Big Bay Boom Fireworks Show

Your best viewing of the Big Bay Boom is from Coronado, based on my experience. Parking is always going to be tight on the 4^th, but most people that don’t camp out early have to park far away from the bay and walk…
— Secret Viewing Tip
Sit on the Coronado Municipal Golf Course (more towards the Bridge) and you can play fireworks tennis between Big Bay Boom and the Coronado fireworks show.
— Insiders Tip
Book a hotel room at the Wyndham San Diego Bayside (bay facing) for the evening… Avoid the chaos.

In my youth, living in Washington, DC, it was easy to pick a spot from which to watch Fourth of July fireworks. My friends and I would walk to the Mall, throw down blankets and wait to be entertained.
There was always live music, sometimes provided by the National Symphony, occasionally by the Beach Boys, and once, no kidding, by Wayne Newton, a controversial selection by the then-​Secretary of Agriculture that’s worth looking up.
And then, the spectacle: fireworks, the best displays I’d ever seen, were launched from barges on the Potomac, throwing colored light onto surrounding monuments while we watched, amused, and sipped contraband beers, and snuggled our girlfriends, and mistook these things for destiny.
San Diego’s 2015 Big Bay Boom was similarly marvelous, the best such extravaganza I’ve witnessed in California.
My wife and I have watched fireworks in San Diego for decades, from many perspectives. We have:
— Stood fascinated on Lake Murray’s shoreline;
— Leaned against my pickup as we parked along the approach to SeaWorld;
— Planted deck chairs in the sand on several local beaches;
— Partied with friends on a hilltop in Carmel Valley, our heads on a swivel as colors marked the evening sky, all the way around us.
But this year, we avoided our annual trial-​and-​error, last-​minute scramble to secure a decent viewpoint. We discovered our spot, and watched the City’s show from the best seats in the house.
For Valentine’s Day, I gave my Beloved a 4^th of July overnight stay at the Hilton San Diego Bayfront, 14^th floor, north side, overlooking Bayfront Park and the Bay itself. Our view of the fireworks was special: some of them burst overhead; some far below us; and some, at eye level.
And best of all, because our viewpoint looked northward, from the southernmost fireworks-​bearing barge to the one near Shelter Island, we were able to watch all four displays at once. Our night sky was literally filled with colorful explosions for a solid twenty minutes, something I’d never experienced. The displays were intended to be identical, and viewing them obliquely, we had the sense of watching fireworks in a Hall of Mirrors.
What’s more, the bursts lit up the City’s skyline; the glass boxes lining the bayfront threw light back at the water, the interplay reminding me of the shows of my youth.
Kudos to the Big Bay Boom, to all participating City departments, agencies and associated organizations, and to the Event’s many corporate sponsors, for another successful year. The Big Bay Boom is more than a spectacle; it draws positive attention to our City and rewards local residents for their dedication to the place.

Happy Independence Day!
The Big Bay Boom has been a San Diego tradition since 2001, and except for the 2012 show which will go down in infamy, has provided residents and visitors with a great free event that you can see up and down the downtown harbor. Nothing says congratulations on your successful act of high treason like fireworks. ;)
As a disclaimer, I love fireworks. I like to see them as close as safely possible and feel the
boom as they explode. I look forward to fireworks all year and try to see as many as possible.
The show itself is about 18 minutes long and starts at about 9pm. The whole thing is over before 9:30pm, and it gets busy! (The official website says that between 300,000 and 500,000 people.) In 2015, there were four barges that set of a choreographed show across the whole bay.
A tip, take public transportation if you can or don’t plan on getting out of here quickly when it is over. Traffic away from the water was still going strong over an hour later.
I’ve seen the show from two different locations and the show was equally as great at both. This year the only thing missing was the audio. Where I was standing they did not pipe it through any speakers and I could not get it to stream.
Traffic and crowds are a hassle, but it’s a great event and a spectacular show.
Happy Birthday, America! You and this event are worth it.

Not sure if this is the right venue to write a review for this but I gotta say that this year the fireworks were amazing. The only drawback is the access to the embarcadero. This year I went to the ball game at Petco and parked at the tail gate lot. After the game I though I would just cross the new ped bridge to the Hilton and into the South Embarcadero area right? Wrong! The elevators were down and I was pulling a small cooler and a stroller with my 10mo. old baby. OK, so let’s just walk over to the convention center and use those elevators, I though… again all elevators down! We had to circle a long way to get there. I can’t imagine anybody on a wheelchair making it. Maybe the port doesn’t care to provide access from downtown to the bay?
Again, the fireworks were great once we got there.

To me, this fireworks show symbolizes everything that is good and right about America. We’ve got fast food, fast cars, fast women, and our fireworks shows are over in 20 seconds. What more could anyone ask for?
I also happen to be a business owner and my time is very valuable. I can’t afford to sit around and watch fireworks for close to a half hour! I think lazy people who have all the time in the world should be more considerate of people like me.
The pioneering pyrotechnicians responsible for this wonderful show should be awarded the Presidential Medal of Freedom for the great service they have performed for their country. I know I will be petitioning my local government to switch all fireworks shows to this format.

For 10 seconds we thought we were watching the most amazing July 4^th fireworks show ever on the Port of San Diego near the Harbor. Had rarely seen the sky lit up by so many fireworks at the same time. Then it all ended abruptly… was it just a warm up?
For 20 minutes more we waited and waited… Until we heard a radio announcement that some technical malfunction caused the fireworks to discharge early and all at once. So what was usually a 20 minute fireworks show was over in 10 seconds.
Bottom line: Thanks to whatever fireworks company who messed up our July 4^th celebration and probably pissed off thousands of others who waited hours for a good spot to see this San Diego July 4^th tradition.