2155 Best Sights in USA

Back in the early 1970s, Division Street (aka "Southeast Division") was earmarked for condemnation as part of a proposed—and thankfully never built—freeway that would have connected Downtown to Mt. Hood. For many years, this street sat forlornly, just a long stretch of modest buildings and empty lots. These days, Southeast Division—no longer threatened with condemnation—is one of the hottest restaurant rows on the West Coast, and sleek three- and four-story contemporary condos and apartments are popping up like dandelions. If culinary tourism is your thing, head to the 10 blocks of Southeast Division from about 26th to 39th Avenues. The main draw here is mostly food-and-drink related, and you'll also find a growing number of noteworthy restaurants and bars extending all the way to 12th Avenue to the west, and 50th Avenue to the east. You may hear some locals refer to the western end of the neighborhood as "Division/Clinton" referring to Clinton Street, a block south of Division, which has a clutch of great eateries and beautiful early- to mid-20th-century bungalows and houses, mostly from 27th to 20th Avenues.

Restaurants, art galleries, clothing boutiques, and other shops—both trendy and touristy—line this bustling square and nearby streets and alleys. Walk onto the swing bridge to admire the tidal Kennebunk River; cross to the other side and you are in the Lower Village of neighboring Kennebunk.

Watch a slice of Old Havana come to life in Miami's Little Havana. At Domino Park, officially known as Máximo Gómez Park, guayabera-clad seniors bask in the sun and play dominoes while onlookers share neighborhood gossip and political opinions.  There is a little office at the park with a window where you can get information on Little Havana; the office also stores the dominoes for the older gents who play regularly, but it's BYOD (bring your own dominoes) for everyone else.

The late-19th- and early-20th-century commercial structures of the Downtown Boulder Historic District once housed mercantile stores and saloons, but today the stores here cater to modern tastes, with fair-trade coffees and Tibetan prayer flags. The period architecture—including Queen Anne, Italianate, and Romanesque styles in stone or brick—has been preserved.

The exciting Downtown Disney District is a walking promenade filled with international dining, shopping, and entertainment that connects the resort's hotels and theme parks. More than a dozen establishments include the popular Asian restaurant Din Tai Fung, specializing in Taiwanese soup dumplings, and Parkside Market with four new food and drink venues including Seoul Sister, Sip & Sonder, and GG's Chicken Shop. Go upstairs to Vista Parkside Market for cocktails and elevated bites overlooking Downtown Disney's entertainment stage. Michelin star chef Carlos Gaytán opened three Mexican-inspired eateries: the open-air Centrico patio dining and bar; the upscale multisensory Paseo; and Mexican street food Tiendita. Jazz Kitchen Coastal Grill. Be sure to try their signature seasonal beignets that can be dipped, drizzled, and sprinkled. Enjoy a cold beer at Ballast Point Brewery and a gourmet burger at Black Tap Craft Burgers. Save room for sweet treats at Salt and Straw for gourmet ice cream flavors such as honey lavender and oat milk and cookies, and Sprinkles for decadent frosted cupcakes.

Disney merchandise, souvenirs, and artwork are showcased at the brightly lit World of Disney store and new D Lander shop. Avengers Reserve is for Marvel fans, and The Wonderful World of Sweets is a kaleidoscope of colors, smells and tasty treats. At the LEGO Store there are bigger-than-life LEGO creations, hands-on demonstrations, and space to play with the latest LEGO creations.

Entering is complimentary, however all visitors must pass through a security checkpoint and metal detectors before entering.

A good destination for families, Driessen Beach Park has a playground, clean shower and restrooms, and a charming path to the beach that’s part boardwalk, part sandy path, part beach matting. It's often peppered with people flying kites, making it colorful and fun. Amenities: lifeguards (seasonal); parking (metered); showers; toilets. Best for: sunrise; surfing; swimming; walking.

A Gothic-style gem built in the early 1930s, this chapel is the centerpiece of Duke University. Modeled after England's Canterbury Cathedral, it has a 210-foot-tall bell tower. Weekly services are held here Sunday at 11 am, with tours following. The chapel is a popular wedding spot, so check the website before trying to visit on Saturday.

Career diplomat Robert Woods Bliss and his wife, Mildred, bought the property in 1920 and tamed the sprawling grounds into 10 acres of splendid gardens designed by Beatrix Farrand. In 1940, the Blisses gave the estate to Harvard University as a study center, library, museum, and garden. The museum holds a small but world-renowned collection of Byzantine and pre-Columbian art, reflecting the enormous skill and creativity developed at roughly the same time in two very different parts of the world. The Byzantine collection includes beautiful examples of both religious and secular items executed in mosaic, metal, enamel, stone, textile, and ivory. Pre-Columbian works—artifacts and textiles from Mexico and Central and South America by peoples such as the Aztec, Maya, Inca, and Olmec—are arranged in an enclosed glass pavilion. Especially beautiful in the spring but worth visiting in any season, the gardens feature an orangery and a green terrace filled with iron furniture emblazoned with astrological motifs.

Anchoring 25-acre Railroad Bridge Park, a beautifully serene Audubon Society preserve bisected by the Dungeness River, this stunning nature center reopened in 2022 following a dramatic expansion and redesign that features informative natural history exhibits as well as a bookstore, a coffee bar, and a pavilion and rain garden. The center is adjacent to a lacy, 730-foot-long ironwork bridge that was once part of the coastal rail line between Port Angeles and Port Townsend and is now a popular multiuse path for hiking and biking. On warm days, the grounds are lovely for picnicking, and you can watch live performances in the amphitheater. There are free guided bird walks and other nature programs year-round.

Durant is known across the state for their flavorful olive oils and this hilltop property is also home to the first commercial olive mill in the Pacific Northwest. Stop by the gift shop to taste some of the farm’s signature oils or head out back to see an old-fashioned (and not-in-use) olive press imported from Spain. While olive oil is the big draw, there's also a tasting room where you can sample estate wines by appointment.

Excellent tide-pooling can be had along the shoreline of Duxbury Reef; it's one of the largest shale intertidal reefs in North America. Look for sea stars, barnacles, sea anemones, purple urchins, limpets, sea mussels, and the occasional abalone. But check a tide table ( tidesandcurrents.noaa.gov) if you plan to explore the reef—it's accessible only at low tide. The reef is a 30-minute drive from the Bear Valley Visitor Center. Take Highway 1 South from the center, turn right at Olema Bolinas Road (keep an eye peeled; the road is easy to miss), left on Horseshoe Hill Road, right on Mesa Road, left on Overlook Drive, and then right on Elm Road, which dead-ends at the Agate Beach County Park parking lot.   Avoid areas rich with fragile Monterey shale, which are prone to erosion from human disturbance. It is illegal to collect anything from this protected marine area. 

A Gothic Revival–style building completed in 1922, the church came to be known as the spiritual center of the civil rights movement. Members of the King family, including the slain civil rights leader, preached at the church for three generations. Sitting in the main sanctuary on a quiet day when light is shining through the stained-glass windows can be a powerful experience. The congregation itself now occupies the building across the street.

The oldest section of the city, known as El Pueblo de Los Angeles, represents the rich Mexican heritage of L.A. It had a close shave with disintegration in the early 20th century, but key buildings were preserved, and eventually Olvera Street, the district's heart, was transformed into a Mexican American marketplace. Today vendors still sell puppets, leather goods, sandals, and woolen shawls from stalls lining the narrow street. You can find everything from salt and pepper shakers shaped like donkeys to gorgeous glassware and pottery.

At the beginning of Olvera Street is the Plaza, a Mexican-style park with plenty of benches and walkways shaded by a huge Moreton Bay fig tree. On weekends, mariachi bands and folkloric dance groups perform. Nearby places worth investigating include the historic Avila Adobe, the Chinese American Museum, the Plaza Firehouse Museum, and the America Tropical Interpretive Center. Exhibits at the Italian American Museum of Los Angeles chronicle the area's formerly heavy Italian presence.

This small, frontier, adobe church has a fantastically carved and painted reredos (altar screen) and is built on the site where, believers say, a mysterious light came from the ground on Good Friday in 1810 leading to the discovery of a large wooden crucifix beneath the earth. The chapel sits above a sacred pozito (a small hole), the dirt from which is believed to have miraculous healing properties. Dozens of abandoned crutches and braces placed in the anteroom—along with many notes, letters, and photos—testify to this. The Santuario draws a steady stream of worshippers year-round—Chimayó is considered the Lourdes of the Southwest. During Holy Week as many as 30,000 pilgrims come here. The shrine is is surrounded by small adobe shops selling every kind of religious curio imaginable and some very fine traditional Hispanic work from local artists. A smaller chapel, Santo Niño de Atocha, was built in 1857 and lies 200 yards away. As at the more famous Santuario, the dirt in this place of worship is said to have healing properties.

In the same spot since 1976, this outdoor flea market has grown from a dozen or so vendors to more than 500 on a typical Sunday, along with food trucks offering everything from a snack to full meals. You'll never know what usual and unusual treasures you'll find spread out on the field, as every Sunday brings out a different collection of vendors selling all manner of antiques, collectibles, housewares, and merchandise, along with, simply, "things." Serious buyers arrive by 5:30 am and pay $20 admission for the privilege; other "early birds" prepay $10 online to enter at 7 am; the rest of us are happy to browse from 8 am to 2 pm and pay just $3.

What began as a logging town in the early years of the 20th century evolved into a summer colony for wealthy families from Knoxville. Many prominent east Tennessee families built vacation homes here or visited the Wonderland Hotel via train service from Knoxville to Elkmont. After the national park was established, parts of the community were placed on the National Registry of Historic Places. Today, Elkmont is primarily a campground, and most of the 74 cottages have been removed. The last families lost their leases to their cabins in the 1990s. You can see the ruins of the biggest homes along Millionaires Row, where stone chimneys stand like ghostly sentinels in the wood. In recent years, the Park Service has restored several homes along Jakes Creek that are now open to the public. The Appalachian Clubhouse, built for a hunting and fishing club, is restored to its 1930s appearance, complete with rocking chairs on the porch. There's a short loop nature trail here, or you can take an easy flat walk along the Little River Trail.

The six large public parks known as Boston's Emerald Necklace stretch 7 miles from the Back Bay Fens to Franklin Park in Dorchester, and include Arnold Arboretum, Jamaica Pond, Olmsted Park, and the Riverway. The linear parks, designed by master landscape architect Frederick Law Olmsted more than 100 years ago, remain a well-groomed urban masterpiece.

Informal lectures take place on the Zion Human History Museum patio twice a day (10:30 am and 2:30 pm) and daily at 4 pm at Zion Lodge and may cover anything from wildlife and geology to the stories of early settlers. Talks usually last from 20 to 30 minutes, though some run longer.

In this urban outdoor oasis, sloping green hills, giant boulders, and winding walkways offer great views of the Reedy River, but the best views of the waterfalls are along the architecturally ingenious Liberty Bridge. The Peace Center amphitheater hosts moonlight movies, Shakespeare plays, and open-air concerts during the summer.

Faneuil Hall (pronounced Fan-yoo'uhl or Fan-yuhl) was erected in 1742, the gift of wealthy merchant Peter Faneuil, who wanted the hall to serve as both a place for town meetings and a public market. It burned in 1761 and was immediately reconstructed according to the original plan of its designer, the Scottish portrait painter John Smibert (who lies in the Granary Burying Ground). In 1763 the political leader James Otis helped inaugurate the era that culminated in American independence when he dedicated the rebuilt hall to the cause of liberty.

In 1772, Samuel Adams stood here and first suggested that Massachusetts and the other colonies organize a Committee of Correspondence to maintain semiclandestine lines of communication in the face of hardening British repression. In later years the hall again lived up to Otis's dedication when the abolitionists Wendell Phillips and Charles Sumner pleaded for support from its podium. The tradition continues to this day: in presidential-election years the hall is the site of debates between contenders in the Massachusetts primary.

Faneuil Hall was substantially enlarged and remodeled in 1805 according to a Greek Revival design of the noted architect Charles Bulfinch; this is the building you see today. Its purposes remain the same: the balconied Great Hall is available to citizens' groups on presentation of a request signed by a required number of responsible parties; it also plays host to regular concerts.

Inside Faneuil Hall are dozens of paintings of famous Americans, including the mural Webster's Reply to Hayne and Gilbert Stuart's portrait of Washington at Dorchester Heights. Park rangers give informational talks about the history and importance of Faneuil Hall every half hour. There are interactive displays about Boston sights, and National Park Service rangers at the visitor center on the first floor can provide maps and other information.

On the building's top floors are the headquarters and museum and library of the Ancient and Honorable Artillery Company of Massachusetts, which is free to visit (but a donation is welcome). Founded in 1638, it's the oldest militia in the Western Hemisphere, and the third-oldest in the world, after the Swiss Guard and the Honourable Artillery Company of London. The museum is open Wednesday through Friday from 11 am to 3 pm.

When such men as Andrew Jackson and Daniel Webster debated the future of the Republic here, the fragrances of bacon and snuff—sold by merchants in Quincy Market across the road—greeted their noses. Today the aroma of coffee wafts through the hall from a snack bar. The shops at ground level sell New England bric-a-brac. This is Freedom Trail stop 11.

A well-known complex of historical significance, shopping, eating, and street performers, Faneuil Hall Marketplace is a place for all things Boston. Stretching out in front of historical Faneuil Hall, the largest area known as Quincy Market attracts huge crowds of tourists and locals throughout the year. In the early ’70s, demolition was a distinct possibility for the decrepit buildings. Fortunately, with the participation of the Boston Redevelopment Authority, architect Benjamin Thompson planned a renovation of Quincy Market, and the Rouse Corporation of Baltimore undertook its restoration, which was completed in 1976. Try to look beyond the shop windows to the grand design of the market buildings themselves; they represent a vision of the market as urban centerpiece, an idea whose time has certainly come again.

The market consists of three block-long annexes: Quincy Market, North Market, and South Market, each 535 feet long and across a plaza from Faneuil Hall and ending at the horseshoe-shaped building of Marketplace Center Shops. The structures were designed in 1826 by Alexander Parris as part of a public-works project instituted by Boston's second mayor, Josiah Quincy, to alleviate the cramped conditions of Faneuil Hall and clean up the refuse that collected in Town Dock, the pond behind it. The central structure, made of granite, with a Doric colonnade at either end and topped by a classical dome and rotunda, has kept its traditional market-stall layout, but the stalls now purvey international and specialty foods: sushi, frozen yogurt, bagels, calzones, sausage-on-a-stick, Chinese noodles, barbecue, and baklava, plus all the boutique chocolate-chip cookies your heart desires. ArtsBoston's BOSTIX Booth can also be found in the marketplace; stop by for same-day, discounted theater and sight tickets. 

In between Quincy Market and South Market colonnades, be sure to stop and take a seat next to the sculpture of legendary Boston Celtics coach, Red Auerbach, smoking one of his famous stogies.

Along the arcades on either side of the Central Market are mostly kiosk-based vendors selling sweatshirts, photographs of Boston, and arts and crafts—some schlocky, some not—alongside a couple of patioed bars and restaurants, including the new Sam Adams Brewery (perfectly poised within sight of his famous statue). The North and South markets house a mixture of chain stores and specialty boutiques.

Faneuil Hall provides a splash of color; during the winter holidays, trees along the cobblestone walks are strung with thousands of sparkling lights and the interior Quincy Market rotunda is home to a 20-foot Christmas tree. In summer up to 50,000 people a day descend on the market; the outdoor cafés are an excellent spot to watch the hordes if you can find a seat. Year-round the pedestrian walkways draw street performers, and rings of strollers form around magicians and musicians.

If you're in town on a Wednesday or Saturday, don't miss one of the Southwest's largest and most impressive farmers markets, where some 300 vendors sell produce, handcrafted items, baked goods, and even geodes and fossils along a lively seven-block stretch of the city's lively downtown. Mingle with the locals and enjoy the scene, which is open between 8:30 am and 1 pm.

Inspired by Miami's Wynwood Arts District, Flagler + Art + Technology (or Food + Art + Technology) Village encompasses several square blocks of a formerly blighted warehouse district in downtown Fort Lauderdale. It's now thriving with a slew of production studios, art studios, and loft-style apartments. On the last Saturday of the month (except in December), FATVillage hosts an evening art walk, in which businesses display contemporary artworks by local talent and food trucks gather. There are libations, of course, and the warehouse district erupts into a giant, culture-infused street party.

While visiting Fort Zachary Taylor Historic State Park, stop in at this colorful, 6,400-square-foot, interactive attraction, where you can experience a variety of Florida Keys habitats from pinelands, beach dunes, and mangroves to the deep sea. Walk through a model of the Aquarius—a unique, underwater, National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) laboratory 9 miles off Key Largo—to virtually discover what lurks in the ocean's depths. Touch-screen computer displays, a dramatic movie, a 2,500-gallon aquarium, and live underwater web cameras show off North America's only contiguous barrier coral reef. You'll leave with a new understanding of the native animals and unique plants of the Florida Keys.

Charleston's most laid-back beach community fills up on warm-weather days (especially summer weekends), so start out early to avoid traffic, especially if you're visiting on a Saturday. Head out on the Folly Beach Fishing Pier to see what anglers have hooked or to the northeast end of the island to see Morris Island Lighthouse that awaits just offshore. Surfers flock to the Washout, where small but consistent waves rule. Families tend toward the southwest end of the island, with its lifeguards and county park amenities. Neighborhood streetside parking is free, but to avoid a ticket, all four wheels have to be off the pavement. Stock up on snacks and sandwiches at Bert's Market on East Ashley Avenue or grab a taco with the locals at Chico Feo across the street. Amenities: food and drink; lifeguards; showers and toilets (at the Washout, pier, and county park). Best for: surfing; swimming.

One of the nation's largest urban wildernesses (5,200 acres), this city-owned, car-free park supports more than 50 species of birds and mammals and more than 80 miles of trails through forests of Douglas fir, hemlock, and cedar. Running the length of the park is the 30-mile Wildwood Trail, which extends into adjoining Washington Park (and is a handy point for accessing Forest Park), starting at the Vietnam Veterans Memorial in Hoyt Arboretum. You can access a number of spur trails from the Wildwood Trail, including the 11-mile Leif Erikson Drive, which picks up from the end of N.W. Thurman Street and is a popular route for jogging and mountain biking.

Officially opened in 1876, one of the country's largest urban parks (1,293 acres) outsizes even Central Park in New York City and is more than just a haven for paddleboaters, bikers, runners, and other sports enthusiasts. Many of its more than 15 million annual visitors come to experience the myriad attractions within its boundaries, including the St. Louis Zoo, Saint Louis Art Museum, and Saint Louis Science Center; the Missouri History Museum; and The Muny, the nation's oldest and largest outdoor theater. The neighborhoods bordering this park include Clayton, the Central West End, Hi-Pointe, and Forest Park South East.

A wide, soft, ultra-white shore with gently lapping waves makes this fine beach a family favorite for running-jumping-frolicking fun. Other bonuses include the shaded, grassy grilling area, pickleball courts, and many aquatic rental options. The beach fronts the Hale Koa Hotel as well as Fort DeRussy. Amenities: food and drink; lifeguards; showers; toilets; water sports. Best for: swimming; walking.

This is one of the South's largest and most important earthworks fortifications from the Civil War, so tough and strategically placed along the Cape Fear River that it was known as the Southern Gibraltar. The fall of the fort in January 1865, closing the last supply lines for the South, helped seal the fate of the Confederacy. You can explore the restored battery with its reconstructed artillery and follow trails along the river. A museum—soon to be replaced by a $25 million new build next door—displays Civil War relics, a fiber-optic battle map, and artifacts from sunken blockade runners. It's also known for its underwater archaeological sites.

Fort Fisher includes a beach access point with showers. It's one of the most attractive beaches in the area.