Holidays in the US

Hi all

So my hubby and I are looking to holiday in the US next November and I am looking for places to visit.

We are meeting with friends in Florida at some point but I am looking for the not so known attractions/places to visit. Any and all locations are fine as we will have approx 4-5 weeks over there. No corner is off limits and then we can work out an itinerary and see what’s works and what will needed to be saved for another trip.

All our brochures have, I guess, the most famous. Disney parks, Memphis, Nashville, Route 66, New York, Los Angeles, etc. and while I want to include some of these, I would also like to get the opportunity to visit some of the lesser known places.

Any suggestions would be greatly appreciated by those in the US and those that have travelled as well.

Thanks in advance.

Oh, what a fun trip! I'm in the Midwest so you probably wont' want to visit us as it gets pretty cold in November (it's snowing and about 10 degrees F today) but we have many members here from all around the US that should be able to help you find the 'diamond in the rough' places!

If you're a Harry Potter fan, be sure to check out the Wizarding World of Harry Potter at Universal Orlando (Florida). I haven't been but I'm dying to go someday. I went there before it was built but I loved the JAWS shark experience, scared the heck out of me!

If you decide to venture to Iowa, let me know otherwise I'll let the members who actually live in these areas offer their help!

My son went to Universal Orlando and said the Harry Potter stuff was excellent!

I wouldn't know, when he first told me about Harry Potter I thought he was saying hairy otter

I can also say a few words about Texas if your planning to come here.

Oh you must come to NYC for 2 very intresting events. One is the Museum of Holography, located in downtown lower east side and worth a day for those interested in things that are really there but apear not to be. The other is the Pychic Fair, held on... well you should know already if you're interested.

Honestly, unless there is a language change, once you see the cannons in the little downtown parks change there is not much difference in American cities.

In the upper mid-West is the Great Lakes States and with Canada surround the Great Lakes, which center around the State of Michigan. November in this region can be cold and stormy. Wonderful area to visit in the nicer weather during North America's Summer Months. There are hundreds of Natural, Historical and Commercial places to visit.

East coast is cool..Nice driving and lots of cool towns. If you could do a trip from NYC down the coast, that would be cool. I have heard that Maine etc is also very pretty, but I have never actually driven through there. It would start cold and get warmer as you went farther south.

Smokey Mountains in TN are beautiful (Smokey Mountain National Park)---lots of hiking and scenery but cheesy tourist trap towns around them. Coldish in Nov


Colorado is crazy....the rocky mountains are pretty massive, but driving on these mountain roads would be daunting if your country drives on the left (didn't see where you were from). Cold in Nov

Coastal California is pretty, as is the West coast north of CA, but LA is over-rated. Seattle or Olympia (Washington) are cool. There is a rain-forest there. Cool-cold in november (depending on how far north you go)

The North woods area in Wisconsin is beautiful (lots of beautiful spring-fed lakes clustered together) too but lots of this stuff might be harder to enjoy with colder weather. Cold in Nov



What are you wanting to do? Shop, hike, drive?


In terms of your list:

Definitely New York! You could spend years there and still never see all of the random little shops etc.



Memphis: It is cute, kind of a party town. If you want to drink and go around on Beale street, then that is fun, but I wouldn't say it is mind-blowing, but it is fun.


LA: Not as cool as everyone seems to think...I guess it is worth seeing...It is very expensive and plastic lol--there is a lot of good food there though, and nice beaches outside of LA.

Nashville: I have driven through a few times and didn't strike me as super impressive, but then again, I didn't explore much. It depends on what you are into. Nashville is famous for country music.

Route 66 is long---much of it is depressing. I haven't driven it, but it isn't what it used to be, as I happen to live near part of it. It probably would be fun to drive through all of the strange little towns...There is a highway that connects CA to the east coast (New Jersey)...Highway 40----I haven't done it, but I would like to drive it if I had the time.

I love St Augustine, and the Alligator farm has hundreds of alligators, saltwater Crocs, and other crocadillians. Plus you are sure to see some American wading birds. Also a few miles from St. Agustine is Marineland and tho not large has great viewing of Dolphins, abd for a fee you can swim with the dolphins. Kennedy Space museum at Cape Canaveral is worth a visit, the Bok towers, Crystal River Wildlife park , I'm nit sure if I read what part if Florida you will be in?? Wevhace beautiful crystal clear springs abd many will have Mannatees in them at that time if year. I'm a nature girl so I live to recombine things like that

Also my favorite spot in the world is Cumberland Island State park you take a ferry ride from St Mary's Georgia to the coastal island you will see many many wild horses, deer, armadillos, on the ride you will probably see wild dolphins, there are ruins , and lots of beautiful views and nature walks, pink spoonbills , wood storks ect, beautiful wild beach you can walk abd find shells..

Much of the US will be cold and/or snowy in November. Being from Australia, where to my understanding there isn't many places that get a whole lot of snow, the winter weather may be in an of itself a novelty to you

IMO, our national parks system would be a great place to start with when looking for some of the best of what America has to offer. Here is a link to our National Parks Services website- https://www.nps.gov/index.htm

noodles123 said:

LA: Not as cool as everyone seems to think...I guess it is worth seeing...It is very expensive and plastic lol--there is a lot of good food there though, and nice beaches outside of LA.

Route 66 is long---much of it is depressing. I haven't driven it, but it isn't what it used to be, as I happen to live near part of it. It probably would be fun to drive through all of the strange little towns...There is a highway that connects CA to the east coast (New Jersey)...Highway 40----I haven't done it, but I would like to drive it if I had the time.

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L.A. is terribly over-glamorized unless you have very specific interests, such as Hollywood, Venice Beach, or the menace of endless auto traffic! San Diego to the south is IMO a better option. Balboa Park has world-class museums and the famed San Diego Zoo. Wonderful beaches and some great hiking.

Just drove round-trip San Diego to Flagstaff, Arizona. A nice feature of Hwy 40 is the option to exit, drive portions of Route 66, and rejoin the interstate. Meh, glad to have seen it, but would not be a priority for me.

My advice is to determine the mix of viewing areas of interest vs seeking new experiences. Thankfully you have sufficient time to cover lots of ground!

The sheer beauty of the Grand Canyon attracts global visitors. Despite our unique form of government and attendant media coverage, the Washington D.C. area is loaded with fabulous museums and many of the federal institutions are available for tour.

If you enjoy food and culture, every region of the U.S. offers wonderful culinary and social delights.

Since you're already starting in Florida, rent a car and DRIVE to Key West. I lived there for twenty years and it was one of my favorite things to do.

Scott said:

My advice is to determine the mix of viewing areas of interest vs seeking new experiences. Thankfully you have sufficient time to cover lots of ground!

The sheer beauty of the Grand Canyon attracts global visitors. Despite our unique form of government and attendant media coverage, the Washington D.C. area is loaded with fabulous museums and many of the federal institutions are available for tour.

If you enjoy food and culture, every region of the U.S. offers wonderful culinary and social delights.

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I love Washington DC! I love the museum's!! You are so right it's a great place to visit, lots if great restaurants of every ethnicity too! Great suggestion, I wish to see the grand canyon someday

mgarvie said:

Since you're already starting in Florida, rent a car and DRIVE to Key West. I lived there for twenty years and it was one of my favorite things to do.

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Yes Key West!! And visit the Audubon Butterfly exhibit! Nearly every butterfly species in the world on display ..