Mardi Gras World

What Mardi Gras World does

Mardi Gras World is a privately held, family-owned tourist attraction in New Orleans, Louisiana, operated by Kern Studios and located at 1380 Port of New Orleans Place at the south end of the Convention Center. Founded in 1984 as a public-facing extension of Kern Studios' float-building operations (which trace back to 1932 and were formally incorporated in 1947), the attraction offers guided, year-round tours of the working float den where artists, sculptors, carpenters, welders, and painters construct Mardi Gras floats, props, costumes, and parade elements. Tours run every 30 minutes, last approximately one hour, and are complemented by a 15-minute introductory video, a complimentary shuttle from 10 downtown locations, and on-site proximity to the Convention Center's parking facilities. Revenue is generated through individual and group tour admissions, corporate and private event hosting via the affiliated River City Venues sub-brand (capacities from 20 to 20,000 guests), team-building workshops (mask-making, mini float building, mixology), and custom prop fabrication services through Kern Studios.

Name

Mardi Gras World

Legal name

Mardi Gras World

Website

https://mardigrasworld.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

1984

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

Mardi Gras World operates a year-round New Orleans tourist attraction offering guided tours of the Kern Studios float-building warehouse, serving individual tourists, group bookings, corporate event clients through its River City Venues sub-brand, and institutional partners.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Cultural Tourist Attraction & Event Venue

NAICS

Museums, Historical Sites, and Similar Institutions (7121), Promoters of Performing Arts, Sports, and Similar Events with Facilities (71131)

akta.pro primary industry

Community Parades, Carnivals & Street Fairs (MPAGAEAE)

akta.pro secondary industries

Decor Props & Themed Set Rentals (HSACAFAK), Pavilion & Country/Group Exhibit Build-Outs (THAHAHAD)

Keywords

• Tourist attraction tours
• Mardi Gras float fabrication
• Cultural heritage tourism
• Team building workshops
• Event venue hosting

Headquarters

HQ city

New Orleans

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Infrastructure, Marketing or Sales, Supply Chain

Revenue model

1. Tour Tickets: Individual and group tour admissions to the float den attraction. Tours offered every 30 minutes, lasting about an hour, with a 15-minute introductory video. Group rates available for 20+ guests.
2. Event Hosting: Rental and hosting of events at River City Venues, including concerts, conferences, galas, corporate events, and private parties. Capacity ranges from 20 to 20,000 guests. Custom prop creation services available for corporate branding.
3. Team Building Workshops: Add-on workshops including mask-making, mini float building, and mixology classes for groups. Mask-making requires 20 adult minimum or 30 student minimum. Mini float building requires 45 guest minimum. Mixology requires 20-75 guests.
4. Free Shuttle Service: Complimentary shuttle pickup from 10 central locations in downtown New Orleans and Canal Street for day tour guests

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion3 records

Distribution channels4 records

Marketing channels5 records

Core offering

Mardi Gras World sells year-round guided tours of the Kern Studios float-building warehouse in New Orleans, where visitors see artists, sculptors, painters, and robotic CNC equipment actively building Mardi Gras floats, props, and costumes. Beyond tours, the company offers three team-building workshops (mask-making, mini float building, mixology) for groups and operates the affiliated River City Venues event complex for hosting concerts, conferences, galas, and corporate events for groups of 20 to 20,000+.

Product overview

Mardi Gras World is a year-round tourist attraction offering guided tours of the Kern Studios float-building warehouse in New Orleans. The core product is the standard tour experience, which provides behind-the-scenes access to float construction, props, sculptors, painters, and robots. The company also operates River City Venues as an affiliated event complex for hosting groups of 20 to 20,000 people. Supporting products include three team-building workshops (Mask-Making, Mini Float Building, and Mixology) that can be add-ons to group tours or standalone activities. A modern online ticketing system powered by Roller.app enables advance bookings for individual and group visits. The company also provides custom prop fabrication services through Kern Studios for corporate events. Kern Studios, the parent company, fabricates floats for various Mardi Gras krewes including the Krewe of Cleopatra.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• River City Venues: Event venue complex operated by Mardi Gras World/Kern Studios for hosting events, concerts, conferences, and galas at the Mississippi riverfront.

Products and services

• Mardi Gras World Tour Year-round guided tour of the Kern Studios float-building warehouse, providing visitors a behind-the-scenes look at Mardi Gras float construction, props, costumes, and the history of New Orleans' Carnival tradition. Tours run every 30 minutes, last approximately one hour, and start with a 15-minute introductory video. Open to individual tourists and visitors.
• Group Tours Specialized tour packages for groups of 20 or more guests with discounted rates. Includes an hour-long behind-the-scenes tour, Mardi Gras history video, and complimentary king cake. Optional add-on workshops include mask-making, mini float building, or mixology classes. Reservations required; online booking for groups up to 75; larger groups connect with the sales department.
• Mask-Making Workshop Team-building activity where participants create original Mardi Gras masks with guidance from instructors, including a brief history of masking in New Orleans. Optional upgrades include private tours, food, wine, beer, cocktails, and live jazz or Cajun band. Minimum 20 adults or 30 students required.
• Mini Float Building Workshop Team-building activity where participants tour the float-building warehouse and collaborate to construct their own mini float. Includes a two-hour workshop with instruction from Kern Studios craftsmen. Minimum 45 guests required.
• Mixology Workshop One-hour hands-on cocktail crafting experience where participants learn to make classic cocktails with Louisiana twists, including espresso martinis, traditional daiquiris, or old-fashioneds. Features Louisiana-made rum and New Orleans-style infusions, concluding with a trivia challenge. Minimum 20 guests, maximum 75.
• River City Venues Event Hosting Event complex adjacent to Mardi Gras World at the Mississippi River front, capable of hosting groups from 20 to 20,000 guests. Offers various event spaces including ballrooms, the Float Den, and antebellum-style rooms. Provides full-service event planning for concerts, conferences, galas, corporate events, and private parties.
• Custom Prop Fabrication Kern Studios artists create custom-branded sculptures and props for events, including corporate logos. Props can be designed and fabricated in front of guests during events, using robotic CNC router (KUKA Robots) technology for live demonstration and dynamic prop creation.

Quantifiable outcome

• Widely successful attraction drawing hundreds of thousands of visitors from all over the world each year

Named customers3 records

Segments4 records

Ideal customer profiles4 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature3 records

Scale indicators3 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Broad incumbents

• Cirque du Soleil: Global themed live-entertainment operator with in-house custom fabrication of costumes, props, and sets. Comparable through the combination of ticket-based entertainment, in-house craftsmanship, and scalable IP.
• Walt Disney Parks and Resorts: Largest themed-attraction operator globally, combining immersive guest experiences with in-house design and fabrication at massive scale. Most relevant as the upper bound for what a theme-IP-driven attraction business can scale to.

Regional players

• National WWII Museum: The dominant ticketed cultural attraction in New Orleans, operating a year-round, multi-site visitor experience. Competes for the same tourist dollars and Convention Center overflow in the same operating geography.
• Audubon Nature Institute: New Orleans-based operator of aquariums, zoos, and insectariums. Operates multiple ticketed attractions drawing family and tourist visitors in the same geography, competing for convention overflow and school field trips.

Others

• Royal Caribbean: Cruise operator that has explicitly extended the Mardi Gras brand via a ship class and onboard experiences. Tangentially connected via shared Carnival/Mardi Gras IP rather than direct operational competition.

Direct peers

• Madame Tussauds: Global chain of wax-figure visitor attractions where guests view artisans and curated displays behind the scenes. Closest peer in business model: paid admission to a curated, behind-the-venue experience in a tourist destination.
• Ripley's Believe It or Not!: Chain of themed indoor attractions offering self-pay, family-friendly viewing of unusual and curated exhibits. Comparable D2C ticketed attraction model with similar group/tourist customer base.
• Guinness World Records Experience: Interactive attraction offering paid entry to explore curated records and stories, similar in structure to Mardi Gras World's pay-to-enter themed experience with strong group/team appeal.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/mardigrasworld
• Facebookfacebook.com/MardiGrasWorld
• Instagraminstagram.com/mardigrasworld
• YouTubeyoutube.com/@MardiGrasWorld
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/mardi-gras-world

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Mardi Gras World