One of the most pleasant ways to spend a summer evening is by watching fireworks light up the night sky. Whether you’re on your own looking for a way to relax, with your family on vacation, or just spending some one-on-one time with your special someone, there’s a near-universal appeal to fireworks. And as many times as most of us have seen them before, they can still be somewhat awe-inspiring.
With this in mind, take a look at some of the best destinations and opportunities to see fireworks displays around the U.S. this summer. Let us know which ones are on your travel bucket list!
Chicago’s Navy Pier
Chicago is a fantastic place to visit during the summer for a number of different reasons. The warm weather makes the city—which is really one of the prettiest and most enjoyable in the country—more accessible than it is for much of the year. There are restaurants and bars, two professional baseball teams, beautiful public parks, and arts and music festivals throughout the summer. One of the best gems of the city during the summer months is the bi-weekly fireworks displays at Navy Pier. This massive pier juts out into Lake Michigan from the city and often has a festive atmosphere about it, but the fireworks shows it hosts are among the main highlights of the city.
Myrtle Beach
Myrtle Beach’s reputation as a summer destination is sort of all over the place. At one point, it was once somewhat rundown, viewed as a not-as-nice alternative to the beaches of Charleston and North Carolina. Now, however, it’s somewhat revamped, and functions as a vacation for everyone from East Coast college students and people seeking quiet recreation, to families looking for a beachside strip full of attractions. You can get just about whatever you like out of Myrtle Beach, including, during the summer, some of the country’s most impressive fireworks displays.
Baseball Stadiums
Depending on what team you follow, the summer baseball season can become a bit of a slog. It’s a very long season, and for a lot of teams, a bad start can essentially lead to months of futility. However, this in a way is what’s so wonderful about baseball: That even a losing team can provide its supporters with fun things to do. You can still go to the games, hang out with family and friends, and have some food and drinks. And at most stadiums, on certain scheduled nights, you can stay afterward for fireworks! There’s a lot of variety between these shows, but some baseball stadiums really go all out, such that the fireworks are as fun as the games.
The U.S. Open
Branching off from baseball to another sporting event known for the occasional fireworks display, the annual U.S. Open Tennis Championships in New York City is certainly another option worth keeping on your list. There aren’t fireworks on every night of the two-week event, and the games actually aren’t even that long. But there’s something incredibly pleasant about seeing fireworks at all at an event like this: A massive gathering of happy, festive fans at an iconic New York tennis facility that’s as much a park as it is a sporting venue. The U.S. Open is a delightful place to spend summer evenings, and fireworks only make it better.
Washington D.C.
This last selection may be the most obvious one, but that doesn’t make it any less special. Naturally, the Fourth of July is the best night this summer to catch fireworks displays, and there are several cities known for particularly excellent shows. There can be a reasonable debate about which city’s Independence Day fireworks are the most impressive, but really, nothing matches seeing the celebration in the night sky over the capital. It’s something everyone with an interest in this sort of thing should see at least once in life.