Boston's Harborfest - 4th of July Celebrations

One of America's premier birthday bashes takes place in Boston. The city enjoys the Fourth of July far too much to confine its celebration to one day or one place: Boston Harborfest lasts a full week, July 1-6, 2008, taking over all downtown and the waterfront. The climax of the festivities is the Boston Pops concert on the night of the Fourth, complete with church bells, cannon fire (during the finale of the 1812 Overture), and a breathtaking 30-minute display of fireworks set to music. The concert doesn't start until 8:30 p.m., but the party runs all day—spectators arrive on the Boston side of the Charles River at dawn to stake out a spot on the Esplanade in front of the Hatch Shell amphitheater, where the orchestra performs.

Earlier in the week, Harborfest's 200-plus events—concerts, cruises, tours, performances, and more—entertain locals as well as visitors from all over the world. Children's Day features special activities for youngsters, and Sunday's Chowderfest attracts crowds who vote on well-known (and not) local restaurants' entries in the competition for the title of best clam chowder (New England style, of course).

On Thursday evening, July 3, the Pops rehearse the next night's program to a not-insignificant-size crowd. The orchestra has been an integral and much-loved part of the festivities since they began in 1974, under the direction of the legendary Arthur Fiedler; today the engaging Keith Lockhart wields the baton.

(The Boston Pops call the acoustically perfect Symphony Hall their home when it is not in use by the acclaimed Boston Symphony Orchestra. The Pops season ends with a series of free performances on the Esplanade, culminating with this televised Fourth of July extravaganza.)

The area around the Charles River is busy all year, but especially in the summer. The Hatch Shell shows family-friendly movies in a series called "Free Friday Flicks." The amphitheater is on the Esplanade, the Beacon Hill/Back Bay section of the 17-mile biking and walking loop that parallels the Charles River. To get out onto the river, you can take a Boston Duck Tour. The "Ducks" are amphibious vehicles that lumber around the city on wheels and then finish off with a plunge into the water, where the tour continues; the narrated 80-minute excursion is one of the city's best sightseeing experiences.

Boston Harborfest: Tel 617-227-1528; www.bostonharborfest.com. Boston 4 Celebrations, tel 888-484-7677 or 617-267-2400; www.july4th.org. When: July 1-6, 2008. Free Friday Flicks: Tel 617-787-7200; www.wbz1030.com. When: July–early Sept. Boston Duck Tours: Tel 800-226-7442 or 617-267-DUCK; www.bostonducktours.com. When: late Mar–late Nov.

Boston Symphony Orchestra and Boston Pops: Tel 888-266-1200 or 617-266-1200 (tickets), 617-266-1492 (info); www.bso.org. When: BSO Oct–Apr; Pops May–early July.

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Patricia Schultz is the author of 1000 Places To See Before You Die (Workman) and 1000 Places to See in the USA & Canada Before You Die (Workman)