By Gus Saltonstall
Before the Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade goes strutting down the Manhattan streets on November 23, the iconic balloons and floats will come to life during the Upper West Side inflation event on November 22.
Crowd favorites from Snoopy to Ronald McDonald to Smokey the Bear to Stuart the Minion will be inflated 24 hours before the parade.
The event is open to the public but here’s the information you’ll need to know to get behind the scenes of the legendary balloons.
Time
- Wednesday, November 22 from noon to 6 p.m.
Location
- Entrance to get to the viewing location is at West 72nd Street and Columbus Avenue.
- The viewing location is outside of the Museum of Natural History between West 77th and 81st streets.
- There will be volunteers within the viewing area to help guests find their way along the route.
Exit
- Guests can exit west along any block from West 82nd to 86th streets.
There are a variety of items prohibited from the inflation-event viewing area, including umbrellas, backpacks, large bags, chairs, alcohol, drone,s and e-cigarettes.
The closest subway station to the entrance point is the B and C stop at 72nd Street and Central Park West.
Additionally, Central Park West will be closed from West 72nd to West 86th streets beginning at 2 a.m. on November 22 through noon on November 23. 72nd through 85th streets will also be closed from Central Park West to Columbus Avenue for the same time frame.
You can find out more about the inflation event on the Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade’s website.
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I remember forty years ago when the balloons were only on the park block of 77th Street the night before and anyone could just walk right up to them….no lines and not very many people. Things were easier then. Living on 79th behind the museum, I now dread the day before Thanksgiving.
This is soo annoying . It’s not about the crowds it’s the excessive security and fencing that makes getting into your home a pain.
So there is a parade that begins at 77th & CPW but all streets leading there will be closed? Why have a parade if you block the spectators from attending?
Not that long ago I would walk down 72nd St to CPW to watch the parade. Not anymore. Not long ago I could walk to CPW on marathon day to what is supposed to be the meeting point with runners. Not anymore.
So many public events closed off to the public…
How is it “closed off to the public”? Did they tell you not to attend?
Agreed. I also recall walking over and standing on the steps of one of the buildings on CPW in the 70s and it was like being on risers and everyone watching had plenty of room. Now the buildings rope off their stairs so people can’t stand on them and the entire crowd is mashed into the width of the sidewalk. Was there really a lot of damage or something from people standing on the stairs for a few hours?
Used to be a neighborhood event. That’s before the 24-hour news cycle was invented. NBC’s coverage of Inflation Evening is what brought the crowds. I live across the street from the “Arconia.” We have tourists snapping photos of those now-famous gates all the time. It’s NYC. Get used to it….
Does anyone know if dogs are allowed at the balloon inflation?
I brought my Pug for the past couple of years but I put her in a carriage as not to get stepped on in the crowd.
You can bring your dog. We did last year. It wasn’t that bad. He’s a 15lb Cockapoo. There were parts where we picked him up, but for the most part it was fine.
Have you not been to Inflation Eve before? It’s incredibly crowded. Densely packed humans. It’s unlikely a dog would enjoy the experience in any way. Like Times Square on New Year’s Eve except you have to keep walking.
I have not been before. Thank you for the information.
And the news helicopters overhead recording the whole thing – no sleeping in on Thanksgiving morning.
Can anyone who has been there in recent years share how long the whole experience takes? We are hoping to go see the inflation early – when it opens at noon – but would not be able to stay more than an hour as we need to travel that afternoon. Given the crowds and the moving line, is it possible to get through in an hour or will we be at risk of getting stuck in the queue?
The main problem with going at noon is that most (all?) of the balloons won’t be very inflated yet so you’re basically looking at flat balloons on the ground
We went last year at about 3pm. There were a LOT of people, but basically walked right through it. Once you’re through security you can go,as fast or as slow as you’d like. Not sure if it’s a longer wait right when it opens, but when we went we were in and out in less than an hour.
My family goes every year. Crowds/wait time vary. As one commentor already stated, if you go to early most of the balloons won’t be inflated. If you go to late and the crowds have built up, you may not get through it in one hour.
A couple of years ago (in all fairness, it was the first year following COVID shutdowns) it took us 45 minutes to get from 72nd and Columbus and 72nd and CPW.
Sad most of the comments are griping and moaning. The balloons is one of the events that makes the UWS so great.
Editor: please note your description mentions “2am” start time
LOL I cant wait to the left cancels this event. Its coming!
Hi. I live on 79 and Amsterdam. I’ve never been to this but my family will be in town and wants to. I’ve been told that years ago you could walk over at like 11pm and see them. Is that true?
It’s true. I was taking a late walk years ago and came upon it unexpectedly. All these giant balloons in the dark with no fanfare. Surreal and magical.
Yes Kelly. Pre 9/11 it was such a wonderful event. You just walked around any time you wanted. It is a great memory for me. I’m very grateful I was able to experience it prior to all the 9/11 security.
Late night, you can see a bit from the sidewalk/street of Coumbus Ave or CPW. You can’t get up close or onto 81/77, as there are barricades,
Anywhere where you can find grandstand tickets for sale or people giving them away? I know that they’re given to family or those with connections, but I would imagine there’s people who don’t use them
Nov. 22nd 1:30 PM:
hoards of viewers walking north on the east side of Columbus with no provision for those who wish to shop at east side of Columbus markets and stores.
really arrogant of the organizers and clueless of the NYPD/City.
We tried to go today. We got to the area at 3:20. It took almost 20 minutes to find the start of the line between 67th and 68th. Got in line at 3:37 (according to lovely Google tracking) waited for about 2.75 hours. We were about 1/2 block from the gate at 72 (after having passed it 2 hours in to go north up to 76th and loop back down). But the NYPD called a directive change and closed the entrance promptly at 6:15 PM. What a waste. The event used to go to 10pm. Now it’s absolute chaos. The NYPD was caught completely flat footed and despite the 10, 000+ people still in line and despite being promised that as long as we were in line by 6, we’d get in, they shut us all out. Needless to say there were many unhappy campers.
I went to the inflation yesterday 11/22 – got in line at 3pm. The event was so disorganized, line skipping, no handicap entrance, zero Macy’s employees to be found, no direction – it was chaos. After 3 hours in line, we were told, via a Police officer, that the event was closed and they were not allowing any more people in. Very disappointing. Thousands were left to disperse in the streets. Maybe issue tickets or have clear direction of where the lines are? There were at least 4 random lines that merged into 1. Macy’s took the magic out of the moment : (
NYPD was also out there conducting stop and frisks of people and kettled people leaving the balloon inflation at one point.
Yes a stop and frisk of someone when it turns out they didn’t commit any crime or were not about to commit a crime definitely will ruin what is supposed to be a positive holiday memory. If that did happen maybe WSR and Gale Brewer’s office should look into it.