Happy birthday, America!
The US is turning 250 years old this week — and the Big Apple is celebrating for days to come.
Local parties ranging from the largest naval parade ever to a spectacular performance by the Blue Angels are slated for the special occasion, with countless other events scheduled across all five boroughs, too.
Here are some of the biggest ways for the public to enjoy the nation’s milestone birthday in New York City.
Sail 4th 250
A once-in-a-lifetime flotilla will feature 80 ships and 150 aircraft from international militaries in a blockbuster celebration that will last six days.
The Grand Parade of Sail will serve as the centerpiece of the week, making for the largest parade of vessels to ever sail into the Port of New York and New Jersey.
- July 3: A preliminary parade of 24 tall ships will sail down the East River from the Long Island Sound, pausing at the South Street Seaport before proceeding to anchorages in Gravesend Bay off Brooklyn.
- July 4: The Grand Parade of Sail will kick off in the morning, featuring a fleet of 43 Class A tall ships and 22 Class B from countries across the world. They will sail under the Verrazzano-Narrows Bridge, past the Statue of Liberty and up the Hudson River to the George Washington Bridge — led by “America’s Tall Ship,” the USCGC Eagle. Simultaneously, the International Naval Review 250 will feature 37 US and allied naval vessels from 22 nations at anchor in the Hudson River.
- July 5-7: The public is invited to board and tour the tall ships while they are docked in Manhattan, Brooklyn and Staten Island. The visits are free, but reserved tickets are required at https://sail4th.org/tall-ship-tours.
- July 8: The Class A tall ships will depart and continue their journey to Boston. Four of the five surviving “Five Sisters” — the USCGC Eagle (US), NRP Sagres (Portugal), Mircea (Romania) and Gorch Fock (Germany) — will race for the International Perpetual Challenge Cup into Boston Harbor on July 9.
Fleet Week
The traditional celebration where active-duty maritime soldiers visit the Big Apple is being pushed back six weeks to not only coincide with America’s semiquincentennial but to bring the largest-ever International Naval Review to fruition.
Members of the US Navy, Marine Corps and Coast Guard will dock in New York Harbor on July 3 and stay through July 8.
On July 4th morning, the Navy will host the International Naval Review — a solemn ritual that presides over 53 US and foreign warships before they continue on their voyage up the Hudson River.
The public will be invited to tour the impressive vessels and can expect military demonstrations such as live search-and-rescue aviation displays and drill team performances.
Blue Angels air show
The Navy’s Blue Angels will take to the skies above the Port of New York and New Jersey on July 4.
The United States Navy’s elite flight demonstration squadron will lead the International Aerial Review, which will feature more than 100 US and allied aircraft.
Typically, the elite team soars their Super Hornets above Jones Beach on Long Island to commemorate Memorial Day but moved back that annual show to honor America’s 250th birthday.
Times Square ball drop
The Times Square ball will drop at midnight EDT July 3 into July 4 in New York City to ring in America’s birthday in a New Year’s Eve-like fashion.
But it also will drop seven other times over the course of the hours — to coincide with midnight in every American time zone. That means the first drop will occur at 10 a.m. EDT on July 3 to mark midnight in Guam, and the last drop will occur at 7 a.m. July 4 for American Samoa.
The same ball will be used, but it will feature a different lighting design each time.
“The 11:59 p.m. EDT Ball Drop in Times Square will serve as the centerpiece — a high-energy, cultural moment designed for a global broadcast, signaling the official arrival of July 4th for the Eastern Time Zone and setting the stage for celebrations nationwide,” organizer America 250 said.
Macy’s fireworks show
The Macy’s July 4th fireworks show is promising to “illuminate New York City’s iconic skyline with a kaleidoscope of color” as it celebrates its own 50th anniversary.
The company’s annual summer celebration will feature 12 high-tech pyro animations, an inverted rainbow from the Brooklyn Bridge cable and a quarter-mile-long silver waterfall that will cascade from the bridge to the East River below, as well as a 1,600-foot-wide USA flag in the sky, Macy’s said.
A total of 85,000 shells will fire 1,000 feet into the air — a sizable increase from the 80,000 that blasted off last year.
The incredible show takes a 75-person crew up to 12 days to prepare, with the fireworks being hand-loaded and hand-wired across 240 different positions across the Brooklyn Bridge.