We love Mardi Gras on the Alabama Gulf Coast! Foley will roll out all the stops for the Krewe of Les Beau Geste Parade on Feb. 10.

The parade starts at 11 a.m., with lineup at Griffin Park in the center of town, at Roosevelt and Alston streets. The parade rolls north on Alston, turns west on U.S. 98 (Laurel Avenue), then heads south on Oak Street.

Unlike the Mobile parades, each of which is hosted by a specific mystic society, groups can request to participate by contacting parade organizer Paul Adams at 251-923-6918. Floats, trucks, antique cars, walking groups, bands . . . more than 25 units typically participate.

And it’s a family-friendly event.

Attending a Mardi Gras parade is a one-of-a-kind experience. Spectators yell for “throws” that may include plastic cups, doubloons, candy, Moon Pies and, of course, those coveted beads.

The floats are lavishly decorated in purple, gold and green. Riders are obviously having a good time and want the crowd to have one, too.

If you haven’t experienced an Alabama coastal Mardi Gras, make this the year. We’d love to see you smiling at our parade in downtown Foley, then enjoying other parades in the area leading up to Mardi Gras Day on Feb. 13.