It’s a beloved Carnival season tradition in New Orleans — masked riders on lavish floats fling strings of beads or other trinkets to parade watchers.

Leesburg is gearing up for it’s annual Mardi Gras celebration, promising two days of lively entertainment, mouthwatering foods, and vibrant parades.

Universal Orlando Resort invites guests to experience the vibrant celebration of Universal Mardi Gras: International Flavors of Carnaval.

New Orleans’ annual Carnival celebration has entered its high-intensity home stretch with a beefed-up police presence and a weather-scrambled parade schedule.

It’s Carnival season in New Orleans and that means the morning lines outside popular bakeries are long and the pace inside is brisk to meet customer demand for king cake.

Universal Orlando is gearing up for its highly-anticipated event, Mardi Gras: International Flavors of Carnaval.

Ahead of the debut of the Seven Seas Food Festival, SeaWorld Orlando is announcing some of the fun and flavors guests can expect for its limited-time Mardi Gras celebration.

Country music singer and songwriter Elle King will not perform as part of Universal Orlando’s Mardi Gras concert lineup.

Universal Orlando Resort invites guests to experience the vibrant celebration of Universal Mardi Gras: International Flavors of Carnaval.

Busch Gardens Tampa Bay is preparing to usher in its Mardi Gras season.

Universal Orlando Resort announced Thursday that its Mardi Gras Float Ride and Dine Experience will return to its vibrant celebration, Universal Mardi Gras: International Flavors of Carnaval.

Universal Studios Florida is gearing up to welcome back its celebration of international flair with Universal Mardi Gras: International Flavors of Carnaval.

The New Orleans police chief says a teenager died and four other people were wounded — including a 4-year-old girl — when gunfire broke out during a Mardi Gras parade Sunday night.

SeaWorld Orlando is ready to let the good times roll with its Mardi Gras celebration.

COVID-19 precautions wiped out most New Orleans’ Mardi Gras festivities in 2021, and a shortage of police officers forced the city to shorten routes for some of its lavish seasonal parades in 2022.

If you’re looking to celebrate Mardi Gras within the Central Florida area, you might find the life of the party in Leesburg.

Mardi Gras festivities are making their way back to Universal Orlando Resort.

Universal Orlando is ready to step up its Mardi Gras celebration with an incredible new offering.

Universal Orlando announced the dates for its 2023 Mardi Gras: International Flavors of Carnaval.

Ten months after Hurricane Ida damaged a museum celebrating New Orleans' African American parading culture, the Backstreet Cultural Museum is reopening.

Crew members on the Carnival Mardi Gras cruise ship spotted a small vessel in distress near Cuba Friday morning and took aboard the stranded people who were inside it, according to a news release.

Party-minded people dressed in traditional purple, green and gold filled New Orleans' streets for the city's first full-dress Mardi Gras since the coronavirus pandemic began.

If you're looking to celebrate Mardi Gras the Louisiana way, here are some recipes for you try!

There’s no need to travel to New Orleans when the Mardi Gras party is making its way to Central Florida.

Complete guide to Mardi Gras 2022 at Universal Orlando

Universal Orlando opened the doors to its newest Mardi Gras tribute store Thursday.

Fun Spot America is preparing to let the good times roll during its Mardi Gras festival.

If you really want to feel your 2022 Universal Studios Mardi Gras is set in New Orleans, you should make stops at the restaurants and kiosks.

Universal Orlando Resort unveiled the façade for the all-new Mardi Gras Tribute Store.

Universal Orlando has now announced a number of new details for this year’s Mardi Gras festival.

Busch Gardens Tampa Bay has started its Mardi Gras celebration.

Parade-loving New Orleans is getting its groove back.

Universal Studios announced dates for its 2022 Mardi Gras celebration on Tuesday.

Carnival's Mardi Gras returned one week after the first cruise ship with paying passengers on board departed from Port Canaveral.

Carnival Cruise Line’s Mardi Gras will be setting sail on its maiden voyage from Port Canaveral.

Carnival Cruise Line plans to resume sailing from Port Canaveral on July 31, with its new ship, the Mardi Gras, beginning seven-night cruises to the eastern and western Caribbean.

Everything you need to know about Carnival Mardi Gras' arrival to Port Canaveral.

Carnival Cruise Line's newest and largest ship, the Mardi Gras, will be arriving at Port Canaveral on June 4, in preparation for its first sailing with passengers.

People in a mostly maskless crowd walk down Ocean Drive in Miami Beach, Florida's famed South Beach, Monday, March 22, 2021. A party-ending curfew is in effect in Miami Beach, imposed after fights, gunfire, property destruction and dangerous stampedes broke out among huge crowds of people. (AP Photo/Wilfredo Lee)MIAMI BEACH, Fla. – Florida’s famed South Beach is desperately seeking a new image. Ad“We definitely want people to come and have fun," Miami Beach Commissioner Ricky Arriola said Monday. Miami Beach took less proactive measures under Republican Gov.

ORLANDO, Fla – Universal Orlando’s Mardi Gras celebration is well underway across the entire resort. If you’re looking for a bit of fun during your next visit, grab your pirate crew and join in on the Krewe Crawl Scavenger Hunt. Once you spot the skeletons, simply ask a team member inside the gift shop to stamp your scavenger hunt map. In the fall, the theme park offered a Scarecrow Stalk scavenger hunt and during the holidays there was a Christmas Tree Crawl. Click here to learn more about Universal Orlando’s Mardi Gras 2021: International Flavors of Carnaval.

PORT CANAVERAL, Fla. – Port Canaveral welcomed a new tug and barge system this week that will provide a cleaner burning fuel source for cruise ships including Carnival’s Mardi Gras scheduled to set sail later this year from Florida. The Port will become the first in the U.S. to become a liquified natural gas, or LNG, cruise port. With the fueling system, Mardi Gras can sail for two weeks between refueling. Port Canaveral Chief Financial Officer Michael Poole is projecting $32.59 million in operating revenue and a $43.12 million loss for the port in the current budget year that ends Sept. 30, reports Florida Today. “There is unanimous and overwhelming support for Port Canaveral,” Diane Luensmann of Port Canaveral Communications told Port commissioners Wednesday.

IHOP is canceling its National Pancake Day celebration or at least altering it. In years past, the restaurant chain has given away free flapjacks on Fat Tuesday, also known as Mardi Gras. AdMembers of IHOP’s email club will see an IOU for the free hot cakes hit their inboxes. IHOP National Pancake Day (Copyright 2020 by CNN Newsource - All rights reserved.) Customers not on that list can download a coupon on the company’s website but that version of the deal requires a $10 minimum purchase.

Tourists from Brooklyn take photos on a nearly deserted Bourbon Street during Mardi Gras in the French Quarter of New Orleans, Tuesday, Feb. 16, 2021. “We were expecting a little bit lower key than the normal Mardi Gras,” Wheeler said. Coronavirus-related restrictions in New Orleans included canceled parades, closed bars and a near shutdown of rowdy Bourbon Street. That, and unusually frigid weather, prevented what New Orleans usually craves at the end of Mardi Gras season: streets and businesses jam-packed with revelers. To the east, Mobile, Alabama, which boasts the nation's oldest Mardi Gras celebrations, had also canceled parades.

Something else that sticks out this year is the Mardi Gras Tribute Store. Universal Orlando Tribute Store. AdMaps inside the Universal Orlando Tribute Store (McReynolds)The hallway escorts guests into the pirate’s waterfront warehouse. Universal Orlando Tribute Store (Universal Orlando)The Tribute Store ends with a tour of the Bayou. Food inside the Universal Orlando Tribute Store (McReynolds)Another popular favorite for children and adults alike are the shipwrecked sour gummy pirate skulls, which move when they’re displayed.

Fun Spot America is beginning its first-ever Mardi Gras festival. All the new fun is joining alongside Fun Spot America’s attractions and games inside the parks. Mardi Gras Festival Apples (Fun Spot America)Officials said every Saturday in both parks, children 12 and under are welcome to line the park for its Children’s Mardi Gras Parade. Fun Spot America Mardi Gras photo ops (Fun Spot America)The escape room will be open on weekends, but officials said it could open on select weekdays through April 11. Fun Spot America is committed to the health and safety of its guests.

ORLANDO, Fla – Universal Orlando Resort is set to begin its upcoming Mardi Gras 2021: International Flavors of Carnaval on Feb. 6. AdSome flavors include dishes from Puerto Rico, Trinidad and Tobago, Cuba, Italy, France, Germany, Spain and other regions including the home of Mardi Gras, New Orleans. Members of Universal’s culinary team said they’re bringing the Mardi Gras savory delights to select menus at Universal CityWalk and Universal Orlando resort hotels. Full Screen Full Screen 1 / 17 Mardi Gras Food and Beverage OfferingsClick here to see the menu of food options available. Passholders can also pick-up a free Mardi Gras themed magnet and button at the passholder lounge from 11 a.m. to 4 p.m. during operating hours.

Bolt is set to debut on board the Carnival Mardi Gras in 2020. Carnival Cruise Line on Wednesday said it is extending its halt to cruises from Port Canaveral and other U.S. ports through March, as it aims to meet Centers for Disease Control and Prevention requirements for resuming cruises. Port Canaveral has not had multiday cruises since March 2020 because of the coronavirus pandemic, reports News 6 partner Florida Today. The Carnival Mardi Gras — the cruise line’s newest and largest ship — is scheduled to begin sailing out of Port Canaveral on April 24, offering seven-night cruises to the Caribbean. Pre-pandemic, the Mardi Gras had been scheduled to start sailing from Port Canaveral in October.

TAMPA, Fla – Busch Gardens Tampa Bay shared new details Monday about its upcoming Mardi Gras celebration which kicks off on Jan. 16. (Busch Gardens Tampa Bay)Event organizers said some of the food available include a signature shrimp po’ boy, hearty jambalaya, shrimp and grits, voodoo coffee and hot and fresh beignets. Guests will also get the chance to try a number of new Mardi Gras inspired cocktails including hurricane drinks. Busch Gardens Tampa Bay Mardi Gras (Busch Gardens Tampa Bay)The Busch Gardens team has consulted with medical experts to offer modified events with required reservations and limited capacity for safe celebrations. The Mardi Gras celebration runs through Feb. 16.

Cruise Terminal 3, the largest-ever construction project at Port Canaveral is set to be completed in May. (Image: Port Canaveral)Port Canaveral’s new $155 million Cruise Terminal 3 is all dressed up and ready for visitors. ‘Ready to go’Cruise Terminal 3, the largest-ever construction project at Port Canaveral is set to be completed in May. (Image: Port Canaveral)Cruise Terminal 3 “is really a spectacular facility,” Port Canaveral Chief Executive Officer John Murray said during his recent State of the Port presentation. Cruise passengers will be able to use E-Pass prepaid accounts to pay for their parking fees in the Cruise Terminal 3 garage.

CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. – Carnival Cruise Line announced it has canceled sailings from Port Canaveral, Miami and Galveston through February due to the coronavirus. The company also said it will delay the inaugural sailing of Mardi Gras until April 24. The new ship will sail from Port Canaveral and includes a roller coaster on board. “As we implement our plans for the resumption of cruising in 2021, we have canceled select itineraries for specific operations including cruises in February in Miami, Port Canaveral and Galveston,” Carnival Cruise Line said in a statement.

PORT CANAVERAL, Fla. – If you were hoping to take to the waves on one brand new cruise ship come fall, you’ll have to wait just a bit longer. Carnival Cruises is pushing back the debut of its Mardis Gras ship to Feb. 6, 2021. [RELATED: Carnival names new mega ship | Everything you need to know about Mardi Gras cruise ship]Once the 180,000-ton Mardis Gras is sea-ready, the ship, featuring the first roller coaster at sea, will have a maximum capacity of 6,500 passengers and about 2,000 crew members. Last year, Florida Today reported that Port Canaveral was building a two-story, 188,000-square-foot cruise terminal and 1,000-space parking garage that will be used by the Mardi Gras. It is part of the port’s largest single construction project in its 65-year history — the $163 million Cruise Terminal 3 complex.

ORLANDO, Fla. – Six new cruise ships will be calling Florida home in 2020. The Orlando Sentinel reports that the largest ship ever built for Carnival Cruise Line will have its debut at Port Canaveral. The Mardi Gras will have the first ever roller coaster at sea, and it will be the first cruise ship in North America to run on liquefied natural gas, a cleaner-burning fuel. Richard Branson's Virgin Voyages line will begin sailing ships from Miami in March with the debut of the adults-only Scarlet Lady. Florida also will see the debut of the new Regent Seven Seas Splendor, Celebrity Apex and Enchanted Princess ships.