Western United States

Download a Western United States of America destination travel guide (PDF, 1286K)

From purple mountains’ majesty to the rolling waves of the Pacific, the wonders of the West are certainly beautiful to behold. Choose your own adventure: explore the wilds of Alaska, relax on Hawaii’s white-sand beaches, retrace the steps of Old West pioneers, or wind your way through California’s enchanting wine country. Wherever your Western adventure takes you, you are sure to discover some of the world’s most awe-inspiring sights right here in your own backyard.

• Holidays and Festivals
• Books
• Videos
• Weather
• Average Temperatures
• Did you know?
• National Parks Spotlight

Holidays & Festivals

Books

• The Grapes of Wrath, by John Steinbeck
• The Lost Continent: Travels in Small-Town America, by Bill Bryson
• The Man Who Invented Las Vegas, by W.R. Wilkerson III
• National Geographic’s Guide to the National Parks of the United States, by Elizabeth L. Newhouse (Editor)

Videos

• From Here to Eternity (1953)
• North to Alaska (1960)
• Sleepless in Seattle (1993)
• A Walk in the Clouds (1995)
• Oceans Eleven (2001)
• Sideways (2005)

Weather

Weather in the western United States is a lesson in extremes—from Alaska’s chill to Arizona’s heat and year-round comfort in California and Hawaii. What you decide to pack when you travel to the West will depend largely on your destination. With wide open spaces like these, however, might we suggest bringing along a well-traveled pair of tennis shoes.

Average Temperatures

Did you know?

• Napa Valley boasts more than 200 wineries, including Stag’s Leap Winery, famous for its 1973 Cabernet Sauvignon that beat the French in a blind taste test in Paris.
• Denver has the largest city park system in the nation, with 205 parks within city limits and 20,000 acres of parks in the nearby mountains.
• Shrimp consumption in Las Vegas is more than 60,000 pounds a day—that’s more than the rest of the U.S. combined.
• Everyone knows that Los Angeles is the entertainment capital of the world, but it also boasts an eclectic mix of more than 300 fine-arts museums.

National Parks Spotlight

Arches National Park
Location: Near Moab, Utah
Established: November 12, 1971
Area: 76,359 acres
Highlights: A landscape seemingly taken from the pages of a Dr. Seuss book, Arches offers a kaleidoscope of geological wonders—from sandstone arches to spires, pinnacles and curiously balanced rocks. For an unforgettable cap to your day, catch a spectacular sunset through the frame of the park’s famous Delicate Arch.

Denali National Park
Location: South Central Alaska
Established: February 26, 1917
Area: 6,028,091 acres
Highlights: Covering an area larger than the state of Massachusetts and having only one road to its name, Denali is wilderness at its best. View Mount McKinley, America’s tallest peak, along with rushing rivers, flower-studded tundra, and an incredible assortment of wildlife at this Alaskan wonderland.

Grand Canyon National Park
Location: Northern Arizona
Established: February 26, 1919
Area: 1,218,375 acres
Highlights: The sheer magnitude of this, the grandest canyon, is perhaps the most overwhelming sensation you’ll receive from your visit. Billions of years of erosion have created a geological history lesson told through the multifarious layers of rock. Sunsets here set the canyon walls aflame with a crimson hue that will stay forever burned in your memory.

Grand Teton National Park
Location: Northwest Wyoming
Established: February 26, 1929
Area: 309,590 acres
Highlights: Amber waves of grain give way to the mountain majesty of this picturesque mountain range. Wyoming is the least populous state in the nation when it comes to human life, but one of the most populous when it comes to wildlife. Keep your eyes peeled for the park’s main residents—moose, buffalo, elk and pronghorn sheep.

Hawaii Volcanoes National Park
Location: South Central Hawaii
Established: August 1, 1916
Area: 229,177 acres
Highlights: Two of the world’s most active volcanoes—Kilauea and Mauna Loa—are on display at this exotic park. Lava-twisted landscapes are interspersed with lush greenery. Periodic eruptions send fresh lava flows to meet the sea and create colossal clouds of steam.

Rocky Mountain National Park
Location: North Central Colorado
Established: January 26, 1915
Area: 265,668 acres
Highlights: Drive the “Roof of the Rockies” along Trail Ridge Road, the highest continuous paved road in the U.S. This park boasts some of the world’s tallest peaks—more than 78 of them exceed 12,000 feet. Alpine lakes throughout the park reflect the beauty of these national treasures.

Yellowstone National Park
Location: Northwest Wyoming
Established: March 1, 1872
Area: 2,221,766 acres
Highlights: As America’s first national park, Yellowstone is an incredible collection of geological treasures. Beyond the obligatory—yet still wonderfully tantalizing— Old Faithful, visitors will enjoy bubbling hot springs, majestic mountain vistas and rushing rivers.

Yosemite National Park
Location: Northeast California
Established: October 1, 1890
Area: 748,542 acres
Highlights: El Capitan towers over the park as a veritable mecca for rock-climbing enthusiasts worldwide. But even if you come to Yosemite without your climbing gear, simply witnessing the battle of man versus mountain is worth the journey. Enjoy lunch in the glacier-cut Yosemite Valley surrounded by breathtaking craggy peaks. Or take a hike along the park’s thousands of acres of rolling green meadows.

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