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This year's
Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade
takes place on
Thursday, November 24th
from 9:00 am to 12:00 pm
Parade Hotline: 212-494-4495
The celebration will be
broadcast on NBC
(channel 4 in New York City)
9:00 am - noon
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Also, there's the
Inflation Eve Helium Balloon Viewing
Wednesday, November 23, 2011
Starting at and around 3:00 - 4:00 pm and lasting to about 8:00 - 9:00 pm
Central Park West and Columbus Avenue on 77th and 81st Streets
You'll get to see a over a dozen huge helium filled
balloons floating along above the 8,000 or so marchers walking
along the 2 mile route. With musical performances from stars,
a broadway performance or two, plenty of clowns, floats and of
course there are the marching bands from local Schools as well
as from across the United States. In 2001 the Statue of Liberty
Float was adorned with the flags of all 50 states. Some of the
big names to star in the parade were Tony Bennett, Boyz II Men,
Usher, Billy Gilman, O-Town and soprano Charlotte Church amongst
others. Thus this year's event should feature plenty of big names.
Route:
So get on down along the NEW route which goes from 77th
Street and Central Park West and turning onto Central Park South, instead of going down Broadway. Once the parade reaches 7th avenue the procession turns south at the corner of Central Park South and down to 42nd Street. There it will head east along 42nd from 7th to 6th Avenues. At 6th it'll head south on to 34th Street where it will then head west towards Herald Square and end at 34th and 7th Avenue.
It'll begin at 9:00am. And remember, there's also
the inflating of the balloons the night before at and around the
American Museum of Natural History
at and around 77th Street and Central Park West. Also note that
the crowd gathers quite early so it might be in your best interest
to show up early as well if you'd like to get a good view of the
parade this year!
Scroll
below for other related items of interest.
Thanksgiving Day History
First celebrated by English Pilgrims in 1621 in
what is now the state of Massachusetts, Thanksgiving is quite the
prequel to the holiday festivities which take place here in New
York City and well, across the nation. It was Governor William Bradford
of New England who proclaimed a day of "thanksgiving"
in celebration of the Pilgrim's first harvest in America and it
was president Abraham Lincoln who later designated it as a national
holiday in 1863, and president Franklin D. Roosevelt who in 1941
signed a bill that set the fourth Thursday in November as the official
holiday.
BUT,
today it's thousands upon thousands who gather within NYC to view
the Annual Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade. An event which began
with the first Macy's Department Store Christmas Parade in 1924
followed by the Thanksgiving Day Parade the following year and many
more after to this day.
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