America's best Thanksgiving parades in 2024

24.10.2024 - 09:23 / lonelyplanet.com

Oct 23, 2024 • 5 min read

Thanksgiving, an American holiday on the fourth Thursday of November, features people lining the streets of major cities to watch marching bands, grinning clowns and enormous floats inaugurate the festive holiday season leading up to Christmas.

The walking parties burst with hometown pride – you might spot the city’s beauty pageant queen, a local sports star, an American Idol winner or other heroes. And in nearly every case, Santa Claus and his elves bring up the rear.

Here are our picks for the best Thanksgiving parades in the nation.

Where: from 77th St & Central Park West to Herald Sq (Broadway & 34th St), via Sixth Ave
When: 8:30am on November 28, 2024

More than 3.5 million people line the route to watch this event, which is by far the largest – and one of the oldest – Thanksgiving parades in America. It’s also a fixture in homes across the country as it’s broadcast live nationwide on NBC with more than 50 million tuning in. The main draw, along with all the usual marching bands, floats and about a thousand clowns, is the giant balloons in the shapes of cartoon characters – Papa Smurf, for instance, and baby Yoda – bob along the avenue next to Central Park, well above the tree line. To get a good spot for viewing – at Columbus Circle, for instance, where the parade turns east briefly – you need to be in place by about 7am. If you don’t want to get up so early, go visit the balloons as they’re inflated the day before near the American Museum of Natural History. Start queuing at 12pm on 72nd St and Columbus Ave. 

Where: Nelson St to Main St to Water St
When: 10am on November 23, 2024

The first Thanksgiving meal is said to have taken place in Plymouth, in 1621, so it’s fitting that the small town hosts the most historic parade. Floats representing key elements of America’s story, from the arrival of the Pilgrims’ Mayflower ship, up to more present-day explorations (a NASA float, for instance), promenade chronologically along Main Street. Note that, unlike the other parades, this one takes place the Saturday before Thanksgiving.

Where: State St, from Ida B Wells Dr to Randolph St
When: 8am on November 28, 2024

The Windy City’s diverse population shows off in this long-running parade, with performances by Greek, Ukrainian and Thai dance groups, a Mexican equestrian team and a squad of Japanese taiko drummers. In between are snippets of high culture, such as excerpts from The Nutcracker performed by the Joffrey Ballet and a theatrical rendition of Charles Dickens's A Christmas Carol. The city’s African-American heritage is proudly represented by dance groups, a tribute to singer Etta James, and a float devoted to the Tuskegee Airmen of World War II. This year's theme: Where Grateful Hearts