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Celebrating Thanksgiving in New York City is a favourite occasion for many people.

One of the "big six" major holidays of the year, Thanksgiving Day has been an official United States holiday since 1863, when President Abraham Lincoln, in the midst of the Civil War, proclaimed that Thursday, November 26, should be a day of national feasting and gratitude.

Before that, Thanksgiving celebrated the survival of the Pilgrims of Plymouth Colony, who had to endure a brutal first winter in New England. The first Thanksgiving feast consisted of fish, wild fowl, venison, harvest grains, vegetables, and dried Indian maize. According to most accounts, it lasted three days and fed 53 pilgrims and 90 Native Americans.

Important Information:

• Thanksgiving Day is celebrated on the fourth Thursday in November! In 2017, Thanksgiving falls on November 23.
• Thanksgiving Day is a United States Federal Holiday. That means schools, banks, and post offices will be closed. Many restaurants, stores, and NYC attractions will be closed, as well.

One of the best ways to celebrate Thanksgiving in New York City is by attending the Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade. Since 1924, a traditional event in New York City like no other! This famous NYC parade, first established in 1924, is tied with America's Thanksgiving Parade in Detroit for the second oldest Thanksgiving Day Parade in the United States. With more than 3.5 million spectators and 10,000 participants, it is also one of the largest parades in New York. At the Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade, you can expect dazzling musical performances, cool floats, and awe-inspiring helium balloons. Click here to learn more, get answers to frequently asked questions and to view the parade route map and photo tours covering many of the most popular events that surround the most famous parade in America

 Like most parades in NYC, the Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade features live musical performances by popular bands and recording artists. In 2010, Kylie Minogue, Jessica Simpson, Gladys Knight, and India Arie performed live alongside some of the best marching bands in the United States.

Parade Floats: The Macy's Day Parade is renowned for its famous parade floats. Among those that appeared in the 2010 parade were Mount Rushmore's American Pride, Dora's Christmas Carol Adventure, and Pokemon's Reshiram and Zekrom.

Parade Balloons: The first Macy's Day Parade balloon, an enormous, air-filled Felix the Cat, was engineered in 1927 to replace the live animals that had formerly participated in the parade. In 1982, the parade introduced the Olive Oyl balloon, the first to represent a female character. In recent years, Thanksgiving Day Parade has featured representations of Shrek, Dora the Explorer, Spider-Man, SpongeBob SquarePants, Super Mario, Snoopy, and the Energizer Bunny.