OT: Best American Tourist Attraction visited

[Kitaman]

Summer is coming and many of us will be on the road vacationing. I know a lot of travelers are on this Board.

So what's been one of your favorite or awe inspiring attraction you've been to in this great Country and would confidently recommend?

I've been almost everywhere in America. Mine was Grand Canyon, it can't be adequately described. My visit to Custer Park, Badlands, Black Forest and Mount Rushmore all in South Dakota I would probably rank number two.

Think Ill be heading north to Arcadia this summer, as I haven't been there. I also need to get Yellowstone off my bucket list.

 

[8893]

Been to a lot, including all those you listed.

Denali probably takes top spot for me. The sheer magnitude is impossible to grasp until you see it.

Big Sur is up there, too.

 

[I Bleed Blue]

US: Alaska, Denali National Park and Seward for the glaciers.

Global: Phuket Thailand and Great Barrier Reef off Cairns, Australia

 

[UconnAlum04]

Spearmint Rhino - Las Vegas

 

[tomtom80]

Been to many of those places - all awsome! If you get a chance to travel southern Utah, you see a string of amazing parks from ZION canyon (hiking biking arches) to Bryce canyon(simply surreal landscape) on to Grand Staircase to arches and canyonlands... fantastic route if you can see one two or all. Plus you can start or end up in Vegas, for a contrast to the natural beauty

 

[Deepster]

Na' Pali Coast in Kauai. Torpedo boat tour in and out of the caves at the base.

 

[SubbaBub]

Na' Pali Coast in Kauai. Torpedo boat tour in and out of the caves at the base.

All of Hawaii really, but "tourist attraction," USS Missouri in my book. Highly underrated by most guides. Take a guided tour.

Other touristy Hawai-lites

Halawa Bay, Molokai
Kalaupapa, Molokai
Road to Hana, Maui
Haleakala Sunrise Bike Tour, Maui
Makena Beach, Maui
Honolua Bay, Maui
Sunset at Kee Beach, Kauai
JoJo's Shave Ice, Kauai
Surf Lessons at Poipu Beach, Lunch at Brennecke's Grill, Kauai
Zodiac Tour to Captain Cook's Monument, Big Island
Volcano's National Park, Big Island
Sunset Dinner at Duke's on Waikiki (Ultimate tourist activity, but worth it for the Hula Pie)

 

[CAHUSKY]

Lake Tahoe. Of course i'm biased, I live here.

 

[BlueMAB]

Grand Canyon. If you ever go, do the helicopter tour and fly down the middle.

 

[auror]

Yellowstone when I was younger.

2nd the Arches/Zion National Parks nomination.

Vermont IPA Highway.

DC for the museums and monuments should be visited at least once.

 

[Northbound]

Love Glacier and Zion

There's something pretty special about Ellis Island and Statue of Liberty.

 

[beakumhawks]

World's Largest Ball of Twine - Cawker City, Kansas

 

[8893]

World's Largest Ball of Twine - Cawker City, Kansas

How far from the World's Largest Prairie Dog?

 

[uconnfan68]

Grand Canyon. If you ever go, do the helicopter tour and fly down the middle.

Always wanted to raft through the GC.

 

[Dove]

Fort Ticonderoga...


...I wept for days afterward.

 

[Chin Diesel]

Ditto the Alaska stuff.

I'd also throw in Death Valley National Park. Frightening roads just getting to the bottom.

Florida Keys

 

[huskiesNhoos]

going to yellowstone this weekend to watch the wife, brother and mother run the half marathon. I'll try and make sure no one steals an animal or jumps in a geyser...

I visited when I was in high school and thought old faithful was kinda cool...wish there was a hot dog stand there or something to help with the wait...

 

[jleves]

I've driven across the country at least 10 times. I've been to Maui and Kauai. I've been all over New England. I've been to the Grand Canyon a couple of times. I've hiked up Mt Whitney. But the best trip I've ever taken was a two week drive around the west.

My wife and I are currently planning a second west coast road trip starting in Yosemite which I've never seen and the Redwoods. But I can't wait to get back to Yellowstone. By far the coolest place I've ever been. Old faithful is meh, but the terraces are just stunning. I really can't wait to see them again.

So from what I've seen in order:
Yellowstone (particularly the terraces but a lot of other very cool areas better than old faithful)
Grand Canyon - pictures and description cannot prepare you for it. Looking forward to seeing the North Rim on the upcoming road trip.
Napali Coast - weather plays a big part in how enjoyable it will be, but if you can get there on a clear day, it's astounding.
Upper Sierras - Only worth it if you can hike in and spend a couple days.
Zion - definitely plan to hike up The Narrows as far as you can - plan to get very wet. Some amazing rock formations carved from serious water movement.
Driving through Southern Nevada into Utah - absolutely ridiculous mountains and canyons.
Big Sur - the entire drive on PCH between Santa Cruz and San Luis Obispo has to be the best drive you can make in the continental US.


Definitely looking forward to seeing Arches and Bryce on the upcoming road trip. I'm sure they are as stunning as Zion and almost as good as the Grand Canyon.

 

[BUHusky]

Gampel Pavilion

 

[Phorcys]

Best man-made tourist attraction: It’s a toss-up between Disneyland and Disney World.

If you’re looking for natural beauty, the Grand Canyon can’t be beat, especially when viewed from the south rim. It is literally impossible to take a bad photograph there. Just lean over the railing as far as you can, point, and “click”.

 

[Phorcys]

Whatever you do, though, you should absolutely avoid the Los Angeles County shoreline for the entire summer. I’ve heard rumors about a major outbreak of the Zika virus…or maybe it was the bubonic plague, I don’t remember.

Whichever, the travel experts recommend staying away from the beaches of Malibu and Santa Monica, in particular, where the threat is greatest.

Fortunately, I’m immune.

 

[storrsroars]

I really just wanted to post a photo of tits.

 

[beakumhawks]

How far from the World's Largest Prairie Dog?

Sadly, Prairie Dog Town has shut its door forever

Prairie Dog Town (Oakley, KS): 28 Photos & 52 Reviews - TripAdvisor

 

[Windsorlocks]

Fly into Las Vegas. Don't go near a casino. Rent a car and drive north to Utah. And then across Utah and that state's Big 5: Zion National Park, Bryce Canyon National Park, Capital Reef National Park, Arches National, and Canyonlands National. Sure, it's warm, but it's a dry heat, lol. I did it in July and hope someday to take my wife on that very same circuit. Plus, once in Moab, Utah, the base for Arches and Canyonlands, you're a short drive from Mesa Verde National Park in Colorado.
God's country all around....

 

[dogpause]

I agree with Windsorlocks, within a half a day's drive of Vegas are so many amazing sites. For me, it was a trip to The Wave, in Paria Canyon near Page Arizona, perhaps the most photogenic spot in the U.S.. Only 12 passes per day are issued by the Forest Service. A two hour hike through sand and across smooth rock leads to the beautiful stratified sandstone formations that makes The Wave the mecca of landscape photography.