St. Patrick’s Day 2013: NYC Parade Route And Live Stream For Saturday’s Irish Holiday Celebration

St. Patrick’s Day is nearly here and revelers are already excited for the 2013 NYC parade, which will be held on Saturday in honor of the Irish holiday.

The Parade starts at 44th Street at 11 a.m. on Saturday morning, and will venture up Fifth Avenue past St. Patrick Cathedral through to the American Irish Historical Society at 83rd, where it will finish between 4:30 and 5 p.m.

For those who can't make it to the parade live, there is a live stream on NBC's New York website. Check your local listings for the correct channel.

The best places to view the parade -- and avoid the mass crowds celebrating St. Patty’s Day -- are north of 66th Street and Fifth Avenue, according to the parade's website. The upper steps of the Metropolitan Museum of Art also provide a great bird’s eye view to watch parade goers. Since the parade ends at 83^rd Street, 86^th Street is a great place to catch the parade as it comes to an end.

For 2013, the grand marshal is Alfred E. Smith IV, CEO of AE Smith Associates and the great-grandson of legendary former NYC governor Al Smith.

Those who march in the parade sing and play pipes to Irish tunes just like military units who originally organized the parade. The line of march is also listed on the parade website.

The parade tradition began in 1762, when the first parade if Irish ex-patriots and military in New York marched on lower Broadway. However, in 1812, Irish beneficial societies took over as hosts and sponsors of the event. Since, the parade has become the oldest, biggest and best in the world, according to the official website, as revelers come out from all over the world just to wear green - 82 percent of participants will be wearing the holiday color -- and strut in the parade in New York City.

Throughout its history, the parade has been held in honor of the Patron Saint of Ireland and the Archdiocese of New York, the parade committee wrote on their website.