Things to do in America (Updated, Alphabetized)

[Danoff]

Interested in things to see/do in the US? This is off the top of my head, so I'm sure it's about a third as long as it should be. I'm really interested in some of the things people add to this list.

Alaska

• Lots of Glaciers
• Yukon Territory

Arizona

• Grand Canyon
• Barringer Crater
• Sedona

California

• San Diego (cool zoo)
• Hollywood (LA)
• Disneyland (LA)
• Napa Valley
• Chinatown (SF)
• Golden Gate (SF)
• Muir Woods (not worth it if you did Sequoias) (SF)
• Sequoias
• Yosemite
• Redwoods
• Joshua Tree
• Jet Propulsion Laboratory
• Laguna Seca Raceway
• The Petersen Automotive Museum (Los Angeles)
• Rose Parade
• Bear Mountain (Orange county)
• Rodeo Drive
• Monterey Bay Aquarium
• Pebble Beach Golf Course
• Sears Point
• Jelly Bean Factory
• Raging Waters San Dimas (Water Park) (LA)
• Venice Beach (LA)
• Hollywood Sign (LA)
• Walk of Fame (LA)
• Getty Center (LA)

Colorado

• Pike's Peak (Colorado Springs)
• Royal Gorge (not just the bridge: do the trail above it and go down to the river)
• Air Force Academy
• Garden of the Gods (Colorado Springs)
• Breckenridge
• Vail
• Colorado River (rafting)
• Mesa Verde national Park
• Glenwood Springs natural Hot Springs Pool
• Seven Falls (Colorado Springs)
• Denver Art Museum
• Great Sand Dunes National Monument
• Rocky Mountain National Park

Florida

• Keyes
• Disney World
• Daytona Beach
• Daytona International Speedway
• Everglades
• Kennedy Space Center
• National Museum of Naval Aviation, Pensacola Naval Air Station
• The Bok Tower Gardens Sanctuary
• The Florida Caverns
• Gatorland
• St. Augustine
• Lots of retired people
• Busch Gardens
• Beaches - Forgotten Coast, Panhandle, Pensacola, Panama City, Seaside, Rosemary, Sandestin
• St. George Island
• Apalachicola Bay
• Food - Oysters (Apalachicola Bay), Can you eat Gator in Florida?

Georgia

• Savanahh
• Georgia Mall
• A swamp, apparently
• Appalachian Mts.
• Chattahoochee river raft in Atlanta (very mild rapids, it's no Grand Canyon, but you get wet)

Hawaii

• Never been there, but I think it's pretty much all good.

Illinois

• Grant Park (Chicago)
• Buckingham foundaTain (Chicago)
• Millenium Park (Chicago)
• Sears Tower (Chicago)
• Hancock Building (Chicago)
• Old Chicago Water Tower (Chicago)
• Shedd Aquarium (Chicago)
• Tribune Tower (Chicago)
• Navy Pier (Chicago)
• Planetarium (Chicago)
• Museum of Science and Industry (Chicago)
• Lots of Wind (Chicago)
• Field Museum (Chicago)
• Boat Tours of Chicago Architecture (Chicago)
• Food - Hot Dogs, Italian Beef Sandwiches, Pizza

Louisiana

• Mardi Gras/New Orleans/Etc.
• Swapiness

Maine

• Lighthouses
• Bar Harbor
• Food - Lobster

Maryland

• 
  National Aquarium

Mississippi

• Big River (not worth it)

Nevada

• Vegas
• Hoover Dam

New England

• Salem Mass.
• American Stonehenge
• Appalachians

New Hapshire

• Flume Gorge

New Mexico

• Native American Reservations
• I'm sure there's other cool stuff to do in NM

New York

• Empire State Building (NYC)
• Statue of Liberty (NYC)
• Central Park (NYC)
• Wall Street (NYC)
• Metropolitan Opera (NYC)
• Niagara Falls (Buffalo)
• Lake George
• Montauk Point Light House (Suffolk County - Long Island)
• Yankee Stadium (Bronx)
• 42nd Street and Broadway - You can find the Madame Tussaud's Wax Museum nearby which you have check out (NYC)
• Now that you are in the Theater District, check out any of the Broadway shows that are always playing, you won't be disappointed.
• Rockefeller Center (NYC)
• On the same Building, get up to The Top Of the Rock (NYC)
• Guggenheim Museum (NYC)
• MOMA (NYC)
• Ellis Island (NYC)
• Ground Zero (NYC)
• Times Square (NYC)
• St. Patrick's Cathedral (NYC)
• United Nations Headquarters (East NYC)
• South street Seaport (NYC)
• Grand Central Station (NYC)
• Little Italy or Canal Street (Where I live! )
• Madison Sq. Garden (NYC)
• ALL of Fifth Avenue which includes the NBA headquarters, Tiffany's (don't take your girlfriend there! ) Empires State Building, The Public Library and all the clothing stores you want)
• Roosevelt Island (Between Manhattan and Queens)
• Conney Island (Brooklyn)
• Watkins Glen International

North Dakota

• Largest All Sports Store
• World's Tallest Supported Structure
• Medora

Ohio

• Cedar Point
• Kings Island
• Rock n' Roll Hall of Fame (Cleveland)

Oregon

• Columbia River Gorge
• Water, apparently
• Mt. Hood
• Rose Garden (sounds pretty, but actually it's a basketball stadium
• Shakespeare Festival
• Crater Lake

Pennsylvania

• Andy Warhol Museum (Pittsburgh)
• The Duquesne Incline to Mt. Washington (Pittsburgh)
• Carnegie Science Center (Pittsburgh)
• Kennywood Park (Pittsburgh)
• Primanti Brothers (Pittsburgh)
• Gettysburg
• Food - Cheese Steak Sandwich

South Carolina

• 
  Myrtle Beach

South Dakota

• Mount Rushmore

Tennessee

• Graceland (if you're into that kind of thing)
• Tail of the Dragon/Deals Gap

Texas

• Davis Mountains
• Austin (south by southwest music and film festival)
• Enchanted Rock
• Alamo
• Johnson Space Center
• Food - BBQ, TexMex

Utah

• A billion gorgeous national parks

Virginia

• 
  Arlington National Cemetery

Washington D.C.

• Capitol Building
• White House
• Washington Monument
• Smithsonian Air and Space
• National Aquarium

Washington

• Seattle
• Mt. Rainier
• Museum of Flight
• Space Needle
• Seafair
• Grand Coolee Dam
• Cascades
• Native American Cultures
• Whale Watching
• San Juans
• Mt. St. Helens
• Olympics
• Seattle Center
• Pike Place
• Cruises to Alaska
• Food - Fish

Wisconsin

• Really Big Lakes
• Wisconsin Dells
• Food - Cheese

Wyoming

• Yellowstone National Park (everyone must go here)
• Grand Tetons

 

[HACKr]

Go to New Hapshire, around the Franconia Notch area, and go to the Flume Gorge. Pictures can't do justice to the shear awesomeness of the Flumes.

 

[Loon]

In Maine there's a place called Bar Harbor that's apparently a pretty nice place and tourists flock to his place. If your into the leaves changing colors type a thing this is also a good place to see. There's Eastport, Maine that's the eastern most point in the U.S. Lots of fishing opportunities. You can watch whales. You can also take a ferry over to Nova Scotia and checks things out there. Well thats all I got, I've only lived here for like 8 months and I would rate this place as crap unless your old and into looking at lighthouses and stuff. The state motto I think is Vactionland but I'm not real sure.

So if you find yourself with an opportunity to come to Maine DON'T.

Now for Georgia.

We have part of the Appalachian Mts. here and people usually start/end the trail near the town I used to live in so if your into hiking thats cool, also if your into to driving the twisties we've got some awesome roads in the North East Georgia area with some of the smoothest roads ever. We've got Atlanta and theres a ton of stuff to do there. You could visit Savanahh which is a hot spot for tourists. You could visit Lake Lanier Georgia's biggest man made lake. There's also the Mall of Georgia, Georgia's biggest mall, its 3 storys high and packed with tons of stuff to buy. Helen, Georgia is an awesome place because the entire town is designed with a Dutch/German influence and every October we have Octoberfest and I'm sure everyone knows what goes there. In Cleveland, Georgia, my hometown, is called Gateway to the Mountains which is where Cabbage Patch Kids was originated by Xavier Roberts. If your into enviromental stuff we have the Okefeenokee Swamp which is the biggest swamp in Georgia.

Now my opinion is pretty much biased because I've lived in Georgia all my life almost, but if you do get a chance be sure to check out what the G.a. has to offer.👍

 

[Danoff]

In Maine there's a place called Bar Harbor that's apparently a pretty nice place and tourists flock to his place. If your into the leaves changing colors type a thing this is also a good place to see. There's Eastport, Maine that's the eastern most point in the U.S. Lots of fishing opportunities. You can watch whales. You can also take a ferry over to Nova Scotia and checks things out there. Well thats all I got, I've only lived here for like 8 months and I would rate this place as crap unless your old and into looking at lighthouses and stuff. The state motto I think is Vactionland but I'm not real sure.

So if you find yourself with an opportunity to come to Maine DON'T.

Aw comeon. I've been to maine once. It's not quite as bad as you're making it out to be. Yea, it's pretty laid back (ok, a little boring), but the lighthouses and rocky coastlines are very pretty. It's a fairly unique coastal experience in America.

But yea, other than the lighthouses, just make sure you try the lobster.

 

[TB]

North Dakota
- World's Largest All Sports Store
- World's Tallest Supported Structure

Both within 30 minutes of each other! Yippee!

- Medora

 

[Loon]

Aw comeon. I've been to maine once. It's not quite as bad as you're making it out to be. Yea, it's pretty laid back (ok, a little boring), but the lighthouses and rocky coastlines are very pretty. It's a fairly unique coastal experience in America.

But yea, other than the lighthouses, just make sure you try the lobster.

Well sure its a beautiful place and all but I don't think its all that great if your anywhere in the teenage area. During summer its hell with all the flys, black flys (they bite), and ladybugs that fill you house. It also sucks during the winter because it pretty much always below freezing, then you have to add the wind chill factor on top of that. Plus a lot of the people here are very hard to understand because of their accents, and you always get the "you'a not from round here huh" line.

 

[OZZYGT]

New York State:

• Niagara Falls (Buffalo)
• Lake George
• Bear Mountain (Orange county)
• Montauk Point Light House (Suffolk County - Long Island)
• Central Park (NYC)
• Yankee Stadium (Bronx)
• 42nd Street and Broadway - You can find the Madame Tussaud's Wax Museum nearby which you have check out (NYC)
• Now that you are in the Theater District, check out any of the Broadway shows that are always playing, you won't be disappointed.
• Empire State Building (NYC)
• Rockefeller Center (NYC)
• On the same Building, get up to The Top Of the Rock (NYC)
• Guggenheim Museum (NYC)
• MOMA (NYC)
• Statue of Liberty (NYC)
• Ellis Island (NYC)
• Ground Zero (NYC)
• Wall Street (NYC)
• Times Square (NYC)
• St. Patrick's Cathedral (NYC)
• United Nations Headquarters (East NYC)
• South street Seaport (NYC)
• Grand Central Station (NYC)
• Little Italy or Canal Street (Where I live! )
• Madison Sq. Garden (NYC)
• ALL of Fifth Avenue which includes the NBA headquarters, Tiffany's (don't take your girlfriend there! ) Empires State Building, The Public Library and all the clothing stores you want)
• Roosevelt Island (Between Manhattan and Queens)
• Conney Island (Brooklyn)

That's all I can think of right now, But I'm sure there's plenty of more action in Long Island.

 

[Danoff]

Some good stuff in there DV, I'm going to have to update my list.

 

[wfooshee]

I'll add:

Florida
- Kennedy Space Center
- National Museum of Naval Aviation, Pensacola Naval Air Station

Texas
- The Alamo
- El Paso for my grandchildren (oh, wait, that's my list, not yours.)

Colorado (to be more specific than "duh" )
- Pike's Peak
- Royal Gorge (not just the bridge: do the trail above it and go down to the river)
- Air Force Academy

Georgia
- Chattahoochee river raft in Atlanta (very mild rapids, it's no Grand Canyon, but you get wet)

 

[Slicks]

I've only been to the States once, but I'll add one thing:

California
- The Petersen Automotive Museum (Los Angeles).

Very nice museum, excellent displays that change frequently.

 

[Danoff]

We should also add Laguna Seca Speedway to California, Garden of the Gods to Colorado, Johnson Space Center to Texas, and the Jet Propulsion Laboratory to California.


Oh and Breckenridge and Vale -> Colorado.

Edit: Maybe I shoud alphabetize.

 

[Barracuda]

well in NH you could have seen the man on the mountain but....... he kinda fell, so sad

you could go to York beach in Maine. pretty long beach and pretty cool, i used to go there a lot with my family.

Historic Boston is pretty cool too. go on a duck boat ride ( not what your thinking, it had different initials that sort of spell duck, that why there called that ) they used to be amphibious military vehicles but now are painted up different colors, and they'll take you on a ride through Boston, into the Boston harbor, then back out again and around the city. its pretty cool. Fenway park is pretty cool if you take a tour but very hard to get tickets for a socks game, especially if they're the playing the yankees ( dam yankees )

If you want to watch a soccer game the Gillette stadium in Mass is always fun. over the summer they sometimes have back to back matches with the U.S team vs whoever, then the New england Revolution vs whoever. The games are pretty exciting and are great to watch especially when Twellman scores 3 points in the final 2 minutes to win the game ( that game was crazy )

If you want mountains and countryside go to Vermont. OMG, Vermont is so boring, no offense to anyone who lives there, but its just all old people. nothing that most of you Europeans don't see everyday im assuming. you can spend hours just driving through Vermont and not get anywhere. ( my sister went to a soccer tourney in Vermont and it took us 3 hours to get there from southeastern NH )

If you just want to drive around i do suggest NH though. seeing that i lived there most of my life i've been all around and some of the views are great. If your more of an off road person the Appalachian mountains have a lot to offer. Ive been up a couple mountains with my cousin in an izuzu rodeo and its wicked fun.

well thats all i can think of off the top of my head

 

[Loon]

I can't remember the name but there is the restaurant in Texas where the 72oz steak originated, it's the one that you if eat the entire meal you get it for free. Man I wish I could remember the name, I think the owners name is Bill Lee and its in Amarillo, Texas. I think...

 

[YSSMAN]

MICHIGAN

So what to do in Michigan? Well, there is a lot to do, but it all depends on where you are, and what time of year you are here. I'll try to do as best I can to come up with stuff.

- The North American International Auto Show Held in Detroit every year, it is the big stop for the majority of the Automotive world. I've been to it once, and although I must say that it is rather impressive, I generally would rate the Chicago show better. Still, its worth seeing at least once, especially if you are here in Michigan in January.

- Woodward Ave. Dream Cruise This is like Mecca for any American car fan. Anything and everything shows up at this show once a year, and it literally brings part of Detroit to a halt.

- Greenfield Village This would be the Ford Museum in Dearborn, an outside adventure where you get to see various attractions like how Ford used to live, what his workshop was like, some of Edison's things, etc. The cool part is that it is built next-door to a Ford test-track, so you may get to see some fancy machinery going around the track, if you're lucky.

- Detroit Tiger's Baseball As the runner-up in last year's World Series, the Tigers are looking to make a comeback, and head back to the big show. The energy is awesome, particularly with a sold-out crowd, and certainly is worth seeing given that two years ago, the Tigers were by-far the worst team in all of Major League Baseball.

- Detroit Lions Football Okay, this one isn't as easy to pin down as the Tigers. People in Michigan both love and hate the Lions at the same time, and always do the "this year is our year" at the start of every season. We haven't done anything good in a long time, but by God do we have some of the most-devoted fans in the world. But even if you don't care about Football, the Ford Field alone is worth seeing. Pretty awesome.

- University of Michigan/ Michigan State Rivalry Game Well, there are a lot of different ways you can do this one... Best time to see it is in the fall at either Michigan or Michigan State for whoever hosts the home game between themselves and the other team... But, it doesn't matter what sport this is in, it is always a big game. In Michigan, you're either a State fan or a Michigan fan, and you can't be both. These are the kinds of things that start bar-fights, get people killed, and how dead bodies end up in lakes and rivers. Really. Okay, not really really, but we don't get along.

- NASCAR NEXTEL Cup at Michigan International Raceway It isn't always a crowd favorite every season, but with the two stops, it is a fairly popular race. Located in Brooklyn, you get a good mix of people who turn out at MIS, and quite often the races turn out pretty well. I've been to a few, and they are a lot of fun, but of times you have to pray for a caution, as they may not always be too exciting.

- Kalamazoo Air Zoo Okay, it has a weird name, but it is pretty cool. Obviously located in Kalamazoo, it basically is a museum that contains a bunch of old fighters, bombers, and attack planes from the last 100 or so years. They've updated the museum quite a lot since my last trip there, as I understand it, its pretty cool. I think they still have the SR-71 there, and that alone is worth the trip...

- The Gerald R. Ford Museum Located in Grand Rapids, the Museum tells an interesting story of the former President from his early beginnings, to the difficult times during Watergate, and to the very end of his life. Just outside of the Museum is his burial place, and is accessible 24 hours a day.

- Grattan Raceway Located in Grattan, Michigan, the raceway is home to a variety of races each year and indeed is one of my favorite race tracks to visit. It is a central hub for SCCA competition each year, as well as a track commonly rented out by the automakers for testing and new product debuts, not to mention test sessions done by various magazines. As someone who used to race on the track, I can verify that it is a rather exciting raceway, and certainly is worth a stop out in the country to see a race.

- The Great Lakes Its what we're known for. Pick one and you'll have a good time... Although I think Lake Michigan is the best one...

- The Mackinac Bridge, Mackinac Island It was once the world's largest suspension bridge, and it is pretty cool. I've been across it twice, and it is freakin sweet. But you've got to go north to get there, but the whole area in and around Mackinac, not to mention Mackinac Island, is pretty awesome.

- The UP (Upper Peninsula) As a "troll" (what Yoopers call us from the lower Peninsula), I probably cannot appreciate everything that the UP has to offer. But my God is it beautiful. If you like the woods, you'll like the UP. It is just breathtaking.

...thats about all I can think of at the moment...

 

[Loon]

Yeah i forgot about timing, if your into ricer style car shows and what not, September 16-18, NOPI comes to the Atlanta Motor Speedway.👍

 

[NoQuarter]

Florida

• Keys
• Disney World -Save your money. Disney is a tourist trap, and way overpriced
• Daytona Beach - See Daytona International Speedway while you're there. It's not just about NASCAR
• Everglades
• Kennedy Space Center
• National Museum of Naval Aviation, Pensacola Naval Air Station

A few off-the-beaten-path places well worth the visit:

The Bok Tower Gardens Sanctuary near Lake Wales
The Florida Caverns in the pan handle, aka the Mariana Caverns.
Gatorland just south of Orlando.

 

[ROAD_DOGG33J]

I guess I'll start off Chicago.

Chicago

-Grant Park
-Buckingham Fountain (center of Grant Park)
-Millenium Park
-Sears Tower
-Hancock Building
-Old Chicago Water Tower
-Shedd Aquarium
-Tribune Tower
-Navy Pier

Of course you also have to try some Chicago-style hot dogs and Italian beef sandwiches

This site has a nice list:
http://www.aviewoncities.com/chicago/chicagoattractions.htm

 

[Delirious]

Ohio: Cedar Point
http://www.cedarpoint.com/

And to a lesser extent, Kings Island
http://www3.paramountparks.com/kingsisland/

Cleveland has the Rock n' Roll Hall of fame
http://www.rockhall.com/

But overall Ohio is a few scattered cities, a lot of suburbs, and a whole bunch of farmland...

 

[Wolfe]

Wisconsin

• Big Lakes

Is this a place that I've never heard of, or are you just saying that we have big lakes?

Wisconsin

• Wisconsin Dells -- Tourist trap, but it's got Noah's Ark, america's largest waterpark, amid a whole bunch of other attractions, arcades, gift shops, etc...

Florida

• Universal Studios Orlando -- better than Disney, in my opinion.

 

[Perfect Balance]

Tail of the Dragon/Deals Gap.

I think that's in Tennesee.

 

[Boz Mon]

Also in Chicago:

Shedd Aquarium
Planetarium
Museum of Sci. and Industry
Field Museum
Theres a tour of Chicago architecture by boat up the Chicago river
Also I believe that theres a tour of the Loop via the 'El

 

[Tornado]

New York: Watkins Glen International
Virginia: Arlington National Cemetery.
Souch Carolina: Myrtle Beach
Wachington D.C.: National Aquarium
Maryland: National Aquarium

 

[1X83Z]

Colorado

• Pike's Peak
• Royal Gorge (not just the bridge: do the trail above it and go down to the river)
• Air Force Academy
• Garden of the Gods
• Breckenridge
• Vale
• Colorado River (rafting)

Georgia

• Savanahh
• Georgia Mall
• A swamp, apparently
• Appalachian Mts.
• Chattahoochee river raft in Atlanta (very mild rapids, it's no Grand Canyon, but you get wet)

 

[Philly]

More for Washington

- Museum of Flight. Concorde, AF1 707, 1st ever 747, SR-71 blackbird, Space stuff.

- Space Needle. Revolving restaurant on top of a big tower left over from the 1962 worlds' fair.

- Seafair F/A 18s, hydroplanes, all on Lake Washington. Happens once or twice a year.

- Grand Coolee Dam. Depression project. One of the largest in the US. I have heard of laser shows there

Cascades. Great skiing, hiking, camping ect.

FISH FISH FISH! Eat the crop of the region, salmon.

Native American Cultures. PNW Indians are not what you see in Westerns. Check them out.

The Woods. There is a lot of outdoor things to do here. Hiking, biking, camping ect.

Cruises. Take a cruise up the inside passage to Alaska.

Whale Watching. Take a cruise around the Sound and see some jumping Orcas.

San Juans. An Archipelago in the north Sound. Resorts and camping. Great for anybody.

Mt. St. Helens. The legendary volcano of 1980 that covered the world in darkness when it blew its top.

Spokane Our other big city.

Olympics. No, not the competition but the isolated mountain chain rising west of the Sound and providing some great wilderness.

Seattle Center. Science, Space Needle, Other artsy and non-artsy stuff.

Downtown Seattle. Good hotels, apparently some great shopping. Great taste of Seattle

Pike Place. An old-school farmer's market, right in the heart of Seattle. French restaurants, open air food stands, other fun commercial stuff.

Some of these are more interesting than others. Most are also in Seattle. Of course, Eastern Washington is pretty lacking.

 

[Max Powers]

Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania:
- The Andy Warhol Museum
- The Duquesne Incline, which takes you to the top of Mt. Washington, where there is a beautiful view of the city
- 3 major professional sports teams, plus college football and basketball
- Carnegie Science Center w/ Omnimax Theater
- Kennywood Park - A classic amusement park with plenty of old wooden coasters along with plenty of modern rides to keep everybody happy.
- Lots of great food in the Strip District, including the original Primanti Brothers, which is a must if you've never been there before.
- Plus plenty of night life in the Strip District, Oakland (Pitt campus), South Side, and Station Square.

 

[a6m5]

I love Pike Place Market, Safeco Field, and that big Uwajimaya in Seattle. 👍

I can't believe Danoff put just Colubia Gorge for Oregon. Without us, this country wouldn't have any water.

Let me add a select few:

Mt. Hood

One of my favorite hangout in the world, Rose Garden. Home of the Portland Trail Blazers NBA Basketball team.

Oregon Shakespeare Festival

Multnomah Falls/Columbia River Historic Hwy(Crown Point shown in pic)

Eastern Oregon

Crater Lake

I don't know if the pics are OK. If it bothers anybody, please let me know. If I'm not around to take them down, if any Mods can help out, I'd very much appreciate it.

 

[Pupik]

Florida
* Keys
Not that interesting. More of a sight-seeing locale.

* Disney World
More of a place to possibly replace one stress with another, and forget about anything but fast-pass times.

* Daytona Beach
There's nothing there, unless you're going to a motor race. Driving on the beach isn't as exciting as it sounds, at 5-10mph, it gets old very quickly.

* Everglades
Kind of neat, I recommend going in the cooler times of year (November through March), otherwise you're voluntarily donating blood to mosquitoes.

* Kennedy Space Center
Worth the trip. Don't expect to see shuttles launching every day, though.

* National Museum of Naval Aviation, Pensacola Naval Air Station
Never went there; I would, but it's 12 hours away, and still in the same state as me.

Other recommendations:

St. Augustine
The Old City dates back to the 1500s, although no structures are still standing from that time, its a throwback to the way things were in the early-to-mid-1700s. It's quite different from the rest. of the state in that respect.

I'll post more later...

 

[TheCracker]

Can a limey like me add to the list? - As a tourist myself i can probably offer a few more tourist destinations that the locals might never consider.

Florida

Busch Gardens - a great Theme Park/Zoo.

Sea World - ditto with an aquatic theme.

California

South of San Francisco

Monterey Bay Aquarium - If you like fish this is the place to be. Follow in the foot steps of Kirk and Spock

Laguna Seca - whilst you're in the area why not visit one of America's finest international race circuits.

Santa Cruz - Worth popping into if travelling between Monterey and San Francisco, especially if you're a fan of vampires and Jack Bauer's earlier work.

North of San Francisco

Sears Point - Plenty of top class motorsport to be found here.

Jelly Belly Factory Tour - Because you know you want to. Like Charlie and the Chocolate factory without the Umpa Lumpas.

LA Region

Sixflags Magic Mountain - Great roller coasters (well they were 15 years ago)

Raging Waters water park San Dimas - Follow in the (damp) foot steps of Napoleon

Venice Beach - a real tourist trap but you'll have seen it so many times in films you'll feel you're actually on a film set. Leave before 5pm when the local gangs descend

The Hollywood Sign - Not an official tourist sight as such (with it being illegal to get anywhere near it) but well worth the hassle to actually hop the fences and hike upto it. The view of LA you get at sunset, if you climb one of the letters just has to be the best available 👍 👍 - did i mention it was illegal?

 

[Slick Rick]

Those pics are amazing a6m5! You like cycling too?

 

[///M-Spec]

St. Augustine
The Old City dates back to the 1500s, although no structures are still standing from that time, its a throwback to the way things were in the early-to-mid-1700s. It's quite different from the rest. of the state in that respect.

Old St. Augustine is very lovely, albeit in a of tourist trappy sort of way. I've enjoyed staying there on a couple of occasions. Good 'romantic weekend' kind of place. Not in the dead of summer, though... (Pupik knows what I'm talking about... for the rest of you, try to imagine sweating out your total body weight in 20 mins.. at 10 in the morning)

I recommend:

Florida's Forgotten Coast and Panhandle Beaches. This is the stretch of Gulf beaches that starts at Ochlocknee bay (south of Tallahassee) and extends west to Pensacola. It includes quiet and low key St. George Island, Apalachicola Bay (best oysters in the world, thank you), Panama City Beach (not my favorite, but MTV seems to like it), Seaside, Rosemary Beach and Sandestin.

With the exception of P.C. Beach, it is IMO, far superior to the overly commercialized, crowded, ugly and noisy Atlantic beaches.

On some beaches like Seaside or Sandestin, the sand is utterly gorgeous and almost sugary in color and texture. The towns are small and quaint. The short stretch along US-30a from P.C. to Destin is a great drive and is home to some of the best food I've eaten in my life.

The region has seen some heavy development over the years and some places are overly built up and filled with unsightly high rises, but venture to the smaller towns and there's quite a tranquil air about them.


M