4th of July Concert at Alys Beach
Alys Beach knows how to celebrate the Fourth of July!
Our family usually spends the July fourth holiday with my husband’s family at the beach. We love celebrating this holiday with neighborhood golf cart rides, our own fireworks show, and eating watermelon with every meal. The July Fourth weekend is always a busier time at the beach so our family doesn’t travel very far from our beach home. Raleigh and I love taking the kids to Alys Beach to watch their fireworks show because it is close to our house and they celebrate the holiday with food trucks, a live band in their outdoor amphitheater, and a spectacular display of lights to celebrate the holiday.
The fireworks show at Alys Beach begin at 9 p.m. after the sun has completely set and the sky is dark but pre-fireworks festivities start as early as 6 p.m. Many restaurants on 30-A close early on July fourth (around 7 p.m.) and it is never a guarantee that you’ll get seated in time to enjoy a meal before closing, so I recommend a few different options for dinner. First, you can eat at your house beforehand then pack a light cooler of snacks and drinks to place at your picnic spot on the lawn or you can even bring your entire meal and picnic early as a family!
This year, we opted to eat at Goatfeathers at 30 Avenue before driving into Alys Beach. Goatfeathers serves all of their food in sturdy carryout containers and they have a less busy lawn with tables and chairs to eat at as a family. Our kids played soccer on the lawn while we listened to an acoustic set over our meal.
Maralee and I split their blackened grouper with asparagus, Raleigh and RJ had the Fish n Chips, and Adeline and Ridley split the chicken finger basket. It was very low-key and we were able to be in Alys Beach a little after 7 p.m. We parked behind George’s in the large parking lot and set up our picnic blanket across the street from the amphitheater. It was already packed by that time but we actually prefer to sit across the street because it is the best view of the fireworks and is less crowded!
Another option is to eat dinner at one of the food trucks. This year, Henry’s Pizza Truck was a favorite option. Henry’s had brick oven pizzas in cheese and pepperoni options and also fresh popcorn, drinks, and candy. The pizzas are more individual pies shaped like flatbread pizza (two kids could share easily). While their line was long, they served their food very quickly. We ran out of water and ended up stopping by the pizza truck around 8:30 to buy some popcorn to watch the fireworks show. Their service was super friendly and it was a nice grab-n-go option.
The 4th of July Concert at Alys Beach before the fireworks show was family friendly but made adults feel like they could have a good time! With music from Ascension, an Atlanta-based band, the crowd danced to hits like “Yeah!,” “All I Do Is Win,” and July 4th favorites such as “Party in the USA.” There was a large group of teenagers and adults dancing in front of the stage and the entire amphitheater had families moving and grooving to the lively music. Our kids had a blast and we did too!
The concert concluded right at 9 p.m. and soon fireworks lit up the sky. Our family scooted close together on our picnic blanket to watch the colors dance, twinkle, and pop in the air. It was a beautiful site and really peaceful to watch such a display of beauty among so many people. The fireworks show made me thankful that we could gather together in a public place and celebrate being a family.
The 4th of July Concert and firework show ended by 9:30. We gathered our sticky crew and walked easily back to our car and drove the short distance home to our beach house. Alys Beach provided a wonderful family experience and we look forward to celebrating the 4th of July again in this lovely 30-A town.
