West Indian Day Parade 2017: Route, Start Time, Street Closures And Everything Else To Know

CROWN HEIGHTS, BROOKLYN — The annual West Indian American Day Parade is less than 24 hours away, a celebration of Caribbean culture that involves music, dancing, food and a massive parade stretching the length of Eastern Parkway in Crown Heights.

The parade is one of the annual highlights on New York City's robust cultural calendar. Bands march alongside floats playing traditional music from across the West Indies, vendors sell authentic food along the route and dancers wear elaborate costumes to celebrate various Caribbean heritages.

It also traditionally follows the early-morning (and officially unconnected) J'Ouvert celebration in Crown Heights. Security for that event will be ratcheted up (you can read more about J'Ouvert specifics here.)

Whether you want to join in on the festivities, or just avoid the madness for the day, we've put together this helpful guide of everything you need to know about West Indian American Day.

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When is the West Indian American Day Parade?

The parade runs from 11 a.m. until 6 p.m. on Labor Day, Monday, Sept. 4.

Where does the parade take place?

The parade begins at Schenectady Avenue in Weeksville and runs all the way down Eastern Parkway to Grand Army Plaza.

Street closures

You'll obviously want to avoid Eastern Parkway during the parade. And while authorities haven't announced exact street closures yet for the festivities, here's what they were last year. You can expect a similar setup this year:

Will there be changes in MTA service?

Yes. The MTA has put together this helpful guide for the day's activities. These subway changes will be in effect:

• Trains operate on a Sunday schedule.
• No 2 or 3 service in Brooklyn – take 4 or 5.
• Eastern Parkway station will be closed from noon to 7 p.m.
• At Crown Heights-Utica Avenue 4 station, customers can exit only through Schenectady Avenue end and enter only at Utica Avenue.

Again, check the MTA's website before you go.

For more information about the celebrations, check out the West Indian American Day Carnival Association website here.

(Photo by Stephanie Keith/Getty Images)