Top Sights to See in America
I'm thinking about going on a two month road trip this summer across the country. I want to visit every major location in the country. BTW, i'm gonna be starting out in California. If you could just help me come up with some more ideas, that would be great. Here's what I got so far:
1. The Grand Canyon
2. Meteor Crater, Winslow, AZ
3. The Anasazi Ruins
4. The Alamo
5. New Orleans - Bourbon St, above ground graves, etc.
6. Washington D.C. - White House, Washington, Jeffereson Memorial, etc.
7. New York - Statue of Liberty, WTC,
8. Boston
9. Mt. Rushmore
10. Chicago
Top sites to visit in the USA and Canada
Fred, while this is a "dead thread", the thread provides useful, helpful information for others who seek similar information. That's how I found the thread. I was looking for similar information.
I have traveled the 50 states, and I offer here my opinions on the Best Sites to See in the USA and Canada: (Actually, every time I look at the list, I rearrange the order.)
1, 2, & 3. A three way tie among the Grand Canyon South Rim, Yellowstone, and Glacier National Park.
4. Arches National Park (Moab, UT)
5. Washington, DC.
6. Yosemite NP, CA
7. Olympic NP, including Hurricane Ridge, Hoh Rain Forest, and beaches
8. Mesa Verde, CO (and stay overnight there, maybe two nights, in park lodging overlooking wide area)
9. Columbia Icefields Parkway, Alberta, Canada A 183 mile drive from Banff to Jasper, said by some to be the most beautiful drive in the world.
10. Seattle, WA, and eat lunch in space needle + sightseeing at bottom of space needle and along waterfront, underground tour, eat at Ivars, and take ferry across bay on way to Olympic Peninsula.
11. Mt. St. Helens
12. Craters of the Moon, ID
13. Rocky Mountain Natl Park, CO, including Fall River Road.
14. Las Vegas drive down the strip by day, and another drive by night. Stay in Gold Coast (3 or 4 blocks off strip and they have a shuttle to strip). Blow 10 bucks on slots and consider it entertainment. See major show. (We saw Gallagher. Now we'd like to see Cirque de Sol)
15. Half day cruise on Lake Powell. Beautiful natural rock formations.
16. Grand Canyon North Rim
17. Oregon coast, staying in Bandon, OR, on rocky beach.
18. Crater Lake, OR
19. Bryce Canyon, UT
20. Los Angeles sites -- Hollywood sign, Venice beach, Mann's Chinese Theatre, Universal Studios, Disneyland, walk into USC Olympic stadium (it's open), Beverly Hills, Rodeo Drive, find where Rose Bowl parade is and the turn (on Colorado Blvd), Edwards AFB, and much more.
21. San Francisco and shopping at the piers, the (Japanese donated?) park several miles south of the bridge, ride the cable car, drive across Golden Gate bridge, Point Reyes light house (north of SF), Japan town, view down on city from top of Twin Peaks, and more.
22. Carlsbad Caverns, NM
23. Alabama Hills, next to Lone Pine, CA. Rock formations on east side of Sequoia NP, where hundreds of movies were shot.
24. Baltimore, MD. Railroad museum, housed in a large old roundhouse, which includes even the earliest locomotive, the "grasshopper". Nearby is "Harbor Place", a place on the harbor with acquarium, shopping, humongous food court. Nearby is a great attraction -- Fort McHenry with much history to it.
25. San Antonio riverwalk, Alamo, Plaza complex near Alamo, lunch or supper on top of Tower of the Americas
26. Petrified Forest, AZ
27. Meteor Crater, AZ
28. Alaska -- Seward and day cruise to glacier and sea life viewing, Homer, Anchorage, Denali NP bus ride into wilderness, Talkeetna, plane ride over Mt. McKinley or land on a McKinley glacier. Can do all in 6 days in the area..
29. Little Bighorn Battlefield, MT
30. Volcanoes NP, HI on the "Big Island"
31. Victoria, BC waterfront and Butchart Gardens
Top sites to see in the USA (reply)
To Midwest Michael,
Regarding your comment, I tend to be drawn by the beauty of the northwest in compiling my list of US and Canada sites. And, as I said, I tend to reshuffle my list every time I look at it.
Rambling on the E, SE, and S:
I should have Niagara Falls on my list somewhere, but only the Canadian side as that's where the action and views are. The American side is a drab disappointment.
Key West, FL, is great, but only during the winter months when it is 72 to 80 degrees. When miserably muggy, it just isn't enjoyable. One must visit the daily sundown watch party at Mallory Square and afterward eat Cuban food next door.
The cogwheel train ride up Mt. Washington in NH and the powerful wind at the top is a fun experience.
Arcadia NP and Bar Harbor in Maine is OK and interesting for its being scraped down by a mile high glacier, but doesn't compare to the sights of the NW US and Canada.
In the Black Hills, my wife was very disappointed at the Mt Rushmore (president) sculptures. She said it was kinda SMALL. I spent time explaining how huge it was and it was the distance from the viewing area that made the illusion that the sculptures were small. About the time I finished explaining someone came through the entry and we both heard one say "it's kinda SMALL".
With regard to the Great Smoky Mountains, for those that were earlier exposed to the Rocky Mountains, the Smokies seem like mere hills overgrown with trees. That's not an insult to easterners -- we're just used to mountains that have tree lines, rocks, and snow at the top. If they don't have that, they give the impression of being hills.
New Orleans has changed considerably since the 1970s and doesn't have the atmosphere it once had in the French Quarter. In the 70s, some of the French Quarter cafes had simple concrete floors and the entry had a beat up screen door. And they sold wonderful pralines out of those little stores. Times have changed. Preservation Hall is a must see and listen if one is in New Orleans.
In Boston, one must visit Old Ironsides and Bunker Hill. Then go west and visit Concord and Lexington. Visit the town square where one colonialist was shot, staggered to his home porch across the street, and died in his wife's arms. Visit old North Bridge. Drive along Paul Revere's Ride road.
Gettysburg is an emotional experience, especially when one is at the area of beginning of Pickett's Charge, and on the their way to the other side nearly every man was killed.
After having seen them, I've never understood how there could be any interest in the SD and ND Badlands.
I know everyone has their travel preferences, and preferences can vary widely. I'm just passing along my experiences and views, and hope they can benefit someone.
