Where to Travel in the U.S. for America’s 250th Birthday This Summer
Starting July 2, visitors to Disneyland Resort in Anaheim, Calif., can experience “Soarin’ Across America,” a new version of the park’s flight simulation ride celebrating the 250th anniversary. (The ride is also opening at Walt Disney World Resort outside Orlando, Fla., on May 26.)
The Huntington Library, Art Museum, and Botanical Gardens is marking the anniversary with a multiyear initiative focused on the connection between land, history and identity; its new exhibit, “This Land Is…,” opens June 14. The Autry Museum of the American West applies an Angeleno filter to the Declaration of Independence’s promises in “Life, Liberty, and Los Angeles” (opens May 30).
Your own backyard
With the volatility around the cost of gas and air travel, celebrating closer to home might hold extra appeal. The America250 site has an extensive calendar of events from local organizers across the states and territories, so you can check out activities happening nearby, whether that’s catching a screening of “Hamilton” at a historic drive-in theater in San Antonio, or showing off your knowledge of the American Revolution at “We the People ‘Who Know Stuff’ Trivia Night” in Boise, Idaho.
Earlier this spring, the National Archives’ Freedom Plane departed D.C. with some precious cargo, which may be coming to your neighborhood. This traveling exhibit is bringing nine historic founding documents, including the Treaty of Paris, 1783, and the Senate Markup of the Bill of Rights, 1789, to cities around the country. Through May 25, the documents are on view at the Houston Museum of Natural Science. Then, they’ll travel on to Denver, Miami, Dearborn, Mich., and Seattle throughout the summer.
Each summer, hundreds of thousands of visitors head to the National Mall for Smithsonian’s Folklife Festival. This year, the festival is coming to them. For the 250th, the Center for Folklife and Cultural Heritage is partnering with more than 30 local events across the country and territories, from Juneau, Alaska to Loíza, Puerto Rico, to mark the milestone.
