The 2023 NYC Easter Parade is a springtime spectacle of joy

The 2023 NYC Easter Parade is a popular New York tradition of parading in outrageous Easter bonnets down Fifth Avenue on Easter Sunday. Its full name is Easter Parade and Bonnet Festival.

It's not really a parade. People walk around the street a bit randomly.

Sunday mornings are the quietest time of the week in New York, and the city has been sleeping more since the pandemic. Midtown is eerily quiet. It's never been so quiet.

Take your camera. One of the joys of the parade is the incredible creativity of your fellow New Yorkers. You will see a lot of things that will make you stop and say "Wow". It's good to have fun with the family. Kids love it.

And you might as well make your own Easter bonnet. Some groups of friends work together on a theme.

NYC Easter Parade 2023

The 2023 NYC Easter Parade takes place on Fifth Avenue from 49th to 57th Streets on Easter Sunday, April 2, 2023 from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. FREE

The New York Easter Parade

The tradition dates back to the 1870s, which is why some people walk in period costume. Many create elaborate Easter bonnets. Some of them are way over the top, New York style.

Easter was originally a pagan spring festival. The way we celebrate it today is influenced by the Jewish holiday of Passover and Roman Catholicism, an Italian religion.

Easter is the most important Christian holiday. Americans in the United States used to dress for it. Parading around in your Easter finery was something everyone did. The beautiful ladies competed in extravagance with their hats. Americans wore hats until President John F. Kennedy ended the tradition in the 1960s.

Parade route

The parade marches down Fifth Avenue between 49th and 57th Streets. The main action takes place in front of St. Patrick's Cathedral on Fifth Avenue between 50th and 51st Streets.

The parade begins around 10:00 a.m. and can continue until 4:00 p.m., although it tends to end around noon.

Walk in the parade

The Parade is an informal affair. It's fine if you wear a nice hat, but anyone can participate in the parade.

The movie Easter Parade

The Parade was immortalized in "Easter Parade," a 1948 musical romance starring Judy Garland, Fred Astaire and Peter Lawford. The film features classical music by Irving Berlin. Americans of a certain age will remember the melody of the theme song.

The trailer for "Easter Parade" (1948)

Funny, Fred and Judy do some salsa moves in their dance.

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