USA Holidays & Accommodation
North America
Although he USA is build upon a culture of greed and with a society ruled by vanity, it is wonderful country to visit as a tourist with stunning scenery and a fantastic National Park system to make it all easily accessible. The metaphor of a melting pot has long been used to describe the USA; first and foremost new arrivals in the country are expected to become Americans. It was a powerful image, and to this day, across a nation as diverse as the US, there is a very strong national identity. The U.S. is a study in paradoxes, from being steeped in the architectural history of the American forefathers in the Washington, DC to the spectacle and brasshness of cities like Las Vegas and Los Angeles, to the cosmopolitan delights of New York City and San Francisco. This country is a study in diversity and contrasts, of wealth and poverty, good and bad; and most tragically, deep-rooted racism.
USA in Regions
Broadly speaking, there are five regions in the U.S: The North East, home to New York and Boston; The warmer SouthEast includes Florida and Louisiana; The Mid-West, bordering the Great Lakes in the north and including the Great Plains, the agricultural heartland of the US as well as Texas, cattle and oil country in the south; The Mountain States including Colorado which embrace the southern section of The Rockies (The Canadian Rockies extend northwards from Montana); whilst The Pacific Coast is home to California. Each region diverse and represent a geographical area rather than an orientation along cultural or economic lines, and as such are quite diverse.
USA Holidays Planner
The Northeast covers a range of states collectively known as New England as well as Penysylvania, New York and New Jersey. Cities include Boston, also known for sports fan activity in basketball and hockey, and Philadelphia, known as the City of Brotherly Love and rich in historical heritage. The New England states are the setting for the famous American novel of Moby Dick, set in Cape Cod, Maine. It is the quintessential American story of Ahab, the obsessed whaling captain.
The Southeast region covers a diverse area from the Florida Keys which almost touches Cuba to Virginia, The Carolinas and Washington DC, capital of the US, and encompasses Alabama, Georgia, and Louisiana among others. The Deep South states include Louisiana is known for its Cajun culture as well as its blues and jazz music, while Georgia is the home of the cosmopolitan city of Atlanta. The Mississippi stretches through this region, and is the largest river system in North America.
The Midwest includes the states of Illinois, Wisconsin, Missouri, Indiana, Nebraska, Iowa, North/South Dakota, Kansas, Ohio, Michigan, and Minnesota. These include the plains states and Mount Rushmore in South Dakota, and the Great Lakes States bordering Canada. Michigan is famous for its vacation properties and golf courses, while Illinois is well known for Chicago and the Mercantile Exchange. Minnesota and Wisconsin are great places to catch football games (that's American football), and their states are well-known for having great fans. The second largest of all states, Texas, covers much of the border with Mexico and is home to Tex-Mex cuisine and of course the Alamo.
The Mountains States encompasses Colorado, New Mexico and Arizona in the south and Wyoming and Montana in the north. Arizona is known as a resort state, drawing a lot of out-of-state residents for its golf courses and warm winter weather, while New Mexico is famous for its artists and architecture. Colorado is home to the Grand Canyon and The American Rockies.
The Pacific Coast staddling the west has the most diverse climate, stretching from wet Washington in the north, all the way to dry California in the south, and including both the Hawaiian Islands in the Pacific and the sub-artic mass of Alaska which accounts for almost 20% of the US total land. The Pacific Coast is a vivid and colourful area, offering up gems like San Francisco with its streetcars and Los Angeles with its theme parks and movie industry. Washington and Oregon are picturesque but far removed from the spectacle of Las Vegas.