Looking for a top location for your next US vacation? Read on.
An American who has visited all 50 states and will visit all of the country’s national parks this year has revealed his favorite and least favorite places.
Tom Hatfield, 74, of Louisiana, has traveled extensively since retiring as a chemical engineer 11 years ago and shared with Company Insider some of his insights in an effort to help others navigate the map more efficiently.
Of all 50 states, Utah is Tom’s favorite because the state has no fewer than five national parks: Zion, Capitol Reef, Canyonlands, Bryce Canyon and Arches.
Aside from the national parks, his other two favorite places in the region are the Grand Staircase-Escalante National Monument in the desert, the Great Salt Lake, and downtown Salt Lake City, which has a more metropolitan feel.
An American who has visited all 50 states and plans to visit every national park in the country this year has revealed his favorite and least favorite places. Utah comes in first
In second place is California.
According to Tom, this is because each of the state’s national parks, from the windswept Channel Islands to the scorching plains of Death Valley, has its own “character.”
For similar reasons, Alaska finished third on Tom’s top five list.
He also said there are “a lot of places where you can pull over on the side of the road and sleep in your car.”
For travelers on a budget, the 49th state can be an affordable option.
Like the other states in Tom’s top three, Colorado was his fourth choice because of its “vast mountains, fairly consistent temperatures with low humidity, and strong infrastructure.”
Although it is a popular ski destination, the retiree says he prefers to visit in the summer, when the foothills of the rugged mountains are covered in green instead of snow.
Montana completes his top five US states.
Rounding out the top five US states that Tom selected is Montana for its beautiful national parks such as Yellowstone (pictured)
For nature lovers, Tom recommends heading to Zion National Park and hiking the Narrows or climbing to Angels Landing for the stunning views.
He describes it as a “polarizing” state because of its size, and it is the fourth largest state in the country with an area of 145,509.2 square miles and 1,493.4 square miles of water surface.
One of Tom’s favorite things about the Big Sky Country is the “scenery and tranquility,” and the popular national parks, including Yellowstone and Glacier.
Tom and his wife have visited most of the national parks in the US, but this year they want to complete the list.
The last places to visit include Great Basin in Nevada and the National Park of American Samoa. Tom will reach these places by cruise.
On the other end of the spectrum was Mississippi, the state least favored by avid travelers.
He struggled with not having enough to do and found the heat ‘overwhelming’ at times.
For similar reasons, Nevada turned out to be Tom’s second-least favorite state.
Although Las Vegas attracts tourists from far and wide for its entertainment offerings and gleaming hotels, Tom says the city did not live up to his expectations.
Other states he skipped were North Dakota, Nebraska and Indiana, because there was “little to do between the big cities.”
For nature lovers, Tom recommends heading to Zion National Park and hiking the Narrows or climbing Angels Landing for stunning views.
Other parks favored for their “breathtaking” and “pristine” scenery include Bryce Canyon (also in Utah), Yosemite in California, Crater Lake in Oregon, and North Cascades in Washington.
To save travelers time, he recommends skipping several parks, including Congaree in South Carolina, Hot Springs in Arkansas, Guadalupe Mountains in Texas and Indiana Dunes in Indiana.
He complained, among other things, about the monotonous landscape and the dilapidated facilities in these places.
He also says that if you’re planning to visit Isle Royale in Michigan — one of the least-visited national parks in the U.S. and a haven for nature lovers — it’s best to stay overnight to “get the full experience,” since it’s a two-hour boat ride away.
Tom has not only traveled extensively throughout the US, but has also been to 75 countries on all seven continents.
