Lafayette, Lousiana
Lafayette, Louisiana is home to what is seen as the greatest free party on earth known as Mardi Gras. The entire Carnival season runs several winter weeks in Lafayette. The celebration includes Carnival balls, parades, ancient Cajun couriers or Mardi Gras runs, and special events. Lafayette offers a traditional Louisiana Mardi Gras celebration without the huge and often rowdy New Orleans crowds. The huge party can still be quite wild, but not as outlandish as in New Orleans.
Carnival begins on Jan. 6, the Twelfth Night of Christmas, or the Epiphany, when the Three Wise Men brought gifts to the baby Jesus, two weeks before Fat Tuesday. This Carnival season continues until Mardi Gras, the Tuesday before Ash Wednesday. The final day is packed with multiple parades all around the city that go on from morning until night.