The Ultimate Guide to Universal’s Mardi Gras : Foodie’s Paradise!

 

Whether you’re a seasoned Mardi Gras aficionado or a first-time visitor, this Ultimate Guide to Universal’s Mardi Gras: International Flavors of Carnival will offer you the best tips, tricks, and food recommendations to make your visit to Universal Orlando Resort a memorable one. Lessez les bon temp rouler: Let the good times roll!

Understanding Mardi Gras at Universal Orlando

What is Mardi Gras?

Mardi Gras, or “Fat Tuesday” is a time of rich feasting and celebration before the beginning of Lent (a period of fasting, simple meals, and reflection before Easter). Lent always begins on Ash Wednesday, so the Tuesday before is seen as the last day of being able to eat rich, fatty foods; hence the French name “Mardi Gras” which translates to “Fat Tuesday”.

Fat Tuesday is celebrated with extravagant parades, vibrant costumes, and most notably, delicious foods and drinks. At Universal Orlando, this celebration is taken to a new level with a mix of authentic New Orleans flavors, unique culinary creations, and larger-than-life parade floats.

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Where does Universal’s Mardi Gras take place? Do I have to buy special tickets?

Universal Orlando Resort consists of two theme parks: Islands of Adventure, and Universal Studios Florida. Like other seasonal events the bulk of Mardi Gras events and food can be found over at Universal Studios Florida. The best news though? You do not need to buy special event tickets for Mardi Gras! The parade and the live concerts are included with your regular park ticket or your Annual Pass.

During the day Universal Studios Florida becomes a foodie’s paradise with almost 20 food booths to explore. In 2021 Universal renamed their event to “Universal Mardi Gras: International Flavors of Carnival”, and with good reason! Each food booth is themed to a country and features amazing festival dishes. You can also catch special street performances from The Blue’s Brothers, The Beat Builders, and more, while feasting! But come nightfall, the REAL party begins . . .

Each night at Universal Studios Florida you can immerse yourself in the vibrant atmosphere of the Mardi Gras Parade and catch beads to your hearts content. Or, if you’re up for it, you can even ride on one of the floats! What’s more, Universal Orlando also hosts live concerts featuring renowned artists and bands, and they’re INCLUDED with your park ticket!

How to Experience Mardi Gras at Universal Orlando

So you know what Mardi Gras is, and where it happens . . . but HOW do you experience Mardi Gras? What do you do? Below you will find our list of the top 6 things you must do at Universal’s Mardi Gras.

1. Eat some Delicious Food

The #1 thing that should be on your to do list is grabbing some of that Mardi Gras Exclusive food! Universal changes up the menu every year, so there is no guarantee that you’ll get the same dishes twice. Universal likes to keep things pretty hush-hush until a few days before the event starts. However, once the event has started you can find all the booths and menus on the Mardi Gras Dining webpage. Just keep in mind that most of the food booths do not open until 11:00 AM, so you can either have a lazy morning, or spend the early hours riding your favorite rides!

Returning Favorites

Universal Orlando always knocks it out of the park with their festivals, and International Flavors of Carnival is no different. While recipes do change slightly every year, here are some of our favorite repeat dishes from International Flavors of Carnival.

New Favorites for 2024

These dishes are brand new to Universal Orlando, but they’ve already made an impression! International Flavors of Carnival is full of surprise winners. These were our favorite new dishes!

2. Check out the Mardi Gras Tribute Store

Every season (Halloween, Holidays, Mardi Gras, and Summer), the creative team at Universal Orlando puts together an elaborately themed shopping experience called the tribute store, and boy is it amazing! Even if you aren’t planning on shopping, you need to go inside and see what story the team has created. There are projections on the walls, on the floor and optical illusions everywhere! It is truly an experience you don’t want to miss out on.

3. Ride your Favorite Rides

With all the shopping and eating, you’ll need to give both your stomach and your feet a break! There are several ways to take a break, but the most thrilling is to ride your favorite theme park rides. Food booths at Universal Studios Florida don’t typically open until around 11:00 AM anyway, so you’ve got three basic options!

1. Park Hopper with Early Entry:

If you have a park hopper ticket or annual pass, you can start over at Islands of Adventure! If you have early entry you can knock out several of the big hitter attractions. These include Hagrid’s Magical Creatures Motorbike Adventure, Forbidden Journey, Flight of the Hippogriff, AND Velocicoaster. If you play your cards right, you can get ALL of these done before the park officially opens!

If you don’t feel like rushing around between all the rides, you can pick your #1 must-ride attraction, do that first, then fit in some shopping or people watching in a mostly empty park!

2. Full Park Day:

If you do not have a park hopper ticket (meaning that you can only visit one park per day), then your next option would be to get to Universal studios right as it opens. While the food booths will not be open this early, you can ride your favorite Universal Studios attractions, visit the shops, or even meet some characters! In fact, one of the best times to meet characters is at park open because they have a TON of characters out at the same time (I’ve seen the Simpsons, Beetlejuice, The Mystery Gang, Betty Boop, and the Mummy actors, all out at the same time)!

3. Luxuriate / Late Start Park Day:

If you don’t want your whole vacation to be go-go-go, then you can take this opportunity to sleep in and luxuriate a bit! By starting later in the day you get two primary benefits: 1) MUCH shorter lines at CityWalk Security and 2) shorter lines getting into the park! As an added bonus, by the time you get into the park those famous food booths should be open and ready for you to start feasting!

4. Catch a Street Performance

Universal is more than just food and rides . . . it’s vibes too! Universal Studios Florida has many street performances that take place throughout the day. Most performances take place in the New York Area. Here you can catch the sweet and soulful Blue Brothers show, jam with the Beat Builders construction crew, dance it off with the Vamos Bailalo dance crew, or film a motion picture with Marilyn Monroe and the Diamond Bellas! The shows in the New York area often have a Mardi Gras twist to them, with special musical numbers including a lively version of “When the Saints Go Marching In” by the Beat Builders!

If you need a magical break from Mardi Gras, then there are shows you can catch in the Wizarding World too! If you happen to be over by Diagon Alley you can catch a . . . . show by Celestina Warbeck and the Banshees, or marvel at mystical tales brought to life in the puppet show “The Tales of Beedle the Bard”.

5. Catch a Sit-Down Show

If your feet have failed you and you are needing some wonderfully cold AC, you can catch one of the indoor shows at Universal Studios Florida. There are technically 3 indoor shows, but only two of them provide AC: the Bourne Stuntacular, and the Horror Make Up Show. The third show, Animal Actors, does provide shade and bleacher seating, but if you’re needing to cool down we’d recommend one of the other two shows.

1. The Bourne Stuntacular: “Forget what you know about stunt shows! Through a cutting-edge fusion of live sets and screens, you follow Jason Bourne as he outruns sinister characters hoping to bring him in. He’s chased across rooftops in Tangier and by motorcycle through Virginia. There are fistfights, shootouts and danger at every turn” -Universal Orlando
2. Horror Make Up Show: “Through a series of comedic events you get to watch how top make-up and special effects artists craft some of the creepy characters you’ve seen on the big screen. Featuring movie clips, props, and interactive demonstrations, this experience offers fascinatingly funny insight into the moviemaking process.” – Universal Orlando
3. Animal Actors: “This wild showcase features some of the most talented animal actors from movies and television performing in a hilarious mix of video segments, live skits and audience interactions. With a menagerie of vibrant birds, mischievous pups, agile cats and more, it’s a hoot for the whole family.” -Universal Orlando

6. Ride on a Mardi Gras Float!

Whether you’ve never ridden on a float before, or are a bead-throwing expert, riding on a float at Mardi Gras: International Flavors of Carnival is a Must-Do! There are two ways to ride a float: a “Ride and Dine” package, or securing a spot in the virtual queue.

Ride and Dine:

Ride and Dine packages can be purchased on the Universal Orlando website or in the Official Universal Orlando App. Packages start at $84.99 per person, and let you eat a 3 course meal at select restaurants, as well as securing you a place on a float. This is our preferred way to ride a float, as it comes with dinner too! Additionally, this is the only way to GUARANTEE that you get a spot on a float.

Virtual Queue:

If you’d rather ride a float for free, then securing a spot in the virtual queue is for you! Just know that these spots are not guaranteed. Virtual Line reservations for Mardi Gras float riding are available through the Universal Orlando mobile app, but guests must be on property to book a spot. 

Sometimes the app experiences a glitch or two, so to have the best chance at securing a virtual line spot, make sure you do the following.

• Around 1:00 PM make sure you are over by the Animal Actors show. This is not only the time they typically drop the virtual queue spots, but this is also the location they have people meet to get on the floats!

• If you don’t secure a virtual queue spot, you can hang around Animal Actors in the Standby line. We think it would just be better to book a Ride and Dine package rather than waste your park day just waiting for a virtual queue spot.

Top Tips for Mardi Gras: International Flavors of Carnival

Get a Food and Beverage Card (or two)!

Universal Orlando offers special Food and Beverage Cards for Mardi Gras! These are discounted gift cards that can be used at food and beverage locations owned by Universal Orlando. The best part? They never expire! You can stock up on them during Mardi Gras and then use them year round!

You can get these Food and Beverage Cards at any of the Mardi Gras food booths. If you are an annual passholder, you can get a $150 card for only $120 (plus you get your annual pass discount when you purchase food)! If you are not an annual passholder, then you can still pick up the $75 card for $65!

Hate long lines? Avoid Peak Meal Times

Avoid peak meal times (12-1:30 PM and 5-6 PM) to skip long lines at the Mardi Gras food booths! Either hit the booths right when they open or at off-peak meal times so you don’t have to wait in long lines.

The ONE exception to this is the France booth / crepe stand! The crepes there are always made fresh and to order, so they normally take a while, even if the line is not that long. This booth does tend to open earlier than the others, so you can try hitting this one first!

Have Allergies or Special Diets? Check out the Menu Icons

On each of the Mardi Gras food menus, Universal Orlando provides helpful icons that can help you avoid allergies or eat according to your preferred diet.

Pick the Best Spot for Watching the Parade!

For 2024, Universal changed the parade route for Mardi Gras, so your normal parade watching location might no longer be a good one!

If you just want to watch or film the parade, then picking a location by a corner will work great! You’ll get great angles of the parade going by, and might get a bead or two. BUT if you’re main goal is to catch your weight in beads (as it is in fact a competitive sport), then DO NOT pick a corner!

Take it from someone who has thrown beads from a float, if you want to catch the most beads you are going to want to pick a straight parade route section and get as close to the curb as possible (but do not step off the curb . . . it’s for safety!). Because of the wide turns the floats have to make, when the parade rounds a corner the parade attendants keep the crowds VERY far away from the floats, and the people throwing the beads cannot get them that far out!

The best spots for the current parade route are going to be in front of Despicable Me Minion Mayhem, and in front of the Mummy ride. For both of these spots you’re still within the first 1/2 of the parade, so all the floats should still have beads (sometimes the float-riders get over-zealous and throw too many too fast), and it is a straight section so you can get pretty close to the floats for ultimate catch-ability! You can also grab a spot in front of Schwab’s Pharmacy, but this straight section is pretty small. The bonus to this is that right after the last float passes, you should be good to move and leave!

Final Tips and Tricks

• Download the Universal Orlando App: For real-time updates on parade times, food stall locations, and wait times, the Universal Orlando App is a must-have!
• Plan Your Food Route: Map out the stalls and restaurants you want to visit to maximize your time. Rather than going round and round in circles and wasting your steps, make a basic plan so you know what snacks are in what areas. You can always change the plan later, but being aware of where things are located will help you make the most of your trip without having to have sore feet!
• Budget Accordingly: Mardi Gras delicacies can add up, so set a budget for your culinary adventures and get the corresponding number of Food and Beverage Cards.
• Capture the Moments: Don’t forget to take photos of your family, and your food before diving in. These memories will last a lifetime!

As we wrap up this ultimate guide to Universal Orlando’s Mardi Gras Celebration, I hope you’re as excited as I am to embark on this culinary adventure. Remember, Mardi Gras at Universal Orlando isn’t just about the food; it’s about the experience, the atmosphere, and the joy of celebrating together. So, grab your beads, put on your festive attire, and get ready to indulge in some of the best food experiences Florida has to offer.

Can’t make it to Mardi Gras this year? Bring Mardi Gras to your own kitchen with our Mardi Gras Recipes!

Let the good times roll!