People I meet while traveling, mostly in Europe, keep asking me the same question: if I had a few weeks in the USA, where should I go? This page is my answer.

These recommendations come from my own experience and preferences. I have spent time in all 50 states, in every city of more than 400,000 people, in all but six of the national parks, and in many state and regional parks. My bias is toward natural beauty and toward cities that feel like nowhere else. I’m not big on entertainment or resort destinations.

There’s an old saying: “In Europe, a hundred miles is a long way; in America, a hundred years is a long time.” The US is a large, varied country. New York to San Francisco is about 4,100 km, a little farther than Lisbon to Moscow. If you try to “see the highlights” in two weeks, you will spend half the trip in transit and have little time left for the sights themselves. Unless you have several months, pick one region for your first trip and plan to come back for another.

Natural beauty

I am drawn to the amazing and varied landscape across the USA.  I am biased toward the west which I think is the most spectacular, and more unique.

The Grand Circle (mostly Utah)

This is the densest concentration of spectacular scenery I know: red-rock canyons, arches, hoodoos and slot canyons, all within a few hours’ drive of each other. Most people fly into Las Vegas, rent a car and drive a loop. The core is in Utah: Zion, Bryce Canyon, Capitol Reef, and Arches and Canyonlands near Moab, with the Grand Canyon as the southern anchor. There are many variants of the loop; utah.com has a good overview. Allow 10 to 14 days, ideally in April-May or September-October.

• Grand Canyon, North Rim. I anchor the loop at the North Rim, which is far quieter than the South Rim. A wildfire in 2025 destroyed its historic lodge. It reopened in May 2026 with limited services and no overnight lodging, so check its current status or plan on the South Rim instead.
• Permits and lotteries. A few places have very limited visitor slots that are handed out by lottery, such as The Wave (Coyote Buttes North). Apply months ahead and have a backup plan.
• State parks. They get little publicity but are often just as beautiful as the national parks, and far less crowded. Goblin Valley, Dead Horse Point and Kodachrome Basin are good examples.

The Super Grand Loop

For people with more than two weeks and a willingness to drive several thousand miles, add the great parks of the Rocky Mountains to the Grand Circle: Yellowstone for geysers and wildlife, Grand Teton next door, Glacier in Montana, and Rocky Mountain in Colorado. There are so many options that I won’t try to propose an itinerary. The high roads in these parks are open only in summer, so this is a June-to-September trip.

Northern California

Base yourself in San Francisco, which is well worth exploring on its own. To the north are the vineyards of Napa Valley. To the east is the Sierra Nevada, with Yosemite’s granite cliffs and waterfalls. To the south, Highway 1 follows the coast past Santa Cruz, Monterey and Carmel down to Big Sur, one of the great coastal drives anywhere. The Big Sur road reopened in January 2026 after three years of landslide closures, but it closes often, so check before you go. A week to ten days covers the region well. If you have extra time you can drive up the coast to the north and see the Redwoods near the Oregon border and/or head over to Lake Tahoe.

Hawaii

Tropical islands that differ a great deal from one another, with great beaches, good snorkeling, tasty food and interesting hikes. Hawaii is five to six hours by air beyond the West Coast, so from Europe it works best as its own trip or as an add-on to California. My notes are dated but give you a starting point.

Alaska

Huge, and in places truly empty. Some people explore it mostly by car, but the distances are long and many of the best places have no road access, so I think it is best done by combining planes, cars and boats. The wildlife is amazing: Glacier Bay for whales and icebergs, Brooks Camp in Katmai National Park to watch bears catch salmon at the falls (best in July and September), and many other wondrous sights. I will write an Alaska page sometime.

Unique cities

These five cities are unlike each other. I think pretty much every other city in the USA is at best, a pale echo of one of these cities. Jackie often says all cities (other than these five) are all the same.

• New York City (NYC). One of the true world class cities. The museums alone could fill a week, and then there is the theater, the music, food from every country on earth, and neighborhoods that each feel like a separate town. Walk and take the subway; a car is a burden here. Give it at least four or five days.
• San Francisco (SF, “The City”). A compact, hilly city with water on three sides and a setting few cities can match. Come for the cityscape, the food, the distinct neighborhoods and the natural beauty at its edges, with redwoods and wild coast under an hour away. It is also the hub of the tech industry.
• New Orleans. The least typically American of American cities. French, Spanish, African and Caribbean influences run through the architecture of the French Quarter, through Creole and Cajun cooking, and above all through the music. Jazz was born here and there is live music every night. Summers are hot and humid; October to April is more comfortable.
• Washington, DC. The capital was planned as a city of monuments and broad avenues, and it shows. The National Mall, the Capitol, the White House and the Smithsonian museums are all within walking distance of each other, and most of the museums are free. This is the place for government and history (well, history in North American terms).
• Chicago, Illinois. The great city of the American heartland, set on the shore of Lake Michigan. The skyscraper was invented here, and the architecture is as good as you will find in any US city; the boat tour along the river is the way to see it. Add the Art Institute, blues and jazz clubs, and a serious food scene. Winters are brutal, so go between May and October.

Other Cities Worth Consideration

Well worth a few days each, especially if they are on your route.  Several can be a good base for exploring a region.

• Portland (Oregon). My favorite city. Not too small, not too big. Jackie says it is a bit “dusty” rather than shiny. It shows some wear and tear, but I think that just makes the place real. I enjoy the authentic community and the proximity to the outdoors, with the Columbia River Gorge, Mount Hood and the Pacific coast all within about 90 minutes. It also has the best Japanese garden I have seen outside Japan, right up there with those in Japan.
• Boston (Massachusetts). One of the oldest cities in the country and the one that feels most European: compact, walkable, and full of colonial and Revolutionary War history. It is home to numerous academic institutions, with Harvard and MIT just across the river in Cambridge. It is also the gateway to New England, which is at its best when the leaves turn in October.
• Salt Lake City (Utah). Gateway to the outdoors. There is amazing hiking and skiing less than an hour from downtown, and it is a convenient starting point for Utah’s parks. It has a wonderful public library. It is not a mecca for great food.
• Denver (Colorado). A large, modern city at the foot of the mountains, a mile above sea level. It is the gateway to Rocky Mountain National Park and the Colorado ski resorts.
• Seattle (Washington). A city defined by its setting: salt water on one side, a large lake on the other, and snow-capped mountains on the horizon in both directions. On a clear day Mount Rainier floats above the skyline. In town, go for Pike Place Market, a ferry ride across Puget Sound, the coffee, and the seafood. Its real strength is what lies within two or three hours: the glaciers and wildflower meadows of Mount Rainier, the rainforest and wild beaches of Olympic National Park, and the San Juan Islands for orcas. Go between July and September, when it is dry and the mountain trails are free of snow; the rest of the year is gray and drizzly.
• Asheville (North Carolina). A quirky small city in the Blue Ridge Mountains with an outsized art scene. In the River Arts District, long-dead textile mills and warehouses were turned into studios for hundreds of artists. Flooding from Hurricane Helene in 2024 damaged most of the district. Much of it has reopened and the rest is still rebuilding.
• Albuquerque and Santa Fe (New Mexico). The iconic Southwest: desert landscapes, living Native American culture and four centuries of Spanish influence make this area unique. Santa Fe has more than 250 art galleries, over 100 of them along a single mile of Canyon Road. Albuquerque, an hour to the south, hosts a balloon fiesta for nine days each October, when more than 500 hot-air balloons lift off together at dawn.

Not for me

These are on many visitors’ lists, and plenty of people love them. They are just not what I travel for, so I am the wrong person to ask about them.

• Los Angeles and San Diego. Southern California means sunshine, beaches, Hollywood and very good food. Los Angeles is a vast sprawl where the sights are far apart and the traffic is heavy. A line I’ve heard attributed to Alan Kay: Los Angeles is what you get when builders, rather than architects, design a city. San Diego is smaller and more relaxed. Both are pleasant, but neither feels as distinctive to me as the cities above.
• Nashville and Memphis (Tennessee). Two music cities about three hours apart. Nashville is the home of country music. Memphis is blues, soul and early rock ‘n’ roll: Beale Street, Sun Studio and Elvis Presley’s Graceland. Go if that is your scene; I feel a bit out of place there.
• Miami (Florida) People call it the capital of Latin America. Spanish is heard as often as English, and Cuban, Colombian and Venezuelan influences shape the food and the music. Come for the Art Deco hotels of South Beach, the beaches, and as a gateway to the Everglades and the Florida Keys. Winter is the season to go; summer is hot, humid and stormy.
• Disney. Walt Disney World in Florida and Disneyland in California are the best in the world at what they do. They are also crowded, expensive and entirely manufactured. If you have children who love the films, go. Otherwise there is nothing here you cannot get at the park outside Paris.
• Las Vegas. Casinos, enormous themed hotels, shows and nightlife in the middle of the desert. If you fly in to start the Grand Circle, one evening walking the Strip is enough to see what it is about. I would not plan a trip around it.
• Route 66. The historic highway from Chicago to Los Angeles, nearly 4,000 km long and 100 years old in 2026. Most of it was replaced by faster interstate highways decades ago. What remains is nostalgia: old motels, diners and neon signs, separated by long stretches of flat driving. If you love classic Americana, you will enjoy it. I would rather spend those driving days in Utah.

The midwest (sometimes called the Plains states, or the flown over states) tend to get ignored. They don’t do a lot for me.  I appreciate the agricultural production, but I find them geographically and architecturally boring. The book The Lost Continent: Travels in Small-Town America by Bill Bryston is a humor consideration of the small towns in the middle of the country.

Planning Hints

A few things that matter more for visitors from Europe than for locals:

• National park fees for foreign visitors went up in 2026. Non-US residents aged 16 and over now pay $100 per person, on top of the normal entrance fee, at 11 of the busiest parks: Acadia, Bryce Canyon, Everglades, Glacier, Grand Canyon, Grand Teton, Rocky Mountain, Sequoia & Kings Canyon, Yellowstone, Yosemite and Zion. A $250 non-resident annual pass covers everyone in your car and waives the surcharge, so it pays for itself by the second park. Details are on the National Park Service fee page.
• Book the scarce things early. Lodging in and near the popular parks sells out months ahead. Some parks, roads and trails use timed-entry reservations or permit lotteries, and the rules change from year to year, so check each park’s page on nps.gov.
• Plan on renting a car. Outside a handful of cities (New York, San Francisco, Chicago, Boston, Washington DC) public transport will not get you where you want to go, and none of the nature trips below work without one.
• Match the region to the season. The desert Southwest is best in spring and fall, and very hot in summer. The high mountain parks are fully open only from about June to September. Alaska’s season is June to early September.

Related

• Hiking Destinations
• My “travel” page