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When someone says “bucket list trips,” it’s all too easy to imagine the journeys you’d like to take in the future, in some faraway someday to celebrate a momentous occasion or mark a sort of final hurrah. That’s all well and good, but as they say: There’s no time like the present. All across the vast United States lie innumerable opportunities to fulfill a childhood—or adulthood—dream, to experience the country in all its splendor, whether rural or urban, culinary or cultural, educational or just plain ol’ fun. At Condé Nast Traveler, we spend our days learning and writing about the best experience all 50 states have to offer—this is our ultimate wish list.
Here are 10 bucket list trips that Condé Nast Traveler editors want to take (or have taken) in their lifetime, from a bluegrass trail in Virginia and an excursion, to large-scale land art in Utah, to an expedition cruise in Alaska. Get inspired below and make sure you go prepared, whether you’re going solo or with your partner, on a road trip or backpacking.
Hot air ballooning in New Mexico
You don’t have to go all the way to Cappadocia, Turkey, to see magnificent hot air balloons in the sky. In fact, the largest hot air balloon festival in the world happens in Albuquerque, New Mexico. I have wanted to explore New Mexico’s largest city and take to the sky for quite a while, especially after experiencing paragliding for the first time. Going on now for 52 years and lasting over nine days, just 20 minutes from downtown, the Albuquerque International Balloon Fiesta is full of light shows, fireworks, live music, cultural dances, and floating balloons that fill the sky night and day. After being up in the air, a road trip to White Sands National Park would be the perfect way to end the trip—and check another national park off the list. —Kayla Brock, associate social media manager
Following a bluegrass trail in Virginia
I have always wanted to drive The Crooked Road through Virginia, which connects bluegrass and Appalachian music venues in Southwest Virginia—over 10 bigger venues, and about 50 smaller ones. I’d love to drive through the rolling hills, pulling over to places like the Floyd Country Store for a little dose of twang, and definitely for some whole-hog Virginia barbecue along the way. This year, 2024, marks the 20th anniversary of the trail, so I’m hoping to drive through during the fall when the festivities are in full swing. —Megan Spurrell, associate director of articles
Visiting Point Dume in Malibu, California
If you want to feel like you’re on the edge of the world, while overlooking clear ocean water and a view that will leave your mouth gaped open, this long bluff that juts out into the Pacific Ocean is the place. Point Dume is European-feeling in the way its rugged cliff formations meet the beach, but it offers an uniquely beautiful experience to those accustomed to less dramatic coastal views in the US. Well known for surfing, scuba diving, and whale watching during the December to mid-April migration period, Point Dume is only a short 45 minute drive from most central Los Angeles cities like Santa Monica—and the mesmerizing drive up the famous Pacific Coast Highway is probably its own bucket-list item too. —Emily Adler, associate social media manager
A horseback riding trip through Wyoming through Teton Canyon to the edge of Yellowstone National Park promises breathtaking views of the American landscape.
William Shafer/GettyHorseback riding in Wyoming
Every year since I moved to the United States—now 11 years ago—I have made mental plans to go horseback riding through Wyoming. Specifically through Teton Canyon and all the way up to the edge of Yellowstone National Park. Every year, I have failed to make it happen. But the dream remains intact: to clip-clop my way through the wilderness, ride through pebbled creeks, into forests, up the mountains, and across meadows filled with a spread of wildflowers that would make Klimt gasp, stopping only to set up camp, refuel, and swap stories by campfires. Throw in a few herds of roaming bison and that fantasy would be complete. —Arati Menon, global digital director
Taking an airboat ride through the Florida Everglades
Florida’s two biggest tourist draws are arguably Orlando, with its endless sprawl of theme parks, and Miami. If you’re visiting the latter, tack on a trip to Everglades National Park (it’s also a good add-on if you’re headed to the Keys). Growing up in south Florida, it was a place where we often brought out-of-town visitors, and visited on school field trips. Described as the largest subtropical wilderness in the United States by the National Park Service, the Everglades is home to alligators, flamingos, egrets, manatees, and the Florida panther. You’re all but guaranteed to see some alligators on an airboat ride through the marshy wetlands—and if you go to the Everglades Alligator Farm, you can even hold a small one (or at least see some up close and out of the water). There are expansive biking and walking trails throughout the park, too. I haven’t been anywhere else quite like it in the US; it feels worlds away from Florida’s urban areas. —Madison Flager, senior commerce editor
A winter expedition cruise in Alaska
Having become, as a result of my work, an unexpected cruiser over the course of the last year or so, I’m quite keen to get on a boat and go someplace where the cruise actually heightens one’s experience of and access to a destination. The first that comes to mind, of course, is the Galapagos. But stateside, from what I’ve gathered, cruising gets you the furthest in Alaska during winter, when the conditions are brutal and the seaside cities that dot the coast feel especially far to move between—not to mention the glaciers and other gems of natural majesty. —Charlie Hobbs, associate editor
Seeing Robert Smithson’s Spiral Jetty in Utah
For years I’ve wanted to put my road-tripping prowess to the test by driving out to the Spiral Jetty. The jetty is a 1,500-foot earthwork coil of basalt rock and mud that sprawls into the mirror-like expanse of the Great Salt Lake. Robert Smithson sculpted the piece in 1970, though it was submerged under the lake for over 30 years until it surfaced again due to drought in 2004. The journey there is a scenic montage through rural Utah benchmarked by cattle guards and artifacts from long-abandoned oil-drilling ventures. I can’t imagine a better place to stretch my legs and perch after a long drive than the jetty’s rugged banks with the lake’s surreal magenta waters surrounding me. —Kat Chen, editorial assistant
Treading along a Louisiana bayou
I have been possessed with this great magnetism to Louisiana’s bayous ever since I read Joan Didion’s South and West around five years ago. She deems the swamp terrains complex and invigorating, recalling drinks with the locals of Covington, Louisiana, who touch on their colorful and wild lifestyle, parties, and food. As a born-and-bred New Yorker, I’ve never experienced anything like this before. For a rich contrast—and perhaps for comfort—I would ideally stay in New Orleans for the first few nights. But the majority of my trip would be set along the Bayou Lafourche, along coastal marshes and moss-draped trees. I’d welcome the hot humid air like a hug and look to locals for recommendations on Cajun culture, swamp shacks, and shrimp boats. —Jessica Chapel, editorial assistant
Camping in Acadia National Park
For my first trip to Maine a few years ago, I drove up the East Coast with one of my best friends from college and went camping in Acadia National Park. We spent the long weekend hiking through the park’s trails with stunning views of the water and mountains, picnicking at a lighthouse, swimming in the clear ocean waves (it’s as cold as they say), and of course, eating many variations of lobster in Bar Harbor. On the drive up, we stopped in Camden, Maine, and spent the night at a friend’s farm, and on the way back I visited family in Cape Cod. I’d recommend combining Rhode Island, Massachusetts, and Maine for a quintessential New England road trip. Just be sure to reserve your Acadia camping spot (reservations open up two months in advance and book up relatively quickly). Go in the summer for the best weather, or during the autumn months to catch the foliage. —Hannah Towey, associate editor
Criss-crossing the United States for its wine regions
When it comes to travel, I cannot help but eternally cast my gaze to non-US elsewheres. My bucket-list trips include learning to tango in Buenos Aires, going on safari in Botswana (and staying at ever-gorgeous Xigera), and riding the Venice Simplon-Orient-Express (a dream that, to my unbelievable privilege, recently became a reality). But when I think about it really hard, I’d give my left arm to go on a harvest-season-long trip hopping around the United States and tasting its myriad wines: from the vineyards of the classic Napa Valley, to the under-sung Willamette Valley in Oregon, to the rising scene in Idaho’s wine country. Ever since I became an oenophile, I’ve never given California Chardonnays a second thought (I blame Bravo television shows), so I’d be glad to receive a re-education, as well as an introduction to the finest vintages of the Finger Lakes and Texas Hill Country. I’d need a private jet to efficiently travel between all of them before the season turns, so I guess I could give up my right arm, too. All I need for a wine tasting is, I guess, my mouth. —Matt Ortile, associate editor
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