10457 Best Sights in USA

The 58-foot-tall lighthouse, operated by the Southold Historical Society, was built in 1847. Together with the adjoining lighthouse keeper's home, it resembles a church. The museum, in the keeper's residence, displays sea captains' journals, sea chests, paintings, and maps. Enjoy the 8-acre park surrounding the lighthouse.

American Indians once ground acorns into meal at this site; outdoor exhibits tell the story. The picnic area's name, however, stems from a hunter/trapper who was treated for a leg wound here in 1873. Look up, and you'll see Moro Rock. Grills, drinking water, and restrooms are available.

Forged by an ancient volcanic eruption, the geological site is a landscape of boiling hot springs, fumaroles, and occasional geysers. Swimming is prohibited—the water can go from warm to boiling in a short time—but you can look down from the parking area into the canyon to view the steaming volcanic features, a very cool sight indeed. You can also hike the foot path along the creek shores. Fly-fishing for trout is popular upstream from the springs.

This flat, paved, scenic trail travels alongside the Hot Springs Creek for 5.5 miles, beginning downtown and terminating at Lake Hamilton. Perfect for a leisurely stroll or bike ride, the trail meanders past a sculpture garden, the city’s farmer’s market pavilion, the Veteran Memorial, a skate park, ballfields, a dog park, and Hollywood Park, with picnic tables, restrooms, and a playground. Easy.

The origins of Major League Baseball's spring training can be traced back to 1886, when the Chicago White Stockings, now the Cubs, came to Hot Springs to “boil out the winter.” Other teams followed suit, and through the middle of the 20th century, Hot Springs hosted more than 300 professional ballplayers including Babe Ruth, Cy Young, Jackie Robinson, Hank Aaron, and Honus Wagner. This free, self-guided tour around town features 32 markers at significant locations, like the spot where Babe Ruth hit the first home run to fly more than 500 feet. You can find out more about each location by dialing in to the accompanying audio tour or by using the free, web app. Trail brochures are available at the Hot Springs Visitor Center.

Overlooking some 140 square miles, this 216-foot tall, elevator-accessible tower at the summit of its namesake mountain provides sweeping views of the park and the Ouachita Mountains. The tower is open daily and has an open-air observation deck; an enclosed, lower-level deck with exhibits on area history; and a ground-level gift shop.

This wooded system has more than 31 miles of world-class mountain biking trails of all levels with cross-country single track and downhill jump and flow routes. The Lucky 13 expert section, the system's only black diamond downhill trail, features a 24-foot jump over a creek. There is also a skills park at the Cedar Glades trailhead. (The Waterworks Trailhead on Pineland Drive is considered the main trailhead.) The Pullman Avenue trailhead provides access directly from downtown, just a short bike ride away. Each November, the Northwoods hosts the annual Güdrun MTB Festival.

At Hot Sulphur Springs Resort and Spa, 15 open-air pools are sprinkled up the hillside, with temperatures ranging from 98°F to 112°F, and a day pass grants access to all of them. The seasonal swimming pool is just right for recreation, at a comparatively frigid 80°F, and the resort also has four private, indoor pools (two reserved for spa treatments). Bring sandals if you have them, especially during snowy months when rock salt is used on icy walkways.

For gorgeous canyon views, take this trail from Cedar Grove up a series of switchbacks until it splits. Follow the route left through chaparral to the forested ridge and rocky outcrop known as Cedar Grove Overlook, where you can see the Kings River canyon stretching below. This strenuous, 5-mile round-trip hike gains 1,200 feet and takes three to four hours to complete. Difficult.

On hot days, sun worshippers, swimmers, and the beach-volleyball crowd flock to this beach south of downtown Kirkland on the Lake Washington waterfront. The rest of the year, the playground attracts families, and the fishing pier stays busy with anglers. Facilities include drinking water, picnic tables, a beach volleyball court, phones, and restrooms. Perfect Wave offers stand-up paddleboard and kayak rentals at the north end of the park. Park the car and slip on some good walking shoes; it's a lovely stroll along the waterfront to the shops and restaurants of either Carillon Point or downtown Kirkland.

The park is marked by its tall pine trees near the Housatonic River and has terrific riverside campsites (seasonal). Fly-fishers consider this 2-mile stretch of the river among the best places in New England to test their skills catching trout and bass (license required).

This is a family-friendly park: no alcohol allowed.

This restored antebellum home was built in two periods: its present-day second floor was actually constructed first, in 1850, and in 1884 the house was elevated and a new first floor added. The extensive dollhouse collection includes 60 historically accurate, scale-model miniatures of Victorian, Tudor, and plantation-style houses and covers more than 3,000 square feet on the mansion's second floor. All were created by owner Bonnie Broel over a 15-year period. Visitors can only view the property on tours, which can fill up, so it's best to call ahead.

More than 50 interactive exhibits of monsters and mayhem are on display here, including such favorites as Dracula and the Wolfman. Kindergartners and younger children may get quite a fright here.

Originally built as the Foreign Arts Building for the Panama-California Exposition in 1915, it was later torn down and then rebuilt using the original building as a model. Now the House of Hospitality, it's an excellent resource for planning your visit to Balboa Park. Check the website before you go or spend a few minutes at the visitor's center when you arrive. They also offer a free Balboa Park mobile app with information on sites, special events, and useful tips to help maximize your time.

This is not really a house but a cluster of red tile–roof stucco cottages representing 34 different countries and cultures. The word "pacific" refers to the goal of maintaining peace. The cottages, decorated with crafts and pictures, are open weekend afternoons between 11 am and 5 pm, when you can chat with transplanted people and try out different ethnic foods. Folk-song and dance performances are presented on the outdoor stage around 2 pm most Sundays from March through October—check the schedule at the park visitor center. Across the road from the cottages, but not affiliated with them, is the Spanish colonial–style United Nations Building. Inside, the United Nations Association's International Gift Shop has reasonably priced crafts, cards, and books.

Immortalized in Nathaniel Hawthorne's classic novel, this site is itself a historic treasure. Built in 1668 and also known as the Turner-Ingersoll Mansion, the house includes the famous secret staircase, a re-creation of Hepzibah's scent shop from The House of Seven Gables, and some of the finest Georgian interiors in the country. Also on the property is the small house where Hawthorne was born in 1804; built in 1750, it was moved from its original location a few blocks away. To visit the house, you must join a guided tour.

It's hard to miss the giant mural on the northwest corner of Houston Street and the Bowery, though the artwork itself is constantly changing. It started back in 1982, when Keith Haring, along with his pal Juan Dubose, painted what is believed to have been Haring's first large-scale work. Real estate developer and arts visionary Tony Goldman (he's responsible for Miami's Wynwood Walls) acquired the wall in 1984 and used it for advertisements until 2008, when he and art curator Jeffrey Deitch commissioned a tribute to Haring for what would have been the artist's 50th birthday. Since then, an internationally recognized cast of artists have used the concrete as canvas—including Shepard Fairey and Kenny Scharf in 2010, French artist JR in 2011, and Banksy in 2018.

Located in the Museum District, just a short stroll from Hermann Park, the Children's Museum of Houston offers fun, hands-on exhibits and activities for children of all ages. Your kids can work in a TV station, shop in a supermarket, enter an inventors' competition, and much more.

You've got to hand it to this Houston museum for expanding the definition of traditional science programming with recent blockbuster shows on jeweler Fulco Verdura, life in Imperial Rome, and Diana: A Celebration, which detailed the life and work of the Princess of Wales. The museum's permanent exhibits are a little more traditional and include Wiess Energy Hall, the dazzling Smith Gem Vault, and the Farish Hall of Texas Wildlife. Also housed within the museum are the Burke Baker Planetarium, the Wortham IMAX Theatre, and the Cockrell Butterfly Center, where you can commune with 1,500 live butterflies. If you plan to see everything, buy the combination ticket.

This small but pleasant zoo is home to 4,500 animals, housed in carefully designed ecosystems along shaded trails. Be sure to visit the boardwalks and treehouses of the Wortham World of Primates. If you need a break from the heat, take a spin on the climate-controlled Wildlife Carousel near the Children's Zoo. The zoo is free on certain holidays: Memorial Day, July 4th, Labor Day, the Friday after Thanksgiving, and Martin Luther King Jr. Day.

The best place in southeast Utah to see ancient tower ruins dotting the scenic cliffs, if you're headed south from Canyonlands and have an interest in Ancestral Puebloan culture, a visit to this monument is a must. Park rangers strongly advise following printed maps and signs from U.S. 191 near Blanding, Utah, or County Road G from Cortez, Colorado; GPS is not reliable here. Once you arrive, you'll find unusual tower structures (which may have been used for astronomical observation) and ancient dwellings.

About 4 miles south of the town center, you can pick raspberries from Labor Day to mid-October and pumpkins late September–October. Locals have snatched up the farm's famous sweet corn for decades.

An elevator takes you down 156 feet to reach these caverns. The 80-minute guided tours lead you along paved walkways and include a ¼-mi boat ride on an underground lake. The temperature down under hovers just above 50°F all year, so dress appropriately. On Friday and Saturday evenings visitors (13 and older) can opt for a lantern-lighted tour; call ahead for a reservation. The grounds include a restaurant and a motel.