Woodie Guthrie was on to something when he penned “This Land Is Your Land” in 1940 – there’s really a lot to see in the United States from sea to shining sea. And recently, many Americans have been getting reacquainted with the sites and cities from California to New York, flocking to private tours to dig deeper into hip neighborhoods, local favorites and the kind of history that hasn’t always made it into your high school textbook.
Thanks to a slew of factors – like the explosion of outdoor recreation and the travel restrictions that have changed up vacation plans around the world in 2020 – domestic travel is having a serious moment. And many of those microtrends have also driven a fresh yen for private tours and bespoke travel experiences that let visitors get the inside scoop from locals in destinations from Rocky Mountains National Park to Memphis, Tennessee.
To meet that demand, companies like Travel Curious (one of Lonely Planet Experiences’ newest partners) have curated thousands of guides who know cities such as Atlanta and Santa Fe like the back of their hands. And the content of those tours is especially in tune with what travelers are thinking about right now – like getting outside, learning more about Black, Hispanic, and Indigenous history, and what gives cities their own unique flavor.
If you’re also feeling eager to roam and ramble your land and learn something new about your own hometown or a city that’s been on your bucket list for a while, private tours are the perfect chance to get off on the right foot. And we’ve pulled together a list of 10 unique experiences in the US that are too good to miss.