4th on Flagler

West Palm Beach’s 4th on Flagler is the Intracoastal’s most polished Independence Day gathering, with Waterfront Commons at 100 North Clematis Street serving as the festival’s central hub along a Flagler Drive corridor that delivers unobstructed views across the water toward Palm Beach. The free event runs from 5:00 to 10:00 p.m. on July 4th, with live music on multiple stages, family activity zones, food vendors throughout the greenway, and fireworks over the Intracoastal Waterway after dark. The skyline-and-water combination as the fireworks backdrop gives the show a visual scale that smaller Florida waterfront cities cannot match.

Flagler Drive and the Waterfront

The stretch of Flagler Drive through downtown West Palm Beach is one of the most deliberately designed urban waterfronts in South Florida, with a continuous greenway, dedicated cycling lanes, and public art installations that give the holiday crowd room to spread naturally without congestion. The Intracoastal Waterway at this point faces Palm Beach across a narrow channel, and the illuminated estates and Worth Avenue corridor on the opposite shore contribute an inadvertent backdrop to the fireworks that is simultaneously glamorous and absurd in the best possible way. Arriving by 5:30 p.m. and walking south from Clematis Street toward the Howard Park area gives you a strong position on the waterfront lawn before the main stage entertainment builds the pre-fireworks energy.

Points of Interest for Families

The Norton Museum of Art on South Olive Avenue, one of the largest and most significant art museums in the southeastern United States, offers a family-friendly collection ranging from American and European paintings to a dedicated children’s interactive gallery. The museum’s Chinese art collection, encompassing jade, bronze, and ceramics spanning four millennia, is particularly strong and gives older children an accessible entry point into art history beyond the Western canon. Palm Beach Zoo on Summit Boulevard, about 10 minutes from Flagler Drive, is a well-maintained mid-sized zoo with a Sumatran tiger habitat, a free-flight aviary, and a children’s water play area that suits a morning visit before the afternoon waterfront event.

Dining on Clematis Street

Avocado Grill on Clematis Street has been one of West Palm Beach’s most celebrated restaurants since opening in 2014, with a seasonal Florida-sourced menu that includes a cobia ceviche and slow-braised short rib among its most praised dishes. Leila on Clematis Street is a well-established Mediterranean address with a menu of Lebanese-influenced mezze, grilled meats, and a vegetable-forward approach that gives the table options beyond the standard holiday fare. For a waterfront dinner with direct Intracoastal views, Buccan on Palm Beach’s Worth Avenue, a short drive across the bridge, is South Florida’s most sophisticated coastal American kitchen and worth the reservation difficulty for a celebratory July 4th dinner.

Where to Stay

The Intracoastal Waterway’s Palm Beach and West Palm Beach shorelines both offer waterfront rental properties with direct water access and the full spectrum of South Florida boat, kayak, and paddleboard rental options within short reach. Book your stay near the Intracoastal on Lake.com and plan a morning on the water before the fireworks bring the full downtown crowd to the Flagler Drive waterfront.