Fourth of July is patriotic and wholesome, but it's also cheap and easy. Most of the events below are completely free to attend—including plenty of traditional Fourth of July celebrations (like the Seafair Summer Fourth at Gas Works, the 14th Annual Capitol Hill Independence Day Picnic, and many, many firework displays) but also more unusual choices, from the humanist/atheist-oriented Freethinkers Potluck Picnic to slug races at Issaquah's Down Home 4th and Heritage Day. Find even more (and slightly more expensive) options on our complete Fourth of July calendar, and, if you're looking for something not necessarily patriotic to do before the actual holiday on Monday, check out our complete list of low-cost, low-effort weekend events around Seattle.
Jump to: Saturday | Sunday | Monday | Monday Night Fireworks
ALL WEEKEND
1. Old Fashioned 4th of July Festival
The Old Fashioned 4th of July Festival on Whidbey Island offers a weekend-long carnival, plus special events for Monday including a grand parade, a party in Windjammer Park, a beer garden, and fireworks. (Whidbey Island, free)
2. Lake Union Wooden Boat Festival
The 40th annual Wooden Boats Festival on South Lake Union will feature live bands, food vendors, interactive demonstrations, and historic wooden maritime vessels. (South Lake Union, free entry, Saturday through Monday)
3. Grand Old 4th of July
The Grand Old 4th of July celebration on Bainbridge Island will include a pancake breakfast, all-day street fair, car show, music, food, brews, entertainment, and more—including, of course, a grand old parade. (Winslow, free, Sunday & Monday)
JULY 2
4. Independence Day Celebration
Celebrate the Fourth of July a little early with beer, prizes, balloons, a car show, and food from HomeTown Dogs Food Truck. (Tacoma, free entry)
5. Jai Ho! Dance Party: Red, White, and Bollywood
Jai Ho returns to Nectar for Red, White, & Bollywood — bhangra, and other Indian-flavored beats at an all-night dance party with DJ Prashant. (Fremont, $10/$12)
6. KEXP Rocks the Dock
It’s never a bad time to catch up with the Northwest acts on this KEXP-endorsed Rocks the Dock bill, but it doesn’t get much better than now. In May, Seattle songwriter, producer, and engineer Erik Blood (Shabazz Palaces, THEESatisfaction) received his second Stranger Genius Award nomination. The recognition followed the release of his sophomore long-player, Lost in Slow Motion, a searching, multilayered reflection on romantic loss: Think A.R. Kane meets Flying Lotus. Michael Benjamin Lerner’s fourth full-length as Telekinesis, the vintage-synth-saturated Ad Infinitum, recalls peak-era OMD in its atmospheric introspection. Portland singer-guitarist Jessica Boudreaux’s Summer Cannibals, recent signees to Kill Rock Stars, round out the bill with their fuzzed-out, high-octane take on garage rock. Late-night KEXP DJ Evie will be spinning records between sets. KATHY FENNESSY (Downtown, free)
7. Misha Grin: Europa Night
Every first Saturday at Club Contour is EUROPA NIGHT, DJ and host Misha Grin's raise-up of all tracks house/Russian/dance/European/Top 40 and possibly a billion other genres. This time, it will still be Europa-themed, but also a celebration of the 4th of July (a great ironic choice for party-goers). Ladies are free before 10:30pm, and trendy attire is required, so don't show up looking like a dope. (Pioneer Square, $10)
8. Pre-4th of July Bash
Hosted by Zo Barksdale and Sable Ravish Dv, the Jazzbones annual pre-4th bash kicks off with top 40 and hiphop beats from DJ Don Gee, and food and drink specials all night. (Tacoma, $5)
JULY 3
9. Fourth of July Pre-Funk
Join Amber for their annual pre-Fourth of July party, with DJs Rocryte and Henski, cheap drink specials, complimentary table reservations, and no cover all night long. (Belltown, free)
10. Toulouse Petit's Annual 3rd of July Party
Celebrate "Independence Eve" at Toulouse Petit's annual Red White and Blue Bash, with music from DJ Josh Verse and a special happy hour from 10 pm-1 am. (Queen Anne, free entry)
JULY 4
11. 14th Annual Capitol Hill Independence Day Picnic
The 14th annual Fourth of July picnic in Cal Anderson Park will have free hot dogs for the first 500 people, a David Bowie look-alike contest, drag performances, a kids' costume parade, live music, and more family-friendly activities. (Capitol Hill, free)
12. 22nd Annual West Seattle 4th of July Children's Parade
This festive, family-friendly Fourth of July parade will be followed by old fashioned gunny sack races at Hamilton ViewPoint Park. (West Seattle, free)
13. Burien Independence Day Parade
The 95th annual Independence Day parade in Burien offers marching bands, floats, clowns, pirates, and more. (Burien, free)
14. Family Fourth at the Fort
Fort Dent Park's family-friendly Fourth of July celebration includes inflatable bouncers, slides, an entertainment stage, food vendors, and a fireworks display. (Tukwila, free)
15. Family Fourth of July
Enjoy a family Fourth of July with activities for kids including a spray park and bouncy houses, plus live music and fireworks for everyone. (SeaTac, free)
16. Family Fourth of July
The 25th annual Bellevue Family 4th of July Celebration offers food, games, live music, and a fireworks show. (Bellevue, free)
17. Freethinkers Potluck Picnic
The Humanists of Washington and Seattle Atheists will host a family-friendly picnic for all local area "freethinkers." Bring a dish! (Ravenna, free)
18. Down Home 4th and Heritage Day
Celebrate 4th of July and Heritage Day with a Kids 'n Pets Parade, then activities in Veterans' Memorial Park including pony rides, bouncy houses, waterballoons, gunnysacks, three legged races, a pie-eating contest, and a Slug Speed Race and Beauty Pageant. (They are very emphatic about the fact that they do not provide the slugs.) (Issaquah, free)
19. Naturalization Ceremony
You can fill your heart with patriotism at this huge naturalization ceremony, where 500 people from 80 countries will officially become U.S. citizens; the band will play at 11 am and the ceremony and speeches will start at noon. (Seattle Center, free)
20. Porchlight: 7 Year Anniversary
Bring your friends to Miller Playfield this 4th of July for pizza, drinks, and a chance to watch grown-ups play softball as a part of the seven year anniversary party for neighborhood stronghold, Porchlight Coffee. (Capitol Hill, free)
21. Seafair Summer Fourth
At Gas Works Park, celebrate Fourth of July with a gorgeous natural and industrial backdrop. They'll have food vendors, exhibit booths, live entertainment, a beer and beverage garden, plus games including hula-hoop contests, pie-eating contests, and sack races. (Wallingford, free general admission)
22. Tacoma's Freedom Fair
This day-long Fourth of July festival promises airshows, great food, vendors, exhibits, rides, and more, culminating in "the Northwest's biggest firework show." (Tacoma, free)
MONDAY NIGHT FIREWORKS
Get an eyeful of the bright, noisy, brilliant spectacle you know and (probably) love at one of the following locations:
Seattle's Gas Works Park, 10:20 pm
SeaTac's Angle Lake Park, 10 pm
Ruston Way in Tacoma, 10:10 pm
Bellevue Downtown Park, 10:05 pm
Edmonds Civic Field, 10 pm
Everett's Legion Memorial Park, 10:20 pm
Federal Way's Celebration Park, 10:15 pm
Kirkland's Marina Park, 10:15 pm
Renton's Coulon Beach Park, 10 pm
