New York City is a diverse city and a cultural hub because of the large number of immigrants who live there. Because of this diversity, the city has found ways to celebrate and showcase its happiness through various parades. These parades bring people together from different backgrounds and promote a sense of community. In this article, we will take a look at some of the major parades held each year in New York City.
Columbus Day Parade
The Columbus Day Parade is an annual celebration in the United States that celebrates Christopher Columbus’ arrival in the Americas in 1492. The first parade took place in New York City in 1929, and it has since become one of the largest celebrations of Italian-American heritage and culture in the country.
Columbus was of Italian origin, so the Italian-American community takes great pride in this parade as it highlights their cultural roots and their adoption of the American way of life. This parade takes place on the second Monday of October (on or around October 12th), and each year, hundreds of thousands of participants reportedly take part in the parade.
What To Expect At The Columbus Day Parade
The Columbus Citizens Foundation has organized the Columbus Day Parade since it started. You’ll witness over 130 groups, including live bands, balloons, and persons dressed up as Christopher Columbus. You’ll also notice cars and motorcycles decorated with Italian flags as participants drive along.
The Route Of The Parade And The Best Spots To Watch It
The New York City Columbus Day Parade starts at noon, running from 44th Street to 72nd Street along Fifth Avenue. For the best viewing experience, it’s recommended to watch the parade near Central Park and 67th Street, where there’s live music and a lively atmosphere.
Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade
The Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade has been a cherished tradition for almost a century, as it’s one of the oldest and largest parades in the United States. Macy’s department store employees took the first step to organize the first parade back in 1924.
Since then, it has become a part of the New York City tradition. Nowadays, millions of people around the world tune in to watch the parade from the comfort of their homes, or brave the cold to see it in person. The Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade is held annually on Thanksgiving Day, which is the fourth Thursday in November. Therefore, the date of the parade changes each year.
What to Expect At The Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade
The Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade is well-known for featuring beautiful displays of floats, costumes, marching bands, clowns, performers, and towering helium-filled balloons that reach heights comparable to four-story buildings. The parade’s organizers lovingly make thousands of costumes and hundreds of pounds of glitter to create a magical experience.
The Route Of The Parade And The Best Spots To Watch It
The parade’s route has been changing over the years. Currently, it starts from at 77th Street and Central Park West and moves to south down Central Park West to Columbus Circle. To see Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade, consider going to the Columbus Circle or the Sixth Avenue. This is where you’ll get the best view of the incredible floats, performers, and towering balloons.
St. Patrick’s Day Parade
The St. Patrick’s Day Parade has been an iconic event in New York City for over two centuries. Its history can be traced back to 1762 when a group of Irish ex-patriots and soldiers from the British Army stationed in New York organized the first parade. At that time, the Irish were forbidden from wearing green in their own country, and the parade became a way for Irish immigrants to express their pride in their heritage and culture.
The NYC St. Patrick’s Day Parade has become one of the largest and most celebrated St. Patrick’s Day parades in the world, with more than 100 parades taking place across the United States. The parade in New York remains the largest and most iconic, attracting millions of visitors every year. The St. Patrick’s Day Parade usually takes place around the 17th March of every year.
What To Expect At The St. Patrick’s Day Parade
The parade has a diverse range of participants, including Irish cultural groups, schools, military units, and bands. Along the parade route, the crowd enjoys the sounds of bagpipes, the grace of Irish dancers, and the lively performances of modern marching bands.
The Route Of The Parade And The Best Spots To Watch It
The NYC St. Patrick’s Day Parade follows a route along Fifth Avenue, starting at 44th Street and ending at 79th Street. 5th Avenue is a good spot to watch the parade, and it’s better to get there early if you want to be close to the avenue.
Labour Day or West Indian Day Parade
The West Indian Day Parade is an annual event in New York City that celebrates the Caribbean culture. It originated in the 1920s when Caribbean immigrants held private celebrations in Harlem. After the parade permit for Harlem was revoked in 1964, it was moved to Eastern Parkway in Brooklyn by the West Indian-American Day Carnival Association.
The parade takes place on Labour Day, a federal holiday celebrated on the first Monday in September, which marks the contributions of workers. It is a significant celebration of the African diaspora, particularly their contributions to the labor rights movement in the Western world. The West Indian Carnival Parade brings together people from different backgrounds to celebrate Caribbean culture and share it with the rest of the world.
What to Expect At The West Indian Day Parade
The West Indian Day Parade in New York City is one of the largest Caribbean carnivals in North America, drawing over one million people to celebrate Caribbean culture with a vibrant and colorful parade that takes place in Crown Heights, Brooklyn. The parade features singers, dancers, and musicians in extravagant costumes and feathered headpieces, as well as floats, marching bands, and steel-pan bands.
The parade is a true celebration of Caribbean culture, with traditional mas’ bands and steel drum musicians playing Caribbean music as people dance, drink, socialize, and have the time of their lives.
Before and after the parade, many pre- and post-parade parties take place throughout New York City, including the famous J’ouvert celebration, a sunrise parade that marks the start of carnival and celebrates West Indian culture and community.
The Route Of The Parade And The Best Spots To Watch It
The New York West Indian Labour Day Parade takes place in Crown Heights, Brooklyn. It starts at Schenectady Avenue and ends at Grand Army Plaza. The liveliest stretch to watch the parade is Schenectady Avenue to Franklin Avenue.
The Village Halloween Parade
Ralph Lee, a skilled artist in puppetry and mask-making, got the idea for the Village Halloween Parade. He brought his vision to life in 1974, establishing the event as an annual tradition. This iconic event happens every Halloween evening in New York City’s Greenwich Village neighborhood, on or around October 31st each year.
What to Expect At the Village Halloween Parade
On Halloween night, the Greenwich Village neighborhood of New York City becomes a hub of vibrant activity with the famous Village Halloween Parade. The parade is known for its signature large puppets, which are animated by hundreds of volunteers, and each year’s official parade theme is reflected in the puppets.
What sets this parade apart from others is that participants can just show up in costume at the starting point without registering or paying anything. The parade also includes floats and performers such as dancers, musicians, and acrobats, who add to the lively atmosphere of the event. Due to its immense popularity, the parade often fills up quickly, making it a highly sought-after event for visitors and locals alike.
The Route Of The Parade And The Best Spots To Watch It
The parade route starts at 6th Avenue and Canal Street and heads north along 6th Avenue to 16th Street. The best spot to watch the parade is anywhere near 6th Avenue.
Conclusion
New York City celebrates its diversity and traditions through a variety of parades that bring together people of different backgrounds and provide them with a sense of community. The five biggest parades include the Columbus Day Parade, Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade, St. Patrick’s Day Parade, Labor Day, and West Indian Day Parade.
These parades are significant to New Yorkers and visitors as they highlight cultural roots, express pride in heritage and culture, and celebrate the contributions of workers and the African diaspora.
Attending at least one of these parades in person is highly recommended to experience the beautiful displays of floats, costumes, marching bands, clowns, performers, and towering helium-filled balloons, and to witness the lively performances of modern marching bands.