AOL City Guides Names the Top Ten 'Booms with a View' - Providing Front Row Seats to the Country's Best Fourth of July Festivities

Business Wire, June 30, 2003

Business Editors/High-Tech Writers

DULLES, Va.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--June 30, 2003

AOL Keyword: Fourth of July to Feature a Variety of Holiday-Themed

Content From Planning an Unforgettable Getaway to Family Picnics

to Blockbuster Entertainment

AOL City Guides (AOL Keyword: Local or www.digitalcity.com) wants to make sure you've got a front row seat for the festivities this Fourth of July, and is making the Web the place to turn for all the information you need to paint the town red, white and blue. Today, AOL City Guides announced the top ten "Best Booms with a View" to help Americans get information on the best fireworks displays and celebrations across the country. The "Best Booms with a View" is part of a multi-day Fourth of July programming feature at AOL Keyword: Fourth of July that provides members with daily updates to help them plan their holiday weekend activities and to celebrate patriotism online and offline.

Top Ten Booms With a View

This Fourth of July, AOL City Guides editors have selected the top locations for viewing the fireworks around the country based on a number of factors including size, location, family-friendliness, accessibility and additional attractions. From the Lone Star State, to the Big Apple, to the beaches of Southern California, AOL City Guide's "Best Booms with a View" include:

1. Houston - BP Power of Freedom Festival -- Houston cuts loose. Look

to the skystage for planes, parachutists and unique aerial

entertainment, followed by Sky Freedom, Houston's largest Fourth

of July fireworks display.

2. Washington, DC - Fireworks on the Mall -- Why not experience the

nation's birthday amongst some of its greatest historical and

symbolic treasures? DC's fantastic fireworks display explodes over

the Washington Monument at 9:10 PM, with the best viewing sites

including the Capitol, the Lincoln Memorial, the Jefferson

Memorial, the FDR Memorial, the Iwo Jima Memorial and the Ellipse.

3. New Orleans - Go 4th on the River! -- Big bangs in the Big Easy.

The fireworks -- skyrocketed from two barges on the mighty

Mississippi -- begin at 9PM and will be choreographed to a

selection of patriotic, spine-tingling,

hair-on-the-back-of-your-neck-raising anthems.

4. New York - Macy's Fourth of July Fireworks -- Who knew that one of

the best views of the nation's biggest fireworks display isn't

even in Manhattan? It's in Brooklyn. Big Applers have trekked over

the Brooklyn Bridge for years to enjoy the view from the promenade

in Brooklyn Heights.

5. Charlotte - Charlotte Skyshow 2003 -- Charlotte's annual Skyshow

is a massive Independence Day celebration, offering live music,

fireworks, food and patriotic fun in Uptown. Don't miss the

interactive children's area, which features the BMX Airwalk Stunt

Team. And for some real American heroes, the new Veteran's VIP

Area at Polk Park grants war veterans a prime viewing spot for the

evening's fireworks.

6. Philadelphia - Sunoco Welcome America! Festival -- Not only do the

fireworks rock, but get the lineup at this week-long festival: a

roving outdoor film series, a gospel fest, opera on the Square, a

three-day ice cream festival, the Independence Day Parade.

7. San Diego - The Big Bay Fireworks Show might not be as colossal

and flashy as, New York or DC's fireworks extravaganzas, but San

Diego's Big Bay Fireworks still packs a mesmerizing wallop. Grassy

spots for picnics can be found on Shelter and Harbor Island, at

Seaport Village and Chicano Park.

8. Boston - Harborfest and Boston Pops Concert -- As if a six-day

independence fest isn't enough, one of the country's most famous

Fourth celebrations hits a high note -- literally -- when that

dynamo Keith Lockhart conducts his Boston Pops in a rousing

rendition of the 1812 Overture, climaxing with synchronized

cannons, fireworks, orchestra and the usual rogue cart-wheeling

toddlers.

9. Raleigh - July Fourth Celebration at the N.C. State Fairgrounds --

Shortly after 9PM, the skies over Raleigh light up with a

pyrotechnic display sure to make hearts swell with patriotic

pride.

10. Seattle - 4th of Jul-Ivars -- It's a shell of a party. This annual

rite of summer is late seafood restaurant owner Ivar Haglund's way

of thanking beautiful Seattle. As the fireworks fade, hundreds of

boats offshore honk their horns in appreciation of America.

"People flock to the Web around the Fourth of July for information on their local celebrations, to plan a weekend getaway, or to find grilling recipes that will be a hit at the neighborhood barbecue," said Mark Weinberg, AOL's Executive Director, Local Programming. "At AOL City Guides, interest in our local features more than double in the days leading up to the Fourth of July and we think it's because we provide visitors with the kind of very local information and timely suggestions they're looking for to plan a great Independence Day."

Beginning on June 27th and running through the Fourth of July weekend, AOL's Fourth of July area (AOL Keyword: Fourth of July) will feature a variety of holiday themed content to make celebrating Independence Day a real blast. The area will be updated daily as the holiday draws near, offering everything from last-minute holiday travel, blockbuster entertainment and family cookouts, to road trips and more. In addition to the "Best Booms with a View," AOL City Guides provides localized recommendations and information for places to see and things to do in 37 of the top local markets.