Nine Strip resorts will fire one synchronized July 4 show for America's 250th

Las Vegas is going big for the country's 250th birthday. At 9 p.m. on July 4, nine resort rooftops fire a single synchronized show: Caesars Palace, Treasure Island, The Venetian, MGM Grand, ARIA, Planet Hollywood, Resorts World, Fontainebleau, and The STRAT. The bursts run about eight minutes, set to a soundtrack broadcast live on KOMP 92.3, 97.1 The Point, and 98.9 HANK FM — bring earbuds and you get the full cut.

The resorts add a 30-minute marquee takeover in red, white and blue before the show, and the Sphere's Exosphere runs its own patriotic visuals. It's the largest July 4 fireworks display in the U.S. this year.

Watching costs nothing from the pedestrian bridges and sidewalks mid-Strip — the bridges around Bellagio and Paris have the widest sightlines. If you'd rather sit down, Resorts World's Rose Rooftop runs a fireworks party from 7 to 10 p.m. ($25 with one drink included), and Fontainebleau hosts viewing at its Oasis Pool. Hotel guests with a north- or west-facing room at MGM Grand or The STRAT can skip the crowds entirely.

Off-Strip, Station Casinos fires six displays across the valley, and Palace Station shoots a free show a few days earlier, on July 1, for its 50th anniversary.

Our take: the bridges are packed solid by 8 p.m., so either claim a spot early or spend the $25 at Rose Rooftop — it's the cheapest guaranteed sightline on the Strip. And don't skip the radio sync; without the soundtrack it's just very good fireworks, with the soundtrack, it becomes a show.