Watching the Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade is one of my favorite holiday traditions! I love to see the fun floats, the amalgam of imagination, talented high school marching bands, lip-syncing celebrities, and, especially, the Rockettes! Add cozy New York City Christmas scenery to boot, and this is one of my favorite traditions of the year!

When is the Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade 2025?

This year, the 99th Annual Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade takes place Thanksgiving morning, November 27th, in New York City and will be broadcast live on NBC and Peacock from 8:30 am to noon EST. Reportedly, “The lineup will feature 18 giant helium balloons, 33 mid-sized balloons, 29 floats, 33 clown groups, 11 marching bands, nine performance groups, a host of musical stars, and the one-and-only Santa Claus.”

Every Thanksgiving, millions of families just like mine tune in to the holiday fun while they’re baking pies and stuffing turkeys. But what does the Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade have to do with Christmas? Let’s explore what you should know about the Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade for 2025, a little bit of Parade history, and how this fun tradition relates to Christmas!

What Does Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade Have to Do with Christmas?

1. The First Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade was called “Macy’s Christmas Parade”

Can you believe this year will be the 99th year of this special parade? The first Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade took place in 1924 and was called the “Macy’s Christmas Parade”. It was initiated to celebrate the official opening of the enormous Macy’s store in New York City!

2. The Balloon Character that’s Appeared Most is Snoopy

Interestingly, from 1924 to 1926, handlers from Central Park Zoo marched zoo animals down the NYC streets during the Parade. But not everyone was amused, and many children were scared of the live tigers and bears. By 1927 Macy’s replaced the live animals with oversized balloon versions—and a lasting tradition was born!

Snoopy has appeared in a total of 40 parades since 1968! And while this isn’t a historical link to Christmas, for many of us today the character of Snoopy reminds us of one of our favorite Christmas movies, A Charlie Brown Christmas.

3. The Parade Unofficially Kicks off the Christmas Season

For its first year in 1924, the Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade was the unofficial kickoff of the holiday shopping season. That tradition continues to this day, and for the 30 million people who tune in on television every year the Parade now serves as the annual and unofficial kickoff of the Christmas season too!

4. The Radio City Rockettes Perform Every Year

The Radio City Rockettes perform every year at the Parade. In fact, they have been a part of this festival day since the early 1930s, making them a Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade staple!

The Radio City Rockettes are known for their Christmas show called the Christmas Spectacular. In 2025, the Rockettes will celebrate their 100th anniversary! They’re officially celebrating “100 Years of Sisterhood” since 1925.

The Rockettes perform for more than one million people every holiday season at Radio City Music Hall in New York City. In 2025, the annual Christmas Spectacular will run from November 6th until January 5th, 2026.  

5. Santa is the Last to Appear in the Parade

Since its debut in 1924, the Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade has joyfully ended with the arrival of Santa Claus. For many every year, that means Kris Kingle’s annual appearance in Herald Square signals the beginning of the Christmas season.

During the inaugural parade in 1924, Santa was seated on a balcony above Macy’s flagship store on 34th Street, where he was honored with the title “King of the Kiddies.” The only time he didn’t close the parade was in 1932, during the ninth annual event, when he instead led the procession aboard the Herald Square Express.

Every Thanksgiving, the arrival of Santa waving to his fans from his sleigh is a joyful event that families and children look forward to. And as Thanksgiving Day marks the end of the Thanksgiving season, Santa’s arrival at the Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade serves as the perfect beginning of the wonderful Christmas season and all the goodness it brings into our lives.

Lastly, you can enjoy lots of Christmas tunes throughout the parade.

Happy Thanksgiving everyone! And may you enjoy a wonderful weekend filled with turkey, delicious pies, gratitude, and Christmas cheer!

Come Friday… the Christmas season has officially arrived!