Saturday, July 2

Tahiti Fête
San Jose State University hosts the Tahiti Fête of San Jose, a three-day Tahitian dance competition extravaganza with crafts, food and lots of Tahitian dancing. Learn how to play Tahitian drums and learn a few Tahitian dance moves at the workshops with special guest instructors.

Great Train Robberies
The Wild West comes alive for the 4th of July weekend at Roaring Camp. Take a relaxing and scenic train ride through the Santa Cruz mountains—with shootouts and robberies! Reenactments bring the Wild West dangers to the 21st century for a family-fun day filled with trains and outlaws.

Sunday, July 3

Pioneer Day
Turn off the Gameboys and iPhones and experience what life was like in America in the 1800s. This vintage 4th of July weekend at San Jose’s History Park features activities for the whole family, including gold panning, adobe brick making, butter churning, hoop rolling and more.

Celebrate America at Shoreline Ampitheatre
For over 12 years, Celebrate America has continued to provide a great show to thousands of people in our community—free of charge. The concert features Bethel’s 90 voice choir, 35 piece orchestra, children’s choir and large cast of singers, actors and dancers. This live performance includes an array of music ranging from ballads to big band, country to classical and praise to pop, with a spectacular grand finale of aerial fireworks.

Monday, July 4

San Jose Giants Fireworks Extravaganza
After playing against the Modesto Nuts, the San Jose Giants host San Jose’s official fireworks show. Grab reserved seating tickets for the game or find a spot outside the ballpark to watch the fireworks show light up the night sky.

World’s Shortest Parade 2011
Join the community of Aptos for the 50th Anniversary of the 4th of July Parade. The World’s Shortest Parade (or so the city of Aptos claims) will begin at 10am at the corner of Soquel and State Park Drives and continue to the Bayview Hotel, about 0.6 miles away. After the parade, the fun continues with “The Party in the Park” celebration in the Aptos Village Park from 12pm to 4pm with food, vendors, music and activities.

Saratoga Independence Day 2011
An all-volunteer event first organized in 2003, the Saratoga July 4th program is an annual, old-fashioned Independence Day observance that celebrates our nation’s birthday with a patriotic family program intended to unite our diverse community, and to remind us of our founders and freedoms.

Santa Clara All City Picnic 2011
Start the morning out with an outdoor pancake breakfast and relax to live entertainment throughout the day at the Pavilion, including the Sizzling Seniors, the Santa Clara Parks & Recreation Department dancers, The Bell Brothers and Busta-Groove. Bring a picnic lunch or purchase all-American foods prepared by local community groups. Enjoy carnival games and face painting near the softball field and swimming at the International Swim Center. The flag dedication ceremony is at noon.

Redwood City Family 4th
This year’s featured theme at the Redwood City Family 4th of July celebration is “Redwood City Fire Department—150 Years of Service.” The celebration will feature music, a children’s stage, vendors, activities and a parade that starts at 10am.

Palo Alto Chili Cook-Off
Attracting thousands of sun and chili lovers, the Palo Alto Summer Festival & Chili Cook-off embraces everything wonderful about summer. Taste an array of red-hot chili delicacies prepared by over 20 teams of chefs battling for the chili championship and enjoy live music by Johnny Super, line dancing by Hedy McAdams, and DJ Joe Sheldon. Children’s activities including jumpy houses, balloon artist, face painting, food vendors and more. Admission is free; tasting kits are $5 for 5 tastes.

Morgan Hill Freedom Fest
Morgan Hill hosts an all-day, old fashioned Independence Day celebration, starting with a Patriotic Pancake breakfast and continuing with a Freedom Run 5K Race Walk (and 1 mile Kid’s Race). The parade starts at 11am and fireworks are set to go off at dark.

The Counter’s First Annual 4th of July Barbeque
Gourmet burger joint The Counter expands into Park Valencia at Santana Row for an afternoon of barbeque, beer, and music from Bay Area favorites Gravy Boat. $15 per adult ($8 per child) includes unlimited mini-burgers, fries, soft drinks, and one Devil’s Canyon Brewery beer.

Kidical Mass in the Glen
While Willow Glen’s Kidical Mass may have stemmed from such raucous congregations as Critical Mass and Bike Party, in this case the apple falls pretty far from the tree. Families gather for a fun, safe ride that promotes clean, alternative forms of transportation. Bikes, unicycles, strollers, and rollerblades are all welcome.

The Alameda Rose, White, and Blue Parade
Enjoy an old fashioned family-style parade as it winds through the Rose Garden neighborhood ending on the grand avenue of the The Alameda. This homespun parade features live bands, dance groups, home-made floats, kids on bikes, antique cars and more. Following the parade, enjoy the picnic on The Alameda featuring food and drink from local restaurants under the shade of trees with live music.

Cupertino Fourth of July 2011
Cupertino’s festivities include a pancake breakfast at Quinlan Community Center followed by flag raising, a children’s parade, live music by the Peelers and a fireworks show lighting off from Cupertino High School.

Independence Day at Ardenwood
Ardenwood Historic Farm hosts its annual old-fashioned Independence Day celebration with fun for the whole family. Live patriotic music sets the mood for the day’s festivities: egg tossing, ice cream making and watermelon seed spitting.

Fourth of July Celebration 2011
Los Gatos celebrates this year’s Fourth of July with a variety of games in the downtown area. Activities include a hometown picnic, a flag raising ceremony with music from the San Jose Wind Symphony and a mouth watering BBQ dinner.

Fireworks at Gilroy High School
Gilroy hosts a Fourth of July fireworks show out of Gilroy High School at 10th and Princevalle. Be sure to arrive early and grab a safe viewing spot. The show is planned to start at 9:15pm.

Fremont Fourth of July Parade 2011
Fremont hosts its annual Fourth of July parade with balloons, floats, equestrian units and marching bands. The parade route starts at State Street and Capitol Avenue, then on to Paseo Padre Parkway, Walnut Avenue, California Street, and ends on Beacon Avenue.

Milpitas Red, White & Boom! Celebration
Milpitas hosts its Red, White & Boom! Celebration with a “Red, White & Blue” pool party, a hot dog lunch, a football field concert with JamFunkShus and a dazzling fireworks display.