50 unmissable US experiences

Words: Hannah Ralph

1. The 16-day Wawa Welcome America festival in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, is a masterclass in pyrotechnics and patriotism. For this year’s 250th celebrations, expect bumper parade floats, food truck-fuelled picnics and the nation’s biggest 4th July party, lighting the skies above the Benjamin Franklin Parkway. 

2. It’s not just America’s big birthday. This summer also marks 50 years of the National Air and Space Museum – one of 17 Smithsonian outposts in Washington, DC. Inside, new galleries show off Lindbergh’s Spirit of St. Louis, a (touchable) piece of the moon and lots of interactive tech. 

3. America’s greatest architect, Frank Lloyd Wright, prized his home state of Wisconsin, but Arizona came a close second. He even chose it for his winter home, Taliesin West. Now a Unesco World Heritage Site, it remains a still-life capsule of his pioneering vision. 

4. The oldest ballpark in America, Fenway Park in Boston, Massachusetts, has long traded on quirks – from its ‘Green Monster’ wall to the red seat marking Ted Williams’ legendary home run. Its Bleacher Bar, a former batting cage, offers one-of-a-kind field views. 

5. Since the opening of Florida’s Universal Epic Universe – with a whole land dedicated to movie villains – Universal Orlando Resort is bigger (and better) than ever. Take in Universal Studios Florida, Islands of Adventure and Volcano Bay to complete the four-park titan. 

6. The Met may have unveiled a new fashion-focused gallery this spring, but New York’s MoMA won’t be outdone: catch its landmark retrospective of Marcel Duchamp, the OG art provocateur, until 22 August, or hit the ‘Unmissables’  – 17 iconic artworks from Van Gogh to Warhol. 

7. Whether you want to slip off to a private hideaway or channel your inner Tom Cruise, many storied coastlines deliver pure cinematic drama. Elevate your itinerary with Georgia’s ravishing Jekyll Island or the glamorous, high energy of LA’s Venice Beach.

8. There’s a reason why Aspen, Colorado, is a snow bunnies’ favourite. The new Flex Pass offers blackout-free access for up to seven days on all four resorts’ butter-soft slopes. Post-descent, make for White Elephant Aspen: a new arrival on the Rockies’ luxury hotel scene.

9. The new Universal Kids Resort in Frisco, Texas, is betting on the littles. Just opened, the 32-acre playground will feature seven immersive lands – home to Shrek and SpongeBob – designed exclusively for toddler-led adventures, with a 300-room on-site hotel. 

10. Location scouts know Hawaii is Hollywood’s shorthand for paradise. Beyond the screen, 2026 encourages ‘mindful tourism’ via the Mālama Hawai‘i programme, where travellers can sign up to volunteer in a soulful recalibration of America’s most tropical escape. 

11. Disneyland Park in Anaheim, California, was built under Walt’s direct supervision. Seventy years on, it celebrates its platinum milestone with new additions (watch out for a roaming Darth Vader) at its ever-evolving Star Wars: Galaxy’s Edge. 

12. Sunburst – a rare Chihuly neon chandelier – welcomes you to Minnesota’s Minneapolis Institute of Art. The institute’s 90,000-strong collection spans six continents, but is particularly hot on Asian art, from ancient fans to contemporary portraits. Best of all? Everything is free. 

13. Known for world-class Pinot Noir, the Willamette Valley is getting fizzy. A new bubbles trail by Method Oregon maps the region’s best sparkling varietals, pinning Willamette as the next Champagne. Just opened Perlée Vineyards even has a dedicated sparkling flight. 

14. Nowhere does Halloween quite like North America, and Savannah, Georgia, is its Gothic heart. From moss-draped cemeteries to haunted hotels such as The Marshall House (a former Civil War hospital), a ghost tour in ‘America’s most haunted city’ is a macabre must-do. 

15. The 9/11 Memorial & Museum remains a powerful testament to New York’s resilience, and, 2026 marks 25 years since the World Trade Center attacks. With reflective pools and emotive exhibits, it’s a poignant tribute to the victims and survivors. 

16. The French Quarter in New Orleans, Louisiana, is the spiritual home of the cocktail and birthplace of jazz – equal parts history, hospitality and hedonism. It’s a staple on any southern food tour, too, with Fried Chicken and Beignet festivals still to come in November. 

17. In the Great Smoky Mountains, which straddle North Carolina and Tennessee, surely the best way to travel is by air. Zip-lining offers an unrivalled perspective of these mist-covered peaks, and some A-plus adrenaline in America’s most visited national park. 

18. Nasa’s feel-good Artemis II mission means only one thing: space is cool again. Celebrate at the Kennedy Space Center in Florida, where 2026’s lunar triumphs meet a lineup of Apollo 11 history, a roamable Rocket Garden and the Saturn V – the largest rocket ever flown. 

19. In Austin, Texas, world-renowned pit-masters are driving the capital’s low-and-slow grilling scene everywhere from roadside trailers to LeRoy and Lewis, a Michelin-starred smokehouse. Drive 30 minutes south to Lockhart – the state’s BBQ capital – or east to Southside Market, the oldest barbecue joint in America. 

20. No USA itinerary is complete without the perspective of its original stewards. Wisconsin’s new Kahnekano·lú Cultural Center – translating to ‘precious waters’ – is a Indigenous-owned landmark honouring Oneida traditions and resilience through contemporary art, reflective spaces and immersive history. 

21. Rising from the Badlands of North Dakota, the new Theodore Roosevelt Presidential Library (opening 4 July) honours the late president’s legacy and the cause to which he dedicated his time in office: conservation. Don’t miss the inaugural exhibition by legendary White House photographer David Hume Kennerly. 

22. The bright lights of New York’s Broadway are twinkling in anticipation of Jamie Lloyd’s Much Ado About Nothing transfer this autumn, starring Tom Hiddleston and Hayley Atwell. Have a pre-show martini at institution Joe Allen, where the theatre crowd wines and dines. 

23. Oklahoma’s 39 tribal nations form an extraordinary tapestry of Indigenous culture. And it’s an exciting time to visit, with the Choctaw Cultural Center marking the historic return of wild bison to the prairies after 150 years, and a new First Americans Museum in Oklahoma City. 

24. This summer, we’re pairing the best exports of Chicago, Illinois: deep-dish pizza and Barack Obama. Start at the new Obama Presidential Center in Jackson Park, home to a sky-high observation deck, before a trip to the Obamas’ favourite Italian Fiesta Pizzeria in South Side. 

25. Since Bad Bunny turned this year’s Super Bowl into a prime-time tribute for his home turf, Puerto Rico has flown to the top of the 2026 charts. Beyond San Juan, discover the US’s only tropical rainforest, striking black sand beaches, and some of the world’s brightest bioluminescence bays.

26. The original winner of the America’s Cup remains a premier sailing playground around its coastline. Try it for yourself in nautical Newport, Rhode Island, or San Francisco Bay, or catch Sail Boston, which makes its once-every-eight-year return, 11-16 July, filling the famous harbour with historic ships. 

27.  Ready for a sugar high? Climb to the top of Pikes Peak – ‘America’s Mountain’ – for the world’s only doughnuts at 14,000ft, fried to a high-altitude recipe. At its base, don’t miss Garden of the Gods, with its russet-red sandstone spires piercing the Colorado sky. 

28. Of the 49 lobster species, none matches the cold-water perfection of Maine’s. The New England icon is best enjoyed in buttery rolls at McLoons Lobster Shack, at the state’s annual Lobster Festival (from 29 July to 2 August), or after hauling traps with the pros. 

29. The Indianapolis 500 is still the ‘Greatest Spectacle in Racing’. Each May for the last 110 years, Indiana’s Motor Speedway transforms into a 230mph, 200-lap blur (the winner swigs a traditional bottle of milk). 

30. If there’s one sure bet in Las Vegas, Nevada, it’s the spectacle, and this year the Backstreet Boys’ Sphere residency (until 22 August) and the F1 Grand Prix (November) are just the start. Plus, it’s the ultimate sequinned springboard to the Grand Canyon or Zion National Park. 

31. If the roadside motel is America’s most iconic stay, the traditional hogans of Shash Diné Eco Retreat are its most profound. Set on ancestral Navajo lands, this Arizonian glamp-site offers Indigenous storytelling under the stars of the same state that pioneered dark-sky tourism. 

32. In the ‘Paris of the South’, Asheville, North Carolina, Biltmore Estate celebrates 131 years with a literal glow-up. Until 18 October, America’s largest home debuts Luminere, using the Gilded Age château as a canvas for cinematic projections detailing its storied history. 

33. A recent poll revealed that Dolly Parton is the most popular American alive – and we’re not arguing. Her namesake Tennessee theme park, Dollywood, is the Great Smoky Mountains’ glitziest go-to, and NightFlight Expedition – a new immersive rollercoaster – is about to take off. 

34. California’s Napa Valley is the undisputed heavyweight of American viticulture, and the harvest season ‘crush’ is its most visceral rite. Jump aboard the famous Napa Valley Wine Train, stopping at Grgich Hills Estate for world-class Chardonnays and old-school grape-stomping. 

35. For its 20th anniversary this September, the Super Girl Surf Festival is bringing elite female surfers to Virginia Beach. Also expect skateboarding and soccer, plus concerts and inspirational talks, in what has become Virginia’s seminal celebration of female empowerment. 

36. Did you know Mustangs, icons of the Wild West, roam the East Coast, too? In North Carolina’s Outer Banks, wild Colonial Spanish Mustangs have galloped over the sand dunes for centuries. Take a 4x4 tour to see these ‘Bankers’ in their Atlantic home.

37. Whether you’re a Chief or Patriot (or just here for some celeb-spotting), the Super Bowl has defined US sports culture since 1966, blending gridiron glory with star-studded halftime pageantry. Join some 123 million viewers for the next showdown in California in February 2027.

38. Move aside Cappadocia – the world’s hot-air-ballooning capital is actually Albuquerque, New Mexico. Every October, a dedicated festival sets the sky ablaze with colour and fire, as 500 vessels ascend against the Sandia Mountains. Visit the nearby Balloon Museum to dive into the region’s sky-high history. 

39. Overlooking the Mississippi, Tennessee’s Memphis Art Museum debuts its $180m downtown home this December. Explore 29 galleries and a rooftop sculpture garden equipped with a sky-high walking track (nothing beats walking in Memphis, right?) and river views. 

40. Many US National Parks inspire you to look up, but Carlsbad Caverns is about what lies beneath. This New Mexican labyrinth includes North America’s largest cave chamber and the famous ‘bat flight’, when thousands of winged creatures take off at dusk. 

41. Alabama was famously home to musical legends such as Nat King Cole and Lionel Richie. In Florence, Alabama, tour the artefact-stuffed home of Alabaman WC Handy, ‘Father of the Blues’, and Muscle Shoals Sound Studio, where the Stones and Aretha famously recorded their irreplaceable sounds. 

42. With forests resplendent in ketchup-reds and mustard-yellows, New England’s autumn is a Gilmore Girls fantasy land. Vermont, Maine, Massachusetts and New Hampshire all offer their own tree-skimming train trips – such as the vintage Conway Scenic Railroad in the latter – that are perfect for leaf-peeping photographers. 

43. Art Basel has turned Miami, Florida, into an iconic art-collecting destination, but the best gallery has always been the city itself. Pair next January’s Art Deco Weekend – the 50th to celebrate those candy-hued façades – with a stay at the newly-reopened Delano Miami. 

44. No, this isn’t a sci-fi set – this 630ft steel curve is St Louis’ ‘Gateway to the West’. Take the one-of-a-kind tram along its winding body and spy Forest Park below – an urban oasis in Missouri that’s almost twice the size of NYC’s Central Park. 

45. Straddling Ohio and Kentucky, Cincinnati is a brewing powerhouse, with more than 60 craft breweries and myriad tours. Descend into Prohibition-era lagering cellars or visit in September for Oktoberfest Zinzinnati – the largest after Munich – and say cheers to the gemütlichkeit. 

Ask a local

Those in the know give their ‘if you do just one thing’ tips

46. “Paddle a birch-bark canoe, craft an ash basket or learn about flint knapping as part of Maine’s Way of the Wabanaki canoe trips, which we’ve run for ten years with members of the Penobscot Nation. Learn about Indigenous history and culture at our guest-favourite campfire circles as you camp.”
By Polly Mahony, co-owner of Mahoosuc Guide Service, Maine

47. “We’re long-time regulars at Icho Izakaya Sushi & Grill in Mesa, Arizona, where Chef Sean’s dishes show that complexity comes from simplicity – perfect sushi rice and subtle flavours. We travel to Japan often and value spots that don’t overlook details like rice temperature and fish quality – and Icho hits every mark.”
By James Beard winners Yotaka and Alex Martin of Lom Wong, Phoenix, Arizona

48. “No one should miss artist Gabriel Dawe’s breathtaking new installation, Plexus No. 47, at Nashville’s Frist Art Museum. Comprising hundreds of yards of colourful, rainbow-like threads zigzagging across the atrium, the prismatic work constantly changes as sunlight streams into the museum’s clerestory and passing clouds create ever-shifting shadows. On view till 30 April, 2028.”
By Mollye Brown, executive director, Arcade Arts, Nashville, Tennessee 

49. “The Coleman Theatre in Miami, Oklahoma, is what made me fall in love with Route 66’s story. I first saw it in 2013 and it blew me away. Not only is it beautiful, ornate and historic, it’s also located on one of the longest Main Streets on all of Route 66.”
By Rhys Martin, Preserve Route 66 manager for the National Trust for Historic Preservation

50. “For a shot of those classic Louisiana cypress trees, you don’t have to go far. Within a couple of hours of New Orleans, Lake Fausse Pointe and Lake Dauterive offer quiet, moss-draped scenes deep in the Atchafalaya Basin, while Lake Martin is easily reached near Lafayette. Get on the water early for that morning fog.”
By Louisiana photographer Charles Bush

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