When Is Mardi Gras 2027? Date, Carnival Season and Holiday Status

Mardi Gras 2027 is on Tuesday, February 9, 2027. It’s the day before Ash Wednesday (February 10) and 47 days before Easter Sunday, March 28, 2027.

Mardi Gras, French for “Fat Tuesday,” closes the Carnival season with one last celebration before Lent. In 2027 it comes early, eight days ahead of its 2026 date. This guide explains how the date is calculated, how long Carnival season runs in 2027, where Mardi Gras is a legal holiday, and the dates through 2031.

When is Mardi Gras 2027?

Here are the key dates of the 2027 Carnival season, from its traditional start on Twelfth Night to the first day of Lent.

Watch the days tick down on our Mardi Gras countdown or check the weeks until Mardi Gras.

How the date of Mardi Gras is set

Mardi Gras has no fixed date of its own. It hangs off Easter, which moves every year:

1. Find Easter Sunday. It’s the first Sunday after the church’s full moon on or after March 21, so it can fall anywhere from March 22 to April 25.
2. Count back 46 days to Ash Wednesday, the first day of Lent.
3. Mardi Gras is the day before Ash Wednesday, 47 days before Easter.

Because Easter is on March 28 in 2027, Mardi Gras lands on February 9. Our Easter 2027 guide explains the Easter calculation in more detail, including why Orthodox churches get a different date.

The Easter range sets the Mardi Gras range. In a common year, Mardi Gras can fall anywhere from February 3 to March 9. The latest possible date, March 9, next happens in 2038. The earliest in the coming years is February 6, 2035.

Carnival season 2027: shorter than usual

In New Orleans, Carnival season officially opens on Twelfth Night, January 6, according to MardiGrasNewOrleans.com, and ends on Mardi Gras. January 6 is also Epiphany, the end of the twelve days of Christmas; our twelve days of Christmas guide explains how those days are counted.

Since the start date is fixed and the end date moves with Easter, the length of the season changes a lot from year to year:

At 34 days, the 2027 season is the shortest in this table. Parade organizations, known as krewes, set their own schedules within that window, so check the official parade calendar once it’s published if you’re planning a trip around a particular parade. Note the 2028 date too: Mardi Gras falls on leap day, February 29, 2028.

Is Mardi Gras a holiday?

Not at the federal level. Mardi Gras isn’t one of the federal holidays in 5 U.S.C. 6103, so federal offices, post offices and banks that follow the Federal Reserve schedule are open across most of the country on February 9, 2027.

Louisiana is different. Mardi Gras is a legal holiday in state law. The Louisiana State Civil Service listed it as a “legal holiday” for state employees in its 2026 holiday circular, and in 2026 the governor also proclaimed the day before, Lundi Gras, a state holiday. Whether Lundi Gras is proclaimed again for 2027 is up to the governor, so check closer to the date. Louisiana law also lets a list of parishes and municipalities declare Mardi Gras a local holiday, which is why many local offices and schools around New Orleans close for it.

According to the history page of MardiGrasNewOrleans.com, Governor Henry Warmoth signed the “Mardi Gras Act” in 1875, which made Fat Tuesday a legal holiday in Louisiana. The same source dates the name back to 1699, when French explorers named a spot south of present-day New Orleans “Pointe du Mardi Gras” because they arrived on the eve of the holiday.

Outside Louisiana, Mardi Gras is usually a normal workday. Some other Gulf Coast communities hold big celebrations too; check with your local government or school district for closures.

Shrove Tuesday, Pancake Day and Carnival

Mardi Gras goes by different names depending on where you are. In the UK, Ireland and much of the English-speaking church world it’s Shrove Tuesday, also called Pancake Day: traditionally the day to use up rich foods such as eggs, butter and sugar before Lent. It’s the same date, Tuesday, February 9, 2027, but it isn’t a bank holiday; see the UK’s 2027 bank holidays for the days that are.

Many countries hold Carnival celebrations in the days leading up to Lent as well. Because they’re all tied to Easter, they shift on the same schedule as Mardi Gras.

Mardi Gras dates, 2027 to 2031

Mardi Gras is always a Tuesday, Ash Wednesday always the next day and Easter always a Sunday. In 2029, Ash Wednesday falls on Valentine’s Day, February 14. To count down to the start of Lent, use the Ash Wednesday countdown.

Related dates: Lent 2027, which starts the next day, Fat Thursday, the pre-Lent feast, Valentine’s Day 2027.

Frequently asked questions

When is Mardi Gras 2027?

Mardi Gras 2027 is on Tuesday, February 9, 2027. Ash Wednesday follows on February 10 and Easter on March 28.

Why does Mardi Gras change every year?

Mardi Gras is always 47 days before Easter, and Easter moves with the moon. In 2026 it was February 17; in 2027 it’s February 9; in 2028 it’s February 29.

Is Mardi Gras a state holiday in Louisiana?

Yes. Mardi Gras is a legal holiday in Louisiana, and state offices close. Parishes and towns can also declare it a local holiday. It isn’t a federal holiday.

When does Mardi Gras season start?

Carnival season starts on Twelfth Night, January 6, and runs to Mardi Gras. In 2027 that’s January 6 through February 9, a 34-day season.

Is Fat Tuesday the same as Pancake Day?

Yes. Fat Tuesday, Mardi Gras, Shrove Tuesday and Pancake Day are all names for the day before Ash Wednesday, which in 2027 is Tuesday, February 9.