How to Watch the Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade

Stacey Ritzen
·2 min read

With Thanksgiving nearly here, perhaps the only thing more synonymous with the autumn holiday other than turkey, pumpkin pie, football, and "taking a walk" with your cousin before dinner, is the annual Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade. Every year, millions of people watch as colorful floats, balloons, celebrities, Broadway numbers, and marching bands make their way through the streets of Manhattan before ending outside Macy's Herald Square.

The annual tradition is nearly a century old, as the first Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade took place in 1924, tying (along with Detroit) for the second-oldest Thanksgiving parade in the United States behind Philadelphia's Thanksgiving Day Parade, which began in 1920. However, this year will only be the 97th edition of the parade, as it was canceled for three years in a row starting in 1942 amid the escalation of World War II, when resources were being put toward the war effort.

How can I watch the Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade in 2023?

This year's Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade will take place on Nov. 23, 2023. For the first time since 1953, the parade will start at 8:30 a.m. ET, instead of its usual 9:00 a.m. start time, and end at noon. As it has been every year, also since 1953, the parade will nationally televised on NBC with a simulcast on Peacock, NBC's streaming platform. A Spanish simulcast will also be available via your local Telemundo syndicate.

An encore airing of the parade will likewise air on NBC at 2 p.m., following the National Dog Show. It will also stream for a second time on Peacock at 8:30 am PT, but will not be available for replay again.

This year's parade coverage will be hosted by Today show hosts Savannah Guthrie, Hoda Kotb, and Al Roker; and the Spanish simulcast will be hosted by Telemundo's Carlos Adyan and Andrea Meza.

Spectators watching the parade this year can expect to see 16 featured character balloons, 26 floats, 32 heritage and novelty balloons, more than 700 clowns, 12 marching bands, and nine performance groups, along with more than 5,000 volunteers made up of Macy's employees and their friends and family. Headlining performers will include Cher and Jon Batiste.