USA

The United States of America is a federal republic consisting of fifty states and a federal district, as well as several territories.  It is commonly called the United States (US, USA, U.S. or U.S.A.) and America. The country is situated mostly in central North America, where its forty-eight contiguous states and Washington, D.C., the capital district.  The state of Alaska is situated in the northwest portion of the continent, while the state of Hawaii is an archipelago in the Mid Pacific. The geography and climate of the United States is also extremely diverse and is home to a variety of species. The United States is a developed country and has the world's largest national economy. The United States has been a leader in scientific research and technological innovation since the late 19th century.

Tourism in the United States is a large industry that serves millions of international and domestic tourists yearly. Tourists visit the US to see natural wonders, cities, historic landmarks and entertainment venues. In the US, tourism is either the first, second or third largest employer in 29 states, employing 7.3 million. Today, there exists a wide range of tourist attractions in the United States such as amusement parks, festivals, gambling, golf courses, historical buildings and landmarks, hotels, museums, galleries, outdoor recreation, spas, restaurants and sports.

MAJOR DESTINATIONS

New York

New York is a state in the Northeastern region of the United States.   The state of New York is often referred to as New York State to distinguish it from New York City.

New York City  is the most populous city in the United States. It is known for its status as a center for finance and culture and for its status as the largest gateway for immigration to the United States. According to the U.S. Department of Commerce, it is also a destination of choice for many foreign visitors.  New York exports a wide variety of goods such as foodstuffs, commodities, minerals, computers and electronics, cut diamonds, and automobile parts. New York City is the leading center of banking, finance and communication in the United States and is the location of the New York Stock Exchange, the largest stock exchange in the world by dollar volume. Many of the world's largest corporations are based in the city. Tourism in New York City includes nearly 47 million foreign and American tourists each year. The city is also home to many of the finest haute cuisine restaurants in the United States.

Statue of Liberty - An icon for democracy, Lady Liberty held up her torch to welcome immigrants to America over a century ago  and dedicated on October 28, 1886. The statue, a gift to the United States from the people of France, is of a robed female figure representing Libertas, the Roman goddess of freedom,   upon which is inscribed the date of the American Declaration of Independence, July 4, 1776. The statue is an icon of freedom and of the United States.  In 1984, the Statue of Liberty was designated a UNESCO World Heritage Site.  

Central Park –  It is a public park at the center of Manhattan in New York City. The park initially opened in 1857, on 778 acres. Central Park is the most visited urban park in the United States and the park  receives approximately thirty-five million visitors annually.  The park offers several lakes, theaters, ice rinks, fountains, tennis courts, baseball fields, many playgrounds and other facilities. It is also home to the Central Park Zoo,  the Metropolitan Museum of Art and there are a number of enclosed playgrounds for children. Especially during the weekends, when cars are not allowed into the park, Central Park is a welcome oasis in this excited city.

Empire State Building - The Empire State Building is a 102-story skyscraper located in Midtown Manhattan. It stood as the world's tallest building for 40 years, from its completion in 1931 until construction of the World Trade Center's. The Empire State Building is generally thought of as an American cultural icon. 

San Francisco

San Francisco, officially the City and County of San Francisco, is the leading financial and cultural center of Northern California and the San Francisco Bay Area.  Today, San Francisco is one of the top tourist destinations in the world  and is renowned for its cool summers, fog, steep rolling hills, eclectic mix of architecture, and landmarks including the Golden Gate Bridge, cable cars, the former prison on Alcatraz Island, and its Chinatown district. It is also a primary banking and finance center. 

The Golden Gate area is in the northern section of San Francisco. It has some of the most beautiful scenery and intact natural environments in the city. It is roughly bounded by the San Francisco Bay to the north and west, Lake St and California St to the south, and Van Ness Ave to the east. The Golden Gate Bridge connects this district with Marin County across the Bay to the north.

Lombard Street is a street in San Francisco. It is famous for having a steep, one-block section that consists of eight tight hairpin turns. The name of the street is said to originate with Lombard banking (an early type of pawn shop) which itself has ties to the Northern Italy region of Lombardy .

Coit Tower, also known as the Lillian Coit Memorial Tower, is a 210-foot tower in the Telegraph Hill neighborhood of San Francisco,California. The tower, in the city's Pioneer Park, was built in 1933 using Lillie   Coit's donation to beautify the city of San Francisco; at her death in 1929 Coit left one-third of her estate to the city for civic beautification. The tower was proposed in 1931 as an appropriate use of Coit's gift. It was added to the National Register of Historic Places on January 29, 2008.

Las Vegas

Las Vegas  is the most populous city in the U.S. state of Nevada and the county seat of Clark County. Las Vegas is an internationally renowned major resort city known primarily for gambling, shopping, and fine dining and is the leading financial and cultural center for Southern Nevada. The city known  itself as The Entertainment Capital of the World, and is famous for its   casino–hotels and associated entertainment.  Today, Las Vegas is one of the top tourist destinations in the world. 

 THE STRIP - The 4km long central section of Las Vegas Boulevard which runs through the city from northeast to southwest, known as the Strip, is lined with huge entertainment palaces, with revue theaters, nightspots, and luxury hotels set in beautiful gardens. The Strip is particularly impressive at night, when the city is illuminated by an endless succession of glittering neon signs. Every evening there are two shows: the dinner show (floor shows and a generous meal) which in most establishments starts around 8 p.m., and the cocktail show (floor shows and a light supper with cocktails) at 11 p.m.

Most visitors enjoy walking along the Strip and taking in the sights. Generally speaking the Las Vegas Strip runs from Mandalay Bay Hotel to the Treasure Island Hotel.

MGM HOTEL - The  4km long central section of Las Vegas Boulevard which runs through the city from northeast to southwest, known as the Strip, is lined with huge entertainment palaces, with revue theaters, nightspots, and luxury hotels set in beautiful gardens. The Strip is particularly impressive at night, when the city is illuminated by an endless succession of glittering neon signs. Every evening there are two shows: the dinner show (floor shows and a generous meal) which in most establishments starts around 8 p.m., and the cocktail show (floor shows and a light supper with cocktails) at 11 p.m. When it opened in 1993, the MGM Grand was the largest hotel in the world.

The Venetian Hotel - The Venetian Hotel in Las Vegas is located on "The Strip" across from Treasure Island. It is one of the finer establishments in town and has many interesting attractions to amaze the visitor. The complex consists of a themed shopping arcade built to resemble the city of Venice, complete with blue skies, canals and gondoliers. The canals and gondolas also run outside the hotel and can be seen from the sidewalk while passing by. The hotel also features many of the main attractions found in Venice such as the Rialto Bridge and the Bridge of Sighs along with many others.

Los Angeles

Los Angeles is the largest city in the federal state of California, and since 1984 the second largest in the United States, when it ousted Chicago from that position. It is situated in the southern part of California and some suburbs are directly on the coast of the Pacific Ocean between the port of San Pedro and the San Gabriel mountain range on the landward side.

 Hollywood Walk of Fame - The famous Hollywood Walk of Fame runs along Hollywood Boulevard and Vine Street. Here Hollywood's most recognized faces and names are represented by "stars" dedicated and laid in the sidewalk. The list of names to be found along here include prominent actors, musicians, directors, personalities, and other important people from the areas of motion picture, TV, radio, recording, live theatre/performance. Stars are still being added.

The Walk of Fame is one of those Hollywood icons that make the city so exciting. The tradition began in 1960 and was at the time the source of much controversy. Who would be included and more importantly, who would not be included, became the problem. There is a nomination process with new nominees being announced each June. Today there are about 2400 stars on the sidewalks with a small number added each year.

Bunker Hill – It is not far from the present Civic Center, was where the well-to-do Angelenos lived in their Victorian houses at the turn of the century. In 1901 an open cable-railway, modeled on that in San Francisco, was constructed to make it easier for the residents to climb the eastern part of its hill, and which during the brief period of its existence earned the name "Angel's Flight" (now the name of a restaurant in the Hyatt Regency Hotel).

The opulent homes were lost in the 1950s and 60s, replaced with high rise buildings of both residential and none residential nature which now comprise downtown Los Angeles.

The Farmer's Market -  attracts large number of visitors daily, both tourists and locals. There are often seasonal celebrations here so watch for special events. Some popular annual events held at the market are Mardi Gras Celebrations, the Summer Family Fun Series, and the Fall Festival. There are also many things happening around Christmas. The Los Angeles Farmer's Market is much more than just a traditional farmer's market. The market first started in 1934 as a very modest affair that sprung from the hardships created by the depression. Today there are all kinds of fruit, vegetable, and other food stands, along with restaurants, and specialty shops.

Washington DC

Roughly half way down the Atlantic coast of North America, at the junction of the Anacostia and Potomac Rivers, is Washington DC (District of Columbia), federal capital of the United States. Washington DC strikes visitors as an atypical American city, for there are no skyscrapers, which indeed are prohibited by law. The townscape of Washington is one of Classical-style buildings, some of them of giant size, laid out along the avenues of enormous width which have earned Washington the name of the "city of magnificent distances". Most of the 20 million people who visit Washington annually are Americans anxious to see the incarnation of American democracy in stone and the sites which are so familiar to them from schooldays and television. Foreign visitors may be surprised to discover how freely accessible - though strictly controlled - even such sensitive areas of government as the Capitol are. They will also find an abundance of museums, some of which are among the most important of their kind in the world.

The White House - It is the official residence of the President of the United States. It has been the home of every president except George Washington.It was originally built by James Hoban in 1792, and after being burned down by British forces in 1814 was rebuilt in 1818. On the guided tours (tickets issued free of charge from 8 a.m. at the kiosk on the Ellipse; long lines) visitors do not see a great deal of the interior - a few small room in period styles, the East, Blue, Green and Red Rooms, the Ballroom, the State Dining Room and the entrance hall: the rooms where government policy is made, such as the Oval Office, are not open to the public.

The National Gallery of Art – It contains a large and diverse collection of European and American paintings, sculpture and decorative arts. Temporary exhibitions from countries and cultures around the globe are presented regularly. It is considered by some to be one of the world's premier museums and it is one of the most popular in the U.S. The core of the collection comes from that of the former secretary of the treasury, Andrew Mellon. Some of the highlights in this section include the only Da Vinci painting (Ginevra de Benci) in any American museum, works by major French Impressionists such as Monet, Degas and Renoir and other masterpieces by Rembrant, El Greco and Vermeer.