The United States is one of the most geographically and culturally diverse countries on earth. From the volcanic landscapes of Hawaii to the glaciers of Alaska, from the skyscrapers of New York City to the red rock canyons of the American Southwest, the country offers experiences that are hard to match anywhere else in the world. If you’re planning a trip to the USA and wondering where to start, this guide will walk you through the very best places to visit — and what makes each one so special.
1. New York City, New York
There’s nowhere else on earth quite like New York City. The sheer density of world-class museums, restaurants, neighborhoods, and landmarks packed into this compact city is staggering. Walk across the Brooklyn Bridge in the morning, spend an afternoon in Central Park, and watch the sun go down from the High Line. Catch a Broadway show, eat your way through Queens, and lose yourself in the Metropolitan Museum of Art. NYC is overwhelming in the best possible way — and it rewards visitors who are willing to wander.
2. Grand Canyon, Arizona
No photograph does justice to the Grand Canyon. When you stand at the South Rim for the first time and look out at that impossibly vast chasm — nearly 300 miles long, up to 18 miles wide, and over a mile deep — it’s a genuinely humbling experience. The canyon’s geology tells a story spanning two billion years, with rock layers that document the planet’s entire history. Hike down the Bright Angel Trail to the Colorado River, catch the sunrise from Desert View, or take a helicopter tour for a perspective that will stay with you forever.
3. Yellowstone National Park, Wyoming
Yellowstone is the world’s first national park, and it remains one of the most extraordinary places on the planet. Sitting atop a massive volcanic hotspot, it hosts more geothermal features than anywhere else on earth — more than 10,000 geysers, hot springs, fumaroles, and mud pots. Old Faithful is the most famous geyser, erupting roughly every 90 minutes, but the prismatic pools of the Grand Prismatic Spring are arguably even more spectacular. Beyond the geology, Yellowstone is also home to wolves, bison, grizzly bears, and elk in one of the most intact temperate ecosystems in the world.
4. San Francisco, California
San Francisco is a city that gets under your skin. The dramatic hills, the Victorian painted ladies, the Golden Gate Bridge draped in morning fog, the sourdough bread, the Mission burritos, Alcatraz sitting in the bay — it all adds up to something uniquely San Franciscan. The city is compact and walkable despite its hills, and the neighborhoods each have a distinct personality. Haight-Ashbury still has its 1960s counterculture spirit, the Mission is alive with Latin American culture, and the Castro remains a beacon for the LGBTQ+ community worldwide.
5. New Orleans, Louisiana
New Orleans might be the most culturally unique city in the United States. Born from the collision of French, Spanish, African, Caribbean, and Native American cultures, the city has developed its own architecture, its own cuisine (Creole and Cajun), its own music (jazz was literally invented here), and its own relationship with celebration and death. The French Quarter is the most famous part of the city, but venture further — into the Garden District with its magnificent antebellum mansions, or across the bridge to Algiers for a different perspective.
6. Hawaii (The Big Island)
Hawaii’s Big Island is unlike anything else in the United States — or the world. It’s the only place in the country where you can go from tropical rainforest to snowy summit to active lava flow within a single day. Hawaii Volcanoes National Park is the crown jewel, with Kīlauea and Mauna Loa among the world’s most active volcanoes. The island also has incredible snorkeling at Two Step (Hōnaunau), black sand beaches at Punalu’u, and some of the best stargazing on earth from the summit of Mauna Kea.
7. Zion National Park, Utah
Zion is the jewel of Utah’s national parks — a narrow canyon of soaring red and white sandstone cliffs carved by the Virgin River. The Angel’s Landing hike is one of the most exhilarating in North America, with a final section that involves holding onto chain handrails while navigating narrow ridges hundreds of feet above the canyon floor. The Narrows — where you hike through the Virgin River itself between walls of slot canyon that block out the sky — is equally unforgettable. Even if you’re not into strenuous hiking, the Canyon Overlook Trail and the Pa’rus Trail offer spectacular views with minimal effort.
8. Chicago, Illinois
Chicago is the great American city that doesn’t get talked about enough. The food scene is extraordinary — deep-dish pizza, Italian beef sandwiches, and some of the best fine dining in the country. The architecture is world-class, from Louis Sullivan’s pioneer skyscrapers to Mies van der Rohe’s modernist masterpieces to the quirky Bean in Millennium Park. The lakefront is gorgeous, lined with beaches, parks, and museums. And the blues and jazz history is rich and deeply felt — the Chicago Blues Club scene is alive and well.
9. The Florida Keys
The Florida Keys are a 125-mile string of coral islands stretching southwest from Miami into the Gulf of Mexico, connected by the famous Overseas Highway. The Keys have a laid-back, slightly eccentric character that’s entirely their own. Key West, at the southern tip, is a fascinating place — the southernmost point in the continental United States, the former home of Ernest Hemingway, and a place where chickens roam free and every evening ends with applause at the sunset celebration at Mallory Square. The snorkeling and diving here is excellent, with the Florida Reef — the third-largest coral barrier reef in the world — right offshore.
10. Glacier National Park, Montana
Glacier National Park feels like the world before humans arrived. The Going-to-the-Sun Road is one of the most scenic drives in North America, crossing the Continental Divide at Logan Pass and offering views of glacially carved valleys, towering peaks, and vivid blue lakes. The park has over 700 miles of trails, including the challenging Highline Trail that contours the Garden Wall with dizzying exposure. Wildlife is abundant — grizzly bears, mountain goats, bighorn sheep, and wolverines all roam the park. Visit soon: climate change has already reduced the number of named glaciers from 150 in the 1850s to just 26 today.
11. Sedona, Arizona
Sedona is one of those places that makes you understand why people become spiritual about landscapes. The red rock formations — Cathedral Rock, Bell Rock, and the Chapel of the Holy Cross — glow with an almost supernatural intensity in the late afternoon light. The town has a well-earned reputation for wellness retreats and New Age energy vortexes, but even if that’s not your scene, the scenery alone is worth the trip. Rent a pink Jeep for an off-road adventure, hike the Cathedral Rock Trail, or simply sit somewhere with a glass of local Arizona wine and watch the sunset.
12. Savannah, Georgia
Savannah is arguably the most beautiful city in the American South — a planned city of 22 leafy squares, stunning antebellum architecture, and Spanish moss hanging from ancient live oak trees. It has all the charm of Charleston with a slightly grittier, more bohemian edge. Walk down Broughton Street for shopping and dining, tour the historic district, take a ghost tour (Savannah is allegedly one of the most haunted cities in America), and make time for the Forsyth Park Fountain — especially stunning at dusk.
13. Olympic National Park, Washington
Olympic National Park is three completely different ecosystems in one: jagged mountain peaks with active glaciers, one of the few temperate rainforests in North America (the Hoh Rainforest), and wild Pacific coastline with sea stacks, tidepools, and dramatic surf. The variety is extraordinary — you can hike from subalpine meadows full of wildflowers to beaches littered with enormous driftwood logs within a single day. Hurricane Ridge offers accessible mountain views, while the Quinault and Hoh rainforests feel like another planet entirely.
14. Nashville, Tennessee
Nashville has transformed itself from a regional country music hub into a major American city with genuine cultural depth. Yes, the honky-tonks on Broadway are as loud and lively as ever, and the Country Music Hall of Fame is a genuinely excellent museum. But Nashville today also has one of the fastest-growing food scenes in the country, a thriving art district, and a lively live music scene that extends well beyond country music into rock, blues, Americana, and everything in between. Hot chicken — the city’s signature dish — is available everywhere from dive restaurants to upscale establishments.
15. Acadia National Park, Maine
Acadia National Park sits on Mount Desert Island off the coast of Maine and offers a landscape that’s distinctly New England — rugged granite peaks dropping into the cold Atlantic Ocean, dense spruce-fir forests, and quaint fishing villages. Cadillac Mountain, at 1,530 feet, is the highest point on the Eastern Seaboard and one of the first places in the United States to see the sunrise. The carriage roads, built by John D. Rockefeller Jr., offer miles of scenic cycling. And Bar Harbor, the gateway town, is charming enough to make you want to stay a week longer than planned.
Planning Your USA Trip
The United States is a vast country — larger than the entire European Union — so you’ll need to focus your itinerary rather than trying to see everything at once. The best approach is to pick a region and explore it thoroughly: the American Southwest (Grand Canyon, Zion, Bryce, Monument Valley), the Pacific Coast (California, Oregon, Washington), the Deep South (New Orleans, Savannah, Nashville), or the Northeast (New York, Boston, Acadia).
Renting a car gives you the most flexibility for most destinations outside of the major cities. Internal flights are reasonably priced and can save enormous amounts of time for cross-country travel. And remember: every one of these destinations has hidden neighborhoods, local restaurants, and unexpected experiences that aren’t in any guidebook — the best ones you’ll only find by wandering.
