There are many reasons people come to the USA. The US is all about diversity. From its teeming cities and world-famous national parks to its glaciers and sand dunes, there is plenty to see. Here are 60 places you won’t believe are in the US.

1. Alvord Desert, Oregon

This stunning mountain-fringed landscape reminiscent of the Atacama Desert in Chile is in the Pacific Northwest. It covers an area of five by 10 miles and includes multiple natural springs.

2. Craters of the Moon National Monument and Preserve, Idaho

This lesser-known preserve is more than 1,500 years old. It is a volcanic landscape highlighted by caves, cinder cones, craters, and lava fields.

3. Supai, Arizona

This secluded village is in the Grand Canyon. The local Havasupai Tribe has resided here since approximately AD 1300. The eight-mile hike required to reach it helps keep it from becoming touristy.

4. Helen, Georgia

Helen is situated in the famous Blue Ridge Mountains. It features little shops and half-timbered buildings. Be sure to visit during their annual Oktoberfest especially if you enjoy beer.

5. Sleeping Bear Dunes National Lakeshore, Michigan

This paradise might not have palm trees but it includes soft sand dunes, sandy bluffs, shaded wooded areas, and smaller lakes. Tour the historic lighthouse too!

6. Rawah Wilderness, Colorado

Rawah Wilderness has an Alpine look. This 78,000-acre area stretches from northern Colorado to the Wyoming state border. It features 78 miles of hiking trails and 26 lakes.

7. Horsetail Fall, California

Horsetail Fall is in Yosemite National Park. Every February when the sun sets this waterfall takes on an incredible burning orange aura and looks like flowing lava.

8. Jungle Gardens, Avery Island, Louisiana

This semi-tropical preserve spans across 170 acres of Avery Island. It’s home to birds and alligators but also includes bamboo forests, hot pink camellias, and interesting Japanese-style architecture.

9. Cliff Palace, Colorado

Cliff Palace in ensconced in the cliffs in the popular Mesa Verde National Park. It’s the largest cliff dwelling on the continent. It was built between roughly AD 1190 and 1260.

10. Fall Creek Falls, Tennessee

Situated in the Fall Creek Falls State Park, this waterfall resembles New Zealand’s Humboldt Falls. The water thunders over the rocks to crash 256 feet into a lovely lake.

11. Haleakalā National Park, Hawaii

Visit the remote Summit District of this park to see its namesake shield volcano amidst striking Mars-like landscapes. The volcano itself is 10,023 feet high.

12. Sequim-Dungeness Valley, Washington

The Sequim-Dungeness Valley is found north of Olympic National Park. The city of Sequim is the official Lavender Capital of North America. Visit in July for the yearly Sequim Lavender Weekend.

13. The Palouse, Idaho/Washington

The Palouse features color-soaked meadows, golden wheat fields, rolling hills and epic sunsets reminiscent of Tuscany, Italy. Cruise the Palouse Scenic Byway to see the Washington section too.

14. Bonsai Rock, Nevada

Bonsai Rock is an Instagramable crag on the Nevada section of Lake Tahoe. You can visit this hulking boulder and quartet of trees by taking a brief albeit steep hike.

15. Badlands National Park, South Dakota

The odd rock-scapes here amidst the 244,000+ acres are positively other-worldly. It’s also a place of prairie and peaks where bison and bighorn sheep freely roam.

16. Cà d’Zan, Florida

Cà d’Zan was built during the famous Roaring Twenties. Located in Sarasota, this impressive home includes Venetian-Gothic architecture. It was once the residence of circus master John Ringling.

17. Pfeiffer Beach, California

This remote beach in Big Sur includes eye-catching offshore rock formations and superb sunsets too. What’s especially unique here are the sections of purple sand due to the garnet there.

18. White Sands National Monument, New Mexico

This strange, unique 275-square-mile desert is situated in Tularosa Basin. These distinct dunes are composed of rare gypsum sand. Enjoy a ranger-led tour here.

19. Mendenhall Ice Caves, Alaska

There’s a cool blue glow to these odd, ethereal ice caves. They are literally carved into the massive 12-mile glacier and located roughly 12 miles from Juneau.

20. Multnomah Falls, Oregon

This mighty waterfall is found 30 minutes out of Portland.  This two-tiered waterfall crashes over 600+ feet of bluffs. For the best view see it from Benson Bridge.

21. Holland, Michigan

This town was settled by Dutch immigrants in the 1800s. It features Dutch architecture, a clog factory, tulip fields, and windmills. Visit in the spring for the Tulip Time Festival.

22. Papakōlea Green Sand Beach, Hawaii

This Big Island beach is the only place in the country with green sand. It’s one of four on Earth. The color is due to the mineral olivine.

23. Luray Caverns, Virginia

The otherworld-like Luray Caverns are found in the famous Blue Ridge Mountains. The ancient stalactites and stalagmites are sand-colored. Be sure to see glittering Dream Lake too.

24. Hoh Rainforest, Washington

This lush rainforest is located in Olympic National Park. The verdant Sitka spruces are home to pacific tree frogs and Roosevelt elks. Visit in the summer when it’s dryer.

25. Starved Rock State Park, Illinois

The striking rock formations are the highlight of this park. It also includes wildflower meadows, 18 canyons, 13 miles of hiking trails and waterfalls in the springtime.

26. Glass Beach, California

This beach in MacKerricher State Park, three miles north of the famous Fort Bragg. It’s a strand of dumped glass that was smoothed, polished and washed ashore by the waves.

27. Bonneville Salt Flats, Utah

The Bonneville Salt Flats resemble Bolivia’s Salar de Uyuni. They span 30,000+ acres. Once ancient Lake Bonneville dried up, these salt flats were all that remained.

28. White Pass and Yukon Route Railroad, Alaska

This railroad route begins at Skagway and heads to Canada. Perhaps the most scenic on the planet, it includes snow-capped mountains and yellow and pink wildflowers.

29. Haiku Stairs, Hawaii

This closed, vertigo-inducing staircase lining Oahu’s Ko’olau mountains is also known as the Stairway to Heaven. The nearly-4,000 step staircase was built by the US Navy in 1942.

30. Castello di Amorosa, California

This castle in Napa Valley was influenced by the famous medieval fortresses of Tuscany, Italy. Castello di Amorosa even makes award-winning Italian-style wine. Take the guided tour.

31. Ice Caves, Wisconsin

These caves are found at Apostle Islands National Lakeshore. The caves here form every winter. You reach them via a trail that starts at the Meyers Beach parking lot.

32. Painted Hills, Oregon

These colorful hills are similar to China’s Rainbow Mountains. They can be found in the John Day Fossil Beds National Monument. The colors are the result of volcanic activity.

33. Leavenworth, Washington

Leavenworth is a German-style village ensconced it the base of the hike worthy Cascades Mountains. Visit the unusual Nutcracker Museum. See Bavarian-style architecture. Visit in October for their Oktoberfest.

34. Bowling Ball Beach, California

This beach is in Schooner Gulch State Beach. Decades of concretion and erosion have made it look like bowling balls have been rolled into the sea and trapped in the sand.

35. Kenai Fjords National Park, Alaska

This place is reminiscent of some spots in Southeast Asia. The sea stacks here were created by erosion. The best way to see them is via kayak.

36. Watkins Glen State Park, New York

This gorgeous gorge a stream, waterfalls, and a moss-covered glen. Hike the 2.5-mile loop called the Gorge Trail. See the 50-foot Cavern Cascade too.

37. Ah-Shi-Sle-Pah Wilderness, New Mexico

The fossil-filled Ah-Shi-Sle-Pah Wilderness is highlighted by mushrooming, teetering rock towers and other strange hoodoos. It’s the result of wind and water erosion over thousands of years.

38. Midway Ice Castles, Utah

These undulating, odd ice terraces are actually man-made. They are the work of architect Brent Christensen. They weigh approximately 25,000,000 and he makes them every winter.

39. Nāpali Coast State Wilderness Park, Hawaii

Nāpali in English is “high cliffs.” The highest mountains here are 4,000 feet high. See these peaks and Mars-like red rocks from the Kalalau Trail.

40. Voyageurs National Park, Minnesota

This is one of Minnesota’s most underrated parks. This is a great place from which to see the Northern Lights. You can go hiking there too.

41. Palouse Falls State Park, Washington

Palouse Falls is the best part of this state park. It drops for almost 200 feet into the Palouse River. It’s the result of Ice Age floods.

42. Cumberland Island, Georgia

The largest of the state’s barrier islands, here you’ll see wild horses roaming this 18-mile long isle. It comes complete with petrified trees, and unspoiled coast and windswept dunes.

43. Thor’s Well, Oregon

This spectacle off the state’s coast is a bubbling sinkhole in the well-known Cape Perpetua Scenic Area. It has a depth of about 20 feet and is very dangerous.

44. Caddo Lake, Texas

The fairytale-like Caddo Lake spans almost 27,000 acres. It includes cypress trees reflected in the ripple-free lake, historic cabins and Spanish moss that make this spot ethereal.

45. Red Sand Beach, Hawaii

This ruddy strand on Maui is also called Kaihalulu Beach. It is comparatively secluded and the rust-toned sand, a result of volcanic erosion, strikingly contrasts the blue water.

46. Solvang, California

This city is known for its Danish-style architecture and a large windmill. The best time to visit “Little Denmark” is during Danish Days when they celebrate their heritage and founders.

47. Hubbard Glacier, Alaska

This is the state’s most impressive glacier. It’s located off the coast of Yakutat. The blue-hued glacier is 400 feet high and over six miles wide.

48. Eternal Flame Falls, New York

The Eternal Flame Falls are found in the Chestnut Ridge Park. Here you will witness a mysterious “eternal flame” flickering under the rushing water.

49. Pictured Rocks National Lakeshore, Michigan

This well-known attraction is said to be one of the most beautiful places in the Midwest. It features colorful “Pictured Rocks” towering up to 200 feet high.

50. Mono Lake, California

This large saltwater lake is found in the Eastern Sierra. It spans roughly 70 square miles. It’s characterized by the rising limestone stacks known as tufta towers.

51. Misty Fiords National Monument, Alaska

This vast wilderness is in the Tongass National Forest. It is the country’s largest area of federal forestland. It covers an area of 500 miles.

52. Petrified Forest National Park, Arizona

This unusual national park is perhaps most known for its intricate rock formations and petrified trees. See the rainbow cores of the fossilized fallen trees.

53. Punalu’u Beach, Hawaii

This stunning black sand beach can be found on the Big Island. This basalt sand is the result of volcanic activity. See the sea turtles sunbathe there.

54. Tulip Fields, Washington

The tulips in Skagit Valley mirror those in the Netherlands. The best time to visit is in April during the yearly flower festival. Activities include barbecues, tours, and contests.

55. Boldt Castle, New York

This castle in Alexandria Bay is European-inspired. Millionaire George C. Boldt began construction in the 1900s. It includes turrets, Italian-like gardens is open summer through fall.

56. Bombay Beach, California

Bombay Beach is a ghost beach. It was once a lively French Riviera-lake resort. The rising salt level of the water discouraged the tourists and killed off the marine life.

57. Turnip Rock, Michigan

This strange rock formation is in Port Austin. It was formed by the force of the crashing waves. The greenery on top makes it resemble a turnip.

58. Fly Geyser, Nevada

Ensconced in the Black Rock Desert, this colorful geyser was a mistake. A geothermal company hit it while drilling. They failed to seal it correctly and Fly Geyser was born.

59. Great Sand Dunes National Park and Preserve, Colorado

Here you’ll find the loftiest sand dunes on the continent. You’ll also find snow-capped mountains and blue skies to boot. Pack your sandboard!

60. Hamilton Pool Preserve, Texas

You’ll discover this natural “swimmin’ hole” a good 20 miles west of the city of Austin. This popular green pool is fed by a beauteous 50-foot waterfall.