Living in the United States my whole life, I have been able to explore a lot of this great country. While I haven’t been to every state yet, I have been to 34 states, which is 68%, and there are definitely some that I have enjoyed more than others. Most of the states I’ve been to are on the eastern side of the country, but I have found that most of my favorites are on the western side. I decided to figure out what my 10 favorite states are and rank them below. I believe that this list will change as I visit more, because I expect states like Wyoming, Montana, and Alaska will probably make my list when I eventually visit. So here’s my current top 10:
10. Louisiana
To be fair, most of my experience in Louisiana comes from the New Orleans area. But I really enjoy visiting New Orleans and the nearby town of Jean Lafitte. I also like the Atchafalaya Basin near Baton Rouge. I love exploring swamps, which Louisiana has plenty of, and I really like the Cajun culture found throughout the state. New Orleans specifically is one of the most unique cities in the world with a blend of cultures found throughout its historic streets. The food is amazing, the energy of the city is addicting, and the architecture is beautiful. I just really like Louisiana in general.
9. Texas
Texas is a nightmare to drive across, but if you actually spend time in the state, it’s really nice. I have been to both Houston and San Antonio. I didn’t have the best opinion of Houston, but I really liked San Antonio. It’s just a beautiful city to explore. There’s a lot of history throughout the city, including sites like the Alamo and Missions. The food is a nice blend of Mexican, Southern, and Western, and everything I tried there was excellent. My favorite thing about San Antonio though is the Riverwalk. It makes walking across this big city enjoyable because of the beautiful views of the river. Texas Hill Country is also a nice area, but I really only visited the edge of that, so I didn’t get the full experience. Texas is definitely more than you initially think!
8. Tennessee
I’m kinda surprised I’m placing Tennessee this high. I don’t like how a lot of people seem to be so obsessed with Tennessee that they won’t consider visiting other places. Towns like Gatlinburg and Pigeon Forge are nice but seem to be too touristy to me, and Chattanooga definitely isn’t my favorite place. But the state is beautiful, so it has to make my top 10. The Smoky Mountains are incredible, and the hiking there is some of the best in the country. I love hiking through the mountains to find a waterfall at the top. I also think that staying in a cabin in the Smoky Mountains is a must-do for everyone. Cades Cove is really nice too with plenty of wildlife to see. I also like Nashville and enjoy visiting it every time I go. While I do limit my time spent in Tennessee, it’s always nice to return again.
7. Colorado
While I do like visiting the Smokies, if I’m going to visit mountains, I definitely prefer the Rockies. I’ve only been to Colorado once, but I really liked my time there. The snow-topped mountains were always in the background wherever I went, which made it very scenic, even when passing through flat prairies. I like Denver, and enjoy walking around the city, but the nature is really what you come to Colorado for. Colorado Springs is definitely a beautiful area, and I really enjoyed Cañon City too. Royal Gorge is a beautiful sight, both from the top and bottom. I rode a train through the bottom of it, viewing mountain goats along the way, and then I visited the bridge at the top and rode a zip line over it. While my plans had to be changed due to a blizzard that came through, I really liked Colorado and want to visit it again.
6. Florida
I also didn’t expect Florida to make it this high since I live here and always want to go somewhere else. But I can’t ignore that Florida is a really nice state. Some of my favorite beaches anywhere are in Florida! Panama City Beach has an awesome view of the sunset, Pensacola and Destin have the whitest beaches I’ve seen anywhere, and while I haven’t technically been to Miami Beach, I’ve seen it from the air and it looks amazing! The St Augustine area is full of history as it’s the oldest continually-inhabited city in the United States. Florida’s history often gets overlooked in favor of a more British-centered history, but Spain was here long before the British, and many of the “firsts” in the US are found in St Augustine. Key West is another reason Florida makes it this high on my list. It’s a beautiful place that I’ve been wanting to revisit for a while. Florida is one of the most visited states in the US for a reason!
5. Washington
These top 5 are really the best of the best. I don’t see these slipping out of my top 10 even after visiting every state. I loved visiting Washington a couple years ago. While I stayed in Seattle, I was able to visit several other areas and saw how beautiful this state is. Mt Rainier is one of my favorite places in the whole country! The nature found in Mt Rainier almost feels untouched. There are beautiful waterfalls and awesome hikes. Vashon Island is also a really nice place to visit in the middle of the Puget Sound. And Snoqualmie Falls is definitely worth visiting as well, though it’s a bit of a drive from the city. But in addition to the great nature in Washington, I really liked visiting Seattle too! It’s a nice city to walk around, and the Pike Place Market is definitely one of the highlights of the city. I loved Washington, so it had to be in my top 5 for sure.
4. Arizona
Arizona used to be my favorite state overall. I haven’t lowered my opinion of Arizona, but instead I have raised my opinion of several others, so it’s now here. I really like visiting deserts, and Arizona is one of the best places in the US to see them. The whole state has beautiful desert views, mixed with canyons and gorges making it one of the most scenic states to drive through. Of course the Grand Canyon is one of the main reasons I love the state so much! If there’s one place in the whole country that I think everyone should visit at least once, it’s the Grand Canyon. The views here are unmatched in the US, and I could spend days at the Grand Canyon without ever getting tired of it. One place that is overlooked in Arizona is Lake Havasu, right on the border with California. The lake is beautiful, and it’s a great place to spend a day, especially if you rent a boat. While I love everything I’ve seen from Arizona, there’s still so much more that I haven’t seen yet, so I’m hoping to return someday.
3. California
I really struggled putting California over Arizona because if you asked me a year ago, I wouldn’t have even thought about it and put Arizona higher. But my recent visit to San Diego gave me more of an appreciation for California. It really is a beautiful state and has so much to offer. San Francisco is my favorite city in the US, and there’s a lot to do there! The Golden Gate Bridge and Alcatraz are iconic sites and definitely worth visiting. Then just north of San Francisco are the redwood forests, which are some of the most beautiful forests I’ve ever visited. Hollywood is another very iconic place in California, but it’s not my favorite part of the state. And then San Diego is awesome. What really led me to raise my opinion of California is the coastline. The beaches here are great! I love walking along a beach with the Pacific Ocean on one side and high rocky cliffs on the other side. The sunsets here are some of the best too. My recent trip to San Diego just reminded me how diverse California is, and I think because of that it deserves to be at number 3.
2. Utah
It’s no secret that I loved Utah, specifically Southern Utah. The Mighty 5 parks are some of the best in the country and are each so unique from each other. In Moab, you can view some of the most unique rock formations in the world at Arches and then stare out into endless canyons from prairie-covered highlands at Canyonlands, then a drive across an empty desert brings you to a badland-type area with green trees and fruit orchards found within it at Capitol Reef. Then you can drive through green forests with rolling hills and then a rocky wasteland all within a 2-hour timespan. Next is Bryce Canyon where red hoodoos create a unique landscape in the middle of a rich forest. Then from there, you can visit a green canyon with narrow gorges at Zion. Utah was so much better than I ever expected it to be, and it definitely belongs at the top of my list.
Honorable Mentions:
While these 10 states mentioned are my favorites, there were several states that I wanted to include but ended up cutting. Nevada is one of those. While I really like Nevada, I didn’t think it was fair to include it when my only real experience from the state is Las Vegas. If I had visited more of the state it would probably be included. Another one I considered but ultimately cut is Minnesota. While it’s a beautiful state covered with peaceful lakes, I couldn’t really point to anything else that makes it deserve a spot in the top 10. I also really like Maine, but similar to Nevada, I have only really spent time in one town, Madawaska. It’s a nice state, but I haven’t seen enough to put it on this list. My favorite state below shouldn’t really be a surprise:
1. Hawaii
This wasn’t really much of a question- I knew that Hawaii would be ranked first. Hawaii is one of those destinations that everyone dreams of visiting someday, and I feel extremely lucky to be one of the people that has had the privilege to visit it. There’s really nothing to complain about with Hawaii. Everywhere you turn is another beautiful view. The beaches are amazing, the waterfall hikes are incredible, the sunsets are stunning, and the food is awesome. I love the laid-back island culture here too! I normally don’t fall in love with places that everyone talks about because those places are usually either too touristy or crowded for me, but Hawaii is genuinely one of the best vacation destinations within the United States, and I couldn’t recommend it more.
While the US has so many places to visit, I wanted to narrow it down to the 10 states I’d most recommend visiting. But I have to base it on my own experiences, so some states that probably should be on my list won’t be included because I haven’t been yet. And you may disagree with the placement of some of these, but their placement on this list all depends on my own experience while I was there. You won’t see New York anywhere near my list, but you may see it on someone else’s because they had a better experience than I did. The US is so diverse, and it’s worth visiting as much of it as possible. I hope to make it to every state someday, but for now these are my top 10. Thanks for reading!
Tyler's Travels 