35 Best Sights in USA

You can reach Yellowstone's largest hot spring (third-largest in the world), 370 feet in diameter and arguably an even more dazzling sight than Old Faithful, by following a ⅓-mile boardwalk loop. The spring, in the Midway Geyser Basin, is deep blue with yellow and orange rings formed by thermophiles, heat-loving bacteria, that give it the effect of a prism. For a stunning perspective, view it from the overlook along the Grand Prismatic Overlook–Fairy Falls Trail.

Follow this 1-mile loop trail to soak in 105°F waters alongside the Rio Grande (bring a swimsuit), where petroglyphs coat the canyon walls nearby. The remains of a post office, motel, and bathhouse point to the old commercial establishment operating here in the early 1900s. The 1.6-mile dirt road leading to the Hot Springs trailhead from Rio Grande Village Road cannot accommodate RVs and is best avoided after rainstorms. Temperatures can soar to 120°F, so hike in the morning or during cooler months. You can also hike to the springs via the challenging (and brutally hot, in summer) 6-mile Ernst Ridge Trail, the trailhead of which is at Daniel's Ranch, on the west side of Rio Grande Village.

The land that became Wyoming's first state park in 1897 had always been sacred to Native Americans because of its healing natural hot springs. You can partake of these waters by soaking indoors or outside at the free 104°F mineral pools at the State Bath House, which is a central feature of this impressive 1,104-acre park that's also home to two waterparks (which charge admission fees) with more indoor and outdoor hot mineral pools, waterslides, and other amusements. You can also hike or bike on 6 miles of trails, view the park's sizable bison herd, traipse across a swinging suspension bridge that traverses the Big Horn River, offering views of the dramatic travertine mineral terraces.

Newer and more relaxing than its famed sibling across town, Iron Mountain Hot Springs is geared to adults looking for a peaceful retreat. Seventeen mineral pools with views of the Colorado River and Mt. Sopris are scattered across the hilltop; temperatures vary from 98°F to 108°F. A large family pool, heated to 94°F, encourages young children to stay out of the soaking spas, and soothing music drowns out much of the noise from the nearby kids' area. On-site bars offer a variety of beer and wine for sipping at the pools, and the contemporary locker rooms maintain the property's spa–like atmosphere. In summer 2023, a new adults–only area complete with two large pools with waterfalls and eight riverside pools lined with relaxation pebbles opened to visitors over 21. Reservations are required and visits are limited to three hours.

Almost every park visitor makes it a point to view the world's most famous geyser, at least once. Yellowstone's most predictable big geyser—although neither its largest nor most regular—sometimes shoots as high as 180 feet, but it averages 130 feet. The eruptions take place every 50–120 minutes, the average is around 90 minutes. Check the park website, visitor center, or the lobbies of the Old Faithful hotels for predicted times. You can view the eruption from a bench just yards away, from the dining room at the lodge cafeteria, or the second-floor deck of the Old Faithful Inn. The 1.6-mile loop hike to Observation Point yields yet another view—from above—of the geyser and the surrounding basin.

In a beautiful setting overlooking the San Juan River, the Springs Resort draws from the Guinness World Record–verified deepest geothermal hot spring to heat its 24 outdoor pools, ranging in temperature from 89ºF to 114ºF. The multitiered layout includes several waterfalls; a large, cooler-water swimming pool; a jetted tub; a goldfish pond; and plenty of lounge chairs and shaded tables for taking breaks from the steamy pools. There is also a full-service spa on-site.

About 7 miles west of town, the Strawberry Park Hot Springs is a bit remote and rustic, although only the winter drive on the gravel portion on the road is challenging. The way the pool is set up to offer semi-privacy makes for an intimate setting and relaxation. It's family oriented during the day, but after dark clothing is optional, and no one under 18 is admitted. Feel free to bring food to eat in the picnic areas. A variety of massages, including aquatic-style, are offered next to the pools. You can bring your own towel or rent one for $5.

The primary Yellowstone caldera was created by one massive volcanic eruption, but a later eruption formed the West Thumb, an unusual and particularly photogenic geyser basin because its active geothermal features are on the shore of Yellowstone Lake. Two boardwalks loop through the basin and showcase a number of sites, including the stunning blue-green Abyss Pool and Fishing Cone, where fishermen used to drop their freshly caught fish straight into boiling water without ever taking it off the hook. This area is popular in winter, when you can take advantage of the nearby warming hut and stroll around the geyser basin before continuing your trip via snowcoach or snowmobile.

Located just north of Old Faithful is a remarkable collection of colorful hot springs and vibrant geothermal pools. However, visitors should be aware that the area is closed indefinitely due to a hydrothermal explosion that occurred on July 23, 2024, at Black Diamond Pool. The blast severely damaged the boardwalk and nearby infrastructure. While the eruption was not volcanic in nature, continued small explosive activity has been recorded, including a minor eruption captured on webcam in May 2025. For visitor safety, the site remains off-limits, and reopening will depend on ongoing geological assessments. Check nps.gov for current closure information.

There are a dozen hot springs and geysers nearly opposite the cloverleaf entrance from Grand Loop Road to Old Faithful. Emerald Pool is one of the prettiest. It's an easy 1½-mile walk, ski, or bike ride from the Old Faithful area, or you can drive and park right in the middle of the basin.

You can soak for an hour or a day at Bozeman Hot Springs, which offer 12 pools (including both indoor pools and outdoor pools), a sauna, spa, fitness center, and juice bar.

About 60 miles northeast of Fairbanks, the Chena Hot Springs Resort offers guests winter snow coach rides to a yurt on Charlie Dome with a 360-degree vista of nothing but wilderness—and a good chance of viewing the northern lights. The resort also offers a heated log cabin "aurorium" a short hike away. Guests can even arrange a wake-up call when staff spot the lights.

Originally used as a winter camp by the Shoshones, this popular recreation area has one of the world's largest natural hot and cold springs. Mixing water from the two springs allows for a variety of pools with temperatures ranging from 80°F to 105°F. The complex in Honeyville, about 11 miles north of Brigham City, has its own campground, hot tubs, a large soaker pool, a cold freshwater swimming pool, two water slides, and a lap pool.

Come to this newly renovated, luxurious hot springs resort to soak your aching bones after a day of hiking or skiing. The complex includes an Olympic-size, saltwater swimming pool infused with aquagen, and 27 total natural mineral pools ranging from 98°F to 110°F; all are open year-round. The pools are outdoors, perched at the base of the mountain and thoughtfully designed to blend in with nature. The grounds also feature a spa, sauna, reflexology path, food carts and fire pit, stage for live music, stream, separate adults-only area, and hydrotherapy "yin-yang" pool.

Even before the heyday of the adjacent Hotel Colorado, Western notables such as gunslinger Doc Holliday came to take advantage of the area's curative spring waters. The smaller pool at Glenwood Hot Springs is 100 feet long and maintained at 104°F. The larger is four times that size and contains more than a million gallons of constantly filtered water that is completely refilled every six hours and maintained at a soothing 90–93°F. Seasonal favorites include a children's area with a splash pad, fountain, waterslides, and an on-site pizza stand and café.

Soothing thermal baths in pristine outback country await in the heart of the Bridger–Teton National Forest, just a short drive south of Jackson. Concerted local and federal efforts have preserved the wild lands in this hunter's and fisherman's paradise where ranches dot the Teton Valley floor. The Snake River turns west and the contours sheer into steep vertical faces. By Hoback Junction there's white-water excitement. The drive south along U.S. 191 provides good views of the river's bends and turns and the life-jacketed rafters and kayakers who float through the Hoback canyon. At Hoback Junction, about 11 miles south of Jackson, head east (toward Pinedale) on U.S. 189/191 and follow the Hoback River east through its beautiful canyon. A tributary canyon 10 miles east of the junction is followed by a marked gravel road to Granite Hot Springs, in the Bridger–Teton National Forest. Drive 9 miles off U.S. 189/191 (northeast) on Granite Creek Road to reach the hot springs. People also come for the shady, creek-side campground and moderate hikes up Granite Canyon to passes with panoramic views. You'll want to drive with some caution, as there are elevated turns, the possibility of a felled tree, and wandering livestock that can own the road ahead on blind curves. In winter, the road is not plowed, and access is possible only by snowmobile, dogsled, skis, or fat bike from the highway. The 93°F to 112°F thermal bath at the end of the road is pure physical therapy.

After a long day of hiking the dunes, take a dip in the soothing soaking tubs inside the 10,000-square-foot greenhouse at the Sand Dunes Pool. Just 30 minutes northwest of the park is a sanctuary that offers 70ºF comfort year-round. Visitors 21 and older can soak in four hot tubs ranging from 98ºF to 111ºF, or take a dip in the large, 98ºF swimming pool surrounded by lush gardens. A bar offers cocktails and sweet and savory small plates. For families, a giant outdoor pool with views of the Sangre de Cristo mountains is a popular amenity.

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.

Idaho Springs presently prospers from the hot springs here at Indian Hot Springs Resort. Around the springs, known to the Ute natives as the "healing waters of the Great Spirit," are geothermal caves that were used by tribes as a neutral meeting site. The hot springs, a translucent dome–covered mineral-water swimming pool, mud baths, and geothermal caves are the primary draws for the resort. You don't need to be an overnight guest to soak in the mineral-rich waters; day rates start at $23 for the geothermal cave baths (depending on type of bath and day of week), $25.50 for outdoor Jacuzzi baths, and $19 for the pool. The plain but comfortable spa offers massages and facials.

With its mighty blasts of water shooting as high as 200 feet, the Great Fountain Geyser is this basin's superstar. When it spews, waves cascade down the terraces that form its edge. Check at the Old Faithful Visitor Center for predicted eruption times. Less impressive but more regular is White Dome Geyser, which shoots from a 20-foot-tall cone. You'll also find pink mud pots and blue pools at the basin's Fountain Paint Pots, a unique spot because visitors encounter all four of Yellowstone's hydrothermal features: fumaroles, mud pots, hot springs, and geysers.

Called "Hell's Half-Acre" by writer Rudyard Kipling, Midway Geyser Basin contains the breathtaking Grand Prismatic Spring and is an even more interesting stop than Lower Geyser Basin. Boardwalks wind their way to the Excelsior Geyser, which deposits 4,000 gallons of vivid blue water per minute into the Firehole River.

To relax sore muscles after your outdoor adventure, visit Mt. Princeton Hot Springs Resort, 8 miles from Buena Vista. The resort has four pools open year-round and a fifth in the summer, plus several "hot spots in the creek"—the water temperature ranges between 97°F and 108°F. The restaurant features mostly fish and steak entrées with creative seasonal specials and has a large stone fireplace and a dramatic view of the Chalk Cliffs. If you're too relaxed to drive home, stay in one of the resort's hotel rooms or log cabins beginning at $320 per night during the summer.

For a bit of relaxation, nothing beats soaking in the natural hot water of the Norris Hot Springs pool. Live musical acts perform on the poolside stage Friday through Sunday nights. There's a $2 cover charge for music. The hot spring is also home to delicious organic food (at the year-round cafe and the seasonal grill), most of which is sourced from the owner's own gardens (and everything else sourced as locally as possible). Camping is also available.

There are more than 150 mineral springs of varying temperatures in the Steamboat Springs area, including this one, in the middle of town. Old Town Hot Springs gets its waters from the all-natural Heart Spring. The modern facility has a lap pool, relaxation pool, climbing wall, and health club. Two waterslides are open noon to 6 pm in summer and 4 to 8 pm in winter; they require an additional $7 fee. The inflatable playground called The Wibit is open Friday to Sunday from noon to 6 pm between June and September, and also requires an additional $7 fee.

The massive, renovated Ouray Hot Springs Pool is brimming with a million gallons of naturally heated mineral water, kept between 78°F and 106°F. Kids love the two large waterslides, bouldering wall, volleyball net, and inflatable obstacle course, while grown-ups can bask in peace in the adults-only pool.

The lakeside spa, on 240 hilly acres near the intersection of U.S. 101 and Highway 46 East, is a great place to relax after wine tasting or festival-going. Soak in a private indoor or outdoor hot tub fed by natural mineral springs, or indulge in a massage or facial.