American's Thanksgiving Parade in Detroit, presented by Gardner White, will galavant down Woodward Avenue Thursday, drawing thousands to the city.

The parade featured the traditional balloons and floats, and Santa Claus on a Christmas-themed float brought up the rear.

Forecasters have mixed opinions, with some predicting some rain and even snow, while others calling for none. But they agree, it will be cold.

The annual parade, the Turkey Trot, and the Detroit Lions are all adding to the fun of Thanksgiving in the Motor City. Here's how to plan ahead:

DETROIT – Santa Claus has returned to the Motor City just in time to wish everyone a happy Thanksgiving! But instead of giving away gifts, Santa received a special one himself while traveling on the route of America’s Thanksgiving Parade presented by Gardner White.

The Detroit parade is the second largest behind the Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade in New York in terms of its viewership and the number of people going to see it in person — an estimated 1 million in Detroit last year, Michaels said. “We want to get Detroit on this big national map, and we’ve worked very hard to do that," he said.

We were downtown for the start of America's Thanksgiving Parade in Detroit. We talked with some first timers hoping to start new family traditions, and some seasoned parade veterans who all say this is the best way to start their Thanksgiving.