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.

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

New York: Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade

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. 

Townspeople dressed as pilgrims ride on a float during the annual Thanksgiving Parade in Plymouth, Massachusetts
Townspeople dressed as pilgrims ride on a float during the annual Thanksgiving Parade in Plymouth, Massachusetts. Michael Springer/Getty Images

Plymouth, Massachusetts: America’s Hometown Thanksgiving

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.

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House of Guatemalan Culture Casa de la Cultura Guatemalteca en Chicago participated and danced in 2023 Chicago Thanksgiving Parade.
The Culture Casa de la Cultura Guatemalteca at the 2023 Chicago Thanksgiving Parade. Aaron of L.A. Photography/Shutterstock

Chicago: Thanksgiving Day Parade

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 Gather.

Pilgrims march alongside a turkey float in the annual Thanksgiving Day parade in Chicago
Marches join a giant turkey float in the annual Thanksgiving Day parade in Philadelphia. George Sheldon/Shutterstock

Philadelphia: 6ABC Dunkin’ Donuts Thanksgiving Day Parade

Where: 20th St and JFK Blvd, east on JFK to 16th St, north on Arch St, northwest on Benjamin Franklin Pkwy through Logan Circle, on to Eakins Oval, ending at Philadelphia Museum of Art
When: 8:30am on November 28, 2024

The parade that started it all launched in Philadelphia in 1920 by Gimbels department store. The store has since closed, but the parade marches on, showcasing such unique participants as a squad of some 450 tap dancers from all over the East Coast. The 1.4-mile route passes several landmark parks and buildings with steps, which provide a natural vantage point for on-lookers. Many people head straight for the endpoint, the steep steps at the Philadelphia Museum of Art (where Rocky Balboa famously trained), which give a view straight down the main drag of Benjamin Franklin Parkway. Across the street, at Eakins Oval, a tent serves hot drinks and soup and offers distractions for kids getting antsy while waiting for the parade to roll up.

Big Head Corps members pose on Woodward Ave in Detroit during the America's Thanksgiving Day Parade.
The Big Head Corps is a long-running staple of the Detroit Thanksgiving Day parade. Paul Warner/Getty Images

Detroit: America’s Thanksgiving Day Parade

Where: Woodward Ave, from Kirby St to Congress St
When: 8:45am on November 28, 2024

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Detroit's annual parade has been going strong since 1924 and attracts about a million spectators. Among the more than 75 bands, dance groups and floats, the most notable entrants are more than 2000 clowns and the Big Head Corps, a crew of marchers wearing giant papier-mache heads of cartoon characters, baseball players and actors such as Detroit native Tom Selleck. The living bobbleheads are a modern rendition of a traditional Italian art, and many of the older heads come from Viareggio, Italy, which is known for its elaborate carnival figures.

Marching band in Charlotte. A man plays the clarinet in a green uniform. America's best Thanksgiving Day parades
Marching band in Charlotte. Jim McGuire/Charlotte Center City Partners

Charlotte: Novant Health Thanksgiving Eve Parade

Where: Tryon St, from Ninth St to Good Samaritan Way
When: 5:45pm on November 27, 2024

Long known as the Carrousel Parade, this event now has an unlikely sponsor in a healthcare company – though perhaps that’s appropriate, considering the collective overeating done on this holiday. The parade attracts about 100,000 people, and the main attraction is the impressive marching bands, which are competing for scholarships. A recent innovation is the brigade of "Segwalloons" – ground-level balloons built over Segway scooters. They were developed because light poles on the parade route would have tangled the lines on larger, floating balloons.

It's T-shirt weather during the WinterNational Parade in North Miami
It's T-shirt weather at the Winter National Parade in North Miami. Vivian Azalia/City of North Miami

North Miami: Winter National Thanksgiving Parade

Where: NE 125th St, from NE Sixth Ave to NE 10th Ave
When: 10am on November 28, 2024

Thanksgiving parades usually mean massive crowds and freezing temperatures. North Miami offers an antidote to both, with its small-scale, 49-year-old parade in temperate Florida, aka the Sunshine State. Line up – without bundling up – to see small-town American attractions such as baton twirlers, cheerleaders and Shriners, in their fezzes and tiny cars.

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