It will probably be called "the new bridge" for decades, but there will only be one grand opening; and area hotels and other businesses expect soaring returns when the latest Cooper River span is officially unveiled later this month.

The pomp will include one of the biggest fireworks displays in the history of the Southeast on July 14 and, perhaps more impressively, a lighting ceremony to christen the biggest public construction project in the history of South Carolina.

For most area residents, the bridge opening will mean a good party and an end to white-knuckle commutes. But to the Charleston hospitality community, the event is a chance to shore up the typical sag in business that hits the Lowcountry every summer.

Businesses with ringside status stand to gain the most; but every restaurant, hotel and attraction with a view of the bridge will be in demand.

Patriots Point Naval & Maritime Museum is one of a host of venues planning to cash in on the affair.

"Everybody realizes this is going to be a once-in-a-lifetime experience," said David Burnette, executive director of the museum. "When we heard about the fireworks and everything, we realized that it would be criminal not to do something big."

Patriots Point is opening its gates to about 2,500 people willing to pay $10 a head. It's also hosting a gala on the deck of the aircraft carrier Yorktown, with seats starting at $200. To date, it's sold more than half of the cheap seats and some 400 gala tickets.

Andrew Rhyne, general manager and part owner of the Quality Inn & Suites nearby, has been waiting for the bridge opening since his hotel was built in 1999.

"We couldn't get a definitive answer on where it was going to lie, but we went ahead with construction anyway," Rhyne said. "We couldn't ask for a better position to be in now."

The bridge's bike path empties out right next to the Quality Inn. The hotel is usually about 65 percent full this time of year, but Rhyne said all 103 of his rooms will be spoken-for the week of the bridge opening by several small groups, including some television crews. Guests will be paying $130 to $150, about 10 percent to 15 percent more than last year's July rates.

In recent months, as construction crews rushed to finish the bridge, party planners and hospitality managers anxiously waited for the completion date. Since state officials announced the schedule of events in early June, area businesses have scrambled to organize events and get the word out.

Charleston Harbor Resort & Marina is selling bridge-opening packages at its 130-room hotel for $500 to $800 a night. In comparison, midweek rates during July typically run between $169 and $219. The deal allows guests to drop in on the resort's planned waterfront concert, where Kool & the Gang will belt out its 1980 hit "Celebration."

Oliver Rooskens, the resort's operations director, said all but a few of the rooms have been reserved, mostly by locals. The "Celebration" minus the room costs $30.

Zinc Bistro & Bar, which opened on the northern bank of the Cooper River slightly more than a year ago, is bracing for the masses as well.

"We're actually going to be closed that night," Zinc owner Mike Russo said last week. "Just kidding," he quickly added. "We are expecting a very, very large crowd. ... Everybody that I know has called me about that night."

Zinc has a few reservation slots left in its 150-capacity dining room, but it's first-come, first-served on the restaurant's patio, which can handle up to 500 people. Russo said his company had considered a planned event at $100 or $200 a person, but he opted for a less-exclusive evening in hopes of drawing some first-time guests and turning them into regulars.

The exclusive route, however, is a lucrative one. The South Carolina Aquarium opened its waterfront location to the public for today's Fourth of July bash, but the building is rented to a private party July 14.

Spiritline Cruises, which runs tour boats to Fort Sumter, has chartered two of its yachts for July 14 at weekend rates, about $2,500 each. It hopes to collect about $22,000 by using its third charter vessel for a public cruise. Tickets cost $89 each, which includes heavy hors d'oeuvres, beer and wine. Spiritline started advertising the cruise last Monday and sold half of the 250 tickets by Thursday afternoon.

Businesses in the shadow of the diamond towers expect the bridge to keep funneling money their way even after July 14. They say construction detours have dampened their returns a little in the last few years, but the slick new span will draw travelers from across the Southeast, not just skittish drivers who live on the Peninsula or in West Ashley.

"Eventually this bridge is going to be a landmark of Charleston," Russo said. "Picture dining at the base of the Golden Gate in San Francisco. We're thinking along those lines."