Being from Louisiana I am still confused why there is a festival in the winter, in New Zealand, called ‘Mardi Gras’. Since moving to Central Otago I have been catching up with friends in the area and when a ticket became available I jumped at the chance. I had not been up to much based in Cromwell, and it was about time I went to a festival after Covid.
Similar to most festivals in NZ, there is one edition on the North Island, and another on the South Island. Ohakune is the site that brings together ravers from Auckland & Wellington, while Queenstown hosts the party down South for Christchurch & Dunedin crowds. Mardi Gras is normally based in ski towns and acts as an apres-ski type vibe.
With 2 stages, the day festival was located at Warren Park. Doors opened at 4pm and music stopped at 10:30pm as it is a residential area. My friends and I arrived around 5pm as it was raining up until that point.
We started with Concord Dawn then checked out the drum & bass stage with Sly Chaos. After getting some drinks with our wristband we went back to the main stage for State of Mind.
The stages were not too far apart so we went back & forth between Flowidus and Who Shot Scott.
The main acts were Montell2099, Lee Mvtthews (pronounced Matthews), and the Upbeats. I really enjoyed Montell & The Upbeats.
You can never beat a good day festival, but I was disappointed it ended so early. I was also a bit sad to see no reusable cups like Globelets. I would rate this festival an 7.5/10. It was great that it was on Halloween with a full moon, however it was a bit of a young, messy crowd and not the best weather. I’d be open to do Mardi Gras on the North Island, so let’s see what they have in store next year!
TIP: Stay stylish while keeping your feet dry in wet, muddy conditions. You can never go wrong with a good pair of rain boots.
