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How many ways can you celebrate a birthday? If you are talking about America’s birthday, there are too many to count. Start with parades and barbecues. Move on to festivals, campground and resort parties, concerts and, of course, fireworks. You can even time travel back to the days when our country was founded.

Wherever you go, you will have plenty of company. AAA projects 70.9 million travelers will head 50 miles or more from home over the Independence Day holiday travel period.

“With summer vacations in full swing and the flexibility of remote work, more Americans are taking extended trips around Independence Day,” explained Paula Twidale, senior vice president of AAA Travel. “We anticipate this July Fourth week will be the busiest ever with an additional 5.7 million people traveling compared to 2019.”

July Fourth, of course, marks the day the Declaration of Independence was adopted (July 4, 1776) and the United States officially became its own nation.

Head to Philadelphia to see Independence Hall where the Declaration of Independence and later, the US Constitution, were debated and signed. ( Timed tickets to tour Independence Hall must be reserved in advance online at Recreation.gov, or by phone at 1-877-444-6777. Tickets are free, but there is a non-refundable processing fee of $1 per ticket.)

Come to Philadelphia July 2 for the inaugural Red, White, & Blue To-Do. Twenty cultural institutions and historic attractions, along with Old City restaurants, will be celebrating what John Adams declared should be a day of “pomp and parade” with a parade, music, and special events across Historic Philadelphia.

Stop at Once Upon a Nation Storytelling benches in Philadelphia’s Historic District where uniformed storytellers offer short stories about America’s start.

In Williamsburg, Jamestown and Yorktown, Virginia, you can time travel back to Revolutionary times, whether attending a ball, visiting a battlefield or chatting with ordinary citizens, including those who were enslaved. In Yorktown, head to the American Revolution Museum for their Liberty Celebration where you can visit a Continental Army encampment and Revolution-era farm.

Celebrate in Washington, at A Capitol Fourth that always precedes the fireworks show on the National Mall. Join the one-of-a-kind July 4th celebration at the National Archives where you may be greeted by George and Martha Washington re-enactors and even “sign” the Declaration of Independence. The Washington Nationals annually play at Nationals Park on Independence Day, this year against the NY Mets. Many hotels in DC offer special discounts and packages.

Pose for selfies July 3 and 4 with re-enactors of Presidents Geoge Washington, Abraham Lincoln, Thomas Jefferson and Theodore Roosevelt, the presidents carved in stone at Mount Rushmore National Memorial in South Dakota. Though there won’t be fireworks this year, the evening Lighting Ceremony is a must-see. (Kids can download the Junior Ranger Quest at the Apple Store and Google Play.)

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