Here's how Taylor Swift spent Fourth of July instead of throwing a huge party

Taylor Swift laid low once again this Fourth of July, spending the holiday with her boyfriend, Joe Alwyn.

Swift decided to forgo her once-beloved Independence Day party for the second year in a row, instead celebrating America's 242nd birthday by splashing around in the ocean with her British beau.

The 28-year-old Reputation artist still managed to show her patriotic side in a red, white, and blue stripped two-piece bikini while swimming and snorkeling with the 27-year-old actor.

The pair enjoyed the temperate climate and calm waters at a luxury resort in Turks and Caicos, where they made the most of their romantic vacation. They even got a little cozy in the surf as Swift rode on Alwyn's back through the idyllic blue waters.

The pair's cozy ocean romp was a rare public outing for the couple. Despite being romantically linked since last May, they've only been spotted out and about together a handful of times.

While the lovebirds enjoyed the quiet, romantic holiday in relative privacy, fans of the pop icon were left wondering if this marked the end of Swift's Fourth of July party tradition.

For years now, the singer and her squad of besties -- which included super models, singers, actress and social media stars -- all gathered at Swift's Rhode Island estate for FOMO-inducing festivities that included barbecues, fireworks, patriotic inflatable bouncy houses and more.

However, amid her prolonged break from the public eye in the months before Reputation's release in November -- as well as her highly publicized feud with Kim Kardashian and Kanye West, and taking heat for not being as vocal against President Donald Trump as some fans would have liked -- Swift also skipped last year's Fourth of July celebration.

As some fans have suggested, it's possible Swift -- like many celebrities -- simply hasn't felt like celebrating the patriotic holiday. Or maybe its because she has been gearing up for and then subsequently performing in her massive Reputation Stadium Tour, and simply hasn't had time or energy to throw together a massive party. Only Swift herself can answer those questions.

See how other celebrities celebrated the Fourth of July:

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