Things To Do In Boston July 4th Weekend

Wander Along The Rose Fitzgerald Greenway

7 things to do this weekend for the Fourth of July

A long strip of green space ran past our hotel. The Rose Fitzgerald Kennedy Greenway went for over a mile. It was a great spot for an interesting walk.

As we strolled along the greenway, we found interesting pieces of street art. The large colourful mural of the birds kept us entranced.

As we walked along the path, we got a respite from the sun. We saw the buildings of Boston over the tree tops. And caught a view of the Custom House clock tower. Large U.S. flags were everywhere.

The Rose Fitzgerald Kennedy Greenway was a great find close to our hotel on the waterfront. A walk to enjoy the green space was definitely one of the relaxing things to do in Boston.

Mfa Concerts In The Courtyard: F

Looking for some live music on July 3, but want to avoid the crowds for the Boston Pops Fourth of July rehearsal concert? Pack a picnic and head to the MFAs Calderwood Courtyard to enjoy the musical talents of ÌFÉ, the musical brainchild of Puerto Rico-based drummer, producer, and singer Otura Mun, who is performing as part of the museums Concerts in the Courtyard series.

Indulge Your Sweet Tooth In North Boston

From the end of the greenway, it was not a long walk to get into North Boston. We meandered our way slowly and took some more pictures.

We knew we reached the Italian part of Boston when we found the narrow streets lined with restaurants and pastry shops. There were a number of options marked on our offline map app to try. But the eat-in spots were busier than we expected.

We were happy we found a table for two at Modern Pastry on Hanover Street. But we then needed to decide from far too many sweet treats! At least we showed restraint and left without a take-out package too.

We wandered further and found Mikes Pastry. Our local friend Cathy recommended Mikes for their cannoli. We were amazed at the flavours of cannoli they sold. It was a good thing we already had a snack. After we browsed, we left empty handed!

We definitely found one of the sweet things to do in Boston when we visited for July 4th long weekend.

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Long July 4th Weekend In Boston Tips Please

Hello and I hope your staying healthy. We’re newly vaccinated and ready to see Boston for the 1st time! In our late 30s from FL, we plan to walk/take transportation so we’d like to stay closer to the action. Thinking about 4 nights in Beacon Hill. Good idea? Back Bay might be a little further to walk to downtown. So what’s open and what’s not? Is the Prudential Skywalk open? And will there be a FIREWORK show? I hope so! Can you think of a less crazy spot on the Boston side to see the fireworks? Any tips and tricks would be great! Thanks.

6 replies to this topic

At this stage we do not know how many of the usual July 4th events will happen. Do not know if there will be fireworks or any festivities.

I THINK the Skywalk closed before COVID, but I am not 100% sure. Somebody will know.

I would say if it happens, go to the reading of the Declaration if Independence at the Old State House on the morning of July 4.

Or … also on that morning you could go to Castle aisland in South Boston or Piers Park in East Boston and watch the USS Constitution turn around. Again, IF it is actually scheduled

The Freedom Trsil is always there.

Beacon Hill and Back Bay are both good places to stay.

Happy Planning!

I looked back to last year and the fireworks and concert were called off in early May.

Boston and Massachusetts is trying to get as many people vaccinated as possible, especially now with rates of positive cases rising slightly.

Watch The Boston Pops Fireworks Spectacular

After taking 2020 off due to the COVID-19 pandemic, the 2021 Boston Pops Fireworks Spectacular is back, albeit in a very different form than previous years. The fireworks will be launched from Boston Common, while the annual concert will be held more than 100 miles away at Tanglewood music venue. City officials are encouraging residents to enjoy the fireworks from home and wont be providing video monitors or audio speakers at Boston Common. However, the city also stated that the fireworks would be visible from the Parade Ground , the Frog Pond, and other areas with sightlines to the Boston Common. For a full guide to this years celebration, check out our full guide to the 2021 Boston Pops Fireworks Spectacular.

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Go To The Puerto Rican Festival

If you cant get enough of celebrating Latino culture at Festival Betances, this is another great event to consider.

The main event is a parade which starts at the Hynes Convention Center and ends at City Hall Plaza.

There will also be a lot of live music, carnival rides, and plenty of vendors providing classic Puerto Rican foods for sale.

While the festival itself is entirely free, you might want to bring some money along to get some food.

The Puerto Rican Festival typically runs in late July, with the parade taking place on the last day.

Shakespeare On The Common

One of the most popular summer Boston events, Commonwealth Shakespeare Company presents The Tempest, a comedy laced with tragedy, in this year’s Shakespeare on the Common.

Bring a blanket or low folding chair, perhaps a picnic basket, and get ready to enjoy a magical evening of free theater under the stars. You can also rent a chair for $5, plus a $5 deposit that you will get back when you return the chair.

Bring your own food, or purchase something tasty from the vendors who will be onsite for the occasion. Toilets are available at the nearby tennis courts.

When: July 21 – August 8 at 8pm on Tuesdays through Saturdays, 6pm on Sundays performances normally run about 2.5 hours heavy rain and lightening storms can cause cancelations for safety reasons, so if in doubt, call the weather line at 617-426-0863.

Where: Boston Common, near the Parkman Bandstand Getting there: By subway: Green/Red line to Park Street Station, or Green Line to Boylston Park under the Common in the Boston Common Parking Garage: pick up a discount coupon at one of the event tents – you’ll save a bit on parking, and the garage donates the proceeds to CSCCost: Free admission but pre-registration will be required this year due to capacity constraints

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Walk The Freedom Trail

Even if some of your favorite Independence Day activities have been canceled or closed off to the public due to the pandemic, you can still walk the Freedom Trail!

This trail includes many notable landmarks and locations which were important to the history of the United States of America, making them perfect sites to visit for the 4th of July.

We offer a pay-what-you-wantFreedom Trail walking tour which covers the most historic locations, but you can also just follow our Freedom Trail Map and take a self-guided tour.

While you might not be able to go inside these locations, you can at least visit and see them from the outside. This is also a great way to avoid crowds and prevent the spread of Covid-19!

Attend The Chinatown Main Street Festival

Fireworks, festivals roar back to life July Fourth weekend

If you love Chinese culture, therell be an excellent chance to celebrate it at this festival on July 6th.

In addition to displays of martial arts, lion dances and more, there will also be Chinese opera, dough art, folk dancing and more.

Although admission is entirely free, you may want to bring some money along for food and other items sold by vendors.

Even if you cant make it to the Chinatown Main Street Festival, you might also want to take our Boston Chinatown tour to learn more about the area.

NOTE: This event was canceled in 2020 and they have yet to announce their plans for 2021.

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Boston Pops July 4th Concert & Fireworks 2021

Celebrate America’s birthday on in Boston with a spectacular fireworks show. The event will be a little different this year due to the lingering impacts of the pandemic, but the imporant thing to know is that it will return to a live format – just in slightly different locations!

Fireworks will take place over Boston Common , and will last for half an hour as usual. The Boston Pops July 4th Concert conducted by Keith Lockhart will be not in Boston this year, but instead at Tanglewood in Western Massachusetts, and will feature a wonderful lineup of special guests including the legendary Mavis Staples, musician Jon Batiste, the Six String Soldiers of the U.S. Army Field Band, and members of the U.S. Air Force Band’s Singing Sergeants.

The concert starts at 8pm on July 4th, and will be broadcast on Bloomberg TV, Bloomberg.com, and Boston’s Channel 7 WHDH. Fireworks will start at approximately 10:30pm and last half an hour. Both the concert and fireworks show are free, but you must have a free ticket to enter the concert grounds, which has a capacity limited to 9,000 people for this event.

Things To Do This Weekend To Celebrate The Fourth Of July

Theres something so mesmerizing about watching fireworks. As a child, I never had plans set in stone for the Fourth of July as long as I was somewhere I could watch the fireworks, I was happy. I hope this is a day for you to get lost in the fireworks, enjoy time with family and friends and be surrounded by people sharing that same joy. The events I selected for this weekend feature a lot of live music and moments for thoughtful reflection on what this day means. Happy Fourth of July!

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We Found Many Things To Do In Boston When We Visited For July 4th

We liked to visit the U.S. for the July 4th celebrations. The previous year we enjoyed a hotel stay right beside the . But in Boston, we miscalculated on our hotel choice. It was not all that easy to get to the show area with many routes closed or jam packed.

We never realized how early some of the best venues booked up. Even our hotel concierge was not able to get us tickets to watch the fireworks show from the Top of the Hub or from the Observatory. And boat cruises were all booked. It was a good thing we started this trip with an amazing Canada Day celebration.

But even without the fireworks show, we found so many things to do in Boston when we visited for the July 4th long weekend. It was a great stop for a few days before we headed north along the Maine coast.

Have you visited Boston? Did you find many things to do in Boston?

Outside The Box Free Performing Arts Festival In Boston

Outside the Box, Boston’s largest performing arts festival, transforms the Common by erecting six stages and tents where over 100 local artists and groups stage theater, dance performances, and music for 5 days from July 13-17.

Most events take place on Thursday through Sunday from 12 noon – 9pm.

With so much going on at the festival, you can just walk around Boston Common and find the performances you like best. But if you want to plan ahead, check the festival’s schedule on the Out of the Box website.

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Staying Outside Of Boston July 4th Weekend

Hi everyone,

Excited to visit beautiful Boston again! Traveling with my newly retired dad for a 3 week escape to New England. He really wants to be in Boston for the 4th. What I’d like to do is stay somewhere outside the city such as Farmingham and take the rail in on the days we are there. It appears to be about an hour ride in. Is this a decent area to stay in to commute to and from Boston? We don’t want to pay an arm and a leg to stay in the city and don’t mind spending the extra travel time.

If this does not seem logical I’m open to any other suggestions on surrounding areas where we can get to the rail line. Not driving near the city and you don’t need another frantic tourist trying to navigate your roadways with the slow and go and eventual turns.

Any help greatly appreciated!

Search for “Hotels on the T” for some of the many strings we’ve had on this subject. Framingham is probably not the best choice for what you want, as it is on the commuter rail line, not the subway. The commuter rail is geared towards, you guessed it, commuters, so scheduled runs on weekends and “off” hours make planning touring outings much more difficult. Now, if you were willing to drive in, that would be a different story, but isn’t that why you ended up there in the first place.

Also, I just noticed your location … are you flying into Boston? If yes, then try to find a downtown hotel to stay in without a car and then as you leave Boston to see other areas, rent your car.

Penny

Thanks all!

Those Are Some Wicked Fireworks

If you do not mind the crowds, the Boston Pops concert is the place to be in Boston on July Fourth. Taking place on both the Boston and Cambridge sides of the sprawling Charles River — the river divides the two cities — the Boston Pops Fireworks Spectacular is a 2-day-long, free-to-the-public festival that culminates on the evening of July 4 with a concert and fireworks show at the Hatch Shell, an outdoor amphitheater in the grassy Esplanade that runs along the Boston side of the river, in between the Longfellow and Massachusetts Avenue bridges. It’s about as Boston as you can get, but personal space is limited.

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John F Kennedy Presidential Library And Museum

For fans of presidential history, the John F. Kennedy Library and Museum is essential viewing. The nations 35th president was born in Brookline, Mass. The library and museum, which has been closed because of COVID-19, reopens to the public with free admission on Saturdays and Sundays through July and August, from 10 am to 2 pm. Timed entry tickets from 10 am to 12:45 pm are required. The museum features a dozen permanent exhibits and utilizes high-definition, large-screen projections, interactive displays, remastered films, and original artifacts from the life and times of JFK to tell the story of his 1,000 days in office. Located on Columbia Point, the museum also offers sweeping views of Boston Harbor.

The John F. Kennedy Presidential Library and Museum is at Columbia Point. For GPS, the address is 220 Morrissey Blvd., Boston, 02215. The museum is open to the public free of charge from 10 am to 2 pm on Saturdays and Sundays, starting July 3 through August. Timed entry tickets are required and can be ordered online here.

Score $2 Snacks At Coppersmiths 4th Of July Celebration

6 Things this 4th of July weekend

Southie staple Coppersmith is already a solid weekend destination, with a roomy rooftop patio and excellent sangria. Add in a menu filled with $2 classics, and youve got the makings of an affordable summer hang. On Sunday from 4 p.m. to 10 p.m., Coppersmith will host a Fourth of July soiree featuring specials like $2 hot dogs, $2 beef sliders, $2 corn on the cob, and a barbecue plate of barbecue chicken, potato salad, corn on the cob, coleslaw, and cornbread for $16. Kids eat free all day from the dedicated kids menu, while adults can sip on Long Island ice tea floats .

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Best View In The City

If you don’t mind shelling out a few extra dollars to watch the Boston fireworks in style, head over to Boston’s iconic Prudential Building for a gourmet dinner at the Top of the Hub restaurant, the uppermost floor of the 52-story building. Guests enjoy cocktails, hors doeuvres, and a full five-course meal while watching a simulcast of the Boston Pops concert, followed by an amazing view of the real fireworks show over the Charles River. Tickets for the annual event are approximately $250 per person, at publication.

Go To The Bastille Day Street Party

This annual event is one of the biggest French festivals in Boston, and its a great way to celebrate the variety of cultures throughout the city.

In addition to live music and dancing, there will also be plenty of excellent food and drinks to enjoy.

General Admission will be $34 online or $40 at the event. Kids under 10 get in for free.

If you plan on bringing your family, make sure to stop by the kids table between 6 pm – 8:30 pm.

The entire Bastille Day Street Party runs from 6 pm – 11 pm on July 12th at Marlborough Street .

This site is very close to sites like the Esplanade, the Hatch Shell, the Boston Public Library, and the Boston Public Garden known for its fun Swan Boats!

NOTE: There’s no indication that this event will be held in 2021, but there’s definitely a chance they will bring it back!

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