St. Patrick's Day 2025: Finishing touches for Philly parade underway

PHILADELPHIA - One of Philadelphia’s biggest traditions – the St. Patrick’s Day parade – takes place Sunday.

A lot of people are coming into the city to celebrate which is good news for businesses. Meanwhile, preparations are underway.

Tradition:

The annual Philadelphia Saint Patrick’s Day Parade is this Sunday at 11 a.m. and this year’s parade route is back on the Benjamin Franklin Parkway.

The parade staging begins on JFK Boulevard and 20th street and will travel east on JFK Boulevard before heading north on 16th Street to the Parkway. The parade will end at the Philadelphia Museum of Art.

Parade Organizer Michael Bradley said anywhere along the Parkway will be a great vantage point to soak in the parade.

The backstory:

The parade has a storied history that started back in 1771, and now each year about 10,000 people participate from Irish Dancers and Pipe bands to the parade floats.

"They’re all really special, colorful, loud and it’s just a great day," said Bradley. "This is a diverse city. Everyone is welcome that day and I think there’s always a saying everybody wants to be Irish on St. Patrick’s Day and I think it’s true."

We're all Irish:

This year’s theme is "St. Patrick, bless those dedicated to serving others."

"It’s not the people who lead the benefit, it’s the people who contribute to them, show up and make them successful and I think serving others widely encompasses a lot of people in this parade, the community and our Philadelphia region," said Bradley.

Tom Smith built floats for the parade for 25 years, but now his sons have taken over the massive undertaking. Keeping this year’s theme of service in mind, they are putting finishing touches on a float that honors the Red Cross, the firefighter pilots of the Los Angeles Wildfires and the men and women who protect and serve Philadelphia.

"1980’s era style police car. They fashioned it after the old blue and white ones from Philadelphia. They’re going to have a banner around the whole perimeter," said Smith. "They enjoy what they see and that makes you feel good after you put the time and effort into it and it looks good when you’re done."

Business is good:

Businesses along the Parkway are preparing for the crowds with annual estimates of 10 to 25,000 expected to attend depending on the weather.

"Pints of Guinness and great beer and great food. We have a lot of Irish specials that we’ve added to the menu," said Ulana Chmara Kelly of Con Murphys. "11 o’clock, we start with live music all day. So 11 will be Seamus McGroaru. At 4 p.m. we have a full band starting and then after that we have a DJ."