Never thought I'd say this, but I think I wanna come and see what the Yanks get up to. I have a friend who is over there at the moment. I work with her, great girl. She's over there for two months and is currently in New York. I've been following her travels via her Facebook and she's gone pretty much everywhere! San Diego, San Francisco, New York, and has gone to Mexico and Canada. She's been to Disneyland and some place called Knotts Berry Farm which sounds kinda cool, and the wax museum, which sounds creepy, although I assume its just wax figures of celebs or something. She has another four or so weeks left, I think she plans on visiting every single state! She's obviously having the time of her life and I admit to being envious as heck! Now I wanna go and see what she's doing over there!!! Do you guys have any places that she should check out? Any tourist destinations you think a first time visitor to the US should take a look at? I'd love to give her some tips from the people who live there! And if any New Yorkers see her on the streets, give her a hello! Her name is Grace.
Wow, it sounds like Grace has some money! New York City should be on anybody's list to visit, whether a native or from another country. NYC is the greatest city in the world(to visit, but wouldn't want to live there though), but I am unashamedly, without a doubt, totally bias. Out here in Colorado, we have the Rocky Mountains, a lot of neat things to do. San Diego has the great weather & the beach, same with South Carolina & Florida. Washington DC, Boston & Philadelphia for there history. New England in the Fall is great. The Santa Fe trail in New Mexico, with it's art galleries, is cool. Those are some of the things off the top of my head.
America is huge. Depends on what your interests are. California is a must because it has world class everything. Museums, zoos, theme parks, shopping districts, beach, restaurants, etc. But should definitely research and cater the trip to your individual tastes. If you like nature in all its glory, Northern Cal/Oregon along the coast is beautiful. Death Valley is cooler than it sounds. Grand Canyon. Yellowstone. Too much stuff to list. Pretty much anywhere outside of the great plain states.
She's been there - or is going there. I know she has plans to visit. I'll have to check to see if she's seen Las Vegas. That might have been the first place she went to, not sure, she's been all over the place in a matter of weeks!
I have to second the Grand Canyon. Cape Cod in Massachusettes & a hidden gem, Block Island in Rhode Island, are real neat to visit. Need to take a ferry to get to Block Island.
Road trip! I'd start in the Pacific Northwest (not during winter though), see Yellowstone (a must) and the Grand Tetons, Washington state, Oregon, California (skip Vegas unless you'd enjoy gambling and the shows), and the Grand Canyon. California is huge, a must also I think as it offers so much variety (wine country, Yosemite, the giant sequoias and redwoods, beaches). This would be a considerable trip at this point. If you have more time and money, from there I would head east, travel through New Mexico (highly under-rated, and make sure you see White Sands), drive through El Paso and Austin (one of my favorite cities, very liberal too, don't let 'Texas' fool ya )...next stop south Louisiana (bayous, plantations, New Orleans) and then Orange Beach, Alabama to give you a taste of Florida without driving much farther. The Pacific Northwest and the Southwest are by far my favorite areas of the country, and the South is so relatively inexpensive with some real gems. You should look up the national parks (Yellowstone, Grand Teton, Yosemite, Grand Canyon, Jean Lafite)...check out camping and hostel options. I also have a friend who has spent the past year backpacking and hitchhiking the country bohemian style, something I plan to do in my next life!
Thing is, most places that are recommended are great for mingling with other tourists, but not give you an idea of what makes America tick. Yet, unless you know locals to show you around, its difficult to get around to the areas which are more representative. And talk to people, locals. Its the best. The doorman in NYC, the coal miner in KY, the farmer in KS, some old dude selling good ol smokey BBQ nowhere in particular in TX.... edit, and don't forget to see HillBilly.
WHY? Vegas is a cesspool in drag, Niagara...on the US side...is a dump...and on our side its an over priced, over crowded carnival.
Rent an RV and just ride across the country. You will hit some "blah" spots.....but that makes the "wow" spots pop. I have never been north of Nebraska.... But have driven across the southwest....through the canyons, mountains.....and found it all awesome. Will vist Yellowstone next year hopefully. That is the plan.
Knots berry farm is a pretty cool place. She should check out some of our natural wonders. Grand canyon, yosemete (sp?), everglades, redwood forest (although seeing she's been to san France maybe she already has), etc. Boston would be a good stop too, my second favorite city besides nyc. There's a lot of history there.
On a side note, I've always wanted to visit Australia. When I was a little kid I wanted to move there someday. if I could.get over my horrific fear of flying, what places should I make sure to see down under?
Shangrila's absolutely 110% correct - the cities all look basically the same, and the scenery - while spectacular in places, begins to blur together after awhile. To really see this country, she needs to get off the beaten path. Drive across country and stop in anywhere there might be a festival of some sort going on. In may be Frontier Days in Cheyenne, or perhaps a zydeco festival in Louisiana. In could be Oktoberfest in Cincinnati, or maybe a harvest festival in South Dakota. Don't eat at the fast-food places, or the chain restaurants either - make it a point to actively seek out the little Mom & Pop restaurants that specialize in home-cooked regional cuisine. Also, go to a sporting event - I recommend a major-league baseball game. It's a reasonably easy sport to understand, and it's 100% uniquely American!
Meet up with your friend and go to Charleston, SC and Savannah, Georgia.. Try the local cuisine for the best melange of Scots-Irish, English and African culture.
A lot of people say you should only go to Vegas for gambling, but I disagree. I think the coolest thing about Vegas is driving down the strip and checking out all their themed casino/hotels. It truly is like a Disneyland for adults. However, if you just want to gamble, I think there are better places as far as customer service and not be surrounded by millions, that provide for a better experience. After all, once you are sitting at a table or in front of a slot machine, you could be anywhere. If all I wanted to do was gamble, I would rather go to Laughlin or Mesquite. Places like that you can still get the old Vegas level of prices and treatment. The prices in Vegas are out of control. It use to be in Vegas you just gambled and everything else was for free or dirt cheap. Now days they'll charge you the same amount as the San Diego Zoo to look at 1 dolphin and 2 tigers. Just a suggestion. The architecture of the strip is a must see. The rest is, well, something else entirely.
I forgot about Glacier. Pretty country up there. I can't believe more people don't recommend Death Valley. People need to visit there. One assumes it is just a chunk of desert that someone made a national park, but when you visit, it has as many weird natural wonders right next to each other as Yellowstone. I was truly blown away by that park. Seriously underrated.
