From breathtaking natural wonders to architectural marvels built by humans, America is a beautiful place with no shortage of gorgeous destinations to visit. And that is what makes this weeks “PHOTOS OF THE WEEK, for 11/14/2019 !
Based on travel rankings from Insider and other publications, as well as travel sites such as TripAdvisor, we rounded up the most beautiful places in the US.
In no particular order, here are 32 destinations that put their postcard photos to shame.
San Francisco is full of world-famous tourist sites, including the Golden Gate Bridge, Alcatraz Island, Fisherman’s Wharf, and the sea lions at Pier 39. Flight Network ranked it as one of the 50 most beautiful cities in the world.
Photo by : Canadastock / Shutterstock
Insider named Oregon’s Oneonta Gorge one of the 11 spectacular waterfalls in the US you need to see in your lifetime.
Photo by: evenfh / shutterstock
Oak Alley Plantation was built from 1837 through 1839 and named for the 800 feet of oak trees that predated its construction. Country Living named the property the most beautiful historic home in America.
Photo by: istock /zrfphoto
Voted the best beach in the US by TripAdvisor, one user wrote: “Having flown from upstate New York, with its snow and cold blowing wind, Clearwater was a wonderful respite. The white sand, and calm ocean waves made for a wonderful break!”
Photo by: Kurdistan / Shutterstock
Skagit Valley hosts an annual blink-and-you’ll-miss-it Tulip Festival in April. People come from all over the world to see the colorful fields of tulips in bloom. Last year, the festival attracted people from all 50 states and 93 countries.
Photo by : Shutterstock / Karamysh
Glaciers might look stationary, but their movements sculpt landscapes. Exit Glacier is the only part accessible by road, otherwise you can navigate the park by boat, kayak, or on foot. The park is also home to Alaskan wildlife such as whales, mountain goats, bears, and moose.
Photo by: Sean Lema / Shutterstock
Watch for this: The annual “ART OF BLACK AND WHITE” ! The annual art exhibit of 25 to 30 of the most incredible black and white art photos of 2019. To be exhibited right here on this website. To see the winners of last years “ART OF BLACK AND WHITE” FOR 2018, just go to the website: http://www.123photogo.com, and go to the menu at the top of the page and click on the link: “gallery: “The Art of Black and White”.
With 158 miles of hiking trails and seven peaks above 1,000 feet, it’s no wonder that 3.3 million people visit the park each year, making it one of the most visited parks in North America.
Photo by: Joseph Sohm / Shutterstock
With its views of the Rocky Mountains and charming hubs like Pearl Street, Insider named Boulder one of the prettiest cities in the US. National Geographic also named it the happiest city in the US. Is there a better combination?
Photo by: littleNY / Shutterstock
Charleston was voted America’s Best Small City by Condé Nast Traveler readers for its fifth consecutive year in 2015, and again in 2017. In 2016 it was voted the best city in the world by Travel + Leisure. With colorful houses lining its streets and tons of beautiful settings for outdoor recreation, it’s a well-deserved honor.
Photo by: Sean Pavone / Shutterstock
The gleaming gypsum sand at White Sands National Monument covers 275 miles, making it the largest gypsum dunefield in the world.
Photo by: Sunsinger / Shutterstock
They don’t call it “The American Spa” for nothing. The water in Hot Springs National Park is a toasty 143 degrees Fahrenheit, and the park is full of hiking trails and historic bathhouses.
Photo by: Zack Frank / Shutterstock
There are many attractions worth visiting within Yellowstone National Park, but the Grand Prismatic Spring’s bright colors make it a standout destination. The water coming from a crack in the ground running 121 feet deep gets its vibrant hues from bacteria living around the spring.
Photo by: Yonjyut Kumsri / Shutterstock
The Pacific Coast Highway is once of the most well-known scenic drives in the US, famous for its cliff-side ocean views and pit stops like the Golden Gate Bridge and redwood forests.
Photo by: Pung / Shutterstock
The Badlands’ 244,000 acres of otherworldly rock formations and fossil beds are known as the Grand Canyon of the Midwest.
Photo by: Natchapon L. / Shutterstock
Newport, Rhode Island, is one of those storybook towns with whimsical cottages, enormous mansions, and miles of coastal walkways.
Photo by: Shutterstock
Microsoft included an image of The Wave in their desktop wallpaper options in 2009, skyrocketing what was once a little-known local gem into a must-see destination. Because of its fragility, the Bureau of Land Management only allows 20 people to visit per day as determined by a lottery.
Photo by: Wikimedia Commons
Lake Tahoe is the second-deepest lake in the US. Its clear blue waters make for breathtaking scuba diving.
Photo by: Anton Fulton / Shutterstock
“Nature’s waterpark” is nestled in Missouri’s St. Francois Mountains. The shut-ins are a series of mild river rapids and igneous rocks leftover from volcanic activity billions of years ago
Photo by: Sharon Day / shutterstock
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Have 12 beautiful amazing photos, one for every month.
Architect Santiago Calatrava designed the innovative Milwaukee Art Museum building, which features 90-foot ceilings in Windhover Hall and wings that open twice every day. It’s scenically situated on Lake Michigan along bike paths and walkways.
Photo by: Checubus / Shutterstock
Glacier National Park’s natural beauty made the cut as the most breathtaking natural wonder and the most beautiful vacation spot in Montana in Insider’s roundups, as well as a distinction as a World Heritage Site.
Located in Montana’s Rocky Mountains, near the Canadian border, Glacier National Park has over 700 miles of hiking trails, and terrain ranging from glaciers and lakes to alpine meadows and forests.
Photo by: Vaclak Sebek / shutterstock
Business Insider readers dubbed the Palace of Gold the most beautiful building in the state of West Virginia. New Vrindaban was founded in the 1960s by followers of Hare Krishna, and is sometimes referred to as “America’s Taj Mahal.”
Its lavish ornamentation includes marble, onyx, teak, and 22-karat gold leaf.
Photo by: You Tube / New Vrindaban Channel
With over 2,000 stone arches formed naturally, the largest one spanning 306 feet, Arches National Park is nature’s sculpture garden. The park drew 1.5 million visitors in 2016.
Photo by: Andrew S. / Shutterstock
You can get up-close and personal with active, lava burbling volcanoes through boat tours and guided hikes at Hawaii Volcanoes National Park.
Alexey Kamenskiy / Shutterstock
Wellesley College’s 500-acre campus with a private lake is one of the most beautiful college campuses in America.
Photo taken by: EvgeniiAnd / Shutterstock
TripAdvisor ranked The Met as the best museum in the US in its 2017 Travelers’ Choice Awards.
“Over-the-top fabulous with incredible, impeccable collections of an amazing array of furniture, art, armor, architecture, music,” one user wrote of the museum.
Photo by: Diego Grandi / Shutterstock
Established in 1885, Niagara Falls State Park is the oldest state park in the US. The waterfall flows with more than 700,000 gallons of water per second.
Photo by: REUTERS / Mark Blinch
The Grand Canyon is one of the Seven Wonders of the World. It stretches for 277 miles and could date as far back as 70 million years ago.
Photo by: Anton Foltin / Shutterstock
Tallgrass Prairie’s 10,894-acre reserve is the only national park dedicated to preserving the tallgrass prairie ecosystem full of forbs, flowers, trees, and shrubs. There’s nothing like the fresh country air and wide, open space.
Photo by: Ricardo Reitmeyer / Shutterstock
During high tide, water fills Thor’s Well, sprays out of it, and drains back inside for a mesmerizing water show. Just don’t get too close to this “drainpipe of the Pacific.”
Photo by: Lijuan Guo / shutterstock
Central Park covers 843 acres of land in one of the world’s busiest cities. Surrounded by skyscrapers but full of wooded paths, the park attracts locals and tourists from around the world.
Photo by: Shutterstock
Standing at 110 stories tall, the Willis Tower’s skydeck offers a panoramic view of the city of Chicago and Lake Michigan. It draws 1.5 million tourists every year.
Photo taken by: Angel Stellrecht / Shutterstock
Great Smoky Mountains National park is the most-visited national park in the US. If you go during firefly mating season, you’ll be treated to a stunning light show.
Photo by: Shutterstock / Dean Fikar
Photo taken during the “Golden Hour”, but the temple building itself is made of the granite rock taken from the local rocky mountain to the east of Salt Lake City, by the early Pioneers, back in the late 1800’s. This magnificent building’s architecture is a sight to behold, considering it is over 100 years old. But, the surrounding grounds, and the Christmas atmosphere draws millions to this sight every year. A beautiful sight year round.
Photo taken by: Lanny Cottrell / 123PhotoGo
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Ahh I’ve been to a few of these but this list definitely made me want to visit more of the U.S.! Thanks for this 🙂