On Thursday, November 27, 2025, the 99th annual Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade took place. This is everything that happened.
This year, five new balloons debuted. These included Buzz Lightyear, Pac-Man, Derpy Tiger from K-Pop Demon Hunters, Mario, and Shrek’s Ogre Carriage. Other balloons included Spider-Man, Goku, Bluey, Minnie Mouse, Snoopy, and many others.
Six new floats also debuted, including the Upside Down from Stranger Things, Lego, Pop Mart, Lindt Chocolate, Serta Mattress Firm, and Holland America Line Cruise. Returning floats included Peanuts, Disney, Sesame Street, Tom the Turkey, and Dora the Explorer.
Balloonicles, or balloon vehicles, included the Diary of a Wimpy Kid Cheese, Susie and Flowerpot from K-Pop Demon Hunters, Frost Pips from Elf on the Shelf, and Happy Hippos Triple Stack.
Musical guests included Cynthia Erivo, Ciara, Conan Gray, and Meg Donnelly. For the first time ever, HuntR/X — including Ejae, Lainey Wilson, Audrey Nuna, and Rei Ami from K-Pop Demon Hunters — performed live. (Fun fact: Audrey Nuna was born and raised in Manalapan, New Jersey, and attended FPAC at Howell High School.) Eleven marching bands, the Rockettes, Buena Vista Social Club, Just in Time, Ragtime, and A Chorus Line: The Next Generation also made an appearance.
Other than hosts Al Roker, Hoda Kotb, and Savannah Guthrie, special guests included Nikki DeLoach, U.S. Olympian Ilia Malinin, U.S. Paralympian Jack Wallace, Kristoffer Polaha, Sean Evans from Hot Ones, and, finally, Mariska Hargitay and Chris Meloni from Law & Order: SVU.
New records included the most characters on a balloon, with Shrek’s Ogre Carriage having eight; the first-ever furry balloons being Labubu and Lacoco on Pop Mart’s “Friendsgiving in POP CITY” float; the largest balloonicles being the Frost Pips from Elf on the Shelf; and the smallest float being the Littlest Float from Goldfish at eight inches tall.
