Mardi Gras 2023 kicked off in Mobile Saturday with the Krewe De La Dauphine.

Though carnival season officially began on Jan. 6 (when grocery stores finally started selling king cakes), the first parade of the season is Dauphin Island’s Krewe De La Dauphine. The theme was “KDLD Travels the World,” and the parade featured floats representing different locales around the world, including Mexico, Australia, Hollywood and New York.

While forecasts warned of storms on Saturday, by the time the parade began rolling at 1 p.m., the rain had mostly cleared. The crowd was not fazed by the damp, chilly weather, though, and hundreds lined up along Bienville Boulevard to watch the floats. Some set up tents and played music or grilled before the parade started.

Krewe De La Dauphine began in 1992 and celebrated its 30th anniversary last year. The group was formed by a group of Dauphin Island locals who wanted the barrier island to have another Mardi Gras krewe. The first group on Dauphin Island, the Island Mystics, was started the same year but folded around 2016, according to the Mobile Mask.

The Mardi Gras season continues next weekend with the Dauphin Island People’s Parade, which will be held at 1 p.m. Festivities in Mobile kick off Feb. 3 with the Conde Cavaliers, followed by the Senior Bowl and more parades on Feb. 4.