Parades

The parades are the public part of Carnival that most people associate with Mardi Gras. Most parade routes are three to five miles long. There are at least seventy-eight Mardi Gras parades in Louisiana, but the largest are in the city of New Orleans.

	Rex is known as the "King of Carnival" because his krewe is the main parade on Mardi Gras Day. They also decided the colors of Mardi Gras and introduced many other customs that are now very important to Mardi Gras.
	Comus was the first Mardi Gras parade in New Orleans. The parade no longer rolls but still holds balls and meets Rex on Mardi Gras night.
	Bacchus introduced the concept of super krewes which allows any men to ride if they pay the cost. Celebrity guests ride as the king instead of a local businessman and entertain guests after the parade instead of having a ball.
	Zulu is the main African-American krewe and parades on Mardi Gras Day. The krewe was the first to feature a celebrity monarch, Louis Armstrong.
	Endymion was introduced to the parade scene after Bacchus was founded and copied many of Bacchus' traditions. Endymion now has the largest membership of any parade and has the longest float as well.
	Orpheus was founded by Harry Connick Jr. and is also a super krewe. Orpheus is different because women can ride and is considered by the captain a show on wheels.