Visit USA 2023 Travel Planner

VISIT USA 2023 Travel Planner

Create your USA experience

AMERICAN DIVERSITY

AMERICA HAS IT ALL Marvel at the breadth of experiences on offer in the U.S.

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AMERICAN DIVERSITY

STEVE HARTRIDGE

Top row: Blues fans head to B.B. KING's BLUES CLUB in MEMPHIS for live music and Southern food classics in a brightly decorated listening room. Rise early and experience a spectacular HALEAKALA SUNRISE from the summit of this dormant volcano that towers almost 10,000 feet over Maui, Hawaii. Dream Catchers: The annual Gathering of Nations in Albuquerque, New Mexico, is the largest Native American Pow-Wow in North America. George Washington, Thomas Jefferson, Theodore Roosevelt and Abraham Lincoln, carved into the Black Hills of North Dakota at MOUNT RUSHMORE. Bottom row : From Alaska to Vermont, GREAT SKIING is on offer in states both west and east. Scale the outside of New York’s 1,200-foot-high 30 Hudson Yards skyscraper – before leaning out from the Western Hemisphere’s highest outdoor deck, Edge. CADILLAC RANCH, a public art installation and sculpture in Amarillo, Texas, features 10 venerable Cadillacs partly buried alongside Route 66. KAYAK AMONG MANATEES in Florida's Crystal River area, 90 minutes north of Tampa.

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AMERICANA

THE CLASSICS Suggestions to explore and discover a taste of quintessential America

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They are as American as apple pie and white-picket fences – those classic sights and sounds you can only see or experience by visiting the U.S.. While there are obvious ways to enjoy Americana – food, music, small towns, blue jeans and more– there

lost in space Immerse yourself in space paraphernalia at Florida’s Kennedy Space Centre. Or reach for the stars at Space Centre Houston, home of NASA’s Mission Control, with over 400 space artefacts and a behind-the-scenes-tour of the Johnson Space Centre. The U.S. Space and Rocket Centre in Huntsville, Alabama, has a Space Camp and one of the world’s largest displays of rockets and space memorabilia.

are many other options that provide a different slant of essential themes Stateside

Pictured Main image: Mardi Gras in Bourbon Street, New Orleans; Above: Space- themed attractions are on offer in Florida, Texas and Alabama; Opposite page, from top: Catch a rodeo in states including Texas, Nevada, Arizona and Colorado; A Silver Airstream in Joshua Tree National Park, California; Seattle’s Pike Place Market

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Many Rural areas offer magical CHRISTMAS DISPLAYS . More than a million people a year visit Oglebay Estate’s Festival of Lights in Wheeling, West Virginia, spread over 300 acres on a six-mile drive. The town of Santa Claus in Indiana has a 1.2-

prison rodeo Rodeos are an American

institution but among the more unusual is Angola Prison Rodeo, held in Louisiana State Penitentiary maximum security jail. As a reward for good behaviour, inmates take part in events such as bull and bronco riding and Prisoner Pinball, played amidst loose bulls in which the last remaining participant wins. go to market Soak up the sounds, sights and character of public markets. On a tour of Seattle’s Pike Place Market, watch vendors throwing fish before they are wrapped for customers. Baltimore’s public market system is the oldest still operating in the US, pre-dating the Declaration of Independence.

“Stroll lesser-known boardwalks in Maryland’s Ocean City, Rehoboth Beach in Delaware, Virginia Beach in Virginia, Kemah in Texas and Mission Beach in San Diego, California"

TRAILER FOR RENT Glamp under the stars in a

mile Land of Lights drive- through experience, naturally.

timeless American trailer. Silver Airstreams have been turning heads on highways for 80 years and you can stay in style in models dating back to the 1950s at The Vintages Trailer Resort in Oregon’s Willamette Valley, as well as in other classic makes. FAT TUESDAY in mobile New Orleans is synonymous with Mardi Gras, its parades and raucous celebrations, but America’s first Mardi Gras festivities were in Mobile, Alabama, in 1703, over a century before the Crescent City’s. Today, an estimated 850,000 people attend numerous parades (there are six on Fat Tuesday alone), parties and other carnival events.

THE 300-foot-high Skywalk, just

east of the Allegheny

National Forest in Pennsylvania, is an observation deck made from the tornado- ravaged remains of the Kinzua Viaduct's huge steel tower.

the Declaration of Independence.

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SPORTS

Getting tickets for the early rounds of the U.S. OPEN TENNIS CHAMPIONSHIP at the Billie Jean King Tennis Centre in New York’s Flushing Meadows games is relatively easy. There's no need to get your skates on to see ICE HOCKEY live. The National Hockey League (NHL) comprises 32 teams that each play 82 games from October to April, with the Stanley Cup Finals ending in June. Ticket prices typically start at just under $100.

SPORTING LIFE The Red Sox, Raiders, Lakers, Penguins and NASCAR await visitors

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Whichever sport you follow, there is nothing like attending a match, game or race while visiting the U.S. For sports such as American football, baseball and basketball, games are more than just sporting contests, they are days out with the chance to make new friends

GO, GO, GO There will be triple joy for Formula 1 fans in 2023 with a new November Las Vegas street race joining Austin’s U.S. Grand Prix in October and the Miami Grand Prix in May. Other top motor races include NASCAR’s Daytona 500 race, the Daytona International Speedway and the Indy 500. To the fore Watch golf's stars play in PGA Tour events on courses across the USA. Tickets for the U.S. Open and PGA Championship majors are readily available. The Phoenix Open held in late January/early February at TPC Scottsdale in Scottsdale, Arizona, also attracts overseas visitors. slam dunk National Basketball Association (NBA) games run from October to June. Tickets for early season and midweek games are often available and average around $90.

TAILGATING Pre-game tailgate parties are a big part of National Football League (NFL) fixtures, from early September until February’s Super Bowl. Many stadiums offer tours on non-game days. Tickets for popular college matches are often easier to obtain.

HOME RUN Knock it out of the park watching a Major Baseball

Las Vegas, the fight capital of the world, hosts top BOXING bouts and MIXED MARTIAL ARTS events.

League (MLB) game complete with beer and hotdogs. With 30 teams each playing 162 games between April and October, tickets are plentiful and start at low as $1.00.

Pictured Main image: The Daytona 500 is the annual 500-mile NASCAR Cup Series season- opener held at Daytona International Speedway. Above: Watch a college football match

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SIX OF THE BEST U.S. Islands

1 MACKINAC ISLAND MICHIGAN Michigan’s coast in Lake Huron. Reached by ferry, the quaint island is car-free so you can only get around by walking, renting a bike and taking a horse-drawn taxi or carriage. You can also hire a horse or rent a horse and buggy to drive yourself. Expect historic hotels with world-renowned chefs to quaint little eateries full of personality. Don't leave the island without trying some famous Mackinac Island fudge. 2 AMELIA ISLAND, FLORIDA A barrier island in the far north-east of the Sunshine State this genteel Southern Belle has seen eight different flags flying over it. You will find 13 miles of unspoilt and uncrowded beaches, pristine nature, luxury beachside resorts – some with golf – and fascinating history, particularly in vibrant downtown Fernandina Beach. In the centre of the island, Egan's Creek Greenway is a new protected 300-acre oasis of marsh landscape with walking and bike trails and home to wildlife like alligators, snakes, marsh rabbits and many birds. Step back in time when you stay on Mackinac, off

5 ROANOKE ISLAND, NORTH CAROLINA Mystery shrouds Outer Banks island Roanoke, where 115 English settlers disappeared soon after founding a colony in 1587. The Fort Raleigh National Historic Site marks the colony’s location, while the Roanoke Island Festival Park tells their story with interactive exhibits and replicas. Other attractions include the North Carolina Aquarium, nature trails and charming towns with local shops, dockside restaurants and art galleries. 6 ISLA DE VIEQUES, PUERTO RICO This tropical speck off the east coast of Puerto Rico has amazing pure white and soft black beaches. However, it is most visited for Mosquito Bay on its south coast, which is recognised as having the brightest bioluminescence waters in the world by Guinness World Records . Best experienced during a new moon, you can see the magical natural phenomenon, which sees organisms produce bursts of bright blue light, on kayak and motorboat tours. Wild horses roam the countryside, much of which is preserved as the Vieques National Wildlife Refuge.

3 NANTUCKET ISLAND, MASSACHUSETTS Crescent-shaped Nantucket has a long seafaring history and has been attracting well-heeled tourists in summer since the 19th century. Today it’s a favourite holiday haunt with stunning sandy beaches, wildlife-rich areas, picture-postcard lighthouses, yacht-filled harbours and Nantucket town’s cobbled streets and cedar shingle-covered houses. 4 LANAII, HAWAII Hawaii’s smallest inhabited island offers a luxury escape with secluded beaches and activities that include off-road 4x4 tours, whale- watching, ziplining over a rainforest, snorkelling, diving, hiking, horse riding and golf. Lanaii is nine miles from Maui, but feels a world away.

main image: Manele Golf Course on Lanai, Hawaii Inset: Nantucket Island, Massachusetts, a summer destination with dune-backed beaches

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THE GREAT OUTDOORS

CALL OF NATURE Suggestions to explore and enjoy some of The USA's scenic wonders

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From Maine to Hawaii you can reconnect with nature by visiting the forests, deserts, mountains, beaches and waterways of the U.S. In fact, stunning wilderness paths, trails that follow old rail tracks, tranquil rivers and lakes, secluded bays and National

Take a wALK IN THE WOODS The Appalachian Trail meanders through 14 states, from Springer Mountain, Georgia, to Mount Katahdin, Maine. Travel writer Bill Bryson set out to hike all 2,200 miles of it and his experience was turned into a book and then a movie, with Robert Redford in the Bryson role. It takes up to seven months to walk the entire trail but most spend a day, weekend or week on the epic hiking route.

and State Parks are among the nation’s many natural assets.

Pictured Main image: A family enjoy hiking in Arches National Park, Utah; Above: The 'Shadow of the Bear' casts itself over Whiteside Mountain, North Carolina; Opposite page from top: The dunes of Death Valley, California: An autumn walk in Vermont; Seagull Beach, Cape Cod, Massachusetts

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Less than three hours from Seattle, Washington State's NORTH CASCADES has more than 300 glaciers alongside ancient forest with towering evergreens and beautiful waterfalls. Back- country enthusiasts can stay in one of more than 140 campsites. America’s Great Lakes – Superior, Michigan, Huron, Erie and Ontario – form the largest group of freshwater lakes on earth. They offer adventures aplenty: cycle, canoe, kayak or cruise their shores, inlets and islands.

Fall for true colours Across the U.S. spectacular autumn foliage presents as a riot of gorgeous colours. Displays of russet, orange and gold light up the mountains and valleys of the New England states but leaf- changing action is on offer in New York, Georgia, North Carolina, Arkansas, Maryland, Pennsylvania, Colorado and Oregon and other states. death valley a wild and natural gem Nestled in the golden sands of the desert that blankets the Arizona- Nevada border, Death Valley is both extreme and beautiful. Activities include hiking, climbing, abseiling, horseback riding and cycling. A visit is often combined with trips to Joshua Tree National Park and the Mojave Desert.

“Annapolis, Maryland, is the gateway to Chesapeake Bay, the 'Sailing Capital of the USA'. Seasoned mariners and beginners alike sign up for boat tours, sailing courses and paddling through numerous scenic tributaries “

cruise the mississippi Take a cruise on a steamboat to experience the Mississippi River, one of the world’s longest. Moving through 10 states, this iconic and powerful body of water flows from Lake Itasca in Minnesota to the Gulf of Mexico. The experience onboard will include live music, regional food and stunning scenery. the cape cod trail Ride, walk or run through six Cape Cod towns as you follow the Cape Cod Rail Trail. There’s plenty to see along the 25-mile trail, with state and national parks to visit along the way. Short side trips on roads lead to national seashore beaches including Coast Guard Beach at the end of the Nauset Bike Trail in Cape Cod National Seashore.

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