Minneapolis Aquatennial

About Minneapolis Aquatennial

The Minneapolis Aquatennial is an annual event held in the U.S. city of Minneapolis, Minnesota, since 1940 celebrating the city's famous lakes, rivers, and streams. Its current tagline is The Ten Best Days of Summer. It is held during the third full week of July and includes some 70 events, including sand castle building, beach volleyball, a tennis invitational, a triathlon, parades, Subway Block Party and the final Target Fireworks. The more novel events include the annual "Milk Carton Boat Races," in which participants in various divisions race boats they have constructed from milk cartons. The fireworks display is one of the largest in the country, and is bigger than the city's Fourth of July celebration.

The festival's relationship with communities throughout the state is evident in the Aquatennial's Queen of the Lakes Program. Each year, 50 young women from around Minnesota are chosen by their respective communities to compete for the Queen of the Lakes and two Princess titles. These three young women then travel around the state, country, and globe to participate in festivals in San Antonio, Texas, Macon, Georgia, and Osaka, Japan.

Minneapolis celebrated its centennial in 1956 in conjunction with the Aquatennial. The city's sesquicentennial will be July 18–27, 2008, the year Minnesota celebrates 150 years of statehood.