Who doesn’t love a festive parade – especially one with about 100 bands, floats, dance and baton-twirling troupes and other entries, all dedicated to holiday merry-making?

The 43rd annual WIVK Christmas Parade steps off at 7 p.m. on Friday, Dec. 4, and marches up Gay Street with a mighty assortment of brightly-lit revelers, melodious musicians and, of course, Santa Claus.

The grand marshal is Camaron Marvel Ochs, better-known simply as Cam, a rising country music singer and songwriter.
 
The Christmas Parade begins on Church Avenue at Hall of Fame Drive and will continue from Church to Gay Street, Gay Street to Jackson Avenue, and then Jackson Avenue to Morgan Street. This year’s WIVK Christmas Parade is presented by the Smoky Mountain Air Show.

Event organizers recommend allowing plenty of time to get parked and in place for the parade. The most convenient parking for early arrivers is at the State Street, Locust Street, Market Square, Walnut Street or Dwight Kessel garages downtown.

Note these road closures and temporary no-parking zones:

- The eastbound lane of Howard H. Baker Jr. Avenue between Hill Avenue and Hall of Fame Drive will be closed from 5-8 p.m. Friday.

- Roads will be closed along the parade route, starting at 6:45 p.m. Friday, including Gay Street between Cumberland and Depot avenues. Streets are expected to reopen at 8:20 p.m.

- There will be a temporary no-parking zone on Gay Street between Jackson and Cumberland avenues, starting at 5 p.m. Friday. This includes the 100 block of Gay Street.

While downtown for the parade, be sure and check out two updates to Christmas in the City favorites — a new 42-foot-tall tree with synchronized LED lighting at Krutch Park Extension and Market Square’s first open-air ice rink in a decade.

In addition, patronize the downtown businesses that are participating in the “Window Wonderland” holiday display contest. Some are choosing their favorite holiday décor, and others are illustrating this year’s theme, “How the Grinch Stole Knoxville.”

Cast your vote for your favorite window display through the City of Knoxville’s Special Events app, available for free for all smartphone and mobile devices. Search for “Knoxville Events.” Or vote for your favorite decorated storefront while visiting the City’s Office of Special Events Facebook page, www.facebook.com/CityofKnoxvilleSpecialEvents.

(Incidentally, the Knoxville Events app is a great way to keep up with the dozens of Christmas in the City concerts, movies, bike rides, community events and other happenings. All Christmas in the City events and updates are also listed at www.knoxvilletn.gov/christmas.

If you’re shooting photos at Friday’s Christmas Parade or while exploring the 100,000 holiday lights downtown or the “Up on the Rooftops” lit trees, help spread the seasonal good cheer. Use the hashtag #christmasinthecity when posting your photos, so everyone can enjoy the fun.

Finally, mark your calendar: The Knoxville Community Band will perform a free holiday concert at 3 p.m. on Sunday, Dec. 6, at the Bijou Theatre. The Community Band is made up entirely of volunteers who play because they love music. Anticipate a range of tunes from Handel's "Hallelujah Chorus" to Christmas medleys and carols. The free event is sponsored by the Knoxville Parks and Recreation Department.