
Louisiana might get all the attention when it comes to rowdy Mardi Gras Celebrations in the US. But here in Houston, you can go all out for the massive Galveston Mardi Gras festival. Every year for over a century, Mardi Gras! Galveston turns the town green, purple, and yellow – providing amped up entertainment, innumerable parades, family events, and all the beads under the sun!
From February 21 – March 4, Mardi Gras! Galveston 2025 will takeover the town with a non-stop carnival celebration as the third largest Mardi Gras festival in the country, expecting a draw of over 350,000 attendees.
Events will start at 5 pm on Friday, February 21 with Party Gras! a brass-band led procession from The Press Box on 24th and Postoffice to its end at The Tremont House, where the George P. Mitchell Mardi Gras Award and Newe Krewe Award Presentations will commence.
Also scheduled for the first day of festivities are the George P. Michell Mardi Gras Award Honoree Parade (7 pm), World Record-breaking The Funky Uptown Umbrella Brigade (8:30 pm), and Mardi Gras! Galveston Parade (10 pm) to top it all off. This is all just the first day.
A kaleidoscopic mix of parades will ensue over the course of two weeks. Mardi Gras! Galveston will also see a variety of special events including a Jolly Jester Jaunt 5k – in which participants earn some sweet perks – on Saturday, February 22; Mystic Krewe of Aquarius Parade starting at the Seawall at noon; the 14th Annual Zaniest Golf Cart Parade (1 pm); Krewe d’iHeart Media Art Car & Jeep Parade (3 pm); Krewe of Gambrinus super parade (6 pm).
On Sunday, February 23, Fiesta Gras! Parade will celebrate Hispanic heritage with marching bands, floats, beads, and walking groups. At 4 pm, the Los Locos Vaqueros, Jeeps, & Golf Carts Parade ill get loco with Mariachi Bands, more beads, Mardi Gras merch, and candy.
For the kiddos, the festival will also feature a variety of family-oriented events that include a coloring contest, as well as Shriners Children’s Texas & Sunshine Kids Parade on Sunday, March 2.
Mardi Gras Galveston will also stage a number of live concert performances. Concerts will kick off Friday, February 21 with performances from Platinum Players, Brandon McDermott, and The Line Up. Bret Michaels, Hayden Baker, Mambo Jazz Kings, Vegas Stars, and Asterium, will all perform on February 22.
Other performers at the Mardi Gras Galveston festival 2025 include Cameron Sacky Band, Kevin Fowler, Cale and 45s, OGRE, Ghost Bridge, and Steph Cash.
Tickets for the Galveston Mardi Gras festival range in prices and are available by the day or in weekend packages. For more details, visit their ticketing information here.