The Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade is an annual parade that occurs on Thanksgiving day in New York City. The parade is presented by the American department store chain, Macy’s and lasts for about three and a half hours.`
The parade displays floats and performers such as singers and dancers. People/companies can pay to participate in the parade. It costs from around $30,000 to $100,000 to be able to be in the parade.
The parade has been hosted for 99 years, with it becoming a national tradition. Over 10 million people watch the parade every year on Thanksgiving day.
“I like the parade because it gives me something fun to watch before dinner,” says Jozlyn DeJesus (10).
In 2025, the parade consisted of 34 large balloons, 28 floats, 29 performers, 11 marching bands, 33 clown crews, nine performance groups and 14 specialty units.
Most of the balloons are ones that have appeared in the parade before such as Macy’s Stars in all different colors, including Spider-Man, Spongebob, Paw Patrol, Candy Canes, acorns and more.
However, every year the parade features some newer, more popular balloons that relate to what the public is interested in. Some of the new balloons from the 2025 parade include a Derpy Tiger balloon from the animated movie “K-Pop Demon Hunters,” as well as Buzz Lightyear, Pac-Man, Shrek’s Onion Carriage and Mario.
By introducing the new floats and balloons every year, it helps bring in and capture the viewers of the parade. The new balloons are meant to appeal specifically to certain age groups which helps include all citizens of the United States.
Hayley Pascua (9) says,”I’m always so bored during the day on Thanksgiving, so I just watch the parade for fun.”
The floats in the parade ranged from Sesame Street floats to the famous Tom Turkey float. The parade included some specific brand floats such as the new Pop Mart float, which featured the popular Labubu toys, in addition to Disney, Goldfish and the chocolate brand Kinder.
As well as popular brands, the floats also featured some popular shows such as “Stranger Things,” “Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles,” “Dora The Explorer,” “Peanuts” and “Sesame Street.”
29 Performers were included in the 2025 parade such as Conan Gray, Cynthia Erivo, Colbie Caillat, Meg Donnelly, Darlene Love and the singing voices of HUNTR/X from the movie “K-Pop Demon Hunters.”
Eleven Marching bands were also featured in the parade from both high schools and universities.
Also in the parade were 33 clown crews, which were included in the parade to bring color and fun. They had different themes to make the parade more interesting. The clown crews consist of ordinary citizens who sign up to be in the parade.
There were also nine performance groups such as the Native Pride Productions, Spirit of America Cheer, Star Track Cycling and Spirit of American Dance Stars.
Finally there were the 14 specialty units which were purely manpowered. These specialty units included the Mouse King, Nutcracker, Wigglefoot, Rocking Horse, Rocking Giraffe and more.
The Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade is meant to spread unity across the nation by giving Americans something to connect over.
