If you love fun events and celebrations while you’re on vacation, come to Panama City Beach during the PCB Mardi Gras and Music Festival! Enjoy exciting festivities, live music, fun local culture, and a colorful parade during your stay in one of our Panama City Beach two bedroom condos for the beach getaway of a lifetime.
Here is our guide to planning your vacation during the Panama City Beach Mardi Gras and Music Festival!
Festival Dates and Times
The Mardi Gras and Music Festival in Panama City Beach is an annual event held on a weekend in February.
Mardi Gras means “Fat Tuesday” in French. It is observed mostly in southern states, with New Orleans, Louisiana having a particularly large celebration due to its Creole population. Costumes are generally vibrant and colorful, and floats can be maritime-themed. People eat many fatty and rich foods during Mardi Gras before they often give said foods up for Lent.
The festival takes place at Pier Park, which is a seaside boardwalk near the Gulf that features a lot of local businesses and restaurants. It contains an arcade and movie theater as well if one is looking for entertainment before or after the festival ends!
The rest of the United States is usually pretty cold during the time of year the festival takes place, but not Florida! There have only been 29 reported instances of snow in Florida throughout the entire 21st century, so it’s usually a safe bet to assume it’ll be absent for the festival.
Rain will not stop the festival from commencing! However, if lightning is spotted in the area, the festival may be delayed or canceled depending upon the severity. The organizers of the festival will then notify through social media for updates on the status of the festival and rescheduled dates.
The weather in coastal areas is known for being fickle, so it is advised to bring a raincoat and umbrella to be prepared for any scenario. While the temperatures can plummet during this time of year, it’s nothing a little dancing and food offered by the Mardi Gras festival can’t fix! For those coming from up north to escape the winter, the temperatures that normally average in the 40s and 50s might even feel like a generous reprieve.
Who is Allowed to Attend
The crowds have been reported to be upwards of 50,000 from past festivals. A family-friendly atmosphere is encouraged, so even young children and pets will be able to enjoy the festivities. Best of all, admission is free, so there will be no need to purchase multiple tickets for the whole family! This is one of the most anticipated things to do near Panama City Beach.
Things to Do at the Festival
A kids’ parade takes place with lots of floats and music specifically geared towards kids will be there, as well as give them a chance to grab some beads before they have to ride on top of their shoulders to grab them when the adults get there. The colorful floats, lively costumes, and music specifically picked to appeal to kids is sure to get them into the party mood!
There is also a kids’ area and festival village that opens before the parade begins. The floats will begin traveling down 15th Street, turn onto Beck Avenue, and travel for four blocks before turning down 11th Street and stopping. The floats will be tossing numerous colorful beads and playing music, and the festival village contains a play area, which any child is sure to enjoy!
You can also expect a 5k fun run held at Frank Brown Park. All fitness levels and body types are welcome to participate, but don’t come in costume! It might be difficult to run. Change after you cross the finish line and help yourself to some Mardi Gras foods to restore your energy.
When the kid’s parade ends, the main festival begins, which takes place right by the ocean on Bayview and Beck Avenue. Many floats are maritime themed, with pirate costumes and ships alongside blue ocean waves, and skeletons posed next to speakers. Each year’s event is themed, so you can match the other parade-goers!
There is also a pet parade where pets are able to wear costumes and join in on the fun! Pet owners are free to join. Dogs of all shapes and sizes are welcome!
No Mardi Gras festival is complete without food, though. And plenty of it! Luckily, Pier Park has numerous places that offer delicious Cajun food to ensure one will be satisfied for the entirety of Lent.
Bayou on the Beach is the first stop, a place that operates as if Mardi Gras were every day of the year! They make Cajun food from scratch daily, with favorites including salty and sweet Louisiana crawfish, Italian muffulettas, crispy po’ boys, and spicy jambalaya. If there’s room for dessert, it also offers beignets with honey and bread pudding with rum-flavored whipped cream. It’s definitely worth a stop on your Mardi Gras voyage!
Plan Your Visit
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David’s New Orleans Style Cafe and Sno-Balls is next, which, as the name suggests, offers authentic New Orleans-style sno-balls. Sno-balls are similar to shaved ice but differ in texture and usually thoroughly absorb the flavored syrup. David’s has 47 flavors of sno-balls, with the classic blueberry and strawberry, but also apple pie and New Orleans King Cake. These can then be topped with graham cracker crumbs and marshmallows to enhance the taste of the sno-ball, which will be a nice frosty treat anyone will surely enjoy.
Aside from their sno-balls, David’s also offers Cajun classics such as a hearty bowl of gumbo, red beans and rice, and vibrant dishes of shrimp Étouffée, where vegetables and shrimp combine to make a hearty stew.
Finally, Dat Cajun Place offers a spin on classic Cajun dishes, offering crawfish Étouffée, chicken and andouille sausage gumbo, and a “whodat” muffuletta sandwich, which combines three deli meats with provolone cheese and a secret voodoo sauce. Dat Cajun Place’s owner moved to Panama City after Hurricane Katrina, so they’ve honed their craft in New Orleans and brought true authentic Cajun cuisine to the Mardi Gras festival!
There will also be live music during the festival at the celebration stage. Past artists include Chubby Carrier and the Bayou Swamp Band, The Frontmen, Sawyer Brown, and Waylon Thibodeaux. These performers are no strangers to Mardi Gras, and their music is inspired by their country and New Orleans roots, which will ensure their act is hard to replicate anywhere else. New Orleans cannot be replicated, after all! Each day of the festival ends with a firework show, sure to dazzle any partygoer.
Book Your Panama City Beach Condo Rental with Gulfgate Condominiums
To ensure you’re able to get the most out of your visit, renting a property from Gulfgate Condominiums is a great way to get a good night’s sleep in between the festivities. Best of all, you’ll only be a short distance away from the festival, the scenic local beaches, and other fun things to do in Panama City Beach!
Gulfgate Condos offers a variety of rentals to fit every budget and preference; we have condos that are perfect for small groups for a solo vacation or a couple’s retreat, spacious properties for families, and pet-friendly rentals in Panama City Beach. Explore the stunning beaches, enjoy breathtaking sunsets, and experience the ultimate vacation in a Panama City Beach condo on Thomas Drive. Call us today or book online to start your beach getaway!