The Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade celebrates its 99th anniversary this November, taking over the streets of Manhattan on Thursday, November 27, 2025, exhilarating the city with its boisterous marching bands, extravagant floats, and giant balloon characters.

If you're planning to attend the Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade with kids (and millions of others!), read on for the most up-to-date information on the Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade route, best viewing locations, and other highlights. Looking for where to see the Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade 2025 on TV instead? Read on for that, too. You'll find more holiday inspiration in our Thanksgiving Fun Guide for NYC Families.

Enthusiastic paradegoers know the family fun actually begins the day before as the trademark giant balloons receive their annual helium injections—in fact, the Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade balloon inflation is even included in our list of 100 things to do with your kids in NYC before they grow up. Check out our in-depth Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade inflation post for an overview of the Wednesday night festivities.

Polar Express trains and trolleys are ready for Christmas magic in 2025!

North Texas loves the holiday season. We might not have snow, but we've got a lot of cheer. And since everything is bigger in Texas, our festivals and soirees are as spectacular as Mariah Carey's vocal range. Whether you're excited for your go-to spot or ready to try something new, we've rounded up the most festive hotels and Christmas towns near Dallas-Fort Worth that go all out with everything from ice skating rinks to holiday parades, visits with live reindeer, and much more. 

Hear those sleigh bells ringing?! That means Christmas events near Atlanta are coming! Christmas towns and festive hotels near Atlanta are happy to welcome Santa, hard-working elves, and of course, your family! We've rounded up wonderful winter places near Atlanta to take kids and enjoy incredible decorations, seasonal activities, and a general feeling of holiday magic. Check out these over-the-top holiday destinations within driving distance of Atlanta, especially perfect for overnight, holiday-themed getaways.

While my family will happily bake and eat cookies any day of the year, we really ramp it up for our Christmas cookie baking. We host an annual Christmas cookie party every year, and it’s a tradition they look forward to almost as much as presents. Because they love to be part of the cookie baking process, we have amassed a ton of Christmas cookie recipes. They range from super easy Christmas cookies the kids could help make and decorate when they were tiny, up to more sophisticated Christmas cookie recipes their teen tastebuds love. 

We’ve tested out dozens of Christmas cookie recipes over the years, and these are our top ten: including our favorite never-fail, best ever Christmas sugar cookie recipe.

We’ve got more kid-friendly holiday treats, like these yummy Hot Chocolate Bombs, in our Guide to Easy Recipes for Kids, plus loads more Christmas fun for the whole family in our Ultimate Guide to Holiday and Christmas Activities.

One trade-off of living in sunny Southern California is that during the holiday season, it never quite feels all that seasonal. But just because we don’t have to wear scarves and shovel snow in November and December doesn’t mean that SoCal is lacking in abundant holiday charm. There are actually a few festive hotels and Christmas towns near LA that go all out for the season.

From the Central Coast down to San Diego County, countless hotels and resorts take the holiday spirit and crank it up to 10, more than making up for California’s balmy winter weather. Plus, many of these hotels are located in cities and towns that embody the winter festivities. Here are some of the best Christmas towns and festive hotels in and around Los Angeles—some are a bit of a drive, but all are well worth the trip.