Things to Do in North America

This popular attraction gives travelers an up-close, virtual tour of all of New York's biggest (and most famous!) attractions. Located in the second floor of the famed Empire State Building, the NY Skyride uses digital technology, special effects and a giant screen to take visitors on a virtual ride across the Big Apple. 

The NY Skyride is the perfect option for travelers on a budget, or those who want to explore the city from the comfort"”and safety"”of a theater seat, rather than aboard a five-seat helicopter. Paired with a trip to the observation deck of the Empire State Building, where epic views of the city skyline are truly hard to beat"”a trip on the NY Skyride is the quintessential New York City afternoon adventure. 

The Otis House Museum is actually a mansion, the last surviving one, in Bowdoin Square. This West End property was named for Harrison Gray Otis, a Federalist lawyer and politician. There are actually three Harris Gray Otis Houses in Boston, all of which were built by the noted architect Charles Bulfinch. The first, a National Historic Landmark, was built in 1796 and was inspired by a William Bingham house from Philadelphia. Owned by the Historic New England organization, this one now operates as a museum.

The house is a look into the lavish lifestyle of Otis and his wife Sally. Otis made his fortune developing Beacon Hill, was a representative in Congress and then later became mayor of Boston. The home's design is reflective of the Federal style, which Bulfinch introduced to Boston.

Otis House is three stories, in five bays. The entrance seen today was added after 1801, which has a Palladian window above and a lunette above that. The third floor has ceilings that are just over six feet tall. The floor plan of the home is Colonial fashion, which the characteristic two rooms on either side of the central hallway.

The home's interior showcases many aspects of the Otis' life, from the social and business aspects to understanding the role servants played in the home. The restoration was meticulous and required a lot of historical and scientific research. 

North Portland's Mississippi Avenue sits close to the border of Northeast Portland, and shares characteristics with both. Mostly, North Mississippi Avenue is today a hip and funky neighborhood in what was for a long time a forgotten part of the city.

Much of North and Northeast Portland have historically been home to Portland's African American population, but these days Mississippi Avenue is pretty well packed with hipsters. The street has a fantastic array of great restaurants and bars, eclectic shops, and even its own food cart pod.

There's a great (and tiny) music venue, a fabulous ice cream shop, a bar with hammocks instead of chairs on the back patio, and a retro barber shop. There's what one tour guide calls the "Goodwill for old houses," where renovating Portlanders can get old appliances and house fixtures discarded in someone else's remodel. There's a serious old-fashioned curiosities shop that defies all expectations, a shop that only sells light bulbs, and a few "Portlandia" filming locations along the street, too.

Each July, North Mississippi Avenue is home to the Mississippi Avenue Street Fair, and the area is also host to Second Thursday "“ the second Thursday of every month, when art galleries open new shows.

Built for the 1976 Olympic Games, this park now houses several attractions that form Montreal's Space for Life museum district. There's the Rio Tinto Alcan Planetarium, the 56,000-seater Olympic Stadium, the Biodome, an indoor zoo with around 4,500 animals, as well as the Botanical Gardens and Insectarium in neighboring Maisonneuve Park.

 

Visitors to Montreal's Olympic Park can purchase individual tickets for each attraction. Admission to the Biodome comes with entry to the indoor zoo's five temperature-controlled ecosystems, where you can spot animals including penguins and capybaras. A ticket to the Olympic Stadium includes access to a bi-level cable car ride up the 540-foot (165-meter) Montreal Tower (Tour de Montreal). Tickets can be purchased for individual shows at the planetarium, and for the Botanical Gardens and Insectarium, which are considered one attraction and are accessible with the same ticket.

 

Visit more than one attraction at the Space for Life site with a multi-attraction ticket. Buy a 2-site package ticket and combine a visit to the Olympic Stadium with a trip to the Botanical Gardens, or opt for a sightseeing pass for free access to all Olympic Park attractions and other major city sights and, in some cases, unlimited public transportation. Some group and private tours of Montreal also visit certain attractions at Olympic Park.

 

 

To get to Olympic Park, ride the metro Green Line to Pie-IX station. The park is just a short walk from there.

 

Olympic Park is open year-round. The Botanical Gardens are arguably at their best during summer and autumn, as most of the outdoor exhibits are buried beneath snow for much of winter and spring. The Biodome makes a great year-round attraction, with the toasty tropical rain forest space providing respite from bitter winter weather.

 

Olympic Park hosts popular exhibitions, including the Gardens of Light display at the Botanical Gardens in September and October and sees the garden atmospherically lit after dark. In winter, the Botanical Gardens hosts the Butterflies Go Free exhibition, where thousands of butterflies flutter freely within the garden's main greenhouse, perching on plants and sometimes people. Olympic Stadium, meanwhile, is the setting for First Fridays, a food truck festival during the summer season.

There's something special about where Ocean organic vodka is made "” perhaps it's the fact that it's created on a Maui farm or that it's the only spirit made with organic cane sugar and deep ocean mineral water. Situated on 22,000 square feet of grass near the base of Mount Haleakala, the farm and distillery have scenic views of their sugar cane plants and the surrounding coastline.

Tours of the distilling process and farm take place daily, emphasizing the importance of organic farming and sustainability. With an emphasis on environmentally and socially conscious practices, the tour gives a behind-the-scenes glimpse into production from start to finish. There is even a small herb garden on volcanic soil that produces the flavors for the cocktails they serve. Visitors can sample both the sugar cane juice or mineral water and the finished product.

Old Sturbridge Village is one of several living museums throughout Massachusetts and includes a working farm, three hydro-powered mills and almost 60 vintage buildings. A cast of interpreters in full costume roam the village, interacting with visitors to help gain an appreciation of New England life as it was some 200 years ago. The village is an incredibly popular attraction for tourists and armchair historians, as well as a major field trip destination for area schools.

The grounds are separated into three distinct areas, each providing a unique glimpse into various aspects of the life of early American settlers. The Mill Neighborhood consists of several commercial buildings, including a sawmill and gristmill, centered around an onsite millpond to generate power. Several farms, buildings and shops, including a blacksmith, school, pottery shop and covered bridge, are located in Countryside. Lastly, The Center Village, as one might expect, is the hub of town with a public green at its core. Visitors to the latter can visit several vintage meetinghouses, a tin shop, law office, bank and more.

This 14-acre (6-hectare) complex pays homage to both natural wonders and the ingenuity of man. The largest science museum in the Western Hemisphere, it features life-size working replicas, a 5-story domed movie theater, 2,000 exhibits, and more than 35,000 artifacts. The museum is designed to spark imagination and inspire creativity.

 

Originally built as the Palace of Fine Arts for the 1893 World's Columbian Exposition (later the World's Fair), the museum is home to several larger-than-life permanent exhibits and innovative, educational programming. Its very first exhibit, the Coal Mine, opened in 1933 and still takes visitors to this expansive, subterranean world today. Other permanent exhibits include a real German U-505 submarine from World War II, a whispering gallery investigating the reflection of sound, a model ship gallery, and a miniature castle.

 

Prebook admission so you can skip the lines upon arrival or visit as part of a Chicago city tour. Several tourist cards"”like the Chicago Explorer Pass and Chicago CityPASS"”also include admission to the museum.

 

 

The museum entrance is at E. 57th Street and S. Cornell Avenue in the Hyde Park neighborhood, very close to downtown and Lake Michigan. CTA bus nos. 2 and 6, and the Metra Electric Line stop just blocks away. Bike the Lake Shore Drive path to reach the museum; racks are on each side of the main entrance.

 

The museum is typically open from 9:30am"“4pm, but extends its hours during spring break, summer, and winter holidays. It's a popular destination for children's groups and field trips, so expect to see a number of large groups during the school year. The complex is closed on Thanksgiving and Christmas Day.

 

You may not think "shopping" when visiting a museum, but you'll think differently after seeing the variety of souvenir options available here. Some shops are exhibit-specific, such as the U-505 store and Launch Pad, in the submarine and space center exhibits, respectively. Find educational games, gifts, toys, and fun trinkets for all, or take souvenir photos at the photo studio.

Come learn about the history, the evolution, and the cultural significance of human sexuality. The Museum of Sex (MoSex) collects and preserves art and artifacts, and has had more than 25 exhibitions and 6 virtual installations since it first opened in 2002. The museum's mission is to advocate open discourse around sexuality while presenting top-notch current scholarship in an unhindered and uncensored way. The museum showcases material and artifacts from many different cultures, continents, and time periods in many different media. The permanent collection has more than 15,000 objects including art, photography, clothing, technology, and historical artifacts (think Japanese Shunga prints and vintage condoms). The research library maintains a collection of works that ranges from the historically significant to current art to fiction. The media library explores the topics of sex and sexuality through film, and how sexual imagery in films (from mainstream cinema to modern pornography) shapes the sexual attitudes and behaviors of the corresponding times.

Driving from Palm Springs through the nearby small desert towns with cacti and scrub brush on both sides and the heat of summer pressing down on you, a cold treat awaits: the famous date shake at Oasis Date Gardens. This 175-acre date ranch and its accompanying store are situated at the epicenter of California's vast date production area. This spot features a small gift shop, an educational theater that plays a movie on the history of dates in California, a window through which date processing can be observed and a luncheonette counter that serves food incorporating the region's fresh dates. 

 

This industry in California makes up 95 percent of the entire U.S. output of the crop. The majority of California's dates are grown in the Coachella Valley, which produces more dates annually than almost any other region in the world; farmers produce more than 35 million pounds of the date fruit every year. Oasis Date Gardens' medjool dates have been certified organic since 2000, and the business has been in operation for over 100 years. 

Head to the Niagara Falls IMAX Theatre, where the films screened teach visitors about the falls' history and culture. From local native people to daredevils who rolled down the falls in a barrel, the IMAX 3D films provide Niagara Falls' backstory and make viewers feel as though they're right there in the middle of the action.

 

Visiting the IMAX Theatre is an exciting enhancement to any visit to Niagara Falls. Learn the human stories behind Niagara Falls in Niagara: Miracles, Myths, and Magic. See the real items used in extreme stunts in the Niagara Daredevil Exhibit, including the barrels that people have used to float in and crash down the falls.

 

Many visitors to the IMAX Theatre come on day trips from Toronto. Such excursions may include a visit to the falls, a ride on the Hornblower boat, and a stop at vineyards in the Niagara region.

 

 

The IMAX Theater is located next to the Skylon Tower and the Niagara Fallsview Casino in Niagara Falls, Ontario. It's within walking distance of the falls, so is a convenient place to stop at when visiting town. If you're on a day trip to Niagara Falls, there may be time to stop and watch a film. If you're traveling independently, it's easy to combine a visit with other sightseeing activities.

 

The IMAX Theatre is open every day, except Christmas Day, and shows films throughout the day, from 9am to 9pm. Schedules change periodically, so check the website before planning a trip.

 

Niagara Falls is located both in Canada and the US. While visitors can have a good experience seeing the falls from either side of the border, try to see it from both sides for the best all-around views. Bring your passport (as long as you have the right to enter both Canada and the US) and walk over the Rainbow Bridge, to see which side you think has the better vistas.

Mystic Aquarium in Connecticut is a tourist attraction and research facility putting visitors in close proximity of Beluga whales, black­footed penguins, Stellar sea lions, and many more aquatic mammals and exotic fish from around the world. 

The aquarium features a 30,000­-gallon tank full of colorful fish and other marine life, and has one of the largest Beluga whale exhibits in the United States. Other exhibits include a stingray and shark touch pool, an African penguin exhibit, and Exploration: Wild, which takes visitors through various diverse ecosystems, including rain forest, wetlands, desert, the Arctic, and the open ocean. At the center of this new 650­-square-­meter exhibit there are four American alligators.

Mystic Aquarium also features a National Geographic Theater, plus a 4D theater showing popular films such as Ice Age and Polar Express.

One of the most exciting and bizarre museums in America, this sprawling building houses one of the world's largest collections of medical oddities. Affiliated with The College of Physicians of Philadelphia, it's named for Thomas Dent Mütter, a 17th-century pioneer of reconstructive surgery and medical education who was fascinated by human anomalies and collected representations of them in a wide variety of forms. 

Designed to look like a huge cabinet of curiosities, the 1908 museum (its original incarnation was opened nearby in 1868) contains over 20,000 medical specimens. Popular attractions include the tallest skeleton on display in North America; slides of Albert Einstein's brain; the shared liver of Siamese twins Chang and Eng; and the preserved body parts and corpses of some of America's most historically famous circus freakshow performers. 

Each human abnormality featured in the museum is displayed alongside a drawing, photograph or wax model of its corresponding normality "“ which makes a visit here both educational and startling.

Often regarded as the premier reference in terms of Quebec art, the National Museum of Fine Arts in Quebec City has amassed over a whopping 38,000 works of art. It acts as a testament to art history in the province, spanning every major movement from the seventeenth century to today including everything from modernism to surrealism. The museum consists of four pavillions: the Charles Baillairge pavilion, which concentrates on modern art, the Gerard Morisset pavilion, where the historical works are housed, and the central pavilion, home to the Family Gallery, and, last but not least, the brand new Pierre Lassonde pavilion, which is entirely dedicated to contemporary art. The latter has just been extensively renovated and is now a marvel of modern-day architecture.

Like everything in Texas, the Natural Bridge Caverns are big. In fact, they are the largest known caverns in the state. Discovered near San Antonio in 1960, the Natural Bridge Caverns' name is taken from the 60-foot (18-meter) natural limestone slab bridge that spans the entrance. During excavations, artifacts dating back to 5000 BC were unearthed. While the caverns are still being explored today, visitors can enjoy adventures ranging from underground cave tours to an enormous outdoor maze.

Natural Bridge Caverns offers visitors many experiences, the most popular being a 75-minute walking tour that travels 180 feet (55 meters) underground through the hallways and various speleothems (formations) made by mineral deposits. Aboveground activities include ziplines, a "canopy explorer course," and the opportunity to mine for gems, minerals, and fossils. 

Natural Bridge Caverns is about a 30-minute drive north of downtown San Antonio, eight miles (13 kilometers) west of I-35.

The Natural Bridge Caverns are open year-round except on Thanksgiving, Christmas Day, and New Year's Day. During the holiday season, thousands of twinkling lights illuminate select passages, performers sing Christmas carols, and there's a fully decorated Christmas village and "reindeer maze."

Just a few miles from Natural Bridge Caverns lies another amazing natural wonder: The evening emergence of one the world's largest bat colonies. The Bracken Bat Flight consists of millions of free-tailed bats spiraling out of Bracken Cave and taking to the skies on their nightly hunt for insects. Some tours include access to both sites.

Covering more than 2.5 miles (4 kilometers) on a 10-minute journey, the popular Palm Springs Aerial Tramway provides spectacular views of Chino Canyon and Mount San Jacinto State Park. Activities at the top"”accessed by one of the largest rotating aerial tramcars in the world"”are offered year-round.

 

The Palm Springs tramway takes you from the Valley Station (where you can purchase tickets if you didn't buy in advance) up to the Mountain Station, which sits at an elevation of 8,516 feet (2,595 meters). At the top you can visit the observation deck, two restaurants (sit-down Peaks Restaurant and cafeteria-style Pine Cafe), the Lookout Lounge, theaters, a gift shop, and the small natural history museum. Or enjoy outdoor pursuits such as hiking, snowshoeing, or cross-country skiing, depending on the season.

 

 

If you're staying in Palm Springs, head west a few miles off of North Palm Canyon Drive (Highway 111) to reach the tramway's Valley Station; paid parking is available (parking is free for area residents and for those with tramway summer or annual passes). There is no public transportation but cabs are available from Palm Springs.

 

The tramway is open daily from morning to night, but hours vary by season and day of the week, so check the website for times. It also closes for annual maintenance each September.

 

More than 50 miles (80 kilometers) of hiking trails within Mt. San Jacinto State Park's 14,000 acres (5,665 hectares) can be accessed from the tramway's Mountain Station. When you get off the tram, walk down a paved path to the Long Valley Ranger Station, where the trails start.