Thanksgiving Parade NYC: Route, Times and Best Spots

The 2024 Thanksgiving Day Parade takes place on Thursday, November 28. If you're in New York in November, especially if you're traveling with kids, I'd tell you to join the celebration.

Watching the Thanksgiving Day Parade is an annual family tradition in the United States, a beautiful event where you get to see Santa arrive in the city 🎅🎶.

The Thanksgiving Day Parade in New York is an invention of the Macy's department store, which is why plenty of people call it the Macy's Parade. 

The department store first organized it in 1924 as a cutting-edge form of advertising. Years later it would be immortalized in the 1947 film Miracle on 34th Street (watch it before you see the parade live!).

Keep reading for all the details on the Thanksgiving Day Parade in Manhattan, one of the biggest events during fall in New York.

When Is the Thanksgiving Day Parade in New York?

The 2024 Thanksgiving Day Parade takes place on Thursday, November 28. It starts at 8:30 in the morning and runs until noon. 

The day after the Macy's Parade is Black Friday, one of the big sale dates in New York.

An easy rule for remembering when the Thanksgiving Day Parade happens: it's held every fourth Thursday in November.

It's a big date, since it marks the arrival of Christmas in New York and across the United States.

The 2024 Thanksgiving Day Parade will include 22 floats, 17 giant balloons, 11 marching bands and 24 performers and musical acts, among them The Temptations, rapper T-Pain, Jennifer Hudson, Jimmy Fallon & The Roots, Charli D'Amelio, Coco Jones and Walker Hayes.

2024 Macy's Parade Route

The parade covers a 2.5-mile route that starts at 77th Street on the Upper West Side and heads south to Herald Square (home of the flagship Macy's store).

The main points along the Macy's Parade route are: 

1. It begins on Central Park West at 77th Street
2. It continues south along Central Park West  
3. It goes around Columbus Circle  
4. It continues along Central Park South to Sixth Avenue  
5. It ends at Macy's Herald Square, on 34th Street . 

Best Places to Watch the Thanksgiving Parade

To see the parade in person, I'd recommend setting up along the west sidewalk of Central Park West, between 61st and 75th Streets on the Upper West Side.

To find a good spot you need to get there early, around 8 am. Keep in mind that the most devoted spectators show up as early as 6 am to claim the best views.

Another great spot is around Columbus Circle, where you'll get a perfect view as the parade turns onto Central Park South.

If you'd rather arrive later (between 9:30 am and 11 am), position yourself along Sixth Avenue between Central Park South and 38th Street.

Don't go to Sixth Avenue between 34th and 38th Streets or in front of the Macy's Herald Square store, because the stages set up for the live broadcast will block your view of the show.

If you'd rather watch the parade broadcast, you can catch it live on NBC and on the streaming platform Peacock, from 8:30 am until noon (New York time).

What's New at the 2024 Thanksgiving Day Parade

In 2024 the Macy's Parade celebrates its 98th edition with more balloons and floats than ever.

The lineup includes 32 giant balloons of famous characters and other classic figures, 22 floats, 11 marching bands, 700 clowns and 10 musical performances.

This year also brings several new additions you won't want to miss:

• For the first time there will be a giant Minnie Mouse balloon alongside Mickey.
• Also debuting are new balloons of Extraordinary Noorah & the Elf on the Shelf, Marshall from PAW Patrol, Dora the Explorer and Goku from Dragon Ball.
• The Bronx Zoo will debut a float,
• Ellie the Elephant, mascot of the New York Liberty, will be one of the most anticipated new arrivals.

Which Artists Are Performing in the Parade?

The parade will feature more than 24 confirmed artists, with a lineup that mixes hits from different generations and styles. Already confirmed:

• The Temptations
• Jimmy Fallon & The Roots
• Charli D'Amelio
• Coco Jones
• Walker Hayes

What Is the Thanksgiving Day Parade?

The Thanksgiving Parade in New York, or the Macy's Parade, is something we've all seen countless times in shows and movies, announcing that the holiday season has arrived in New York.

For about three hours, enormous balloons of cartoon characters (Hello Kitty, Spider-Man, Pikachu, Buzz Lightyear, SpongeBob) float through New York, guided by handlers strapped into harnesses.

Advertising icons march too, like Ronald McDonald and the famous Pillsbury Doughboy (remember that «Ghostbusters» also features a giant marshmallow man?).

The prettiest stretch of the route is when the parade passes alongside Central Park.

After the parade, I'd suggest checking out the loveliest bridges in Central Park. They'll remind you of plenty of scenes from movies filmed in New York's most famous park, like Home Alone.

Santa Claus Is Coming to Town

If you're patient, after the balloons, the Macy's employees and their families waving, the marching bands, cheerleaders, clowns, floats and musical groups, you'll see the star of the parade: Santa Claus and Mrs. Claus waving from their sleigh and announcing that Christmas has arrived in the city (afterward you can head to Santaland at Macy's Herald Square to ask for a few presents 🎅).

Watching the Giant Balloons Get Inflated

Few tourists know you can attend the inflation of the giant balloons that will appear in the Thanksgiving Parade. It's free and genuinely exciting.

It's as simple as showing up the day before the event (Wednesday, November 27) between 3 pm and 10 pm near the American Museum of Natural History, around 79th Street and Columbus Avenue.

If you've never seen the parade in person, this is a great way to soak up the spirit of the event. Alongside hundreds of New Yorkers, you'll watch the giants slowly inflate and grow.

The Thanksgiving Day Parade in Pop Culture

The classic movie reference to the Thanksgiving Day Parade in New York is the 1947 film Miracle on 34th Street (one of the most successful pieces of product placement in history).

In the film, Maureen O'Hara plays the skeptical Macy's executive in charge of the parade and mother to a 9-year-old Natalie Wood.

The girl convinces her mother to hire Kris Kringle as the parade's Santa, a passerby who looks remarkably like the real thing and who, surprise, turns out to claim he actually is Santa (after this many years, the spoiler is fair game).

Macy’s, as you've probably gathered if you've read this far, has been smart and strategic about weaving its history into the history of New York City. This iconic NYC event isn't the only thing they sponsor either. They're also behind the Fourth of July fireworks show in New York.

When the Thanksgiving Parade 2024 takes place

Date: Thursday, November 28, 2023

Hours: 8:30 am until noon

Another year, and the Thanksgiving Day Parade is once again one of the most anticipated fall celebrations in New York.

Have you picked your viewing spot yet? See you on Central Park West! 🎈🎅