North Kansas City · since 1983 · always the Saturday before St. Patrick's Day
Snake Saturday
Saturday, March 13, 2027, 11 a.m.The 43rd parade steps off at 16th & Swift.
Stop 1 · 16th & Swift
Four events. Ten days. One green week.
Snake Saturday is never just a parade. The week opens with the Grand Marshal's party and ends with the whole town on Swift Street.
Emerald Hooley
Meet the Grand Marshal, cheer the Shamrock Award, bid in the auctions that fund local charities.
Expected date, to be confirmedLads & Lassies
Kids 2 to 7 show their Irish spirit. The winners ride in the parade a week later.
Expected date, to be confirmedCharity Cook-off
Nonprofits grill steaks for a $6,000 purse. Every one walks away with at least $100.
Expected date, to be confirmedParade & Festival
11 a.m. on Swift Street, then the carnival, car show and concession row at 18th & Howell.
Stop 2 · Armour Road
Find your spot on the route.
The parade starts at 11 a.m. at 16th & Swift, heads north on Swift, east on Armour Road and back south on Howell. It takes about two hours to pass. Stay behind the painted green lines.
parking in public lots and streets north of Armour, south of 18th and east of Erie, or west of Clay.
If you park inside Swift, Armour and Howell, you stay parked until the parade clears.
The festival at 18th & Howell: carnival, kids' stage, petting zoo, car show and concession row.
From the organizers' 2026 route and parking page. The 2027 route will be confirmed in February.
Stop 3 · Howell Street
Every charity on this route goes home with money.
Nonprofits pay a $50 entry, build a float, and compete for cash. Here's what the 501(c)(3) division paid out in 2023, top to bottom.
- 1st$7,500
- 2nd$5,000
- 3rd$3,000
- 4th–5th$2,000
- 6th–8th$1,000
- 13th–16th$500
- Entry$50
given to local charities since the 1980s, by the organizers' count
of every dollar spent goes back out as prizes and scholarships
paid to the board. Every officer is a volunteer.
volunteers run the whole week
Sources: 2023 Rainbow results; Northland Festivals IRS Form 990-EZ, 2023–2025; organizers' running total. See where the money goes.
Stop 4 · 18th & Howell · Our founders
1983. Ten degrees. A handful of floats. One motel parking lot.
“We might as well take it to the street next year.”North Kansas City's mayor, after the first parade, as the organizers tell it
