It’s that time of year again! Time for the Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade. A spectacular parade filled with dancing, singing, and of course marching bands, floats inspired by fairy tales and favorite characters, as well as 25 giant animal balloons. No matter how old you are or where you live, this is one event that will always bring back happy memories. We all know that the Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade has been a staple of American culture for nearly 90 years now. But how much do we really know about it? Here are some facts about Macy's Thanksgiving Parade in New York and its history you might not have known.
What Time Is The Macy’s Thanksgiving Parade?
The official Macy’s Thanksgiving Parade start time is 9:00 AM. The parade lasts for three hours. If you want the best seats, you should show up early to get a good view of the parade route.
How Many Floors Does The Dish Scrubber Float Have?
The Dish Scrubber float is built with 19 floors, representing the number of years Macy’s has been hosting the parade. The float is built on a truck chassis, with a 53-foot-long turntable at the rear, and a 33-foot-long turntable at the front. The float was built by the same people who built the very first float for the first parade in 1924. It’s difficult work, the float is made out of 10,000 pounds of steel, 1,500 pounds of fiber, and 800 pounds of nails. The float weighs 48,000 pounds. The float is decorated with a half-million sequins and has more than 1,000 feet of neon tubing, 16,000 feet of rope, and 10,000 feet of bungee cords. Each of the 24 dish scrubbers has 100 lights inside.
Where Is The Macy’s Thanksgiving Parade Held?
The parade route runs from 77th Street at Central Park West all the way down to 34th Street. The route is 1.5 miles long. The best seats to watch the parade are on the east side of the street, in front of Central Park. However, if you don’t want to brave the crowd, you can watch the parade on NBC, Macy’s website, or on YouTube.
Which Floats Are In The Macy’s Thanksgiving Parade This Year?
The parade is known for its whimsical and imaginative themes. In recent years, they’ve included a parade inspired by Tim Burton’s The Nightmare Before Christmas, a Frozen-themed parade, and a parade inspired by The Wizard of Oz. The theme for the 2019 Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade is "Under the Sea." Here are some of the floats that will appear in the Macy’s Thanksgiving Parade this year:
- The Butterfly Float: A giant butterfly made out of flowers, the butterfly float made its debut in the 2016 parade. It’s designed to look as if it’s made of flowers, leaves, and butterflies. It’s one of the most amazing floats ever featured in the parade.
- The Caroling Float: The caroling float is a giant Christmas carol book, holding a collection of Christmas carols like Jingle Bells and Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer.
- The Christmas Tree Float: The Christmas tree float has been part of the parade since its inception in 1924. This year’s tree is a 75-foot-tall Norway spruce. It’s decorated with 100,000 LED lights. While the first Christmas tree was a model, the first genuine Christmas tree was used in the 1940’s.
- The Ice Skating Float: The ice-skating float was first used in 1938. It’s made to look like a frozen lake, complete with a frozen lake, snow, ice skaters, and igloos.
- The Macy’s Thanksgiving Parade Treehouse: The treehouse float is one of the most impressive ever featured in the parade. It’s a giant panther climbing a tree, complete with tree branches and an amazing lighting display.
- The Music Float: The music float celebrates the joy of music, and the music of the season.
- The Nutcracker Float: The Nutcracker Float is one of the most spectacular floats ever featured in the parade. It’s a giant, giant Nutcracker, complete with dancers.
- The Pop-Up Toy Shop: The pop-up toy shop float is a giant toy shop that comes to life. It’s a magical toy shop with a giant teddy bear, a giant carousel, and a giant Ferris wheel.
- The Santaland Wake-Up: The Santaland Wake-Up is a Macy’s Parade classic, showing a Macy’s Santaland waking up on Thanksgiving morning.
- The Yuletide Logs: The Yuletide Logs float is a giant bonfire made to look like burning logs.
Which balloons will be at this Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade?
Every year, some of the giant balloons are retired, and new characters are added to the lineup. Some of the balloons that have been at the parade for decades include the giant Teddy Bear, the giant pink pig, and the giant Snoopy and Woodstock from the Peanuts Gang. Here are some of the balloons that will be at the Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade this year:
- The Big Bad Wolf: A giant wolf who loves to huff and puff, blowing down houses made of straw and sticks.
- The Breakfast Tray: A giant breakfast tray with a giant omelet, bacon, and pancakes.
- Charlie Brown: The lovable Peanuts character.
- The Cow: Giant cow that loves moo-sic, especially the saxophone.
- The Dancing Bear: A dancing bear that loves to waltz, tango, and get a little crazy with the rhumba.
- The Dancing Chicken: A chicken who loves to dance to Latin music. - The Dancing Pig: A dancing pig who loves to salsa.
- The Dancing Turkey: A dancing turkey who loves to do the salsa.
- The Dog: The giant Dog who is often seen with a bone, chewing on his favorite toy.
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