10457 Best Sights in USA

Hike 1½ miles (3 miles round-trip, 500-foot elevation drop and gain) to the small and scenic Merced Grove and its approximately two dozen mature giant sequoias. The setting here is typically uncrowded and serene. Note that you can also park here and hike about 2 miles round-trip to the Tuolumne Grove. Bring plenty of water for either outing. Strenuous.

Lighthearted, well-informed guides lead 45-minute tours (208 steps down, 232 steps up) into caverns a prospector named Walter J. Mercer discovered in 1885. Millions of years in the making, the sheer, draperylike formations and aragonite crystals that resemble snowflakes are enthralling. Dress in layers (even in summer) and wear nonskid closed-toe shoes for this mildly strenuous adventure.

Located downtown, this eccentric museum opened in 1916. It displays a selection of the 50,000 pre-industrial, mostly American tools and objects collected by archaeologist and Arts and Crafts tile maker Henry Chapman Mercer, who worried that industrialization would wipe out evidence of the past. To house them, Mercer built a concrete, castle-like building similar to his nearby home, Fonthill Castle. The result is Instagrammable but tricky to navigate; use the museum's map. Boats, tables, chairs, and more hang from the six-story central court's ceiling; elsewhere, rooms are packed with objects organized by trade or purpose. A modern wing has a helpful introduction to Mercer and galleries for changing exhibits. The engaging The Doan Gang: Outlaws of the Revolution, about a local Loyalist family, will be on display throughout 2026. 

Once lost to time, this unique restoration and revitalization project brings back to life Capricorn Sound Studios, the Macon studio and record label responsible for launching Southern Rock artists like the Allman Brothers Band, Wet Willie, and the Marshall Tucker Band. Visitors can tour the Capricorn Museum to see historic artifacts and sort through Capricorn's discography with interactive kiosks, as well as tour the incredibly well-preserved, historic Studio A and the modernized Studio B which is still in use as a recording studio and features live performances frequently.

Built in 1832, this redbrick house, combining Federal and Greek Revival styles, provides a glimpse into the domestic life of the period 30 years before the Civil War. Retired merchant Seabury Tredwell and his descendants lived here from 1835 until 1933. The home became a museum in 1936, with the original furnishings and architectural features preserved; family memorabilia are on display. The fourth-floor servants' bedroom, where the family's staff slept and did some of their work, offers a look at the lives of Irish domestics in the mid-1800s. Guided tours are at noon, cover all five floors and the rear garden, and last about 75 minutes.

This family-owned apple orchard has been producing delicious apples and other fruits for more than 75 years. Apple season is typically from September to November, but even outside the season you can stop in at Mercier's huge farm market and bakery to pick up some of its famous fried apple pies and other homemade goodies. It's open every day of the week. You can also grab lunch in the deli and taste Mercier's own hard-pressed ciders in the farm winery. The orchard is especially buzzing with activity in the fall, when you can take a tractor ride and pick your own apples, and in the summer when blueberry season arrives. Call ahead to find out what fruits are in season and for the latest details on orchard events.

This 3,162-acre educational center has 30 miles of nature trails for hiking, cross-country skiing, snowshoeing, horseback riding, and rustic camping. You can visit the 62-acre farm, which grows organic berries (available for pick-your-own in season), and check out the horses, sheep, pigs, and chickens while you're there—you're even welcome to help out with the chores. Stop in the visitor's center to pick up a gallon of maple syrup made in the on-site sugarhouse.

Throughout town, especially in parks beside the lake and at the gardens at Mill Falls Marketplace, you'll see colorful contemporary artworks. They're part of the Annual Meredith Sculpture walk, a year-round juried event featuring 33 distinctive pieces by renowned sculptors. Each June, a new collection of sculptures is installed. For a detailed look, take a free guided tour, offered at 10 am Wednesdays, mid-July through mid-September.

Landscape architect Horace Peaslee created Meridian Hill Park, a noncontiguous section of Rock Creek Park, after a 1917 study of the parks of Europe. As a result, it contains elements of gardens in France, Italy, and Switzerland. John Quincy Adams lived in a mansion here after his presidency, and the park later served as an encampment for Union soldiers during the Civil War. All 50 states are represented by a state tree or flower. Meridian Hill is unofficially known as Malcolm X Park in honor of the civil rights leader. Weekends bring a mix of pickup soccer games, yoga, joggers running the stairs, and a weekly (weather permitting) drum circle. A statue of Joan of Arc poised for battle on horseback stands above the terrace, and a statue of Dante is on a pedestal below. Cell-phone tours illuminate the history of the landmarks inside the park.

Bi-coastal New Englanders Peter and Diana Merriam founded this winery whose three estate vineyards are certified organic. Their dedication to earth-friendly practices extends to wetland and water-reclamation strategies (all wastewater is recycled), insectaries, and the use of barn owls to control the rodent population. The winemaking team shoots for balance and subtlety with the Pinot Noirs and Bordeaux-style reds—the estate Merlot and the Rockpile Cabernet Sauvignon from purchased grapes receive perennial praise. The whites, which include Chardonnay and Fumé Blanc (mostly Sauvignon Blanc with some Sémillon), show similar restraint. Many guests of this dog-friendly winery enjoy these wines outdoors on the tasting room's patio or in a nearby garden.

Winemaker Merry Edwards long extolled the Russian River Valley as "the epicenter of great Pinot Noir." The winery that bears her name, since 2019 owned by the Roederer Estate sparkling-wine house, produces single-vineyard and appellation wines that express the unique characteristics of the soils, climates, and grape clones from which they derive. The winery also makes Chardonnays and a Sauvignon Blanc that sees some French oak.

This 6-mile drive skirts the scenic rim of Chapin Mesa and takes you to several overlooks and short, paved trails. You'll get great views of Sun Temple and Square Tower, as well as Cliff Palace, Sunset House, and several other cliff dwellings visible from the Sun Point Overlook.

The visitor center is the best place to go to sign up for tours, get the information you need to plan a successful trip, and buy tickets for the Cliff Palace, Balcony House, and Long House ranger-led tours. The sleek, energy-efficient research center is filled with more than 3 million artifacts and archives. The center features indoor and outdoor exhibits, a gift shop, picnic tables, and a museum. Find books, maps, and videos on the history of the park.

The biggest attraction beyond the miles of neon and the Blue Swallow Motel is the Mesalands Community College Dinosaur Museum, where marvelous full-size bronze dinosaur skeletons are on display. This area was a hotbed of Triassic activity, when dinosaurs emerged in their development, and there are species here—like the Struthiomimus—that you won't find anywhere else in the world. The skeletons are cast in the local foundry, and they are touchable. The latest addition, a Parosaurolophus from the Farmington, New Mexico, area even "breathes" through re-created respiratory tubes—talk about realistic!

The bordering Ruidoso to the west, is inhabited by more than 3,000 Mescalero Apache, most of whom work for the tribal government or for the tribally owned Inn of the Mountain Gods, one of the state's most elegant resorts and a major destination for visitors from all over the country and Mexico. Also on the reservation are a general store, a trading post, and a museum where a 12-minute video about life on the reservation is screened. Regular talks are also given on the history and culture of the Mescalero Apache. There are campsites here (with hook-ups at Silver and Eagle lakes only) and picnic areas. The July 4th weekend dances, which include a rodeo, powwow, and demonstration dances of young women going through puberty rites, are open to the public.

Each year some 300,000 fans pack it in at the over the course of the April-to-September season. The action inside the arena includes riders atop bucking broncos and bulls, barrel races, steer wrestling, a kiddie calf scramble, mutton busting (for those 4 and younger), and, on the tamer side, pony rides and a petting zoo.

These dunes, made up of minute pieces of quartz and other rock, are ever-changing products of the wind-rippled hills, with curving crests and a sun-bleached hue. Among the park's most photographed features, the dunes are at their best at sunrise and sunset. Keep your eyes open for animal tracks—you may even spot a coyote or fox. Bring plenty of water, and note where you parked your car: it's easy to become disoriented in this ocean of sand. If you lose your bearings, climb to the top of a dune, and scan the horizon for the parking lot.

Midway between the Sugarlands Visitor Center and Cades Cove, Metcalf Bottoms makes an excellent waypoint. The Little River is nearby, where you can fish or take a cooling dip. There are 122 picnic tables with grills, restrooms with flush toilets, potable water, and a 70-seat pavilion (open early April to late October) that can be reserved in advance. Two easy hiking trails, Metcalf Bottoms and Little Brier, begin at the picnic area.

A natural phenomenon in a privately owned park 43 miles east of Flagstaff, Meteor Crater is impressive if for no other reason than its sheer size. A hole in the ground 600 feet deep, nearly 1 mile across, and more than 3 miles in circumference, Meteor Crater is large enough to accommodate the Washington Monument or 20 football fields. It was created by a meteorite crash 49,000 years ago.

You can't descend into the crater because of the efforts of its owners to maintain its condition—scientists consider this to be the best-preserved crater on Earth—but guided rim tours give useful background information, and telescopes along the rim offer you a closer look. There's a restaurant on-site, and the gift shop sells specimens from the area and jewelry made from native stones.

Some of the hottest talents in contemporary art are shown here, including Cindy Sherman, Olaf Breuning, Louise Lawlor, Trevor Paglen, Camille Henrot, and B. Wurtz.

In 1909, with the addition of a 700-foot tower resembling the campanile of St. Mark's in Venice, this 1893 building became the world's tallest—but it was surpassed in height in 1912, when the Woolworth Building was completed. The Met Life Tower was stripped of much of its classical detail during renovations in the early 1960s but remains a prominent feature of the Midtown skyline. The clock's four faces are each three stories high, and their minute hands weigh half a ton each. If the street view doesn't quite cut it, you can reserve a room in the skyline itself: the New York EDITION, a luxury hotel conceived by Ian Schrager and Marriott International, occupies the clock-tower portion of the building.

Founded in 1984, this museum in the heart of downtown is a beguiling, moderately-sized showroom devoted to traditional and contemporary Mexican and Latin American art. The permanent collection includes 5,000 works of art, notably historic lithographs, colorful modern prints, silkscreens, etchings, and traditional ritual masks. If you visit during the local Day of the Dead celebrations, don't miss the Viva la Vida Fest hosted here in late October. Admission is free on Sunday.

Just over 30 miles east of Panama City, along scenic U.S. 98, is Mexico Beach, known for seclusion and a slower pace than its neighbors to the west. Although there aren't a lot of attractions, there is at least one of everything—gas station, grocery store, restaurant—so the comforts of home aren't too far away. Plus, it's a rare delight to see the Gulf unobstructed by houses and hotels. Although the town itself was destroyed in 2018 after a direct hit from Hurricane Michael, it has made quite a comeback and welcomes visitors with completely rebuilt or refurbished amenities, including several accommodations whose boat docks provide easy to access Gulf waters. In addition, the 5 miles of Gulf beaches along U.S. 98 have been fortified, and new dune walkovers are in place, greatly expanding beach access. Amenities: parking. Best for: solitude; swimming.

With a curving modern pier, paved pathways lined with park benches, an imaginatively designed playground, a small sandy beach, and impressive views of the Seattle skyline in the distance, this 7-acre park within a short walk of downtown Bellevue is one of the prettiest spots along the Lake Washington shoreline for a picnic, a stroll, or a swim. From May through October, you can rent kayaks, canoes, and stand-up paddleboards from the REI Boathouse at the park.

One of the oldest and most prestigious galleries in the Southwest, Meyer's location at the bottom of Canyon Road makes it a good place to begin a stroll up the historic street. The work shown in this expansive gallery gives a good sense of the traditional Santa Fe art scene along with an eclectic selection of modern works focused on contemporary realism. They also offer an array of interesting resale art on consignment.

One of Frank Lloyd Wright's enduring architectural masterpieces, this house is among the best preserved of his works. With original furnishings, carpets, light fixtures, linens, and color schemes, it remains largely as Wright and his studio crafted it in 1909. The Prairie-style house was built for a prominent local clothier and is part of the city's Heritage Hills Historic District. Steelcase, a manufacturer of office furniture based in Grand Rapids, embarked on a two-year restoration after acquiring the house in 1985. Trained docents lead the tours.

A regal bronze rendering of the roaring MGM lion mascot fronts the four emerald-green, fortress-like towers of the MGM Grand, one of the largest hotels in the world. Over the years, the property has become synonymous with big fights, most of which take place in the hotel's Grand Garden Arena, and big entertainment from the likes of David Copperfield and Papa Roach, plus Cirque du Soleil's Ka. In recent years, the property also has added Hakkasan, an upscale restaurant and nightclub; Topgolf Las Vegas, a state-of-the-art driving range; and Brad Garrett's Comedy Club, where the beloved comic from Everybody Loves Raymond performs regularly. The hotel also has its share of celebrity restaurants, from the elegance of the late Joel Robuchon to the innovation of Iron Chef Masaharu Morimoto to the comforting Nellie's Southern Kitchen from the Jonas Brothers family.

This Arquitectonica-designed museum, both imaginative and geometric in appearance, is directly across the MacArthur Causeway from Jungle Island. Twelve galleries house hundreds of interactive, bilingual exhibits. Children can scan plastic groceries in the supermarket, scramble through a giant sandcastle, climb a rock wall, learn about the Everglades, and combine rhythms in the world-music studio.

This classic family attraction promotes environmental education and raises conservation awareness yet stages shows with sea lions, dolphins, and other marine animals (including killer whales). Discovery Bay, an endangered-mangrove habitat, is home to sea turtles, alligators, herons, egrets, and ibis. You can also visit a shark pool, a tropical reef aquarium, and West Indian and Florida manatees. A popular interactive attraction is the Stingray Touch Tank, where you can touch and feed cownose rays and southern stingrays. Another big draw is the Dolphin Interaction program, including the quite intensive Dolphin Odyssey ($219) experience and the lighter shallow-water Dolphin Encounter ($159).

Talk about truth in advertising: this picnic area gives you an eyeful of Mica Mountain, the park's highest peak. None of the tables are in the shade.