10405 Best Sights in USA

Sandstone Visitor Center is a full-service visitor center in the south section that features a short video on the New River and a native garden, as well as a bookstore.

There are four area trails with views of the rushing New River as it leads on to tumbling Sandstone Falls. The easy 0.4-mile round-trip walk along the Sandstone Falls Boardwalk is a popular pick to get up close to the falls. On the way to the trailhead, stop at the scenic overlook that sits 600 feet above the New River. To the south, at Brooks Falls, the Big Branch Trail is a moderate 2.0-mile loop with cascades and stream crossings.

Rebuilt after a nor'easter destroyed much of it in 2022, the Sandwich Boardwalk sits higher than before, and it now has handrails, but this iconic wooden span offers the same sweeping views of Cape Cod Bay. Look out toward Sandy Neck, Wellfleet, and Provincetown or toward the white cliffs beyond Sagamore. A sand path leads to Town Neck Beach, backed by dunes covered with rugosa roses. The creeks running through the salt marsh make for great canoeing, and it's a popular spot for clamming. 

Shimmering glass was manufactured here nearly two centuries ago, and the Sandwich Glass Museum shows you what the factory looked like in its heyday. There's an "ingredient room" showcasing a wide spectrum of glass colors, along with the minerals added to the sand to obtain them, and an outstanding collection of blown and pressed glass in many shapes and hues. Large lamps, vases, and pitchers are impressive, as are the hundreds of candlesticks on display. There are glassblowing demonstrations daily on the hour from 10 to 4. The extensive gift shop sells some handsome reproductions, including many made by local and national artisans. The glass museum is part of the Sandwich Historical Society.

Stretching some 6 miles across a peninsula that ends at Sandy Neck Light, this rock-strewn beach is one of the Cape's most beautiful—dunes, sand, and bay spread endlessly east, west, and north. The marsh was harvested for salt hay in the past; now it's a haven for birds, which are seen in the greatest numbers in morning and evening. One of the secrets of this beach are its hiking trails that meander alongside and around the dunes, a fairly strenuous but lovely trek in the sand. As you travel east along Route 6A from Sandwich, Sandy Neck Road is located just before the Barnstable line, although the beach itself is in West Barnstable. Amenities: food and drink; lifeguards; parking (fee); showers; toilets. Best for: sunset; swimming; walking.

This adobe-style museum, run by the Arizona Historical Society, was built around 1870 by merchant E. F. Sanguinetti; it exhibits artifacts from Yuma's territorial days and details the military presence in the area. If you're dining at the Garden Café this makes for an interesting stop, but it's not worth a visit on its own, especially if you plan on visiting the more popular Colorado River State Historic Park.

Five miles of scenic trails meander through the garden's 78 acres of native plants. The Mission Dam, built in 1806, stands just beyond the redwood grove and above the restored aqueduct that once carried water to the Old Mission Santa Barbara. More than a thousand plant species thrive in various themed sections, including mountains, deserts, meadows, redwoods, and Channel Islands.  A conservation center dedicated to rare and endangered plant species presents rotating exhibitions.

The historical society's museum exhibits decorative and fine arts, furniture, costumes, and documents from the town's past. Adjacent to it is the Gledhill Library, a collection of books, photographs, maps, and manuscripts. Tours are by appointment only. 

California's seafaring history is the focus here. High-tech, hands-on exhibits, such as a virtual sportfishing activity that lets participants haul in a "big one" and a local surfing history retrospective, make this a fun stop for families. In 2018, the museum introduced a fascinating History of Oil in the Santa Barbara Channel exhibit that traces the Chumash Indians' use of natural seeps to the infamous 1969 oil spill that spawned the modern environmental movement. The museum's shining star is a rare, 17-foot-tall Fresnel lens from the historic Point Conception Lighthouse. Ride the elevator to the fourth-floor observation area for great harbor views.

The highlights of this museum's permanent collection include ancient sculpture, Asian art, impressionist paintings, contemporary art, photography, and American works in several mediums.

A gigantic blue whale skeleton greets you at the entrance to this 17-acre complex, whose major draws include its planetarium, paleo and marine life exhibits, and gem and mineral displays. Startlingly alive-looking stuffed specimens in the Mammal and Bird Halls include a smiling grizzly bear and nesting California condors. A room of dioramas illustrates Native American Chumash history and culture while a Santa Barbara Gallery showcases the region's unique biodiversity. Outdoors, nature trails wind through the serene oak woodlands, a Chumash plant garden, and a summer butterfly pavilion.

More than 20 winery tasting rooms in 5 Santa Barbara neighborhoods form the Urban Wine Trail. Most are within walking distance of the waterfront and the lower State Street shopping and restaurant district. Santa Barbara Winery ( 28 Anacapa Street), The Valley Project ( 116 East Yanonali Street), and Grassini Family Vineyards ( 24 El Paseo) are good places to start your oenological trek.

This compact zoo's gorgeous grounds shelter elephants, gorillas, Australian wildlife, exotic birds, and big cats, and has many exhibits that educate visitors on conservation efforts to save endangered species like the California condor and the red-legged frog. For small children, there's a scenic railroad and barnyard area where they can feed domestic sheep. Kids especially love feeding the giraffes from a view deck overlooking the beach. One-hour walking tours that focus on conservation and animal care are offered weekends at 11:45 and 3:15. The palm-studded lawns on a hilltop overlooking the beach are perfect spots for family picnics.

If you stop in North Pole, don't skip this shop known for its over-the-top Christmas kitsch. Look for the gigantic 42-foot Santa statue and the Christmas murals on the side of the building, as well as the year-round department-store-style display windows. Inside, you'll find toys, gifts, Alaska handicrafts, and, of course, Christmas cookies. Santa is on duty to talk to children in summer and during the holiday season. Also in summer, visit Antler Academy inside the red reindeer barn, where guests can hand feed Santa's sleigh team. And yes, you can get your mail sent with a genuine North Pole postmark, a service offered since 1952.

Across the street from the Tumacácori National Historic Park, the Santa Cruz Spice Factory packs and sells 240 varieties of herbs and spices, including the owner's home-grown chili powders and pastes. A little museum, tasting area, and store are open Monday through Saturday.

On the northern fringes of downtown is the site of California's 12th Spanish mission, built in the 1790s and destroyed by an earthquake in 1857. A museum in a restored 1791 adobe and a half-scale replica of the mission church are part of the complex.

Jutting half a mile into the ocean near one end of the boardwalk, the century-old Municipal Wharf is lined with seafood restaurants, a wine bar, souvenir shops, and outfitters offering bay cruises, fishing trips, and boat rentals. A salty soundtrack drifts up from under the wharf, where barking sea lions lounge in heaps on the crossbeams.

This museum inside the Mark Abbott Memorial Lighthouse chronicles local surfing history. Photographs show old-time surfers, and a display of boards includes rarities such as a heavy redwood plank predating the fiberglass era and the remains of a modern board chomped by a great white shark. Surfer docents reminisce about the good old days.

Two tables sit in the shade—with views toward the canyon—next to the parking lot at the trailhead. There is a vault toilet.

This 14-acre garden, located across the road from the Folk Art and Native American museums, provides another great reason for exploring Museum Hill. Situated on a bluff with fantastic views of the surrounding mountains, the facility is divided into four sections that emphasize distinct elements of New Mexico's flora and terrain: the Orchard Gardens, Ojos y Manos: Eyes and Hands, the Courtyard Gardens, and the Arroyo Trails. You can gain a much fuller sense of what's planted and why by embarking on one of the free guided tours, offered daily (call for hours). Also be sure to check the website to see which events might be happening at the outdoor amphitheater.

Stimulating hands-on exhibits, a solar greenhouse, oversize geometric forms, and an 18-foot indoor rock-climbing wall all contribute to this museum's popularity with kids. Outdoor gardens with climbing structures, forts, and hands-on activities are great for whiling away the time in the shade of big trees. Puppeteers and storytellers perform often.

The Mission-style Santa Fe Depot, which replaced the original 1887 station on this site when it opened in 1915 for the Panama–California International Exposition, serves Amtrak and Coaster passengers. A booth here has bus schedules, maps, and tourist brochures. Formerly an easily spotted area landmark, the graceful, tile-dome depot is now overshadowed by 1 America Plaza, the 34-story office tower across the street. At the base of this skyscraper, designed by architect Helmut Jahn, is a center linking the city's train and bus systems, as well as MTS's red trolleys, which run from the station all the way to the Mexico border. The building's signature crescent-shape, glass-and-steel canopy arches out over the trolley tracks.

Santa Monica Boulevard is part of the historic Route 66. As American songwriter Bobby Troup sang, "Get Your Kicks on Route 66," along this lively commercial core of West Hollywood. It's filled with trendy restaurants and cafés, shops and galleries, and LGBTQIA+-friendly bars and clubs. Park your car and walk from Fairfax Avenue to Doheny Drive. The fashionable West Hollywood Design District runs between La Cienega Boulevard and Doheny Drive. 

Jointly managed by the U.S. Forest Service and the Bureau of Land Management, this 280,000-acre desert habitat protects animals like Peninsular bighorn sheep and contains areas of geological, cultural, and scientific significance. You can experience the monument using an augmented-reality app or by hiking one of several trails that wind through it. You can access the backcountry from the Coachella Valley and the nearby alpine village of Idyllwild.

This 9,000-acre wooded preserve provides a glimpse of what this countryside was like back in the day, with bunch-grass prairies frequented by mule deer, golden eagles, and other wildlife. Trails wind through ancient oak forests and past seasonal, vernal pools and rolling grassland. A visitor and operations center has interpretive displays and maps; some of the reserve's hiking trails begin here. There are designated trails for leashed dogs, horses, and mountain bikers.

The nature center is a good place to start before heading out to explore the 6,347-acre Santa Ysabel Preserve. There are interactive exhibits, maps, info on ranger-led hikes and astronomy lectures, restrooms, and a water refilling station. This valley looks pretty much the way the backcountry appeared a century ago, with sweeping meadows surrounded by oak-studded hillsides. The San Dieguito River (Santa Ysabel Creek) emerges from Volcan Mountain here and winds its way 65 miles to San Dieguito Lagoon at Del Mar along the Coast to Crest Trail. A 7-mile trail follows the river for the first mile, from Farmer Road in Julian to the East Entrance of Santa Ysabel Preserve. Legacy oak trees shade the trail, there are spectacular views along the way, and picnic tables abound. The trail is best explored in the fall.

This simple theme park (2 mi northwest of Wilmington) with rides and live reindeer is ideal for small children. Santa and his helpers talk with children, and elves practice their crafts in shops around the park. On Sunday evenings in late December, visitors can take in the brightly lighted Village of Lights.

Dammed in 1928, this lake's name means "blue waters" in the Cherokee language. Cheoah Point Beach, in a cove on the north shore, is an attractive popular place to swim. Santeetlah has 76 miles of shoreline, with good fishing for crappie, bream, and lake trout, and is part of the Nantahala National Forest.

A massive-walled adobe structure built by Franciscan missionaries between 1776 and 1795, this is the oldest shrine in the United States to Our Lady of Guadalupe, Mexico's patron saint. The church's adobe walls are nearly 3 feet thick, and among the sanctuary's religious art and artifacts is a beloved image of Nuestra Virgen de Guadalupe, painted by Mexican master Jose de Alcibar in 1783. Highlights are the traditional New Mexican carved and painted altar screen called a reredos, an authentic 19th-century sacristy, a pictorial-history archive, a library devoted to Archbishop Jean Baptiste Lamy that is furnished with many of his belongings, and a garden with plants from the Holy Land.