Packed crowds return to New York’s Thanksgiving parade after pandemic hiatus

STORY: Spectators lined the streets of Manhattan on Thursday (November 25) for the 95th annual Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade after last year’s spectacle was scaled down and closed to the public because of the coronavirus pandemic.

Other American cities stage parades, but New York’s event has become an archetype of the holiday tradition, which is televised across the country to some 50 million viewers as they prepare their Thanksgiving meals.

The giant, helium balloons depicting cartoon characters and toys are typically the main attraction, with this year’s pageant adding newcomers such as Grogu, otherwise known as Baby Yoda from the Star Wars spinoff series, The Mandalorian, and Ada, the young scientist from the Netflix series Ada Twist, Scientist.

The classic Astronaut Snoopy once again appeared in this year’s parade, the ninth version of the Snoopy balloon, according to the Macy’s website.

In all there were 15 balloons guided by marchers holding tethers, the longest of which measured 72 feet (22 meters), Macy’s said.

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