I came to US a couple of weeks ago and am planning to travel around on my own for a couple of months. It's the first big adventure in my life😊 What I need is some advice about places to see. I would love to see beautiful, wild nature, seashores etc (I am not that interested in historical stuff or museums, also, I like to take pictures of nature - I have a professional camera). To start with, I am planning a roadtrip through California but I also want to see Seattle and the first question is - are there any beautiful places around Seattle - should I go just to the city for a couple of days and fly to San Francisco or should I start the roadtrip to California from Seattle - are there places to see on the way? I also want to see the east coast, maybe Florida and Gulf of Mexico but I have no idea what places/towns to go there. Any advices would be great. Of course I have a bunch of guides but I would really like to hear some opinions based on real-life experience. Are there other places to see in US except the coasts? I wanted to travel around here for so much time that I don't want to miss anything😊 Also, I want to see big cities except NY. Waiting for your advices!
Reply to this Do you like national parks? I do. The Big 3 NP in US is Yellowstone, Grand Canyon and Yosemite. I believe you won't regret to visit these three NPs.
There are so many great places in California. One reason that Hollywood grows to be the hub of movie industry is because you can find all kinds of scenaries in California: ocean, coast, lake, desert, mountains and even glacier.
Since you have such a big plan, I will recommend you go get some travel guide books from your local libraries, Books from publishers like Frommers, Fodors or Lonely Plannet are good.
Have fun!
Reply to this Thanks! And do you know what places I shouldn't miss in California? Will I see all that just driving along the coast?
I think I've never been to national parks - and I don't really know what they are😊)
Reply to this Zhenya, if you can do some googling, put "national park" in search box. You will access to a lot of great resources. I would recommend you visit Napa wine country in you like Wine. 😉
Reply to this Ok, thanks! And does anyone know about Seattle - how much days is it worth staying?
Reply to this If you are driving from California to Seattle I would suggest driving through the Redwood Forrest of Northern California and taking a side trip in Oregon to Crater Lake.
If you go to Yellowstone I suggest making an extra trip which if memory serves me it is less than an hour... visit the Grand Tetons. Another awesome park is about eight hours north of Yellowstone in Montana, Glacier Park.
If you got to the Grand Canyon there are MANY other parks that are close in Utah. These Parks have tour guides that will pick you up and take you to these parks, Zion, Bryce, Arches, and Monument Valley. THere are plenty of other too. If you stay in Vegas many tour originate there.
If you stay in San Francisco there are tours there of Yosemite and other places. Really easy to find these tours.
As you can tell I like tours. Many don't but I feel that with gas prices the way they are and since I don't know the area, I like the comfort of someone else taking me to see the good stuff. That way I have time to view the scenery and take pictures.
Enjoy your stay in America
Reply to this Thanks! I don't really like tour a lot but I guess it's easier to get to some places this way. For the first couple of days I plan to stay in San Francisco without a car so I could take a coupole of tours - which ones would you suggest? How far is Yosemite?
Reply to this I haven't been to Crater Lakeļ¼but friends told me that it is very very beautiful.
From SF to Yesemite, it is about 4 hrs drive or less. Some people make it a day trip. but i would suggest you stay at least one night there.
Reply to this Crater Lake is beautiful.
There are tours that will take you from San Francisco to Yosemite. I did not do this tour and I regret it. I didn't think I had the time when I was there. I wish now I had taken the extra day.
Reply to this Hi Zhenya! Hopefully I can help you out with Seattle info. I happen to love Seattle so I may be a little biased on how long you should stay! It really is a great place. If you just want to see the downtown city area, a few days would be okay considering you aren't too interested in museums and things like that. If you want to see downtown and the surrounding beaches/parks of Puget Sound, then I would plan on spending a little longer--at least a week so you don't feel rushed and can set your own scheldule. There are 'many' beautiful places around Seattle--both natural and man-made--especially if you are into photography. Aside from the most popular tourist (and local!) hotspots like
Pike Place Market which can be really fun place to take photos of fruit stands and the fish market, and
Kerry Park on Queen Anne Hill, which gives you one of the best quality for ease of access views of the Space Needle with the city and Mt. Rainier in the background, you'll find a more natural setting at
Discovery Park . I would also recommend taking the ferry to
Bainbridge Island. Something I havn't done personally, but have heard is enjoyable, would be to
kayak in Lake Union or Shilshole Bay. Depending on what time of year you are here, you can also watch the salmon runs at the Ballard locks.
Seattle can be a great place for a tourist because it is fairly relaxed, but still has all the amenities of really big cities. There are so many great restaurants and concerts and shows it's hard to pick out one or two without knowing what neighborhood you're staying in or what exactly you'd like to discover while in Seattle. Take a day to just wander and you'll be amazed at all you find to see and do! If you have any questions, don't hesititate to ask!
Reply to this Thanks a lot! I think I'll go there for a week or so as there's so much to see!
Reply to this Zhenya, I am so eager to see your trip plan and your blogs/journals on the road. It must be a wonderful trip with so many interesting places to visit. have fun!
Reply to this Thanks!😊 Actually I did already travel around a little and I have put somewhere the link to the pictures I made - I was in Hawaii and traveled a little around Colorado. This Sunday I am going on a road trip to California.
Reply to this The Oregon coast is really beautiful. I've been to Crater Lake and as others have mentioned it's worth a visit. Also went to Bryce Canyon and it was one of my favorites to explore on foot.
Reply to this Wow, great info on Seattle, my wife and I are planning a trip that will put us close enough to Washington that we were wondering about hitting up Seattle, I think you just made my mind up for me, now it's on to persuade the misses!
Thanks, this whole thread is a great resource.
I'm really glad I found this forum!
Reply to this I haven't been to the area your looking for (maybe next trip) but when i plan road trips on the east coast and central USA I use a
road trip planner called Tripcart. My family loves the trips I plan with it.
If your looking for nature and driving from Seattle to San Fransisco you should check out the "
Nature and Wildlife in the Northern California Coast" page. there is a long list of nature parks in that area. Also roam around the regions in that area....I'm sure you'll find something... I always do!
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