dgg

After seeing a thread on why travelers come to the US, I became curious as to the top 5 destinations of foreign travelers. I'm interested in both which destinations Americans would recommend and which destinations foreigners would most like to vist.

dgg

Of course I meant US on Us.

dwooddon

I don't know how to answer this one. I think it depends greatly on the interests of the travelers. There would be very different lists for those who love theatre and fine dining as opposed to others who want scenic grandeur. Sports lovers might have another list entirely and you can just keep adding categories as they occur to you.

Picking one of my interests-fine scenic photo opportunities, I would pick:

Yellowstone National Park
Grand Tetons
Glacier National Park
The Blue Ridge Parkway
The Calif/Oregon/Washington coast

That barely scratches the surface but you asked for five. Even in this category, others will have different choices.

dgg

Very good dwooddon, you are obviously in to nature. Where is the Grand Canyon?

dgg

Should I restate, why isn't the Grand Canyon on your list, not where is the Grand Canyon.

Pomme949

I lived abroad for a while and this is how i always answered.

New York - the museums, the skyscrapers, Broadway...

Los Angeles - see the beaches, hollywood and Disneyland (yes, i know Disney isn't technically LA, but it's close)

Las Vegas - truly nowhere else in the world like it and you can use it as a base to visit the Grand Canyon

Washington, DC - the center of US politics, but in many ways the least "typically American" city.

New Orleans - a culture of its own. And the touristy parts are back after Katrina.

utahtea

My top 5 would be.

Yellowstone & Grand Tetons National Parks

Southwest Grand Circle in Arizona, Utah & Colorado: Grand Canyon National Park, Lake Powell National Recreational Area, Zion National Park, Bryce Canyon National Park, Capitol Reef National Park, Arches National Park, Canyonlands National Park, Monument Valley Tribal Park, and if time allow Mesa Verde National Park.

Yosemite National Park. California

Glacier National Park, Montana

Washington DC

Utahtea

dgg

Pomme949, I like your diverse list of cities with the GC thrown in. The lists of National Parks sound great too. This country is blessed with amazing natural beauty!

tovarich

I would second Utahtea with as cities most interesting for us Europeansan Francisco-Boston-Washington-N.York.Paul

starrsville

My list would be -

1. NYC
2. San Francisco with side trips to Muir Woods and wine country
3. Grand Canyon/ Monument Valley/ Mesa Verde (with Durango giving you a "taste" of Colorado
4. Yellowstone NP/ Grand Tetons
5a. Savannah or Charleston
5b. A Florida beach

#5 - one choice to give a "taste" of the South, depending of visitor's interests

steviegene

1. A taste of the rockies, ( I love Colorado - especially the Telluride area) but I guess Yellowstone would make more sense to visit for pure grandeur.
2. A taste of the Southwest, including the Petrified Forest, Grand Canyon, Santa Fe, Monument Valley...
3. What about Alaska or Hawaii (though Ive been to neither)!
4. San Francisco with visits to the redwoods and california wine country
5. New England in the autumn (with trips to NYC and boston)

suze

New York City
San Francisco
Las Vegas
Los Angeles
Hawaiian islands

karens

I would have the poor visitors traveling many miles to see:

NYC
Colorado
Zion, Bryce, Grand Canyon, Sedona loop
Glacier NP
San Francisco/Big Sur/Yosemite

lvk

I agree with dwoodon. You can't lump all "foreigners" into one category. My in-laws are "foreigners" and we take them on a trip every time they visit us here in CA. They read about or see places on TV documentaries, and we book a trip based on their interests.

My late FIL's "dream trip of a lifetime" was halibut and salmon fishing off the coast of Alaska. His second favorite was New Orleans -- at age 75, he stayed listening to jazz in a club until 5am. The musicians knew every song he requested.

My MIL loved Kauai. She also loves the desert, as it is so different from anything in Europe. Sedona, Santa Fe, Grand Canyon were all fascinating to her, especially the plant life. Oh, and Vegas of course, because there is only one Vegas.

They have had little interest in seeing New York City, Washington DC or Florida. MIL wants to see the "Great Lake region" next, so we're taking her to Niagara Falls/Toronto.

Every single European (German, English, Swiss, Italian) houseguest we have had has wanted to see Death Valley. They all come with a tour book for the Western U.S. that suggests a circle from LA - Grand Canyon - Vegas- Death Valley - Yosemite - SF - CA coast- back to L.A. I would bet that more Europeans than Americans have seen Death Valley. I've lived in CA for 20 years and haven't made it up there.

woodysagoodboy

Mount Rushmore, the Golden Gate Bridge, Statue of Liberty, the Washington DC Mall, and Hot Doug's in Chicago...I love that place.

dgg

For those who have entertained international guests, do you find they are intrigued by the notion of cowboys, westerns & mobsters?

mlgb

dgg

For some reason, they all seem to want to see Las Vegas! Ugh!

But I do manage to steer them toward the Big Sur coastline and Yosemite, too.

SAB

My UK friend's wish list was: Boston/NYC/NewEngland; the Southwest; SF and the CA Coast: Alaska; and Las Vegas/Grand Canyon. She is interested in American history because it is so different and loves the "vastness" of the US.

kbob88

My UK cousins were more interested in grand scenery that they can't get in Europe, and experiencing American culture that is different from theirs. Their list was something like:

- Yellowstone
- Grand Canyon
- Arizona deserts or Death Valley
- Hawaii
- Alaska
and
- New York
- New Orleans
- Las Vegas
- San Francisco plus Wine Country and Big Sur

Places they wanted to go but were unimpressed:
- Washington DC
- Los Angeles
- Boston
- Philadelphia
- Big Sur
- Atlanta
- Dallas (and Texas in general)

They also seem to really like Florida beaches and skiing the Rockies (Colorado mostly). And they all really like the whole cowboys and Indians thing, always wanting to go to places like Tombstone, AZ. Some German friends were dead-set on going to Dodge City, Kansas of all places.

I used to work with a bunch of Swedes and Japanese, and they both seemed to be a lot more interested in musical culture, as they really liked New Orleans jazz, and went places like the Mississippi Delta for blues, or to Memphis. In NYC they sought out the jazz clubs and piano bars every night.

msjames

dgg, I don't know about cowboys and mobsters, but when I was in high school we took a bunch of Spanish exchange students to the Rocky Horror Picture Show (complete with toilet paper, toast, rice, etc), and it was all they could talk about for the rest of the trip.