Step Right up to the Rose Parade Floats During ‘Floatfest'

The big event's last hurrah is a ticketed to-do; find out how to attend now.

Tournament of Roses

What to Know

  • Floatfest: A Rose Parade Showcase
  • $20
  • Jan. 2 and 3 (timed windows; check time before purchasing ticket)

Some parts of a Rose Parade float are quite prominent, those eye-catching elements that are easily discernible from a good block or two away.

Take an oversized giraffe or any colossal critter that can stand as tall as a small building, or a huge and colorful castle, the sort of structure that grandly occupies the back of a moving parade vehicle.

But there are so many other delightful details that can only be discerned from just a few feet away.

The small swirls of seeds that give a Rose Parade float its distinctive texture or the pink petals that help create fanciful sea foam or lizard scales or a cloud are some of the smaller things to appreciate when you're next to one of these whimsical works of art.

Floatfest: A Rose Parade Showcase gives people the amazing opportunity to connect with the floats' creative components just hours or a day after the celebrated procession concludes.

It's a ticketed event — entry is $20 — and there are three periods of time available: The afternoon of Jan. 2, which is immediately after the parade, and two windows on Tuesday, Jan. 3.

The Scene

Want to find new things to do in Los Angeles? The Scene's lifestyle stories have you covered. Here's your go-to source on where the fun is across SoCal and for the weekend.

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The area around Sierra Madre and Washington Boulevards, in the easterly part of Pasadena, serves as the longtime nexus for this stunner of a showcase.

Plenty of people love this awesome up-close-a-tude, with "nearly 70,000 visitors" arriving to commune with these petal-carpeted creations. You'll want to check out the Park & Ride information, and, of course, wear comfortable walking shoes.

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