Phoenix
Blue bells and Mexican gold poppies are just two of the colorful showstoppers blooming from March to May along the Desert Wildflower Loop Trail at this…
Must-see attractions in Western USA
Central Coast
This museum will interest almost anyone, even if you don't know anything about Salinas’ Nobel Prize–winning native son, John Steinbeck (1902–68), a…
Berkeley
This 2079-acre park, up in the hills east of town, is Berkeley’s best. It has nearly 40 miles of hiking and multiuse trails of varying difficulty, from…
Queen Anne & Lake Union
Almost everything you need to know about erstwhile Seattle is crammed into the refurbished Museum of History & Industry, the centerpiece of Lake Union…
Albuquerque
Formerly known as the Albuquerque Museum of Art & History, this showpiece museum shouldn't be missed. With an engaging Albuquerque history gallery that's…
Venice, Marina Del Rey & Playa del Rey
Abbot Kinney, who founded Venice in the early 1900s, would probably be delighted to find that one of Venice’s best-loved streets bears his name. Sort of a…
Big Sur
A little over 6 miles south of Bixby Bridge, Point Sur rises like a velvety green fortress out of the sea. It looks like an island, but is actually…
Sunset Crater Volcano National Monument
Arizona
Around AD 1064 a cinder cone erupted on this spot, spewing ash across 800 sq miles, spawning the Kana-A lava flow. Now the 8029ft Sunset Crater is quiet,…
Downtown Los Angeles & Boyle Heights
The highlight of LA Live, this museum's interactive exhibits define, differentiate and link musical genres. Spanning three levels, the rotating…
Flagstaff
Astronomers, get ready to geek out! Sitting atop a hill just west of downtown, this national historic landmark – famous for the first sighting of Pluto in…
San Francisco
That clamor you hear riding cable cars is the sound of San Francisco's peak technology at work. Gears click and wire-hemp ropes whir as these vintage…
San Diego
This interactive children’s museum offers interactive art meant for kids. Installations are designed by artists, so tykes can learn principles of movement…
Napa Valley
At the valley’s westernmost edge, where sloping vineyards meet wooded hillsides, Tres Sabores is a portal to old Napa – no fancy tasting room, no snobbery…
Bosque del Apache National Wildlife Refuge
New Mexico
Renowned among wildlife photographers the world over, these fields and marshes, 18 miles south of Socorro, are the wintering ground for over 100,000…
Albuquerque
Collectively run by New Mexico's 19 Pueblos, this cultural center is an essential stop-off during even the shortest Albuquerque visit. Revamped in 2016,…
Sacramento
Welcome to the arena of the future. This gleaming home to the Sacramento Kings is one of the most advanced sports facilities in the country. Made with the…
Santa Barbara
This next-gen science museum is an interactive treasure trove of exhibits and experiences related to sound, technology, speed, light and color that are…
Palace of the Governors & New Mexico History Museum
Santa Fe
The oldest public building in the US, this low-slung adobe complex began as home to New Mexico’s first Spanish governor in 1610. It was occupied by Pueblo…
Santa Barbara Wine Country
This tranquil gem is worth the extra mileage, not just for the award-winning small-batch reds and whites, but for the delightfully rustic tasting room…
New Mexico
This prehistoric pueblo was built around AD 1100, and connected with the larger settlement at Chaco via a road that ran due south. Its central feature, a…
Southeastern New Mexico
Roswell's excellent museum deserves a visit. Twelve galleries showcase Southwestern artists including Georgia O'Keeffe, Peter Hurd and Henriette Wyeth,…
Seattle
In Woodland Park, up the hill from Green Lake Park, the Woodland Park Zoo is one of Seattle’s most popular tourist attractions. Consistently rated as one…
Southern Nevada
At the height of the Depression, thousands of men and their families migrated here and worked in excruciating conditions, dangling hundreds of feet above…
The Marina, Fisherman’s Wharf & the Piers
A flashback to penny arcades, the Musée Mécanique houses a mind-blowing collection of vintage mechanical amusements. Sinister, freckle-faced Laughing Sal…
Museum of International Folk Art
Santa Fe
Santa Fe’s most unusual and exhilarating museum centers on the world's largest collection of folk art. Its huge main gallery displays whimsical and mind…
Oakland
Stargazers will go gaga over this kid-oriented science and technology center in the Oakland Hills with loads of exhibits on subjects such as space travel…
Santa Barbara County Courthouse
Santa Barbara
Built in Spanish-Moorish Revival style in 1929, the courthouse features hand-painted ceilings, wrought-iron chandeliers and tiles from Tunisia and Spain…
Santa Fe Region
Bandelier's 1.2-mile Main Loop Trail in Frijoles Canyon offers an excellent introduction to the main ruins and history of the park. The trail first passes…
Southern Arizona
Named for the Chiricahua Apaches whose land this is, this wild and evocative landscape is one of Arizona's most stunning. Improbably baroque 'sculptures'…
Las Vegas
A true high-roller's casino, this younger sibling and an extension of the Venetian to which it is linked doesn't rely on flashy attractions to get punters…
Montana
More than a dozen buildings preserved in a state of 'arrested decay' transport you back to gold-rush days, when cities were built overnight and vanished…
Greater Palm Springs
This amazing animal park showcases desert plants and animals alongside exhibits on regional geology and Native American culture. Highlights include a walk…
Downtown, Pike Place & Waterfront
While not comparable with the big guns in New York and Chicago, Seattle Art Museum is no slouch. Always re-curating its art collection with new…
Santa Fe
For more than 400 years, the Plaza has stood at the heart of Santa Fe. Originally it marked the far northern end of the Camino Real from Mexico; later, it…
Southern Nevada
Goldfield became Nevada's biggest boomtown after gold was struck here in 1902. Much of the town was destroyed by a fire in 1923, but a few precious…
Beverly Hills, Bel Air, Brentwood & Westwood
Run by the Simon Wiesenthal Center, this powerful, deeply moving museum uses interactive technology to engage visitors in discussion and contemplation…
Western New Mexico University Museum
New Mexico
Fresh from a $3.2 million renovation, this excellent museum in the schools's former gymnasium boasts the world's largest collection of 1000-year-old…
Yellowstone National Park
At 370ft wide and 121ft deep, Grand Prismatic Spring is the park’s largest and deepest hot spring. It’s also considered by many to be the most beautiful…
Arizona Museum of Natural History
Greater Phoenix
Even if you're not staying in Mesa, this museum is worth a trip, especially if your kids are into dinosaurs (and aren't they all?). In addition to the…
West Hollywood & Mid-City
A four-story ode to the auto, the Petersen Automotive Museum is a treat even for those who can’t tell a piston from a carburetor. A headlights-to-brake…
