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The purpose of this post is for folks to recommend (or dis) specific locations in the US for vacation.

Right now I am on vacation in the US.  Observations on this trip:

Savannah Georgia.  An urban planning and architectural wonder.  This city (town) has amazing charm with so much historic relevance.  The book The Garden of Good and Evil did a lot to popularize this town.  It has gone through 2 seiges - one by the British and the second by the Union during the civil war.  The way the town is laid out is that every few blocks there is a "square" with a little park in it - and moving from park to park you see some tremendous mini communities.  Outside the historic distric in town the place strikes me as dangerous - a sharp division in the haves and have nots.  Picking up some beer in a liquor store on the outskirts of the historic district made me uncomfortable - but I am not local.  Overall - I would go back.

Hilton Head Island South Caroline .  Spending several days here.  If you're white and middle to upper class - and are not too concerned about stuff in life you'll love this location.  A tightly manicured set of communities on the ocean on this little island - it is beautiful in many ways.  Architecturaly it reflects the people who seem to live here - rather bland and very homogenous (the only non white people here operate in support jobs for the community).  The ocean is great and in April - before the real heat hits - its nice.  Paying 1000 US for a nice 2 bedroom condo (for 5 days) 5 minutes from the ocean - with a lagoon in the backyard I have been cautioned has alligators in it.  Riding your bike around and doing stuff is quite limited.  This is like a Martha Stewart Concentration camp - everything is under strict control - so much so you can't bike far before running into a "gated community within a gated community".  Coming from Canada - the utter absence of minorties annoys me.  I was appalled to see they don't recycle garbage here - I guess the garbage is shipped off to a less wealthy neighborhood.  Nice stay once - the ocean is great - but I would not return here.

Well, before you get a bad impression about ethnic diversity in the south, a visit to Atlanta is recommended. How long are you staying in the US, and how far do you want to travel?

Only here a week on vacation.  I will be down here for work though for several weeks in Las Vegas and Los Angeles over the next 2 months.

Had to use some grade 9 biology today - hehe - saw a dorsal fin in hte area I was swimming and before shitting my pants concluded it was a Dolphin hehe.

Atlanta was the only city to make me feel uncomfortable.  Our assistant just made a bad hotel booking - I was accosted by about 5 times by guys looking for trouble as I returned to my hotel.  Mental note:  suite = easy money.

I love Princeton NJ, Caramel CA, San Diego (anywhere), New Orleans (French quarter was spared) and Boston.

Minorities you see and where really depends were you are at. In some cities you won't see many at all but in some there are a ton. Heck in small town USA Green Bay Wisconsin where I live there is a very large population of Hmong and people from various parts of South America.

Orlando where I visit often is a pretty huge melting pot you see a bit of everything down there. Hehe another place where you really don't want to get to close to standing bodies of water though.

Are you solely interested in urban areas, or do you also go in for the outdoorsy stuff?

For urban, I'd recommend Memphis, TN, Beale Street specifically.  Go to BB King's and have a blast.

For the great outdoors, it's hard to beat Isle Royale in the upper peninsula of Michigan.  Camping to the sound of wolves howling is friggin' awesome.  Plus, it has moose.

I am a big fan of Virginia and Seattle.  They are so pretty!  Unfortunately I am shackled to Virginia currently due to my ex-wife, but oh well.  I highly recommend checking out some of the historical areas here!



edit.  I said Seattle 'cause eastern Washington sucks donkey balls.  All of VA is nice, minus the DC beltway.  Yucky center of government!

Thanks.  This is a general thread - post on whatever location or event you think is noteworthy as the summer season approaches for travel in the US.  Cheers.

If you are in Vegas and can go out for a a few days I would say drive up into Utah and go to some of the national parks. Zions is real close as is Bryce Canyon (about 2 hours drive).  If you have longer I'd suggest going over to Canyonlands and Arches (bout 4-5 hour drive). Spectacular scenery. 

Come visit sunny phoenix. Get a tan. Or get cancer. Your choice really. Depends on how long you want to be outside.

See! Beautiful Portland, Oregon, home of the largest inner-city forest in the United States! Hike! The great Mt. Hood, with a summit of 12,600 feet! Touch! The marine life in tidepools at our scenic beaches! Feel! The mist of Multnomah Falls, the 13th largest falls in the world! Drink! Beer at something like 15 different microbreweries, including Deschutes, Bridgeport and Rogue!

Seriously, Portland is a great city, and we're only a stone's throw from Seattle.

Home of the Dead Guy Ale?  I'm there!!!

The first thing I'd usually recommend is New Orleans, but now, I'm not so sure. Probably Florida's Emerald Coast -- Specifically, Destin. If you're on your way to another spot in Florida for vacation, stop there first for a few days (Or don't go anywhere else at all...Besides the Keys, the rest of Florida is a drag anyways). It's a small town and doesn't have the wildest nightlife, but what makes it stand out is the best beach in the entire country (to my knowledge at least...and I've been to a few of them). Not too overcrowded or unspoiled, and with white sand so clean it'll squeak in your feet. If you're interested in anything beach/ocean related (though I'm not too sure about fishing), then this should be your best bet (and one of the most affordable ones at that)

 

Bleh, this just reminds me that I really have no desire to "travel" through the US if it's not for skiing.

Lived in California as a kid. I liked it, but nothing compels me to go back. Also took a trip or two into Oregon, but seeing as I was a child, I found it kind of boring.

Been up and down the east coast. Vermont is pretty cool, but only if you like snowsports. Anywhere south of that? Bleh.

Been to multiple places in "Middle America." I wasn't amused.

But that's me, and maybe it has to do with the kind of things I'm interested in when I travel. It takes a lot for me to be interested in a place. I'd rather see some different areas of France, see Amsterdam and the Netherlands for more than 2 days, or Germany, or some places in Eastern Europe (PRAGUE), or even go to China and/or Japan and/or Korea.

I already live in the US. I need something for "foreign."

Eddie Izzard:

"I grew up in Europe -- Where history comes from...

...

Disney came over and built "Euro" Disney, and they built the Disney castle there, and we were like, "You better make it a bit bigger, they've actually got them here... And they're not made of plastic!"


I agree for the most part that America can't compete with that..

New England has some of that charm though, I guess (except Jersey heh).

Then again, many people from all over the world come to the city I live in for it's "history" (San Antonio). I don't understand it myself -- It's not like John Wayne's version of Texas history is actual history.

China I can understand too.....But Korea? You'd rather be in Korea than NYC, San Francisco, New Orleans, the Emerald Coast, or Hawaii? You're just talking shit now.

Honestly, I just threw it out there. But on thinking about it...Yeah, I'd rather be in Korea.

I've been to NYC. It's filthy and a pain to drive in if you don't live there. I cannot think of a reason I would go back.

I use to live within 2 hours of San Francisco. It's beautiful, sure....but I want more than that.

My parents went to New Orleans for a week. They came back 3-4 days later because they ran out of things to do besides eat and drink.

Emerald Coast? It's just a beach to me, and I don't like the beach. Besides, I've been to Capri. Not much compares once you've been there, and certainly not a simple beach in Florida. I've been to Florida, and I'm not sure how much money someone would have to pay me to willingly go back.

Same thing with Hawaii, kind of. I'm sure it's gorgeous. But I'm not one for the beach, and I get extraordinarily bored at bars or clubs, so I don't imagine I'd have much to do there either.

Keep it focused on the US if you can guys.  Yup there are many places to visit in the world...

Deadwood South Dakota (http://www.deadwood.org/)

Austin Texas (http://www.austintexas.org/home/)

Fort Collins Colorado (http://www.ftcollins.com/)

Cody Wyoming (http://www.codywyomingnet.com/)

Key West Florida (http://www.fla-keys.com/)

Highly recommend all of them.  Key West is a lot like New Orleans in that it really is a city that resides physically, but not spiritually in the US.  Probably the farthest out of the way would be Deadwood, but if you happen to be in the area, I would certainly recommend staying the night there over say Rapid City.  Fort Collins is a great college town set in the north western edge of the Rocky Mountains and has a very interesting down town.  I would recommend Salt Lake, but have not spent a lot of time in the down town area.  Austin is currently home and it really is the live music capital, damn good BBQ also.

I like to think of Austin as a fun place to live, but not necessarily to visit as a vacation spot...Unless a person was going to stay for a few weeks.

Depends.  If he is travelling through, I think Austin is a great spot for dinner and an evening out.  Schild and Shock were here recently, what do you two think?

Come to Soprano Land... it'll make everywhere else look great!

(http://www.ananova.com/images/web/80684.jpg)

Hilton Head is a well-regulated golf community.  Nice for golfing and biking.  For ocean stuff, I prefer the Gulf.  It's nice that you can buy beer on Sunday there.

Atlanta is really nice, sorry you had a bad experience.  Try to think of it as a small town with a population of over 4 million.  There is a huge variety of locations in the metro Atlanta area and the minorities in the southeast tend to congregate here.  Now we have that humongous aquarium, too.  I haven't been yet.

Amelia Island, just outside Georgia in Florida, is pretty nice if you like the beaches, biking and historical ruins.  We stayed in a B&B on the water and it was nice and quaint and such.

Do not ever go to Jacksonville, FL.

I always have a good time in Williamsburg, VA.  I like pancakes and history.  The service, when staying in the historic town, is not that great, but you are surrounded by pancake houses named after famous Colonial types.  Plus there is Busch Gardens, and they have a new dark ride.

I go to Walt Disney World every year, but I guess you are looking for other suggestions.

I am told that driving the California coast is awesome.

I didn't care for San Diego.  I know I am an outlier.  I suppose it was because I wasn't rich enough or poor enough, plus the weather bothered me.

Don't go to Pittsburgh.  Or Newark.  Just stay out of New Jersey completely.

I liked the Nevada desert.  Trying to convince the wife to rough it in the desert one day.

Yegolev,

Spill some on Jacksonville.  Got a friend of mine moving there in the near future for a professorship and I would be happy to pass along any potential pitfalls that move might include.

Thanks!

I'm in San Diego, and a problem for most visitors is they just don't readily see what's available.  Downtown is a lot of fun for most business travelers and/or couples.

I really like sailing, so it obviously appeals to me.

Whatcha looking to do, besides Vegas?

Hoover Dam and the Grand Canyon are both pretty close to Vegas.  You can get out to the dam, do a tour, and back to vegas in a bit over half a day, You'll probably want to have an overnight stay on a trip to the canyon, because theres enough to see there that you can pretty easily spend 4-6 hours in the park..whichever side you go to.  You can't usefully go to both in a single day, but both are definitely worth seeing.

I had an internship at Hilton Head, and had a chance to live there for a few months.  There is an absolute lack of culture, but the beach is nice.  Pickney Island is one you hop (you're on it for a hundred yards or so) when going to HH, and it's a wildlife refuge.  Nice if you like hiking, although I would recommend doing it with a bike.  It's large enough to be daunting on foot, and if there's any heat you'll get exhausted.  About the only scenery besides the beach and golf (there are a lot of nice courses) is the harbor, inside Sea Pines Plantation (the only one that's accessible to the public).  Nice to walk around the harbor, as well as bike around Sea Pines.  You can charter boats for this or that around the area, but not much else here.

Savannah has a wonderful historic district, but no, don't leave it.  The waterfront is wonderful.  If you like looking at art, this is a great town as there is a local art college that helps feed the shops.  Architecture in the city squares is nice too, if you're into that.  Between this and Charleston, Savannah is better for art, but Charleston better for history (Civil War stuffs).  Similar problems with the historical district here as with Savannah - don't stray too far from them, but it's not as immediate as Savannah is.

Went to the Canyon recently, and that was fun.  Gorgeous scenery.  It's worth it to hang around until night if you can.  People leave near dusk, and once it's dark it's frightening how quiet it is (except for the occational plane).  Don't stay very late past dark - on my way out I saw a pack of coyotes or wild dogs.  You really are in the middle of nowhere, as you'll realize on the last hour while heading to it, or even the drive between any of the lookout points.  Keep your gas tank full.

If you are an Eastern Canadian, then I'll agree with visiting the Pacific Northwest. If you are a Western Canadian, then you already live in the real Pacific Northwest, so don't bother.  :)

Traveling for business the last couple years, I've hit Vegas, San Fran, Orlando, and Washington DC. My general oppinion is that almost every city has something interesting to see and do if you know where to look. Of those four corners of America though, I would say I found DC to be the least interesting.

Vegas is a world unto itself, San Fransisco remided me of home, and Orlando was just really nice and warm in the winter.

Yeah, stay out of New Jersey....Delaware too....also eastern Pennsylvania, unless you HAVE to see Olde City Philadelphia.

It may be a bit trite, but I would have a hard time believing that any tour of the US was complete without visiting Washington DC for the Capitol/monuments/museums.  Plus we have a baby panda and the weather is great this time of year.  Also, go to NYC.  Just go to Manhattan and wander around.  It's like nowhere else.

If your thing is nature, since you are canadian I would recommend going to southern new mexico, to the forests and deserts there. I'm pretty certain there's not much like it in Canada. Check out White Sands national monument for totally trippy experience. Oh and don't go to Seattle. Its just Vancouver with pimples and an attitude.

If you are going to be around White Sands I recommend a trip over to the painted desert and then popping down to Joshua Tree National Park.  They aren't all that close together but two days should get you to see most of it.  And of course then depending on the time of year head up to Big Bear Mountain for some skiing or hiking (three hours from Joshua Tree).  If it was me planning the trip after 3 days of wilderness some city life would be in order so I would go either west to San Diego (4 hours from Big Bear) and hit up dinner and clubbing in the Gas Light District (with an eye to shopping the next moring in La Jolla or a day trip to Baja Mexico, Mmm Steak and Lobster in Rosarita or Papas and Beer in Ensenada ~ three hours from the border) or east to Los Vegas and it's attendant charms.

Come to Cleveland!


We have the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame and that's about it...


Although if you're into amusement parks Northern Ohio isn't a bad choice for Cedar Point (Sandusky) and a side trip to Geauga Lake (Aurora - formerly six flags but bought by Cedar Point). Cedar Point is usually top in the country as far as roller coasters go. Six Flags isn't that great but it's also not that crowded and won't take more than a 15-20 minute wait to get on most rides.

Altough the new ride at Cedar Point this year is just kind of meh:

http://www.cedarpoint.com/public/park/rides/thrill/skyhawk/



I was in Key West last year on vacation and it's a great place to visit for a long weekend. No need to spend an entire week there like we did though. It's definately a drinking vacation but after about 4 days you run out of new bars to go to and new places to visit. We made a couple mistakes on that vacation. First we decided to fly into Miami and rent a car to drive down. We thought it would be a nice scenic drive through the keys and would be useful to have a car. The drive sucked for the most part and we never once took the car anywhere. The second mistake was not splitting time between Key West and South Beach. We spent the day in South Beach before our flight left and it would have been worth spending 2 nights or so there to really check it out.

True that.  My first business trip to NYC was quite memorable.  The highlight for me was the privately run Frick art gallery - very impressive.  Of course the American Museum of Natural history  has one of the most impressive fossil collections in the world.  I can now visit that city without falling into the trap of shelling out 20 bucks for a hamburg  :-D

The Washington mall I found to be quite moving - the multipanel Vietnam memorial and the exhibit around Abraham Lincoln.  I was quite taken, and noticed how people around me were too.


hehe.

I like the caves of Virginia and the mountains in Vermont/NY.

I despise any population center. You seem to like cities, so I won't go on beyond that.

The aforementioned Joshua Tree park is great, I did a lot of rockclimbing there when I was in the band.

I like them both actually.  The bulk of my US travel has been on business - so my experiencs is biased towards cities.  I am a sea kayaking novice - love the activity.  My kayaking has been done in Canada though - Nova Scotia and British Columbia.  Been meaning to check if kayaking exists in the grand canyon.

A friend of mine went there to see Rob Zombie about a month ago.  He termed it "a shithole".  Unless you like sharing hotels with hookers.  Apparently, across the street from anything nice is a horrible slum.

A few years ago, a recruiter was trying to get me to take a job at IBM in Jax.  Without prompting, he said "Jacksonville isn't as ethnically challenged as you think."  I decided at that point that Jax must be a cesspit.

I also know someone on another forum who lives there and he is pretty sure it sucks.

I went to the animal park, spent a while in La Holla, ate some good food.  I stayed in the Del Coronado.  It's the weather that got me, really.  Otherwise, nice place.