USA Hundreds of thousands marvel at Thanksgiving parade in New York
More than 30 giant balloons the height of a house, hundreds of dancers and hundreds of thousands of spectators: the traditional Thanksgiving Day parade took to the streets of New York. The parade, which lasted several hours and featured floats, marching bands and many foot groups, ran from Central Park on the Upper West Side to Herald Square near the Empire State Building in the center of Manhattan on the day of the US Thanksgiving holiday. For millions of Americans, it is a tradition to watch the parade on TV at home during the preparations for the big family celebration.
27.11.2025, 19:07
SDA
The giant balloons floated through the canyons of New York in a fresh wind and temperatures just above freezing, pulled by ropes by hundreds of volunteers. The figures on display included plumber Super Mario, cartoon dog Snoopy and Derpy and Sussy, two characters from the Netflix hit "KPop Demon Hunters", who resemble a tiger and a magpie. Oversized versions of the collectible character Labubu could be seen for the first time on one of the 30 or so carnival floats. The start of the parade was traditionally marked by a float with the character Tom Turkey, at the end the Rockettes show ballet danced as usual, before a Santa Claus unofficially rang in the Christmas weeks in the USA at the end.
5,000 volunteers, 33 clown groups
The Thanksgiving Parade is a spectacular annual promotion for a major department store chain and was first held in 1924. This year marks the 99th edition of the parade, as it was suspended from 1942 to 1944 due to the Second World War. According to the organizers, the balloons were accompanied this year by more than 5,000 volunteers, 27 floats, 33 clown groups and eleven brass bands.
In the USA, the television station NBC broadcasts the spectacle and also shows performances by music stars such as "Wicked" witch Cynthia Erivo, singer Shaggy and the hit song "Golden" from "KPop Demon Hunters". The ensembles of Broadway musicals such as "Buena Vista Social Club" and "Just in Time" also performed excerpts.
