Tips for first time US visitors wanted!

[StitchMonkey]

I actually debated recommended Kennedy Space Center but did not as that is a bit of a specific thing to go see that is not for everyone. So if you are thinking about it - Go. But keep in mind that alone is a huge thing to go see. It is one of those places everyone says they wish they had more time at. That should be a pretty good dose of Americana.

You might want to think about picking 4 "states" for your sanity rather than thinking of seeing the USA. Two weeks in New York/DC area, a week in Florida and a week in the west/midwest would be a pretty good mix for instance.

 

[Tonichelle]

Any chance that you will get to the glaciers in Alaska?
.

April is probably the only month I personally suggest a person not come to Alaska. That's typically our spring, and while most areas have beautiful springs ours are wet, dead looking, and stinky (the unfrozen decay). Also most parks are closed, most hiking trails are unhikable... just not the time to come to my state.


As for Disney WORLD or LAND - WORLD you really need a week to get much out of the parks IMO... however LAND you can see and do all you need to in 2-3 days.

 

[ice coverage]

April is probably the only month I personally suggest a person not come to Alaska. That's typically our spring, and while most areas have beautiful springs ours are wet, dead looking, and stinky (the unfrozen decay). Also most parks are closed, most hiking trails are unhikable... just not the time to come to my state. ....

I was lucky enough to visit in early May many years ago on a trip for work.

Our short stays in Juneau, Sitka, and Kenai were lovely.

What felt like a winter blizzard hit on the day we were scheduled to be at Portage Glacier . But we didn't mind ... seemed appropriate for Alaska.

 

[Tonichelle]

May is a great time to go, things are open but it's before tourist season so it's still affordable, less crowded... and you get to see Alaska do stuff like blizzards lol

 

[LeReveur]

Hello fellow skating lovers! I'm coming to the US in April on a holiday and, given that lot of posters here are living in the US, have decided to ask for tips for our stay. My S.O. and I don't have any plans, the only thing we know is that we fly to New York's JFK and have 4 weeks to explore the country (we didn't buy return plane tickets yet). Given that we will be in New York at first, we plan to stay there for a few days and then go to DC, but we would like to see places that are more typically 'American' (I'm not implying that NYC or DC are 'unamerican', what I'm trying to say is that we would like to see places that are not necessarily on a foreign traveler's checklist, yet are worth visiting). So far the only thing we are thinking about visiting (apart from NYC and DC) is Cedar Rapids in Iowa (S.O is Czech and apparently, there are quite a few nice places connected to people who migrated to the US from there). I would be very grateful for any sort of tip, whether it is some nice place worth visiting, great place to eat/drink/dance/ see a play in/.. or some big cultural no-no that you think foreigners do and which creep/annoy/alienate people.

Thank you very much!

Frankly, I am not sure about Cedar Rapids. I used to have my pulse on a lot of the Czech and Czech-American "things" on offer in the U.S., and I would not suggest a trip there unless you both like small places that are surrounded by much smaller places. I have not been to Iowa for a very long time, so I am not speaking as an authority, but I believe that to get to Cedar Rapids you would have to drive past flat, flat farmland for quite awhile with almost nothing of note between it and your starting/next points. Chicago has been known as the most Czech city outside the Czech Republic, and though its immigrants have assimilated, spread into the suburbs, and there are disappearing acts all the time (Czech restaurants closing, the Czechoslovak Heritage Museum being closed or mostly closed last I read), there are still places to tap into the history of Czechs in Chicago: a Bohemian cemetery, a Czech consulate (see the website) with events, some Czech restaurants (Klas is historic and classic), and so on. Chicago has more for the tourist than just Czech-related things, of course, so I offer it as a place that you may want to look into if you think architecture, cultural events, nice museums, and history are interesting.

 

[Alex D]

A few idea´s from someone not anymore on US territory.

I always enjoyed it going to South Carolina, time kind of stood still there, some very historic parts do still exist there and it is very fun to discover, especially if you come from a big city in Europe. You have all these old houses there and the tradition of Americas South. Charleston is very interesting to discover, at least I felt so back in the days. Myrtle Beach is also nice, if you want to go shopping or just have a time out. Fort Sumter National Monument, might also be interesting for you and then you have many more national parks, not only at SC - but in general at the US.

I would also recommend a visit to Miami / Florida in general. I love Biscayne beach - great parties there :thumbsup: but it´s a very expensive journey ^^

If you find the time, visit Mexico - I always felt this to be very interesting from a cultural aspect and people were very friendly. I love the Rio Grande (Rio Bravo) a lot, if you follow the river you can get a nice look at the states and parts of Mexico. Texas, El Paso ....and while the governments destroyed the "wild river" partly, you can still find some amazing spots like at the Big Bend National Park :thumbsup:

I am more the nature / culture and party person, so I am not sure what use these "tips" might have. I do not like shopping or high class hotels - cars and electronics, so silicon valley or Detroit, never were as interesting for me, as the pure nature of America and Mexico or the cultural differences between the states and its citizens.

Grand Canyon, San Francisco, Colorado, Seattle if you like Kurt Cobain, Yukon river and national park (if you also go to Canada) or Alaska, Newport or Eureka if you are a fan of the tv shows, Nebraska if you want land life and so on.

The really great part about America for us Europeans is, that you really enter a new world whenever you cross the border. They do still have culture there, you can also find black communities, which I felt really interesting to visit, I even was in a church and they were singing gospel there, that was fun. If I visit the US these days, I often only come for the sport - but it is really worth it. Try to stay away from the big hotels, such as Hilton & Co. look for the smaller accommodations, maybe even with private people.

I always felt, Americans are very open minded and do not mind to spare a bed overnight - but of course, be careful too - you can indeed be robbed there if you go to the wrong places. :eeking:

 

[dorispulaski]

One thing visitors don't always appreciate is how different the laws and customs of every state are . This is even true of tiny (and neighboring) states like Rhode Island vs. Connecticut vs. Massachusetts.

In some states, speeding is a fine and you pay it on line. In some states, you can have your car impounded under some circumstances. In some states, you can be arrested for going too slow.

In some states you can be arrested for flashing your high beams. An altercation over an arrest of this sort recently led to a teenager being killed by a policeman.
http://www.cnn.com/2015/10/16/us/michigan-sheriffs-sergeant-teen-shooting-lawsuit/index.html

In Colorado, pot is legal. In some states you can get a long prison sentence.
In some states you can be arrested for cursing in public. In NY City, cursing is pretty much expected.

Liquor sale laws are often peculiar, and can be annoying, in some states.

Native American nations have different laws than the states where they are located. If you go to Foxwoods or Mohegan Sun casinos, you are no longer in CT. Smoking in public spaces is legal, for example.

So watch what the locals do, and follow suit.
http://tjshome.com/dumblaws.php

http://stupid-laws.laws.com/

 

[WeakAnkles]

For starters :

First thing that comes to mind for me is the Grand Canyon. Can't stress enough that it is in a league of its own above and beyond the many other scenic locations in the U.S.

I am not a religious person, and the beauty of it truly felt like a spiritual experience.

---

Smaller random thoughts:

Hope you will be able to catch the cherry blossoms in Washington, DC. Very pretty if the timing works out right.

Any chance that you will get to the glaciers in Alaska?

In any case, have a great trip. A fun thread for the rest of us to share our suggestions ... I prob. will be back with more as I think of them.

Actually, the largest collection of cherry trees in the US is in, of all places, Newark, New Jersey, and they are quite a beautiful site to see when in bloom. Not much else to see in Newark except for their museum, which has one of the finest collections of Tibetan art in the US.

In defense of my fair city, New Yorkers consistently rank as the world's friendliest cities to strangers. Yes, we will stop and give you detailed directions. Yes, we will help you pick up that tourist map you dropped. And yes, we are remarkably uhm candid if the situation warrants. As I always say, Seinfeld was a documentary.

 

[janav]

So, we will be going to California after all (we did not plan that originally). But we managed to buy incredibly cheap return tickets from Los Angeles, so there it is, with New York and Los Angeles in one month, our trip will be all americana indeed. Now we have to fill out the rest of the time, which will be much easier thank to your suggestions

 

[heyang]

Wow - 1 month. Lots to do; so, little time. Based upon the thread, you plan no NYC, DC and LA as your significant destinations.

In NYC, you can get discounted theater tickets at the TKTS booth. The Theater Development Fund sponsors it and has an app which will show the tickets recently available (to give you an idea of possibilities) and what is available won't be shown on the app until the booth opens. THey used to take only cash - not sure if that's true anymore or not. You can also go to the websites of the shows you're interested in and see if they have a lottery for free or extremely discounted same day tickets. Recently, I went to see Allegiance which currently stars Lea Salonga, George Takei (of Star Trek fame) and Teddy Leung (who played a Warbler on Glee season 2) - it's especially meaningful now with the current world situation. We also dined at Toloache Midtown http://toloachenyc.com/media/toloache.html - Mexican style food - which is tasty and relatively inexpensive. If you do see a show and have dinner before, make sure you plan 2 hours in advance of showtime and tell your server that you're going to a show.

If you want BBQ in NYC http://www.virgilsbbq.com/ is a good choice. There's also Dinosaur BBQ in Harlemhttp://www.dinosaurbarbque.com/ I beg you - do not go to a big national chain restaurants in NYC (i.e. Olive Garden, Sbarro's pizza, Ray Bari's pizza, etc.) There's nothing wrong with them , but they aren't 'New York'.
You should definitely have a good bagel while in NYC and pizza (again, avoid the chain's. I like Don Pepe's in Penn Station - John's Pizza is pretty good too http://www.johnspizzerianyc.com/ This is a popular bakery http://www.levainbakery.com/

If you want to walk in a park setting, there's The Highline http://www.thehighline.org/, Central Park http://www.centralparknyc.org/. Sometimes events at Bryant Park http://bryantpark.org/

For skyscraper views, Empire State Building or Top of the Rock (which allows you take a picture with the Empire State Building behind you.). Of course, the World Trade Center Memorial (requires tickets in advance.) if you want to climb inside the Statue of Liberty, you also need to reserve tickets months in advance. http://www.nps.gov/stli/index.htm

 

[heyang]

Oh - you don't want to have a car in NYC. It's much easier to get around using mass transit vs driving. Just make sure that you plot out your locations in the city and plan accordingly to avoid going back and forth all day.

DC - unless you're staying near a metro line, you will need a car and still be prepared to walk since parking is not always convenient. If you want to visit the US Mint or White house, etc. You will need to get tickets in advance. There are also a lot of Memorials that are lovely in the DC area.

LA - traffic can be bad and mass transit isn't a good as in other cities. If you like movies, there's Grauman's Chinese Theater to see the footprints and handprints of stars of various eras. Santa Monica pier is pretty. Watch guys workout at Venice Beach.

Disneyland is not far from LA - as is Knotsberry Farm (Peanuts themed). Disneyland is not as big as Florida's Disney World (which has Epcot, Animal Kingdom, etc)

Personally, I much prefer San Francisco over LA. You can drive between SF and LA. 1/2 way between is Heart Castle http://hearstcastle.org/. Further north , between Hearst and SF, is Monterey, which is very pretty. If you go to SF, go to Fisherman's Wharf and have clam chowder or lobster bisque in a sourdough bread bowl from a vendor at Fisheman's Wharf. Stop at Ghiradellis Square and have a delicious rich ice cream or chocolates. Take a tour of Alcatraz http://www.nps.gov/alca/index.htm

 

[heyang]

BTW, how do you plan to get from East coast (NYC/DC) to West Coast (LA)? It is possible to drive cross country, but it's doubtful you can hit every state in 4 weeks.

If you plan to go South from DC and travel west, you can stop in Charleston SC or Savannah GA. Also New Orleans, Louisiana where you can have Beignets at Café du Monde and take an air boat ride through the swamps, take a Culinary History Tour of the French Quarter. Stop in Texas and see the Alamo, etc. If you're on the east coast of Florida, see if there are any launches from Cape Canaveral (When we were there, a rocket launch occurred at 3am, which we stayed up for and watched from the deck of our B&B in Cocoa Beach - spectacular - really lit up the night sky.) or if you're in Houston, Texas, you can also check for launches.

and there are some incredible National parks beside the Grand Canyon, too. Bryce in Utah. Mesa Verde in Colorado. The Red Rocks of Sedona, Arizona.

Anyway, let us know how you intend to get from place to place and perhaps some of your interests so we don't suggest things that you would hate.

 

[heyang]

There's also Amish Country. They are several communities, but the major ones are near Lancaster, PA (which is a day trip from NYC) and Ohio http://amishamerica.com/amish-state-guide/

I've never been, but Nashville, TN is very American. Also, the Biltmore estate in Asheville, NC or the historic mansions of Newport Rhode Island.

 

[Tavi...]

If you like urban culture, architecture, the arts, restaurants, shopping, etc., consider a trip to Chicago. Millenium Park, downtown, is one of my favorite places - beautifully laid out, with large-scale, innovative structures and sculpture like the Bean (aka Cloud Gate), the Crown Fountains, the Pritzger Pavilion (outdoor bandshell - too early in season for concerts but you can still appreciate the amazing architecture) and the BP Bridge.

The Art Institute, right next door, has a fantastic French Impressionist collection and a new modern wing. There are also several good restaurants nearby (Terzo Piano in museum itself and the Gage, across the street are two favorites) and if it's still cold enough, two outdoor skating rinks - one right on Michigan Avenue and the new Skating Ribbon in nearby Maggie Daley Park (it turns into a climbing wall in summer).

Not far away are Museum Campus (Planetarium, Shedd Acquarium, Field Museum) and the Chicago Symphony, Lyric Opera, and Goodman and Harris theaters. Our weather can be iffy in April (sometimes still wintry but sometimes springlike) but if it's nice, you can walk or bike for miles on the lakefront.

Outside of downtown are trendy areas with shops and restaurants - the West Loop and River North have a lot of great places. Here are a couple of links to explore:

http://www.timeout.com/chicago

http://www.cityofchicago.org/city/en/depts/dca/supp_info/millennium_park.html

ETA if you are a wine lover & will be in California, you should definitely spend a few days in wine country! Napa and Sonoma counties, not far from San Francisco, are most famous.

http://www.visitcalifornia.com/feature/12-wine-country-destinations

Marin County just north of SF is also really beautiful, as is driving south from SF on Route 1 to Big Sur and Carmel

http://www.visitcalifornia.com/region/discover-central-coast

 

[heyang]

If you do make it to Napa, you can also have a mud bath in Calistoga Springs. Not for the modest.

 

[Princessroja]

Oh wow! A whole month, how awesome! Well, first off consider the Baltimore Aquarium. If you're going to DC, it's only an hour away and a very, very nice aquarium. The Smithsonian arboretum is a nice (free) very small attraction but well worth an hour's walk through it if you're a garden sort of person. My husband and I just visited DC in May so I'm racking my brain now. If you're around NYC, consider heading upstate. We live upstate right now and there are some very nice attractions a few hours west; the Corning Glass Museum and Watkins Glen State Park come to mind. Watkins Glen gets a bunch of tour buses so you may be able to find one of those. Alternately, you could drive west through NY, hit up those attractions (they're near the main freeway you'd take), drive west to Niagara Falls, and down to Chicago. That would be a very doable drive with an awful lot on the way, the Finger Lakes region and Cleveland, which is a good city to visit too. If you're down in Virginia for DC, you could head over to Williamsburg too. I've never been but it sounds fantastic. If you happen to go west, Colorado Springs is one of my favorite cities--gorgeous views, tons of attractions, both outdoor and indoor, and everything you could possibly want. And if COS doesn't have it, Denver does. But it's a long drive through nowhere on the plains, so you'd probably want to either catch a quick flight or...

You could take the train from Chicago to the West Coast. If you want to see a lot of the country for relatively cheaply, take an Amtrak cross-country train. There's two different routes, one going across the northwest and one going across the southwest. That might be a good way to get you guys from the East Coast to LA. Have a great trip; it sounds like you guys will have tons of fun no matter what you do!

 

[WeakAnkles]

If you like urban culture, architecture, the arts, restaurants, shopping, etc., consider a trip to Chicago. Millenium Park, downtown, is one of my favorite places - beautifully laid out, with large-scale, innovative structures and sculpture like the Bean (aka Cloud Gate), the Crown Fountains, the Pritzger Pavilion (outdoor bandshell - too early in season for concerts but you can still appreciate the amazing architecture) and the BP Bridge.

The Art Institute, right next door, has a fantastic French Impressionist collection and a new modern wing. There are also several good restaurants nearby (Terzo Piano in museum itself and the Gage, across the street are two favorites) and if it's still cold enough, two outdoor skating rinks - one right on Michigan Avenue and the new Skating Ribbon in nearby Maggie Daley Park (it turns into a climbing wall in summer).

Not far away are Museum Campus (Planetarium, Shedd Acquarium, Field Museum) and the Chicago Symphony, Lyric Opera, and Goodman and Harris theaters. Our weather can be iffy in April (sometimes still wintry but sometimes springlike) but if it's nice, you can walk or bike for miles on the lakefront.

Outside of downtown are trendy areas with shops and restaurants - the West Loop and River North have a lot of great places. Here are a couple of links to explore:

http://www.timeout.com/chicago

http://www.cityofchicago.org/city/en/depts/dca/supp_info/millennium_park.html

ETA if you are a wine lover & will be in California, you should definitely spend a few days in wine country! Napa and Sonoma counties, not far from San Francisco, are most famous.

http://www.visitcalifornia.com/feature/12-wine-country-destinations

Marin County just north of SF is also really beautiful, as is driving south from SF on Route 1 to Big Sur and Carmel

http://www.visitcalifornia.com/region/discover-central-coast

Chicago has some of the best architecture in the US. And The Art Institute has a first rate collection, particularly of French Impressionism and Post Impressionism. And like NYC, it is a walking city. When you come to NY, the first thing you should do is buy yourself a weekly subway ticket. It is by far the best and easiest way to get around the city--and you can use it on the bus as well (it is VERY easy to go uptown/downtown on NYC mass transit; crosstown is a bit of a beeyutch). Taxis can be enormously expensive. What I would suggest when you are NYC, is to pick a specific neighborhood, like Midtown or Chinatown or Wall Street, and explore it in depth ON FOOT. When my friend was here from Norway, that is what we did each of the 7 days he was here. And I learned quite a bit about neighborhoods I have never really explored before, like Chinatown. We even walked across the Brooklyn Bridge, which has spectacular views of the city skyline. And it's free.

One thing worth paying for, is to go up either the new Freedom Tower or the Empire State Bldg an hour before dusk. That will give you an hour to see the city in light, then you will have what I think of as a symphony of electric light, as all the lights come on. Every person I have taken there to see that has loved it.

Stay out of the tourist trap shops in Times Square. You can find the same crap in other neighborhoods at a fraction of the price. But Times Square is definitely worth seeing at night.

And we're a friendly bunch, despite our reputation. Ask for directions and suggestions. New Yorkers love to talk!

 

[heyang]

Stay out of the tourist trap shops in Times Square. You can find the same crap in other neighborhoods at a fraction of the price. But Times Square is definitely worth seeing at night.

And we're a friendly bunch, despite our reputation. Ask for directions and suggestions. New Yorkers love to talk!

I agree.... Times Square is a must see sight and a good central location, but I agree that you shouldn't shop in the stores there (unless you're into M&M's candies). Most of the big restaurants are also chains - hit the streets beyond the central area to find better food at better prices.

Yep - New Yorkers definitely don't mind helping or offering an opinion. As anywhere else, just be polite about needing help.

 

[heyang]

Not sure where the original poster hails from.... in the US, people tip for service in restaurants unless noted otherwise. Some restaurants are changing to a no tip policy and it will be noted on the menu or check. Otherwise assume that you should leave a tip if someone is serving your meal to your table. 15% excluding tax for decent service - more for good service. If you end up meeting friends and dining in a larger group, there might be an automatic service charge on the check, which will also be noted.

BTW, tax varies from state to state. Rates can vary from city to city. Some states tax every purchase, some don't charge at all and others charge on some goods (ie. non-apparel, non-essentials.) So you should consider when determining your purchasing. Also , it's not VAT; so, you wont' be able to reclaim when exiting US.

 

[Tavi...]

Ah @WeakAnkles, you're really making me miss New York (lived there for years) - there's no place like it! Definitely walking + subway is the best way to see the city, and walking across the Brooklyn Bridge is amazing. One of the things I really love about walking in NYC is that the blocks are quite short and there's always something to see, whether it's the people or the streetscape or stores...

There have been so many wonderful suggestions in this thread that it makes me want to travel!

But it also makes me think about the OP's desire to see places that are more typically American than NYC or DC. The thing is, we're such a huge and diverse country that it's really hard to say what's typically American. In some ways I think the biggest divide is between small town and big city life - someone living in Chicago probably has a lot more in common with New Yorkers than with a resident of Freeport, Illinois or Monroe, Wisconsin (both small Midwestern towns). At the same time, the Northeast, the Southwest, the Midwest, etc. all have distinct regional characters.

For me, the best way to get to know a place - even a place like NYC - is just to walk around neighborhoods where people live and work and have a coffee (in addition to hitting the museums and other "touristy" stuff). So in NYC I would go to the green market in Union Square. I might take the subway out to Jackson Heights, where there is a huge Latin American population, or to Astoria, which is full of Greeks, or take the train out to Newark (yes!) for Portuguese food. Or take Metro North to Larchmont, a ritzy Westchester suburb where a lot of French diplomats live, with the result that there are French bakeries and wine stores and schoolchildren speaking French on the street. Or take train out to the North Fork of Long Island and visit the wineries. Or I might go to one of these places:

http://m.newyork.com/articles/real-...ity-neighborhoods-with-a-suburban-feel-70146/

In Chicago I would go to Lincoln Park and might go down to Hyde Park, where the University of Chicago is, or to Oak Park, where Frank Lloyd Wright built a lot of houses. And I would definitely try to see the Blackhawks (hockey) play at the United Center!

If it were me I'd skip Iowa and Disneyland. Unless, of course, you go to Fairfield Iowa, which is home to Maharishi University and has a ton of residents who practice transcendental meditation (really!):

https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fairfield,_Iowa

But actually, April in Iowa might not be the greatest. As for me, I think I'd rather go to Boulder, Colorado or Berkeley, California than Fairfield.

Whatever you do, have a great trip and let us know where you end up going!