New York
The one everyone comes for: museums, neighbourhoods, and a city that runs at all hours.
The New York guide
USA country guide
Things to do in USA
Fifty states, thirteen time zones counting territories, and national parks the size of small countries. Too big to plan as one trip, so pick a corner.
$45
Dorm bed, from
63
National parks
6h
New York to Los Angeles by air
$250
Park pass for visitors from abroad
Pick a state, not a city
The USA is the size of Europe and the mistake is treating it as one destination. New York to Los Angeles is a six-hour flight, and driving it takes the better part of a week without stopping.
The practical approach is to pick a region. The Northeast gives you New York, Boston, Washington and Philadelphia within a few hours of each other by train. California runs San Francisco to Los Angeles to San Diego down one coast road. The Southwest links Las Vegas, the Grand Canyon, Zion, Arches and Monument Valley in a loop that is one of the great road trips anywhere. The South covers New Orleans, Nashville and Memphis and the music that came out of them.
Hostels exist mainly in the big cities and near some national parks; everywhere else assumes a car and a motel.
Two to three weeks per region. The parks are the thing most visitors underrate.
Where to go
The USA is too big to see in one go, so pick a region and a few states within it. Fly between regions and drive within them; Amtrak only really works in the Northeast.
The Northeast
The densest part of the country, with New York, Boston, Philadelphia and Washington a few hours apart by train. The easiest region to do without a car.
Massachusetts
Boston, the Freedom Trail and the history of the revolution, with Cape Cod beaches in summer.
The Massachusetts guide
Pennsylvania
Philadelphia, where the country was founded, and its cheesesteaks.
The Pennsylvania guide
Washington DC
The capital and its free Smithsonian museums. A federal district rather than a state.
The Washington DC guide
New Jersey
The Jersey Shore, Princeton and the cheapest base for New York, a train ride across the river.
The New Jersey guide
Maryland
Baltimore's harbour, crab feasts on Chesapeake Bay and the historic sailing town of Annapolis.
The Maryland guide
Vermont
Green mountains, covered bridges, autumn colour and some of the best skiing in the East.
The Vermont guide
New Hampshire
The White Mountains, with serious hiking, autumn leaves and no sales tax.
The New Hampshire guide
Rhode Island
The smallest state: Newport's mansions and sailing, and Providence's food scene.
The Rhode Island guide
Connecticut
Yale in New Haven, pizza to argue about and quiet coastal towns between New York and Boston.
The Connecticut guide
Delaware
A tiny state of beach towns, tax-free shopping and the old streets of New Castle.
The Delaware guideThe South
Music, food and history: New Orleans, Nashville and Memphis, the beaches and nightlife of Florida, and Texas, a country in itself.
Louisiana
New Orleans: music, Creole food and the most distinctive city in the country.
The Louisiana guide
Tennessee
Country music in Nashville, blues and Elvis in Memphis, and the Great Smoky Mountains.
The Tennessee guide
Texas
Live music in Austin, barbecue everywhere, and distances that make the size of the country clear.
The Texas guide
South Carolina
Charleston's pastel streets and Lowcountry food, and the beaches of the coast.
The South Carolina guide
North Carolina
The Blue Ridge Mountains around Asheville and the wild Outer Banks.
The North Carolina guide
Virginia
Colonial Williamsburg, Shenandoah National Park and the Blue Ridge Parkway.
The Virginia guide
Alabama
Civil rights landmarks in Montgomery and Birmingham, and white Gulf Coast beaches.
The Alabama guide
Arkansas
The Ozarks, Hot Springs National Park and some of the cheapest travel in the country.
The Arkansas guide
West Virginia
Whitewater, mountains and the New River Gorge, the newest major national park.
The West Virginia guideThe Midwest
Great Lakes cities and wide open country. Chicago is the reason most travellers come.
Illinois
Chicago: architecture, blues and a lakefront. The most underrated big city here.
The Illinois guide
Michigan
Two Great Lakes coastlines, Detroit's comeback and the dunes at Sleeping Bear.
The Michigan guide
Minnesota
Minneapolis, ten thousand lakes and canoe country on the Canadian border.
The Minnesota guide
Kansas
The Great Plains, tallgrass prairie and the old cattle towns of the frontier.
The Kansas guide
North Dakota
Theodore Roosevelt National Park and the quietest corner of the country.
The North Dakota guideThe Southwest
Deserts, canyons and the greatest concentration of national parks in the country, best done as a road trip from Las Vegas.
Nevada
Las Vegas, a strange city in a desert, and the base for the Southwest park loop.
The Nevada guide
Arizona
The Grand Canyon, red-rock Sedona and the desert landscapes of the Old West.
The Arizona guide
New Mexico
Santa Fe's adobe and art, White Sands and green chile on everything.
The New Mexico guide
Oklahoma
Route 66, Native American heritage and the cowboy culture of Oklahoma City.
The Oklahoma guideThe West Coast
California from San Francisco to San Diego along the coast road, and the green Pacific Northwest above it.
California
San Francisco, Los Angeles, Highway 1 down the coast and Yosemite inland.
The California guide
Washington
Seattle, coffee, and volcanoes and rainforest within a few hours of the city.
The Washington guide
The Rockies
Mountains, ski towns and Yellowstone, the first national park in the world.
Hawaii and Alaska
Volcanic islands in the Pacific and the last great wilderness in the north. Both a flight away from everywhere else.
Hawaii
Volcanoes, surf and beaches across the islands, with Honolulu on Oahu as the hub.
The Hawaii guide
What kind of trip is this?
The USA does cities, road trips and national parks, and the parks are what people remember.
City break in USA
A handful of genuinely great cities.
What to do
- New York over a week
- Chicago architecture by boat
- New Orleans in the French Quarter
Spots to visit
- Manhattan
- French Quarter
- Chicago Loop
Reading on city break in USA
Adventure in USA
Sixty-three national parks, several the size of countries.
What to do
- Hike the Grand Canyon rim to river
- Yosemite Valley in spring
- Zion's Narrows
Spots to visit
- Grand Canyon
- Yosemite
- Zion
Best states for it
Reading on adventure in USA
LA vs San Diego: City Buzz or Surf Life?
❄️ 13 Best Places to Visit in January in the USA for an Epic Winter Adventure 🇺🇸
Turn up the heat in California’s hot spring hotspots
The ultimate playlist for your California road trip (Chilled vibes guaranteed!)
The Body Coach’s Epic California Road Trip
The best road trips in the United States
7 of the best road trips in the USA
Culture in USA
Music cities, museums and civil rights history.
What to do
- Live blues in Chicago
- The Smithsonian, free
- Civil rights sites in Memphis and Montgomery
Spots to visit
- Smithsonian
- Memphis
- New Orleans
Best states for it
Beach in USA
Three coastlines and very different water.
What to do
- Drive Highway 1
- Miami Beach
- Surf in San Diego
Spots to visit
- Big Sur
- Miami Beach
- San Diego
Best states for it
Nightlife in USA
Expensive, and tipping applies to every drink.
What to do
- Live music on Frenchmen Street
- A Brooklyn night out
- Chicago blues bars
Spots to visit
- Frenchmen Street
- Brooklyn
- Wicker Park
Food in USA
Regional and deeply specific — barbecue, Creole, tacos, diners.
What to do
- Barbecue in Texas or Memphis
- A Creole gumbo
- Tacos in Los Angeles
Spots to visit
- New Orleans
- Los Angeles
- Memphis
Best states for it
Reading on food in USA
12 Vegan Restaurants NYC Foodies Simply Adore
All the food you need to eat on the 4th of July
Oh NOLA you didn’t! The 21 best bars in New Orleans for craft beers and cocktails
Local Hotspots: The Best Places To Eat In LA On A Budget
Heavenly Food In The City Of Angels! The Best Vegan Restaurants in Los Angeles
The Best Places To Eat In New York On A Budget
Miami Beach – Best Restaurants and Bars
Top 10 budget restaurants in New York City
Things to do
Things to do in the USA
The national parks are the strongest argument for coming. Since January 2026, visitors from outside the USA pay $250 for the America the Beautiful annual pass, which covers entry to all federal parks and lands for a year; US residents still pay $80. Without the pass, non-residents also pay a $100-per-person surcharge at 11 of the busiest parks, including the Grand Canyon, Yosemite, Yellowstone and Rocky Mountain, so if you are visiting more than two of them, the pass is the cheaper option. The Southwest loop from Las Vegas links the Grand Canyon, Zion, Bryce and Arches over ten days.
Book campsites and park lodges months ahead. Several of the busiest parks use timed entry or reservation systems in peak season, and they sell out.
In the cities, New York deserves a week: the Met and the MoMA, Central Park, Brooklyn, and walking neighbourhoods rather than ticking sights. Washington's Smithsonian museums are all free.
New Orleans is the most distinctive city in the country — Creole food, brass bands on the street, and live music on Frenchmen Street rather than Bourbon.
More on things to do in USA
Free Things To Do In San Diego
Free Things to Do in Chicago
10 Hidden Gems in NYC to Escape the Crowds
Hidden Gems in Florida: Beyond the Theme Parks
❄️ 13 Best Places to Visit in January in the USA for an Epic Winter Adventure 🇺🇸
Best Places to Travel Solo Female in the US
14 free things to do in Miami for the perfect kinda vibe 🌴
Turn up the heat in California’s hot spring hotspots
Food and drink
Eating in the USA
American food is regional and the generalisations are useless. Texas and Memphis do different barbecue and argue about it. New Orleans has Creole and Cajun cooking that exists nowhere else. Los Angeles has the best Mexican food outside Mexico, and New York has the best of most other things.
Diners serve enormous breakfasts for $10 to $18, food trucks and taquerias run $8 to $15, and a sit-down restaurant dinner is $25 to $50 before tip.
Two practical points. Tipping is 18 to 22 per cent and is how staff are paid, so it is not optional. And sales tax is added at the till rather than shown on the price, so everything costs more than the menu says.
Portion sizes are genuinely larger than elsewhere, and sharing or taking leftovers is normal.
More on food and drink in USA
12 Vegan Restaurants NYC Foodies Simply Adore
All the food you need to eat on the 4th of July
Oh NOLA you didn’t! The 21 best bars in New Orleans for craft beers and cocktails
Local Hotspots: The Best Places To Eat In LA On A Budget
Heavenly Food In The City Of Angels! The Best Vegan Restaurants in Los Angeles
The Best Places To Eat In New York On A Budget
Miami Beach – Best Restaurants and Bars
Top 10 budget restaurants in New York City
Nightlife
Going out in the USA
New Orleans is the one built for it, with live music every night on Frenchmen Street and a drinking culture that includes going outside with your drink, which is legal there and almost nowhere else.
New York, Chicago and Los Angeles all have deep scenes across neighbourhoods rather than concentrated strips — Brooklyn, Wicker Park, Silver Lake.
The practicalities catch visitors out. The drinking age is 21 and photo ID is checked regardless of how old you look, with foreign passports sometimes refused by venues that only accept US ID. Last call is often 2am outside New York and New Orleans.
A beer is $6 to $10 and cocktails $12 to $18, plus tip on every round.
Getting around
Getting around the USA
Fly between regions — domestic flights are frequent and often cheap booked ahead — and drive within them.
A car is essential outside the big cities, and it is how the country is designed. Rental is $40 to $90 a day, fuel is cheap by European standards, and under-25 drivers pay a substantial young driver surcharge. An international permit is not usually required alongside an EU or UK licence.
Amtrak works well in the Northeast corridor between Washington, New York and Boston, and is scenic but slow elsewhere. Greyhound and Flixbus cover intercity routes cheaply.
New York, Chicago, Boston, Washington and San Francisco have usable public transport. Los Angeles, and most of the country, does not.
More on getting around in USA
Costs
What the USA costs
This is an expensive country and the hidden costs make it worse than the sticker price. Dorms start around $45 and run to $80 in New York and San Francisco, restaurant dinners are $25 to $50 before tip, and a beer is $6 to $10.
Add 18 to 22 per cent tipping on food and drinks and sales tax at the till, and a $40 dinner becomes $52.
A day comes to $100 to $180 in cities. The levers are supermarkets and food trucks, hostel kitchens, free museums in Washington, and, if you are visiting several of the big national parks, the $250 annual pass for visitors from abroad.
Health insurance is not optional. Medical care is extremely expensive and an uninsured emergency room visit can run to thousands of dollars.
Safety
Staying safe in the USA
The USA is safe for most travellers in the places they go, with crime concentrated in specific neighbourhoods rather than spread evenly. Ask locally or at your hostel which areas to avoid at night, because the answer varies block by block in a way that maps do not show.
The single most important thing is health insurance. There is no universal healthcare, an ambulance ride alone can cost over a thousand dollars, and an emergency room visit without cover can be financially serious.
Driving is the most likely risk to a traveller: long distances, high speeds, and distances between fuel stops in the West that catch people out. Check water and fuel before desert drives.
In the national parks, heat kills people in the Grand Canyon and Death Valley every year, altitude affects visitors in the Rockies, and wildlife rules about bears and bison are there because people ignore them and get hurt.
Entry and documents
Entry and documents
Visa Waiver Program countries — most of Europe, the UK, Australia, Japan and others — need an approved ESTA before travelling, applied for online, valid two years, for stays up to 90 days. The fee is $40. Apply at least 72 hours before departure and only through the official government site, as many lookalike sites charge far more.
Everyone else needs a visa, usually a B-2 tourist visa, which requires an interview at an embassy and can take months to schedule. Start early.
Note that travel to certain countries can make you ineligible for ESTA and require a full visa instead. Passports must be valid for the stay and machine-readable.
Rules change with administrations, so check the official position close to travel.
When to go
Too big for one answer. Broadly, spring and autumn work almost everywhere, summer suits the north and the parks, and winter suits the south and the desert.
Jan
Cold in the north. Good for Florida, the desert and skiing
Feb
Still winter. Mardi Gras in New Orleans
Mar
Spring in the south. Desert parks at their best
Apr
Excellent almost everywhere. Cherry blossom in Washington
May
Superb. Parks opening and crowds not yet arrived
Jun
Summer. Parks busy, north at its best
Jul
Peak crowds and heat. Deserts dangerous, north excellent
Aug
Same. Humid in the east and south
Sep
The best month overall. Warm, clearer and quieter
Oct
Excellent. Fall colour in New England and the north
Nov
Cooling. Thanksgiving fills transport for a week
Dec
Cold in the north, warm in the south, and the holidays are expensive
Bar height is temperature. Colour is how busy it gets:
quiet
busy
peak
Average highs for New York. This is a continent — Alaska, Florida, Arizona and Maine share almost nothing climatically. Desert parks are dangerous in midsummer and ideal in spring and autumn.
What your trip will cost
Pick how you travel and how long for. Per night, for one person, in US dollars, before tip and tax.
Tipping at 18–22% and sales tax added at the till push real costs roughly 30% above menu prices. Car hire at $40–90 a day sits outside these figures.
—
- Beds—
- Food and drink—
- Getting around—
- Doing things—
What's on
What is on while you are there
Two of these fill entire cities, and one shuts the country for a week.
February or March
Mardi Gras
New Orleans
Parades for weeks before Fat Tuesday. Accommodation books a year ahead.
Fourth Thursday in November
Thanksgiving
Nationwide
The busiest travel week of the year. Flights and buses fill and prices spike.
March
SXSW
Austin
Music, film and tech across the whole city for ten days.
Late September to October
Fall colour
New England · the Rockies
The reason a lot of people visit the northeast in autumn.
4 July
Independence Day
Nationwide
Fireworks everywhere, and a long weekend that fills the parks.
April onwards
Coachella and festival season
California and nationwide
The start of a summer festival calendar that runs to September.
Hostels
Where to stay in the USA
The highest-rated hostels in the country, live from Hostelworld. New York, Los Angeles and San Francisco have the most — outside big cities, motels are the norm.
International Student Center
New York
Dorms from $50 a night
See dates and book
HI Los Angeles - Santa Monica
Los Angeles
Dorms from $36 a night
See dates and book
ITH Pacific Tradewinds Hostel
San Francisco
Dorms from $37 a night
See dates and book
The Farrington Inn
Boston
See dates and book
Wrigley Hostel
Chicago
Dorms from $28 a night
See dates and book
American Dream Hostel
New York
See dates and book
Banana Bungalow West Hollywood
Los Angeles
Dorms from $30 a night
See dates and book
Green Tortoise Hostel
San Francisco
Dorms from $40 a night
See dates and book
Sustainable
HI Boston
Boston
Dorms from $41 a night
See dates and book
HI Chicago, The J.Ira & Nicki Harris Family Hostel
Chicago
Dorms from $36 a night
See dates and book
HI New York City Hostel
New York
Dorms from $40 a night
See dates and book
Banana Bungalow Hollywood
Los Angeles
Dorms from $29 a night
See dates and book
USA travel questions
The ones we get asked most.
How much of the USA can I see in two weeks?
One region. New York to Los Angeles is a six-hour flight and driving it takes a week without stopping. Pick the Northeast, California, the Southwest parks or the South, and do it properly.
Do I need an ESTA or a visa?
Visa Waiver Program countries — most of Europe, the UK, Australia — need an approved ESTA before travelling, which costs $40 and must be applied for on the official government site only. Everyone else needs a visa with an embassy interview that can take months to schedule.
Is the USA expensive?
Yes, and worse than the sticker price. Dorms from $45, restaurant dinners $25 to $50, and then 18 to 22 per cent tipping plus sales tax added at the till — roughly 30 per cent on top of menu prices. A day in cities is $100 to $180.
How does tipping actually work?
18 to 22 per cent in restaurants and bars, and it is how staff are paid rather than a bonus for good service. Tip on the pre-tax total, add a dollar or two per drink at a bar, and expect it to be expected.
Do I need a car?
Outside New York, Chicago, Boston, Washington and San Francisco, yes. The country is built around driving, rental is $40 to $90 a day, and under-25 drivers pay a substantial surcharge.
What is the America the Beautiful pass?
An annual pass covering entry to all federal national parks and lands. Since January 2026, it costs $250 for visitors from outside the USA and $80 for US residents. Without it, non-residents pay an extra $100 per person at 11 of the busiest parks, including the Grand Canyon, Yosemite and Yellowstone, so the pass pays off if you visit more than two of them.
Do I really need travel insurance?
More than anywhere else in this guide. There is no universal healthcare, an ambulance alone can cost over a thousand dollars, and an uninsured emergency room visit can run into tens of thousands.
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