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During the always festive and often rambunctious 125-year-old tradition known as the Philadelphia Mummers Parade, 10,000 adults and children dressed in lavish colorful costumes twirl, sashay, pirouette and strut down one of the city’s most prominent streets on New Year’s Day.
What’s a Mummers Parade? For the uninitiated, imagine a New Orleans Mardi Gras parade, but much bigger — and a lot more Philly. (In fact, it’s considered “one of the most quintessentially Philadelphia traditions.)
Each Mummers performers’ division plays a special role in the parade. Fancies impress with elaborate, sequined outfits that rival those of royalty. Comic and Wench Brigades satirize issues, institutions and public figures through original skits. Fancy Brigades produce tightly choreographed theatrical extravaganzas. And String Bands gleefully march the route while playing banjos, saxophones, percussion and other reed and string instruments.
The Mummers Parade kicks off at 9 a.m. on Thursday, January 1, 2026, starting at City Hall before strutting south along Broad Street to Washington Avenue. The parade ends around 7 p.m.
The 28th annual Fancy Brigade Finale also takes place on Thursday, January 1, 2026, with two shows, 11:30 a.m. and 5 p.m., indoors at the Pennsylvania Convention Center.
The Mummers Parade begins at City Hall, loops counterclockwise around the historic government building, then heads south along Broad Street to Washington Avenue in South Philadelphia, a total of one-and-a-half miles.
Performance judging takes place on the west side of City Hall by Dilworth Park.
— Photo courtesy the Philadelphia Mummers String Band Association
The outdoor parade begins Thursday, January 1, 2026, at 9 a.m. Spectators should arrive early to claim their spots. (Many arrive very early, so be prepared.) The event ends around 7 p.m.
Separately, the Fancy Brigades hold two spirited and ticketed Fancy Brigade Finale shows (formerly known as Mummers Fest) at the Pennsylvania Convention Center on Thursday, January 1, 2026, at 11:30 a.m. and 5 p.m.
While there’s not a bad spot in the house to view the roving festivities, spectators wanting to catch stationary performances can set up near the City Hall judging stand (keep reading for more info about ticketing options) or free designated stop-and-perform locations down Broad Street at Sansom Street, Pine Street and Carpenter Street.
Starting around 11 a.m., the String Bands will set up in their staging areas along Market Street and JFK Boulevard, stretched out on Market Street from 17th Street to 21st Street and John F. Kennedy Boulevard from 17th Street to 20th Street. Bands perform at a special viewing area at 17th & Market streets before heading to City Hall.
The Mummers Parade remains the nation’s oldest continuously operating folk parade, originating in 1901.
Over the course of the procession down Broad Street — famous for its Mummers Strut — each of the Mummers performance divisions take on individual roles:
The noisy camaraderie shouldn’t fool the novice attendee, as the clubs battle each other in a friendly yet fierce competition for top honors. Mummers groups can receive awards in a variety of categories within each division, but the main prize is year-long bragging rights.
There’s more work to be done for one group, however. Taking a break from displaying their costumes, choreography, floats and music along Broad Street, the Fancy Brigades head to nearby Pennsylvania Convention Center twice during the day to stage elaborate Broadway-style performances for ticket holders during the 11:30 a.m. and 5 p.m. Fancy Brigade Finale competitions for the right to hoist the winner’s Dan Lerro Cup.
First thing’s first: Spectators should strongly consider leaving their cars behind and taking public transportation into Center City. Attendees can access the parade route easily from SEPTA Regional Rail, bus, subway and trolley lines, no matter where you choose to watch from.
Those who decide to drive can take advantage of the New Year’s holiday as one of the Philadelphia Parking Authority’s free street parking days — although expect available spots to be few and far between — or park in a nearby garage or lot. Drivers should also be mindful of parade-related road closures.
The Mummers Parade is free to watch from anywhere along the 1.5-mile parade route, with designated stationary performance spots on Broad Street at Sansom, Pine and Carpenter streets. (Good news: Lawn chairs are permitted.)
But for spectators looking to snag a ticketed reserved seat (and a great view), the official Parade Bleacher Seating is located by the judging stand on the west side of City Hall at Dilworth Park. Bleacher tickets are $25 and can be purchased in person at the Independence Visitor Center at Sixth and Market streets during operating hours, or bought online (with free pickup at the Visitor Center or shipped for $9.10).
There are two Fancy Brigade Finale performance shows on New Year’s Day at the Pennsylvania Convention Center, one from 11:30 a.m. to 4 p.m., and another from 5 to 8 p.m.
Assigned seat tickets for either performance can be purchased — $43 for the 11:30 a.m. show or $28 for the 5 p.m. show — from the Independence Visitor Center at Sixth and Market streets during operating hours or bought online (with free pickup at the Visitor Center or shipped for $9.10 plus a service fee).
Please note that tickets for all events are pre-printed physical tickets (not digital) and must be presented for entry.
Mummers are Philadelphians of all ages who belong to more than 40 organized clubs that make up the parade participants.
The clubs — split into five categories (Comics, Wench Brigades, Fancies, String Bands and Fancy Brigades) — exist mainly to stage their playful performances each New Year’s Day. But Mummers clubs also perform at many other events and festivals throughout the year, locally and around the country, including at a number of charitable events.
For many Philadelphia-area families, Mummery is a tradition that spans generations.
Mummery traces its roots to ancient Roman laborers who ushered in the festival of Saturnalia by marching in masks while exchanging gifts and satirizing the issues of the day. In the 1600s, Swedish settlers to Philadelphia’s outskirts honored Christmas by beseeching their neighbors for dessert and liquor by dressing up, chanting and shooting firearms.
A party that combined both these traditions eventually migrated to New Year’s Day and evolved into a series of neighborhood parades. Then, as immigrants moved to the area from Ireland and Italy, each group added its own cultural flair to the local custom.
In 1901, the tradition we know today was born as the local parades coalesced into a single New Year’s event, and the first recognized and judged Mummers Parade was celebrated in South Philadelphia.
The term Mummer itself comes from German and means “to costume, pantomime or masquerade.”
You sure can! The Mummers Parade is broadcast live on WDPN-TV (MeTV2), WFMZ, WFMZ.com, the WFMZ+ mobile app, ZEAM, FrndlyTV, NewsOn and LocalNow apps on Firestick, Roku or Apple TV. Hosts Larry Mendte and Dawn Stensland return as hosts again this year.
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