If I have to pick one favorite thing I have done at Disneyland, it has to be the year my husband and I made it to their “New Orleans Bayou Bash” in 2012. Not only was this a great a event to attend it was also a great time of year to go as February is typically a slower time at Disneyland.
Performances
From February 10-March 11, 2012 you could attend various shows in Disneyland’s New Orleans square. One performance was the New Orleans Traditional Jazz band leading a second line that wound its way through New Orleans square. Eventually the second line ended at a stage and then Disney characters joined in with the band.
An additional performance you could see was the Princess Tiana’s Mardi Gras Celebration. This show featured characters like Princess Tiana, Louis and Prince Naveen performing music from “The Princess and the Frog.”
Meet & Greets
Any good event at Disneyland has to include the ability to meet and take pictures with your favorite characters! At the bash you were able to meet Minne/Mickey in adorable Mardi Gras gear, Princess Tiana/Prince Naveen, and Chip & Dale. These meet and greets took place at the beautiful “Court des Anges” in New Orleans Square. Sadly due to the expansion of Club 33 in 2013 the court is no longer available to the public.
Special Food Options
Food is a big draw to Disneyland events. Sadly, don’t have pictures of any food! I do remember wishing they had king cake! In a post from Disney Parks blog described bacon cheddar popcorn, bouillabaisse with lobster, French-style chicken-pork sausage sandwich, Mardi Gras cupcakes, and banana fosters cheesecake.
New Orleans Style Decor
To get Disneyland goers into the spirit of Mardi Gras, New Orleans square was decked out in beads, masks, and even some musical instruments. Personally, this is one of my favorite things that Disney imagineers do as it really make you feel like you are in New Orleans. One thing that you may notice about the decorations is that most are in traditional Mardi Gras colors which are purple, green, and gold. These colors came to be 1892 in the during the Rex Parade. The parade defined purple to represent justice, green to represent faith, gold to represent power.
Thanks for joining me on that little trip down memory lane. Here’s hoping we can celebrate Mardi Gras in Disneyland next year!
I’ve missed Disney so much, but it is a Pity that is becoming so and so expensive. And now I have a daughter so I need to take her there and we have to make a budget to go
So thank you so much for this post it brought me a lot of pretty memories.
Disney is my favourite place. looks like you guys has a fab time. i cant wait to start travelling again 🙂
This looks so fun, I wish Covid would go away so I can travel again.
Wow! This looks like an amazing trip! I went to Epcot last week, definitely not the same! And to think, Disneyland is still closed!!!!
Enjoyable post! I’ve missed to travel and going out without a mask.
How neat! That looks like an amazing time that you had!
The Mardi Gras parades and foods at Disney properties are amazing. I adore all the colors and festivities.
So many happy faces, no doubt you guys had lots of fun.
You said that this was a slow time and yet there were still so many people. I can’t imagine what it would be like on a full day hahaha.
I miss Disneyland so much! I hoped to visit it in 2020 but it never happened. Your photos make me smile
This post makes me realize how much I miss going to vacation.
This seems like a fun trip to Disneyland. Would love to visit Disneyland someday.
I missed this kind of event. Especially the “no need to wear face masks” event hehe