Where do you all go for Fireworks for the 4th of July? (Arlington: hotel, home)

[justtitans]

I know there are a lot of different venues that people attend in our region for fireworks and so I am wondering where do you all go? Do you brave the adventure downtown to DC or do you try to find a spot in NoVA? And if the latter, then where do you go?

[reebo]

We went to Middleburg last year and it was terrific--good show, small crowd (comparatively), easy parking.

[spencgr]

Originally Posted by reebo

We went to Middleburg last year and it was terrific--good show, small crowd (comparatively), easy parking.

Great show in Middleburg, and I don't have to leave my back yard. We love it. The dogs, on the other hand, aren't so fond of them being set off so close.

[Forehead]

I went to a fair amount of places growing up. My favorite was probably the hill on Columbia Pike which overlooks the Pentagon and D.C. You could get a great free view of the fireworks, wander back to your car, and head home. Traffic could be a little dicey but it wasn't nearly as bad as attempting to get out of D.C. afterwards.

Now of course, that isn't as much fun, partly because that became a very popular destination. Also, when the Air Force Memorial got built, it took away a portion of the space so it got a lot more crowded. I haven't been there in years but I assume this is still an option.

Otherwise, I lived relatively close to George Mason high school and that was always a decent show. I dated a girl from Vienna for awhile and their town parade/fireworks show was a nice presentation as well. 4th of July baseball games are also a nice idea since they're bound to shoot things off afterwards, we've done the Potomac Nationals twice on the 4th in recent years.

Worst...well, it wasn't the 4th of July. I was one of the million idiots who decided I just had to be in downtown DC for the turning of 1999 to 2000, the big Millennium celebration. Will Smith was the master of ceremonies and dubbed it the "Will"ennium which was ridiculous because I think he gave an opening speech and then took off in a helicopter after five minutes. It took hours to get home, from the cattle car streets, to the cattle car metro station, to the cattle car trains. I have no fond memories of that night.

[roninsedge]

I'm a fan of going to the hill in front of the Netherlands Carillon and picnicking for the day followed by the DC fireworks right across the river. It's located right between Arlington Cemetery and the Iwo Jima memorial. You can also catch a performance by the Marines silent drill corp at the Iwo Jima memorial as well. You can get there by car, metro or bike. If you are driving, get there early or find someone with parking nearby. Metro can be a hike with kids (Rosslyn or Arlington Cemetary) but is definitely doable as well. Biking is pretty easy as well but can suck going home at night with all the pedestrians leaving out at the same time as you.

[Jenjen391]

We go to the Fairfax fireworks show. Park at Woodson HS and take the shuttle to Fairfax HS. Lots of stuff for kids in the infield, and the fireworks were pretty spectacular!

[LuvVA]

We used to go to Ashburn Village fireworks in Loudoun County which was the best in the surrounding area.

[OrangeFish]

We drive to the Pentagon and walk over to the LBJ Memorial Grove. Lots of trees for shade and a great view of the fireworks -- plus an easy exit out with some but not crazy traffic.

[HereinVA]

We live in Bristow so we go to Old Town Manassas. We've been the last 2 years and it's been great, so we plan to do that again this year.

A few years ago (I think 2009?) we went to DC. It was a madhouse taking the metro back to the Vienna station! We had 4 young kids with us (ages 3-9 at the time) and I wouldn't do it again. Maybe if I could get a hotel room right in DC or had friends there I could spend the night with.

[djplourd]

We're spending this week at Lake Anna so we'll be enjoying the fireworks down here from our boat.