Thanksgiving Day on Instagram

Yesterday, photos of turkeys and pies took over Instagram as people celebrated Thanksgiving Day with friends and family. We saw record usage as Instagrammers shared photos of their loved ones and holiday celebrations.

Over 10 million photos that mentioned Thanksgiving-themed words in their captions were shared yesterday. For several hours throughout the day, more than 200 photos about Thanksgiving were posted every second. Overall, the day broke all Instagram records as we saw the number of shared photos more than double from the day before, making it our busiest day so far.

We’re thrilled to see people use Instagram to share their holidays. Whether celebrating with friends and family or sharing photos with them halfway across the globe, we’re excited to see the intimacy and immediacy of the Instagram experience bring us all closer together over this holiday season.

Photoset

Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade, New York City, thanksgiving,

Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade in New York City

To see more photos from the Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade, browse the location pages for Columbus Circle, Times Square, Herald Square, and the Macy’s Parade Balloon Inflation area.

The 86th Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade kicked off at 9:00AM EST this morning in Manhattan. Elaborate balloons, floats, falloons (float-based balloons) and balloonicles (self-powered balloon vehicles) snaked their way from 77th Street and Central Park West down 6th Avenue to Herald Square.

U.S. chain store Macy’s started the tradition in 1924. At the time, many of the department store’s employees were first-generation immigrants who were proud of their new American heritage and wanted to celebrate Thanksgiving with a festival similar to ones their parents had loved in Europe. At the end of that first parade, as has been the case with every parade since, Santa Claus arrives in Herald Square to ring in Christmas and the holiday season.