{"id":428,"date":"2024-04-25T20:50:18","date_gmt":"2024-04-25T12:50:18","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/gagner-des-cadeaux.org\/index.php\/2025\/03\/07\/americas-best-thanksgiving-parades-in-2024\/"},"modified":"2025-11-23T09:56:03","modified_gmt":"2025-11-23T01:56:03","slug":"americas-best-thanksgiving-parades-in-2024","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/gagner-des-cadeaux.org\/?p=428","title":{"rendered":"America’s best Thanksgiving parades in 2024"},"content":{"rendered":"
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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.<\/p>\n

The walking parties burst with hometown pride \u2013 you might spot the city\u2019s 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.<\/p>\n

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Here are our picks for the best Thanksgiving parades in the nation.<\/p>\n

New York: Macy\u2019s Thanksgiving Day Parade<\/h2>\n

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

More than 3.5 million people line the route to watch this event, which is by far the largest \u2013 and one of the oldest \u2013 Thanksgiving parades in America. It\u2019s also a fixture in homes across the country as it\u2019s 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 \u2013 Papa Smurf, for instance, and baby Yoda \u2013 bob along the avenue next to Central Park, well above the tree line. To get a good spot for viewing \u2013 at Columbus Circle, for instance, where the parade turns east briefly \u2013 you need to be in place by about 7am. If you don\u2019t want to get up so early, go visit the balloons as they\u2019re inflated the day before near the American Museum of Natural History. Start queuing at 12pm on 72nd St and Columbus Ave.\u00a0<\/p>\n

\"Townspeople
Townspeople dressed as pilgrims ride on a float during the annual Thanksgiving Parade in Plymouth, Massachusetts. Michael Springer\/Getty Images<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Plymouth, Massachusetts: America\u2019s Hometown Thanksgiving<\/h2>\n

Where: <\/b>Nelson St to Main St to Water St
When: <\/b>10am on November 23, 2024<\/p>\n

The first Thanksgiving meal is said to have taken place in Plymouth, in 1621, so it\u2019s fitting that the small town hosts the most historic parade. Floats representing key elements of America\u2019s story, from the arrival of the Pilgrims\u2019 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.<\/p>\n

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\"House
The Culture Casa de la Cultura Guatemalteca at the 2023 Chicago Thanksgiving Parade. Aaron of L.A. Photography\/Shutterstock<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Chicago: Thanksgiving Day Parade<\/h2>\n

Where:<\/b> State St, from Ida B Wells Dr to Randolph St
When:<\/b> 8am on November 28, 2024<\/p>\n

The Windy City\u2019s 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<\/i> performed by the Joffrey Ballet and a theatrical rendition of Charles Dickens’s A Christmas Carol<\/i>. The city\u2019s 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:\u00a0Where Grateful Hearts Gather.<\/p>\n

\"Pilgrims
Marches join a giant turkey float in the annual Thanksgiving Day parade in Philadelphia. George Sheldon\/Shutterstock<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Philadelphia: 6ABC Dunkin\u2019 Donuts Thanksgiving Day Parade<\/h2>\n

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

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.<\/p>\n

\"Big
The Big Head Corps is a long-running staple of the Detroit Thanksgiving Day parade. Paul Warner\/Getty Images<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Detroit: America\u2019s Thanksgiving Day Parade<\/h2>\n

Where: <\/b>Woodward Ave, from Kirby St to Congress St
When: <\/b>8:45am on November 28, 2024<\/p>\n

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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.<\/p>\n

\"Marching
Marching band in Charlotte. Jim McGuire\/Charlotte Center City Partners<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Charlotte: Novant Health Thanksgiving Eve Parade<\/h2>\n

Where: <\/b>Tryon St, from Ninth St to Good Samaritan Way
When: <\/b>5:45pm on November 27, 2024<\/p>\n

Long known as the Carrousel Parade, this event now has an unlikely sponsor in a healthcare company \u2013 though perhaps that\u2019s 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” \u2013 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.<\/p>\n

\"It's
It’s T-shirt weather at the Winter National Parade in North Miami. Vivian Azalia\/City of North Miami<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

North Miami: Winter National Thanksgiving Parade<\/h2>\n

Where:<\/b> NE 125th<\/sup> St, from NE Sixth Ave to NE 10th<\/sup> Ave
When<\/b>: <\/b>10am on November 28, 2024<\/p>\n

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 \u2013 without bundling up \u2013 to see small-town American attractions such as baton twirlers, cheerleaders and Shriners, in their fezzes and tiny cars.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Thanksgiving, an American<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":429,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[5],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-428","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-usa-travel-stories"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/gagner-des-cadeaux.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/428","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/gagner-des-cadeaux.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/gagner-des-cadeaux.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/gagner-des-cadeaux.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/gagner-des-cadeaux.org\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=428"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/gagner-des-cadeaux.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/428\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":1182,"href":"https:\/\/gagner-des-cadeaux.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/428\/revisions\/1182"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/gagner-des-cadeaux.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/media\/429"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/gagner-des-cadeaux.org\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=428"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/gagner-des-cadeaux.org\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=428"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/gagner-des-cadeaux.org\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=428"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}