4 Factors for Finding a Fabulous 4th of July Celebration Destination

The 4th of July Celebration is much anticipated at our house. The weather is warm. There’s family, food, and festivities. We look forward to our local rodeo these days, but it used to be the parade when our kids were little.

Through the many stages of life, there are a few constants that make the 4th of July celebration a memorable experience. Parades, BBQs, games, outings. No matter what, fireworks are a big part of that.

As you plan your 4th of July celebration, consider traveling to a destination that includes great fireworks, a small town, water, and of course patriotism.

MEMORY-MAKING 4TH OF JULY CELEBRATION

For any event to be considered successful, it’s got be memorable. (Thanks for sharing that, Captain Obvious.) I asked family, friends, and readers, “Where have you experienced the best 4th of July celebration/ fireworks? And why?” The answers were varied, but I noticed that the most memorable and favorite holidays fit into four categories.

GREAT FIREWORKS EXPERIENCE

When you talk about the 4th of July, the first thing people think of is the fireworks. I’ve been to some clunkers as well as jaw-dropping spectaculars. Amazing 4th of July celebration destinations MUST have a great fireworks experience.

Early Memories

My earliest memory of Independence Day was in Layton, Utah. I was five years old. It seems our house on Church Street was walking distance to everything. The parade was a short way down the street. I adored horses, so that was my favorite part, of course. The marching band, flags, candy, and decorative floats created an air of excitement. I don’t remember a bbq or any other events.

However, at the end of the day our very large family walked with blankets in hand to the high school football field. Or I think it was the football field. I suppose it could have been a park with a large lawn, but the five-year-old part of my brain thinks it was the football field. (Feel free to correct me Kathy or Brian or Mark or anyone else who was old enough to remember accurately.) We spread the blankets out.

Mom had us lay down on the blanket and watch the sky above us. And then the most glorious thing happened. The sky exploded in color! Sparkles floated down, and I was sure I would be able to reach up and touch them. Over and over. Red, blue, purple, green! Circles inside circles. Giant fans of brilliant shades. Booms, large and small. Pops and bangs. Oooohs and Aaaaahs! I’ll never forget that holiday.

Senses Overload

Great fireworks require a full-body experience.

• We moved to Kanab, Utah when I was 15. It’s a favorite destination for lots of people, I have found. The rockets glare, bursting in air (that sounds familiar) light up the vermillion bluffs at the north end of town and reflect back in your face. The boom echoes off these cliffs, and you can feel it through your entire body. Acrid smoke and a slightly metallic taste fills the air, reminding you of fireworks past. Goosebumps cover your skin. I’ve never been to a firework display that has quite the same effect. Readers agree that the fireworks in Kanab leave you spellbound like when you were a child.

• A friend of mine reports that Joplin, Missouri has a spectacular show as well. The free event is held at the MSSU stadium and a local radio station curates the experience. A lot towns and cities do this, and music definitely add a wonderful element to a show, especially when they’re done well. Who do you think does a great musical firework display?
• During the COVID 19 pandemic in 2020, my daughter went up into the foothills of the Salt Lake Valley. She and her husband found a place where they could be relatively alone and watch a multitude of firework displays at once. Five? Seven? Ten? More? That would be an incredible site even if you couldn’t see or hear the repercussions of the blasts. How many other places can you get this visual effect? Comment and let us know.

The great thing about being a grandma is planning where to take my grandkids to the next breathtaking fireworks and giving them the same experience I had growing up.

SMALL TOWN VIBE

Most everyone who responded to my question agreed that Independence Day in a small town is worth traveling to. Because I’ve lived in several small towns (in Arizona and Utah) and prefer smaller crowds, I tend to agree. Whether it’s Utah, Arizona, Oregon, Mississippi, or Michigan I’m sure the experience is much the same.

There are morning flag raisings, a town pancake breakfast, arts and crafts booths, an afternoon BBQ, foot races and other games for the family, food vendors, and of course, a parade.

• Prescott, AZ boasts the World’s Oldest Rodeo. Although we didn’t attend the rodeo, we spent one Independance Day there, and the activities at the Town Square were fun for the entire family – from age 2 to 62.
• In Kanab, you get to see the parade TWICE. It goes from east to west down one side of the road, performs a U-turn and travels back in the opposite direction. Utah towns are very similar. My sister says she has traveled to Huntsville, Utah from Arizona numerous times because it’s the best 4th of July celebration she’s ever been to.
• The travel channel recommends Bend, Oregon as one of the best small towns to visit for the 4th. They host a pet parade as well as an old-fashioned celebration at Drake Park that is said to be straight out of a Norman Rockwell painting.
• USA Today, Travel Channel, and Reader’s Digest have all voted that Boyne, Michigan is one of the best small towns in America to enjoy the 4th of July. They brag the “Best 4th in the North” with rubber duck races, multiple parades, and food galore from morning til night.

Your definition of small town might vary depending on where you’re from, but I highly suggest you check one out this year. Have you been to a small town Independence Day celebration you’d recommend?

BRING ON THE WATER

Water recreation is one of my favorite dratherB. Whether you’re fishing, playing in the water, or watching the firework’s reflect for the 4th of July, it’s a great place to be. The ocean, a lake, a river – it doesn’t matter. My readers have named some great spots and traditions.

Lakes

• I love this amateur recording of the fireworks over Lake Eufaula in Oklahoma. The reflection is beautiful and spontaneous. I think I’ll put it on my dratherBtraveling list. The 4th of July Celebrations in this area of Oklahoma sound fabulous.
• Another reader said her favorite was on a boat in a lake in Granada, Mississippi.
• Get on the water at Hubbard Creek Reservoir in Texas. My cousin Cindy says, “Park the boats, anchor, tie off to each other. Good music and fireworks right overhead. It’s a great time to spend with family, reflect on our country, and celebrate American culture.” Well said, Cindy.

Rivers

• All along the Mississippi River you can enjoy fireworks. LaCrosse, Wisconsin throws a five-day Riverfest from June 30 to July 4. It is voted the best place to watch fireworks from multiple places on the river.
• Travel Magazine voted The Snake River in Idaho Falls as the Best for Grandest Event Performance and Display by River. Their innovative pyrotechnics and moving soundtrack are enhanced by the river and rugged mountains.
• There’s no end to the partying in New Orleans, Louisiana, and the fireworks are enjoyed from numerous places along the river, as well.

Oceans

Numerous readers responded that viewing the fireworks over the ocean is the best memory for them.

• I have many cousins who listed Coronado Island in San Diego as their most memorable 4th of July location. Instead of foot races, there are swimming races, and the Navy Leap Frog Aerial Demonstration sounds fantastic. There are numerous firework displays over numerous bays in the area.
• Harbor Uplands, Seward, Alaska sounds like the perfect place for night owls to watch a firework display since it’s nearly midnight before it gets dark there in the summer. With its boat parade, Mount Marathon race, and historic town it’s another place on my dratherB traveling list for sure.
• The oldest continuous 4th of July Celebration is held in Bristol, Rhode Island. Like Alaska, its spectacular harbor fireworks display adds to the town’s wonderful traditions and events for every member of the family.

Patriotism At Its Finest

• My husband’s best friend lives in Mississippi. For 81 years, Vicksburg, Mississippi didn’t celebrate the 4th of July. But you can bet they do now. Like other cities across the U.S., Vicksburg has historical reenactments as well as concerts and the fireworks are “shot off a barge on the river. You sit on a hillside above it, and they go off close in front of you. You can feel the repercussions.”
• Some of my readers have been to army bases for the 4th. At Fort Huachuca in Sierra Vista, Arizona the army band plays along with the fireworks. It’s one thing to have fireworks set to music, but to have our service men and women actually playing along touches the patriotic heart strings like nothing else.
• I’m told the best fireworks ever is in Boston, Massachusetts with the Boston Pops Orchestra. You know it’s good if it’s broadcast on TV. With 800,000 people in attendance that would be quite overwhelming for me. But I’m sure it also adds to the excitement in the air. The historical significance has to pump the patriotism through the roof.
• I haven’t been anywhere that feels more patriotic on a daily basis than Colonial Williamsburg, Virginia. Their 4th of July is filled with reenactments from morning til night culminating in a Lights of Freedom firework display celebrating the American Revolution.

I could go on and on naming the places I’ve been told about and researched. Moab, Utah — Flagstaff, Arizona — Keystone, South Dakota — Travis Airforce Base — and so on. Traveling is a dratherB I haven’t been able to do as much as I like. I hope you’ll share your favorite 4th of July celebration destinations with me, so I have some great places to go.

YOUR TURN

What is your most memorable 4th of July celebration? Have you seen fireworks that were better than anyplace else? Do you have a small town you’d recommend? Which do you prefer – land or water for your celebrations? What makes the 4th of July patriotic for you? Is there something you just can’t do without — a parade, a food, a location? I’d love to hear your thoughts.