From Coast to Coast: from New York to San Francisco

New York: the largest city in the USA, and the most captivating one. Its core is the island of Manhattan, thriving with many microcosms and different lifestyles: Harlem, Central Park, the city’s outstanding museums, its iconic skyscrapers, the ethnic neighborhoods in Lower Manhattan – Chinatown, the Jewish district, and what’s left of Little Italy –; restored SoHo, Tribeca and the Village, good as new; and Wall Street, where business means business.

Continue across New Jersey towards the so-called “Capital Region” – namely the States of Delaware, Maryland, Virginia, and the Federal District: a key area for American history, ever since the days of the early settlements. Washington DC is the capital city of the United States – and its very political heart. Washington is a monumental city, with impressive white-marble buildings, memorials and some of the very best museums. It also boasts extremely pleasant residential districts, dotted with antique houses, parks and gardens, making for a lively, multicultural city.

You might have seen the waterfalls a million times in pictures or on TV, but rest assured – the real thing will leave you speechless. The border between Canada and the USA crosses the river Niagara; not far from the falls, the small Goat Island floats in the middle of the river, thus creating two different waterfalls: the American Falls on the USA side, with a crest line of about 320 m; and the famous Horseshoe Falls, twice as wide, on the Canadian side. Winter makes the landscape even more breathtaking, with the waterfalls turning into massive ice walls.

As soon as you catch sight of Chicago – the most important city of the Midwest, standing on the shore of Lake Michigan –, its skyline will leave you awestruck. After the devastating 1871 fire, Chicago was rebuilt by the most famous architects of the day – namely Frank Lloyd Wright and Mies Van de Rohe. The city is now one of the finest examples of contemporary architecture in the world. Chicago also boasts plenty of modern artworks, on display at the Millennium Park and in virtually every square, museums as outstanding as the Art Institute and an extremely thriving music scene, with several top-notch jazz, blues and rock clubs and festivals.

At the entrance of the scenic region of the Black Hills, Rapid City was born as a camp during the gold rush. Renowned for shopping at Prairie Edge, a magnificent store of authentic Native American art, and RCC Western Stores, one of the largest and oldest western merchandise stores in the nation.

Charming town with a wild west atmosphere, its main attractions are the Buffalo Bill Historical Center, the most comprehensive museum of the old west, and the rodeo that takes place every evening from June to August.

Continue along the Buffalo Bill Cody Scenic Byway, down the Shoshone river and through the tallest mountains and forests in Wyoming. An outstanding variety of landscapes will unfold before you: vast fields of wild sage, forests of firs, and glaciers, where moose, deer, mountain goats, grizzlies and brown bears roam free. Yellowstone is one of the largest parks in the USA, and the oldest national park in the world (it was opened in 1872). What truly makes it unique, though, is its enormous central area, which is in fact the huge caldera of a dormant volcano (the last eruption dates back to 640,000 years ago). Thousands of geysers outburst in the caldera, and several other geothermal features can be seen there – hot springs, mudpots, acid lakes. The area is also home to many animal species, including bears, wolves, bison, moose, deer, cougars and coyotes.

The scenic Teton mountains jut out against the sky in the flat, large prairie, amidst lakes, waterfalls and forests where moose and bison roam free. The tallest peak of the range is Grand Teton, with a height of more than 4,000 m.

Salt Lake City is the vibrant, urban heart of Utah. Nestled within a valley, at an elevation of 1320 m above sea level, the capital city of Utah is surrounded by the peaks of the Wasatch Mountains. Founded by Mormons in 1847, It hosted the 2002 Olympic Winter Games. Start your visit in the historic and spiritual heart of Salt Lake City, Temple Square. Nearby you’ll find a variety of eateries and bars, and you can shop at City Creek Center, which boasts more than 100 stores and restaurants. You should not miss the Campus district. A quick trip on TRAX, SLC’s light rail system, takes you from city center to the University of Utah campus district, home to Red Butte Garden and Arboretum and the Natural History Museum of Utah.

Bryce Canyon is, in fact, not a canyon: it’s a breathtaking natural amphitheatre full of spires and arches and pinnacles, jutting out in dazzling colours against the sky, moulded by the rain and frost in bizarre shapes to create a unique mountainscape.

The largest city in Northern Arizona is located on Route 66 and about an hour's drive from the Grand Canyon. Surrounded by cool ponderosa pine forests that grow on the slopes of the San Francisco Peaks, it has a much more pleasant climate than the scorching Phoenix.

Las Vegas is beyond words. It shines like a diamond the middle of the desert, dazzling with its extravagant luxury hotels, bustling with all sorts of shows and revelry. A place – but can such a place even exist? – without equal in the whole world.

Cross the Mojave desert, dotted with Joshua trees. With its canyons, hills, mesas, dunes, cinder cones, and – when the fleeting spring arrives – boundless wildflower fields, the Mojave deserts is a peaceful, lonely oasis away from the turmoil of the metropolis. Los Angeles – the land of Hollywood, Disneyland and Universal Studios, where life is as carefree as can be. With its ever-shining sun, palms in the breeze, movie stars with their fancy houses in Beverly Hills, wonderful museums, futuristic buildings, and surfing spots, Los Angeles truly makes for an unforgettable destination.

South of San Luis Obispo, Hwy-1 and US-101 run along the ocean, passing through Pismo Beach, a seaside town popular among families and retirees.

San Francisco’s iconic streets twist up and down its many hills and scenic bridges connecting it to the mainland – chief among which the red Golden Gate. San Francisco is a charming, multi-faceted city, regarded as a liberal, enlightened oasis in a rather conservative America.