If seeing everyone’s European vacations take over your Instagram feed has left you with major FOMO this summer, you want to know the best cure? Find a way to have a unique experience in your own metaphorical backyard! While eating risotto in Lake Como sounds like a dream, seeing wild horses on the beach of a beautiful island you can only reach by boat is pretty cool, too. And the best part? If you live in the United States, it won’t take you a 12-hour flight to get there, because all of the following too-cool-to-be-true places are in the United States.
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If you think this is a photo of the Sahara, think again, because you are actually looking at ColoradoGreat Sand Dunes National Park is home to the tallest dunes in North America and is such an unexpected find for the state that it will make you feel like you've been transported to Africa.
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Ever wanted to find your own diamonds, rubies, or sapphires? Well, you can mine them in several states, including North Carolina, Arkansas, and Montana. Each of these states has dozens of mines that are open to the public and allow you to pay a small fee for access and equipment, but then let you keep what you find. The staff will usually help you clean and evaluate your gems so you can figure out which ones might be worth a nice chunk of cash (or at least which ones will make a nice piece of jewelry).
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If you prefer the gold rush, there are several places in the Southwest where you can pan for gold, just like the prospectors of the Old West did, such as the ghost town of Goldfield in Apache Junction, Arizona. Many of these sites have preserved or restored the buildings of these old mining towns, and if you believe in ghosts, many are haunted enough to offer tours where you can hear the gruesome and horrific stories of what happened.
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Most people think that you have to travel to a remote location, or at least hike all the way to Alaska, to try to see the northern lights. But there are actually several locations in the continental United States that are prime viewing spots, such as the Idaho Panhandle National Forest, Voyageurs National Park in Minnesota, and Cherry Springs State Park in Pennsylvania.
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If you're looking to visit Holland or Denmark, why not check out these towns that were built by the settlers to resemble their home countries? Holland, Michigan was settled in the mid-19th century by Dutch immigrants and to this day features many tributes to their heritage, including an annual tulip festival and a 250 year old windmill.
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Some of the most unusual beaches in the world are in the United States, with rocks that “sing.” Jasper Beach is located in Acadia National Park in Maine and is a popular destination for hunting for sea glass hidden along its shores, made up of polished red jasper stones. However, the tinkling sound the waves make as they wash away from the shore has earned it the nickname “Singing Beach.” Iona Beach in Minnesota, which is distinguished by its salmon-pink shores, is also known for this phenomenon.
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If you’re dying to don some lederhosen to celebrate beer at Oktoberfest, look no further than Leavenworth, Washington, which models its city after Bavaria, Germany, and is known for pulling out all the stops for the annual festival. It sets itself apart from its European counterpart by showcasing local breweries.
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If you want to see the tallest forest in the world, according to Guinness World RecordsHead to Humboldt Redwoods State Park in Northern California. The Rockefeller Forest in the park is home to redwoods that are over 700 years old and reach over 360 feet tallthe highest reaching 379 feet.
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The Bonneville Salt Flats in Utah are a truly surreal landscape and, much like their Bolivian counterpart, offer a breathtaking sight when it rains, as the water reflects its surroundings, creating the illusion of an endless sky.
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If you want to satisfy your Ice Age curiosity, head to La Brea Tar Pits in Los Angeles, California. As the name suggests, it’s unique in that it oozes tar in the middle of Hollywood, but it also happens to be an ongoing paleontological research site.
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Looking to escape the noise and crowds of modern life? Cumberland Island in Georgia is accessible only by boat, meaning there is only one lodge and a few campgrounds on the entire island. As a result, it has remained remarkably untouched, allowing the ecosystem to thrive to the point that wild horses roam the beaches.
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If you want to visit Plitvice Lakes in Croatia, don't miss the Hanging Lake Park in Colorado. It is one of only two “hanging lakes” in the world, so named because it is “suspended” on the edge of a cliff.
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Curious to know what it was like to be a pilgrim back then, before America had everything 50 States? Well, you can actually visit a town in Virginia that has an entire neighborhood transformed into a living history museum, known as Colonial Williamsburg.
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Antelope Canyon in Arizona has become an Instagram favorite with its stunning brick-colored rock formations, but for good reason. There’s no other place in the world quite like it. The land belongs to the Navajo people and is considered a sacred site. So it’s not open to the public outside of official tours, but that means you can hear legends and facts about it from people who truly cherish the space.
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The Hoh Rainforest in Washington State embodies the almost eerie, otherworldly beauty found only in the Pacific Northwest. The tree trunks throughout the forest are covered in lichen, so that everywhere you look there is green and fuzz, making you feel like you've been dropped into a prehistoric place (or like Edward Cullen could appear at any time!).
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Weeki Wachee, Florida is a freshwater theme park located in the middle of a beautiful state park and is the only place in the world where you can see professional mermaids perform. A theater was dug beneath the water's surface when the theme park was built in 1947, allowing the public to watch synchronized ballets or, more recently, reenactments of The Little Mermaid.
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Mount Rainier National Park in Washington State is arguably one of the most beautiful places in the world, especially in early summer when alpine wildflowers bloom on the snow-capped mountaintop. Where else could you experience two different seasons side by side?
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Badlands National Park in South Dakota is not only one of the most visually stunning national parks in the United States, with its canyon of striped rock formations and a long stretch of grassy plains, but it is also home to some really interesting wildlife, such as bison, bighorn sheep and prairie cows. dogswhich can be observed in their natural habitat.
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There are cruises all over the world, but only in the United States can you still find one where you can spend the night on an authentic 19th-century paddle steamer. The Delta Queen offers a variety of voyages on the Mississippi, Tennessee, Cumberland, and Arkansas Rivers, with stops at ports from Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, to New Orleans, Louisiana.
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Yellowstone is one of the most popular national parks in the country, and for good reason. It would be easy to spend weeks here admiring all of its unique natural wonders. However, you definitely shouldn’t miss the Grand Prismatic Spring, the largest hot spring in the United States. What makes it so breathtaking is its rainbow of colors, which look like they were Photoshopped but are actually the result of a genius scientific reaction (don’t ask, it ruins the magic).
Are there any other incredibly beautiful or unusual places in the United States that we missed? Let us know in the comments!
