakfast” along with coffee or juice.

The breakfast included “Two Eggs Any Style, Bacon, Seeded Wheat Toast and Choice of Rosemary Garlic Potatoes or Stone-Ground Grits”. It was hearty and delicious but I would have preferred the option to try other items from their menu. The included breakfast saved us an additional $100 per day or $400 for the trip.

We chose The Eliza Jane due to it’s perfect location. Located on Magazine Street, we were an easy 5 minute walk to the parades, a 13 minute walk to Jackson Square, a 12 minute walk to the World War II museum and surrounded by great restaurants. We were also able to book a room with two queen beds to sleep our entire family and the hotel itself is beautiful - it would be easy to spend hours enjoying the outdoor courtyard, The Press Room bar/lounge and dining at Couvant. We were very happy to have The Eliza Jane as our base.

The Food

Since we cover the flight and hotel with points, usually our largest out of pocket expense on a trip is food. This trip had the extra challenge of being at the parades all day which meant we couldn’t leave our spot for lunch. So what to do?

We decided to pack a small cooler in our carry-on to take with us to the parades. We visited a local grocery store (within easy walking distance of the hotel) and loaded up on healthy snack food that would fill us up. Think apples, carrots, cheese sticks, salami and crackers, granola bars, etc. We also got a variety of drinks to enjoy throughout the day. Our hotel had a mini-fridge to keep everything cold and each morning we loaded the cooler with drinks, snacks and ice from the dispenser down the hall. Once we were set up at the parades, if anyone felt hungry or thirsty, they could help themselves!

On Friday and Sunday I did walk to a local restaurant to pickup po-boy sandwiches for everyone (shrimp and oyster) which were delicious! There was a restaurant called Daisy Dukes Cafe that was fairly close to where we were set up that accepted online orders so I ordered our sandwiches to-go, walked over to pickup and brought them back to our spot. This worked out perfectly! There were also food trucks available serving burgers, hot dogs, funnel cake etc.

We only ate out twice - on Thursday when we arrived and on Saturday when we left the parades early to eat. Saturday night can get a bit raucous (not our vibe) whereas Sunday is chill so we took the opportunity to enjoy dinner on Saturday.

On Thursday, our flight landed at 4:20 so we made a 7:30 reservation at Coterie. Coterie is a Resy restaurant which means it qualifies for the $50 semi-annual dining credit on the American Express Gold card. This 4.2 star local restaurant is positioned on the edge of the French Quarter and a five minute walk from The Eliza Jane. Known for their oysters and authentic New Orleans dishes, we ordered the oyster po-boy and the “Taste of New Orleans” which included red beans & rice, jambalaya and gumbo. Yum! They also have a kid’s menu which kept everyone at our table happy.

Saturday was also Valentine’s Day and reservations were hard to come by! I wanted to use the $150 Open Tables credit that comes with the Chase Sapphire Reserve so we booked a table at The Bower. It was a 20 minute walk from our hotel but with traffic at a stop due to the parades, we were happy to make the trek. Featuring locally-sourced ingredients and Italian dishes, this upscale but comfortable restaurant was exactly what we needed. The kids ordered chicken parmesan and the adults enjoyed lobster cannelloni and gulf shrimp. We left full and happy!

The Parades

New Orleans definitely has a reputation for Mardi Gras and it’s not a reputation that sounds like a great family destination. This was our second time attending Mardi Gras and that reputation couldn’t be more wrong!

We saw nothing inappropriate and were surrounded by families full of kids, grandparents and even a few babies. The kids in Louisiana get the entire week off for Mardi Gras so many families attend the parades and the atmosphere is wonderful! The French Quarter is more geared to adults and it can get raucous in the late evening but that’s to be expected and we’re typically in bed by then, anyway.

To attend the parades like a local (and be comfortable for the day!) we took two packable chairs and two collapsable stools. Chairs of some type are critical to enjoying your time at the parades because you need to get a spot well before the parades begin and they also help to delineate your “spot”. Once you have your space established, people are very good about respecting it so it’s important to arrive early and get a good spot. Once you’re set up, you can “camp out” there for the day and, other than a random teenager wandering through, you should not have much problem maintaining your little area.

We took two collapsible stools which were nice for sitting on but, had we ended up at the back of the crowd, the kids could have stood on them to get a good view. These stools fold down pretty flat so they’re easy to carry in a backpack or just sling over your arm.

We also took two camping chairs that fold down into a small bag but, when assembled, they’re a nice size and very comfortable. We got ours at Costco but they have similar ones (linked above) on Amazon. We all wanted to sit in these (versus the stools) and the size and high backs really helped to establish our space in the crowd. I am so happy we had these with us! I like the option of standing on the stools, if needed, but otherwise, I’d opt for four chairs.

In addition to the chairs, we had our small cooler with drinks and snacks (see above). Our cooler is similar to this one and it worked well but next time I might opt for a backpack cooler so that it would be easier to carry. And then we just had our two backpack carry-ons with extra snacks, layers and personal items.

The Eliza Jane is a 5 minute walk to the area we like best for watching the parades. The parade route runs along Saint Charles Ave. (the highlighted area on the map). The street directly in front of the park is blocked with bandstands but the two intersections are available for people to set up their chairs. We prefer the intersection with S. Maestri but both intersections are great locations.

Both edges of the park include a bank of (cleaned daily!) porta potties so the bathroom is never an issue. And between parades, the kids like to go to the park to run, throw the football and play. There are also a few food trucks nearby and a couple of restaurants within walking distance selling to-go food during the parades (see above for the restaurant we frequented).

To make sure we got a front row spot, we got to the parades early. On Friday, the parades started at 5:30pm so we got there around 3:00 and got our preferred spot. On Saturday, the parades started at 11:30 so we arrived at 9:30 and we were way too late! We ended up about four rows back but our stools helped us see (and catch!) all of the Mardi Gras fun. On Sunday, we wanted the best spot, so with the parades starting at 11:30, we decided to get there at 7:00 - early but totally worth it!

We got a spot on the rails in front nestled into a corner. The front row provides the best view and the kids catch the most goodies so this is the spot to get, if you can. We adults walked down in the morning to set up while we let the kids sleep in.

Dad stayed in our spot while I walked back to the hotel and got the kids ready for the day. We ate breakfast in the restaurant and took Dad a breakfast to go. If you’re willing to get up early, this is the best possible plan and one we’ll be doing every morning the next time we attend!

If you want to avoid the chairs, getting up early and the closeness of people, you can also purchase a ticket in the stands. This is bleacher seating - visible across the street and to the right in the photo above. Tickets are sold per parade with 3-4 parades passing by in the day. The earlier parades were selling for about $30 per seat while the later, more desirable parades were about $90 per person. Tickets can be purchased in advance or, if available, at the door.

Once you’re set up, you can relax and enjoy the show! We chatted with neighbors when there were no parades and enjoyed the music being played for the crowds. The kids would also set up football games in the street in front of us and play with all of the other kids in the area! When a parade was running, we waved, shouted and caught WAY TOO MUCH stuff! In addition to the classic beads, floats also throw clothing branded with the krew name or logo (shirts, socks, hats and capes), stuffies, cups, koozies, sunglasses and lot of light up gear including balls, wings, headbands, wands, wigs, funny hats, gloves and more! The kids had so much fun catching throws and playing with or wearing what they caught and we came home with plenty of stuff for our Halloween box. One krew was even themed around kitchen items so we caught salad spoons, tongs, a scrubber and a trivet! Fortunately, they also throw bags so we had somewhere to put all of our goodies.

World War II Museum

On our departure day, our flight left at 4:30 so we had some time on our hands. I have Explorist status with Hyatt so I asked for and received a 3:00 checkout. We decided to use our time to visit the National World War II Museum.

We have two history buffs in our family and the museum gets fantastic reviews so we decided to check it out. Only a 12 minute walk from our hotel it was quick and easy to get there. We purchased General Admission at the door and received a discount due to my husband’s veteran status and the kids qualified for the child (K-12th Grade) tickets - so we paid $26 per person.

We had about 1.5 hours in the museum before we needed to leave for our flight and it was not nearly long enough! I’m not particularly interested in the topic of World War II but I could have spent all day in this museum. It is extremely well done, engaging and informative. We had to drag ourselves out to make our flight on time and we’d all like to go back for a longer visit.

The Savings Breakdown

By leveraging points for our New Orleans Mardi Gras trip, we saved the following:

Four Round-Trip Flights - $1,352
4 Nights at The Eliza Jane - $3,320
Complimentary Breakfast for 4 Days - $400
Restaurant Credits - $200
Waived Checked Bag Fees - $140
Lyft Credit - $10

These savings total out to $5,422 and all of them are due to holding and correctly applying the benefits from our credit cards. Out out of pocket expenses for this trip including Lyft rides (to and from the airport), food and museum tickets were $804. That means we spent $50 per person for each day of our trip which was absolutely well worth it!

The total value of this trip was just under $6,226 - an amount that we never would have spent on a long weekend but, with the help of points, an experience that fit comfortably into our budget!