CROWDS of people lined the streets of New Orleans on Tuesday to celebrate Mardi Gras and bring carnival season to a close.

Families camped out from early in the morning to catch beads and stuffed animals thrown from float riders, while revellers took to the streets in elaborate or funny costumes evoking Marie Antoinette, president Donald Trump and glamorous vampires.

The French Quarter’s most famous street, Bourbon Street, and parallel Royal Street were crowded with costumed tourists and locals, many of them stopping each other for photographs.

One group dressed as pink flamingos. Two men, both dressed as Trump, greeted each other in the crowd.

Other costumes included Mr and Mrs Potato Head, Pac Man and Mrs Pac Man, as well as an angel of death with black wings and a halo.

Shannon Abraham, from Reno, Nevada, said she had spent dozens of hours designing and making her elaborate silver-sequined dress.

She wore a silver wig of curls to complete her look as a “Glampire Extraordinaire”.

Speaking of the people dressed up in the French Quarter, she said: “The effort that they’ve poured into this celebration and their costumes is extraordinary. And I like to be part of that. I like to contribute.”

Carnival season, which starts on January 6, draws about 1 million visitors and pumps about £604 million into the city’s economy.