Best Adventure Vacations in the U.S.

Whether you're a an experienced, longtime adventurer or a new-to-this weekend warrior, there are certain places you won't want to miss. Here are our top picks for adventure-laden destinations.

Hiking Humboldt County

Experience your own Jurassic Park  adventure against the setting of Fern Canyon.

Head to Eureka, California to start with a hike in the dappled sunlight shining through old-growth redwoods in Prairie Creek Redwoods State Park down to famous Fern Canyon where Jurassic Park was filmed. You can also experience nature at her most splendid on the 25-mile Lost Coast Trail, one of the most exciting hikes in America.  You will be awed by the beauty of this isolated, undeveloped stretch of coast, with the Pacific Ocean swirling below you on one side and steep rock cliffs on the other.  You can also expect to see swollen streams, jutting rocks that are impassable at high tide, mystical fogs, horizontal rain and stunning views. A more sedate way to experience nature here is to go kayaking in pristine Humboldt Bay.

One of the Earth's Greatest Migrations

Platte River is a place for bird watchers to land.

If you travel to Nebraska and book your hotel in Kearney in early spring, you will be a witness to one of the greatest shows on the planet. Hike out to a sandbar on the Platte River just before dawn, dress warmly and bring a pair of binoculars, because the still, cold air will soon be filled with the enormous wings and wild cries of hundreds of thousands of Sandhill Cranes as they follow their migration route. You can expect 80 percent of the world's population of Whooping Cranes to make an appearance, along with 90 percent of the White-fronted Geese that ply the midcontinent, thousands of endangered Piping Plovers, 30 percent of the world’s Northern Pintails, 50 percent of the world’s Mallards and over 2 million Snow Geese.

Grand—as in Grand Canyon

Feel your heart quicken as you gaze upon the overpowering canyon walls of the Grand Canyon.

Just peeking over the edge of the Grand Canyon in the world is a thrill, with its endless rock formations carved out over eons by the Colorado River. But if you're looking for a sweeping adrenaline rush, it's waiting for you at the bottom of the 6,000-foot drop. Rafting through the iconic canyon awakens the hero in you. The crash of white water echoes off the granite walls as you fight to maneuver your craft through 47 sets of fabled rapids. A raft offers a faster, bouncier ride, but a graceful wooden dory gives you a visceral, feel-the-river-in-your-bones thrill that will stay with you a lifetime.

The Key to Adventure

See a whole new world when you swim the green-blue waters of the Florida Keys.

Step off the plane into a waking dream, complete with a vividly turquoise ocean and the fire-red and glowing orange of the sunset sky that you can see from your Florida Keys hotel. Your adrenaline starts pumping when you get off that beach towel and get moving! Venture into the mysteries of a mangrove glade under a full moon by kayak, or explore Florida Keys attractions like the backwaters in a canoe to watch Great Blue Herons pluck water snakes from the mirror-calm water. Snorkel past the gorgeous, otherworldly sculptural variations of the only living coral reef in America. Or, you can see it all from above as you fly through the air with a Jetlev-Flyer power pack strapped to your back.