Canyon country, geyser basins and Pacific coast roads, planned so the long drives land you somewhere worth waking up in.
The USA rewards focus. A fortnight can cover the canyons of southern Utah and northern Arizona, or Yellowstone and the Tetons, or New York followed by a week of New England back roads. It cannot comfortably cover all three.
We plan around the national parks, which are the reason most of our travellers go. Lodges inside the parks put you at the viewpoints at dawn, before the day visitors arrive.
The honest caveats: distances are long, summer crowds at the big parks are real, and a dinner bill carries sales tax and a tip that is expected, not optional. Two nights at each stop makes it all calmer.
The experiences we plan most often, with the months they are at their best.
Zion Canyon is a sheer red corridor cut by the Virgin River. For most of the year the scenic drive is closed to private cars and a free shuttle runs the canyon instead. Stay in Springdale, at the park gate, and be on the first shuttle for the Riverside Walk.
The South Rim is open all year and has the historic lodges, the rim trail and the classic viewpoints from Mather Point to Hermits Rest. Spend two nights: one sunset from Hopi Point, one sunrise from Yavapai. Winter can bring snow to the rim, which is lovely to see but slows the driving.
Yellowstone is two trips in one: the geyser basins around Old Faithful and the open northern valleys, where bison graze beside the road. Most park roads are closed to cars from early November to late April, so late May to September is the practical window. Go out at dawn with a naturalist guide.
Vermont turns first in the north and on the high ground in mid-September, and the colour moves south and into the valleys as September turns to October. Base yourself in a country inn near Stowe or Woodstock and ride the gondola up Mount Mansfield for the view. Pair it with a few nights in New York or Boston.
Thousands of humpbacks come to the warm, shallow water around Hawaii each winter to mate and calve, and the sanctuary season runs from November to April. Watch from a small boat out of Maalaea into the channel towards Lanai. It is a long way from London, so give Hawaii at least a week.
The Denali Park Road is open mainly to buses from 20 May to mid-September, and a day on it is the way to look for grizzly bears, moose and caribou beneath the Alaska Range. The season is short and lodges near the park fill early, so plan a year ahead.
In the parks, choose between the historic lodges inside, such as El Tovar on the Grand Canyon South Rim, and towns just outside like Springdale or Sedona, where rooms are larger and restaurants better. Around Lake Powell there are a few very private desert retreats.
We match each trip in USA to hotels, lodges and villas chosen for the way you travel. Tell us what matters and a specialist will suggest two or three that fit.
Ask for hotel suggestionsThe desert parks of Utah and Arizona are best in spring and autumn, when days are warm and nights cool, and hard work in the midsummer heat.
Summer belongs to the north: Yellowstone and Alaska are open and full of wildlife from June to early September. Autumn colours New England, and winter brings whales to Hawaii.
A road trip from Las Vegas through Zion, Lake Powell and the Grand Canyon to Sedona, with no drive longer than about three hours and two nights at every stop. 10 nights.
Land at Las Vegas, collect your car and stay one night away from the Strip to sleep off the flight.
Drive about two and a half hours to Springdale. Take the first shuttle into Zion Canyon, walk the Riverside Walk and ride to Canyon Overlook at sunset.
Cross the high desert to Page. Visit Antelope Canyon with a Navajo guide, and take a boat out on Lake Powell in the late afternoon light.
Enter by the quieter Desert View gate and drive the rim road west. Walk a stretch of the Rim Trail, and stay inside the park for sunrise.
Drop down through Oak Creek Canyon to Sedona. Hike early, then spend the afternoons watching the rocks turn red from a spa terrace.
Drive about two hours to Phoenix Sky Harbor for the overnight flight to Heathrow, arriving the next morning.
Practical notes checked against their sources. For entry and safety, the FCDO advice for USA (opens in a new tab) is always the authority.
Heathrow has direct flights to most big American cities: about eight hours to New York, and 10 to 11 to Las Vegas and Phoenix for canyon country.
UK passport holders need an approved ESTA or a visa before they fly, and the US enforces its entry rules strictly. Read the FCDO entry requirements page (opens in a new tab) well before you book.
Read the FCDO entry requirements for USA (opens in a new tab)
Check TravelHealthPro (opens in a new tab) and the FCDO health page before you go. Medical care is excellent but very expensive, so travel insurance with generous medical cover matters. In the desert, carry more water than you think you need.
The currency is the US dollar. Cards are accepted almost everywhere, but keep some small notes for tips. Menu and shop prices usually exclude sales tax, which is added at the till.
Check your UK roaming plan before you go. In the parks, expect signal only around the villages; in Yellowstone it is limited to the developed areas.
Tipping is part of the wage. In restaurants, 20% of the bill before tax is the usual minimum, and more in smart places. Leave a few dollars a day for housekeeping and tip guides 10% to 20% of the tour cost.
April, May, September and October. Days are warm enough for hiking, nights are cool, and you miss the worst of the summer heat and crowds. Winter is quiet and clear on the South Rim, but some services close and snow is possible.
You can, but they are a long way apart and each deserves several days. We would fly between them, in late May, June or September, when Yellowstone roads are open and Arizona is not too hot. Two weeks is the sensible minimum.
Yes. Roads are wide and well signed, and we plan routes with no drive longer than three or four hours and two nights at each stop. We can also add private guides for the days you would rather not drive at all.
For the lodges inside the big parks, yes. Rooms on the Grand Canyon South Rim and in Yellowstone fill many months ahead for spring, summer and early autumn, and the better hotels in the gateway towns go early too, so we book as soon as your dates are set.
Tell us a little and a specialist will reply with ideas, dates that work and a price. Best months: April, May, September and October.
Glacier lakes in the Rockies, whales off Vancouver Island and polar bears on Hudson Bay, each in its own short season.
Mexico City’s food, Oaxaca’s markets and Maya ruins in the Yucatán, finished with a week on the Caribbean coast.
Volcano, cloud forest, turtle beach and whale coast in one small country, with a lodge in each that puts you in the forest.
