About 100,000 spectators watched the Holiday Bowl Parade in person Wednesday along a new route in downtown San Diego.
The parade will begin at 10 a.m. on the south side of the San Diego Convention Center on East Harbor Drive, then head past the San Diego Marriott Marquis, Manchester Grand Hyatt and Ruocco Park, ending at Pacific Highway.
What organizers bill as "America's largest balloon parade" consists of 24 giant balloons, three floats, 18 specialty units and 12 marching bands, including the bands from the universities of Oregon and North Carolina, the participating schools in the Holiday Bowl football game at Petco Park.
Due to the route change, there will be no grandstand seating. Organizers said that the route was changed due to a cruise ship docking Wednesday near the Broadway Pier.
San Diego traffic control officers began monitoring Harbor Drive and Pacific Highway shortly 6 a.m. Around 9 a.m., streets along the parade route were closed to vehicular traffic. The Port of San Diego officials encouraged the use of public transportation or ride shares as parking along the parade route was extremely limited.
The Holiday Bowl 5K Run/Walk began at 9:45 a.m. on the corner of Harbor Drive and Park Boulevard and was followed by a post-race party.
