Largest-ever parade comes to Seattle next week

Delegates at the June 29, 2010 at the Grand Parade of Nations, held as part of the 93rd Annual Lions Clubs International Convention in Sydney, Australia, offering a preview of the upcoming 2011 parade in Seattle. (Photo by Getty Images). less Delegates at the June 29, 2010 at the Grand Parade of Nations, held as part of the 93rd Annual Lions Clubs International Convention in Sydney, Australia, offering a preview of the upcoming 2011 parade in ... more Photo: 2010 AFP Photo: 2010 AFP Image 1 of / 12 Caption Close Largest-ever parade comes to Seattle next week 1 / 12 Back to Gallery

In a few days, the largest parade to ever take place in Seattle will make its way downtown, as part of the largest convention in the city in 20 years.

It means one thing: the Lions are coming to town.

Next week, Lions Clubs International, the world's largest service club organization, will hold its annual convention in Seattle from July 4 to 8, bringing up to 20,000 attendees and infusing an expected $40 million into the regional economy.

The group's annual "Parade of Nations" will be a four-hour extravaganza down Fifth Avenue on Tuesday, July 5, featuring 12,000 marchers in native costumes and a lot of traffic-snarling potential.

"Winning the bid to host Lions Clubs International is really one of the great coups among worldwide conventions," David Blandford, spokesman for Seattle's Convention and Visitors Bureau, said Tuesday.

The city won the coveted bid in 2005, beating out contender Honolulu. Last year, Sydney hosted the global event. Next year, Busan, Korea will play host.

This year's convention will draw from the Illinois-based group's 45,000 clubs and 1.3 million members in 118 countries. It will feature former Secretary of State Condoleeza Rice as the keynote speaker.

If you don't like crowds, consider yourself warned. Officials are telling residents to expect heavy traffic and swarms of tourists in downtown, where the event will be held at the Washington State Convention Center and KeyArena.

And because the parade will be on a weekday, from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m., prepare for extra-heavy traffic on Tuesday. The march will shut down Fifth Avenue between Seattle Center and the convention center, beginning at 7 a.m.

"This will feel very international," Blandford said. "We think Seattle, once they see it, will know how important this organization is in the world."

He said the city's Office of Special Events was anticipating the parade will be Seattle's largest, in terms of number of participants and duration.

The last major conventions in Seattle were 20 years ago. A 1990 Alcoholics Anonymous event drew 48,000 people and infused $40.5 million into the local economy. A 1991 American Dental Academy meeting drew 25,000 attendees.

Click here for a list of road closures, parking changes and traffic alerts related to the parade.

Click here for the parade route.

Visit seattlepi.com's home page for more Seattle news. Contact Vanessa Ho at 206-448-8003 or vanessaho@seattlepi.com, and follow her on Twitter as @vanessaho.