jasmo

We will in DC for the 4th and are wondering the best place, position, etc to see the fireworks. Should we stay on the mall with the masses or is there a secret place?

How about across the river?

bob_brown

I have watched the fireworks from across the river and in the mob.
Both vantage points have their drawbacks. The Potomac is not that close and the fireworks are distant.
The Mall is full of people.
Regardless of where your location the traffic is thick.

I really don't know what to suggest.
Get far away and the show is distant and details are lost. Get close and you have the crowds to consider.

The subway system is in full operation and the cars are full of standees.

I know of no secret place. Perhaps someone else does.

hotdogz

As suburbanites, we have gone into DC for the fireworks several times, although not in the past few years.

Our strategy -

We would take the subway to and from the Metro Center station (Red Line) instead of Smithsonian (Blue Line). I think the majority of people use Smithsonian. Metro Center is a further walk, but we always felt it was a quicker escape than Smithsonian. It is still VERY crowded though.

We would go only for the fireworks, arrive relatively late, and head to somewhere near the Washington Monument. Lots of people would have been there for several hours with their blankets spread, coolers, etc. but I think the early arrivers try to leave a little elbow room between them and the next group. We always found a good spot where we could squeeze in.

The INSTANT the fireworks are over, we would get right up and walk briskly to Metro Center, trying to be near the front of the pack. The dawdlers who stand up...stretch...fold the blanket...look around..., they bring up the rear of the mob heading to the subway and probably wait the longest.

Very important to stick together as it is easy to get separated from the rest of your party when the crowd heads to the subway.

LaurenSKahn

OK, I live in Northern Virginia and have not been to the fireworks for years. I have to tell you that it is an exhausting day. There are people who have spots staked out by noon. I have seen them schlepping their stuff on platforms with wheels constructed especially for the annual event (I am an attorney and sometimes work at court on the holiday).

I cannot imagine why anyone would want to spend the day sitting in the heat on a blanket on The Mall to stake out a good place. Take the advice of others and arrive at the last minute trying to use a Metro stop other than Smithsonian (Gallery Place or Judiciary Square are also good bets).

Some hotels have roof areas where you can see the 'works without all the problems of getting home afterwards. Other people watch them from the Pentagon parking lot (if they are allowing people to go there since the terrorist attacks).

I plan to watch the fireworks from my air conditioned house on PBS if I watch them at all. For me it is just not worth the hassle. I did it several times when I was much younger and just am not interested anymore.

When my kids were small, we went to the fireworks at the local high school and that was fine. My kids went down to The Mall with friends when they got older.

Mega DC events such as the fireworks on the 4th--the Cherry Blossom parade and inaugurations--are not something I want to attend unless someone gives me a ticket to be up front with no hassle. Since there are no tickets to the 'works on the 4th, I am not going.

Having said that, be prepared for heat and inadequate toilets if you go. The crush on the toilets in the museums on The Mall is intense on the 4th. There are plenty of port-a-potties, but, who wants to go in one of them?

If you are thinking of bringing booze to The Mall, think again. After years of problems with overly enthusiastic drinkers, alcohol is strictly banned. Do bring lots of water and soft drinks. You will need to keep hydrated as you wait for the big show.

As has been said by others there is no secret place.

islandmom

Went once and it was amazing. I was sure we would catch on fire. There is nothing to compare to it. And it was a scary mob rush after it was over.

Ann41

I never take the metro after the fireworks. Always end up walking home because it's quicker and much less terrifying. Yes, it's quicker to walk 5 miles than to wait through those crowds.

gfidk

I'm looking for advice as well (for my upcoming 4th visit).

Does anyone have a strategy that may include grabbing a taxi from somewhere "off the mall" and then picking up the metro at a station where others begin to get off?

kayd

Here's a strategy I've used successfully: Drive downtown early in the morning (10ish -- it is a holiday) and park on the street about 6-8 blocks away from the mall. Visit the National Gallery of Art (or not). Go home via Metro. Return to the mall or Capitol grounds by Metro or taxi with your picnic supper in late afternoon. After fireworks, walk to car and drive home from there.
This may not work for Va. residents becasue of traffic around the bridges, but for DC and Maryland folks who have many options for northbound routes, it is pretty good.

jedivader

Hate to sound negative, but the 4th is a waste of time in D.C.

I live in Maryland and went two years ago. We sat on the mall, it was hot, sticky, humid, and crowded. The humidity and lack of air movement barely allowed you to even see the fireworks. They seemed as if they were light years away from us. I will never waste my time there again. You can see much better fireworks at some of the city, town, or county gatherings. My fiancee and I attended the gathering in Bowie, Maryland last year and it blew D.C. away!

Sorry to make it so negative but I truly do believe that making the trek into D.C. for the 4th is a big waste of time......

Ann41

g-the problem with getting a cab to a stop is that most people on the metro are taking it outside the city to the outer reaches. Where are you staying?

I'd done the Mall 5 times for fireworks and while I'm not sure that I'd do it again, I think it's worth it. Of course, it used to be a lot more fun when they allowed to bring alcohol as there would be huge parties along with volleyball and soccer games. But the concert is always superb, and there's nothing better than listening to the NSO play while you watch fireworks shoot out from behind the Washington Monument.

Kal

Alooohaaa,
We've been to DC for 4th of July fireworks umpteen times and the only way we solved the "get off the Mall" prob. was booking the Metro Marriott a few blocks away.

We still get chills thinking about the 1st time we saw them.
Had seats right by The George and when they broke out into Neil Diamond's "Coming to America" Mrs Kal and I both got something in our eyes.
The only prob. was we thought we could take the Metro back out to Rosslyn Sta. since we stayed at the Key Br. Marriott.
WRONG! But it was a VERY nice walk up thru G'town and over the Key Bridge.
One big party.

And be warned about what happens when they play the 1812 Overture!!
We had great seats 2yrs ago. Got there early and set up on the grassy hill right in front of the Capitol so we could watch "A Capitol 4th" yet high enuff to see the fireworks over the Mall.

But then half way into the Pointer Sisters "getting sooooo excited" (right iceeu2 ?) raindrops as big as golf balls, thunder/lightning etc broke out!

We saw the fireworks from our room at the MetMarriot...in dry clothes!
Had the PBS Boradcast on TV and saw them thru the window.

It IS as awesome as everyone says.
Suggestion: if you take pics of the f'works, get a point of ref. in the pic or it's just pics of f'works!
I got a few w/ The George and they are great.

We hope to be there next year...after another bike ride down the C&O Canal Towpath. Bike on!
Kal

LN

Hi

There's no special or secret place to find and wastch the fireworks. You'll be joing many, many others who come into town (from the burbs mostly) to watch a truly great fireworks display. We've come in to watch them and used our car (hard to get back out of the city, the subway (worked best for getting out of city) and for a couple years we took our boat up the Potomac and watched the fireworks from just above Main Ave. It was really great, cracking crabs, eating shrimp, having a beer or soda (didn't have to move the boat til the next morning) and watched people coming into the Mall in droves to find a picnic spot. Now even the river is packed with people watching the fireworks. We've watched the fireworks at Annapolis and taking the boat up to Spa Creek but now there's so many boats doing the same one can walk from boat to boat. I think we might stay at the marina and watch their display this year.

LaurenSKahn

The person who suggested bringing your car in early and then going home and returning later has a good strategy.

I usually do not bring a car into DC during the work week or for mega events. I park it at a Metro lot. Metro is 4 1/2 miles from my house. The Metro lots get full early in the day for the 4th. What you do after that I do not know.

In any event, I wish all of you with more energy than I possess a fun time tackling The Mall on the 4th. Not me!

jaceyjc

Be bold. My friends and I are a younger group, who don't plot our spot at 9:00am. Our brazen move to look for a spot on the lawn of the Washington Memorial about an hour and a half before the fireworks was rewarding. There was a surprising amount of space left. We set out 3 large blankets for our group of 10 with plenty of space between us and our "neighbors". I think when people set out later in the day, they assume all of the "good spots" are gone and settle for the first open space they happen upon. Also, many people are from out of town and don't know the lay of the land or they work from the concept that "at home" you can't get a good spot late in the day. We certainly did.

JungleCat

One of the congressional office buildings, (I believe it is the House of Reps) has a plateau of sorts with a direct view of the fireworks. A few years ago, we went up there around 8:15pm and there weren't many people when we got there. It filled in a little later but nothing ridiculous. The view was fine for me. Afterwards, we had an easy walk to the car and beat most of the traffic back to Silver Spring.

I don't know if security at this building has changed since but at the time, we had no trouble.

bardo

Yes you could watch fireworks from the house office bldgs a few years ago. Today (post 9/11) you would not be allowed to watch the fireworks from any of the house office bldgs.