Northwest coast of America. west coast usa

They mostly evoke associations with skyscrapers towering over the canyons of noisy streets crowded with cars and crowds of people. This is partly true. But the Wild West, even in the twenty-first century, still bears the imprint of that wild land and "one-story America" ​​that westerns show. Outside of several huge centers of civilization such as Las Vegas, San Francisco, Los Angeles and others, there are endless prairies, dense forests, mountains and canyons. And the Indians? They are also present. Some communities prefer the old way of life, which brings a certain flavor to visiting their reservations. In this article, we will take a virtual tour of the US West Coast. We will cover several thousand kilometers, having traveled from Alaska in the north to California in the south (without passing through the territory of Canada).

What territories are considered to be the west coast of the United States

Oddly enough, there is no consensus on this matter. For example, the Sierra Nevada, the Mojave Desert, is considered to be on the west coast. Arizona and Nevada do not have access to the Pacific Ocean. But they are also referred to as the west coast, because they have strong climatic and cultural influences from states such as Washington, Oregon and California. Hawaii is bordered by the Pacific Ocean on all sides. But the archipelago is not adjacent to the North American mainland. Alaska has no land border with the rest of the country. By its location on the map, it can be compared with the Kaliningrad region of Russia. And, although the main states on the west coast of the United States are California, Washington and Oregon, Alaska can also be included in their number. Let's start our virtual journey from the very north.

Sights of Alaska

The northwest coast of the United States - this edge of the harsh polar is the largest state in the country. Its area is one million and seven hundred odd thousand square kilometers. People go to the far north of the United States primarily for extreme sports and communication with wildlife. The last one here is more than enough. After all, in addition to the mainland, the state of Alaska also includes completely wild or semi-inhabited Pribylova, the Alexander archipelago, St. Lawrence. The "Gold Rush" did little to change the landscapes of this northern region. People come here to watch the polar lights, ride through the narrow fjords, conquer the mountain peaks covered with glaciers. also known as the Land of the Midnight Sun, is Juneau. But the most visited city by tourists is Anchorage. People go to Juneau to get acquainted with the life of gold miners of the nineteenth century. And in order to touch the culture of local Indian tribes, they head to the city of Ketchikan. But the main wealth of Alaska is its natural parks. The most famous is Denali. On its vast territory is located the highest point of the peninsula - Mount McKinley. Other notable national parks are Wrangel, Glacier Bay and Kenai Fjord.

Washington state

Now let's move through the territory of Canada to the west coast of the United States. In its very north, we are met by the forty-second state of the country - Washington. The territorial unit's capital is Olympia, but the largest city is Seattle. In Washington, as well as in Alaska, people go for natural beauties. The most famous national reserve is the "Olympic" in the northwest of the state. A visit to this natural park can be compared to a journey into a fairy tale. There are mountains and waterfalls, alpine lakes and crystal streams, a unique Hoh rainforest and a long sea coast. Needless to say, all these landscapes are inhabited by an amazing variety of wild fauna? Another place most visited by tourists is the stratovolcano Rainier. Its slopes are also included in the natural park of the same name.

US West Coast: Cities. Seattle

Among virgin forests and endless prairies, like islands in a boundless sea, there are urban agglomerations. Seattle is one of them. The population of the city itself is over six hundred thousand people. Seattle is also a major seaport. It is located on the shores of the Puget Sound. In the east of the city lies the picturesque Lake Washington. And behind it the Rocky Mountains begin, which, like a magnet, attract climbers. There are two must-see attractions in Seattle. The Space Needle is the hallmark of the city. It was built in 1962 and was the tallest building in Seattle until the seventy-six-story Calambia Center was built in 1985. At the Pike Place Market seafood market, you can buy not only Pacific shrimp and lobster, but also see the performance of singers, street actors and clowns. Under the Washington Bridge, you should see the Fremont Troll holding a real Volkswagen in his hands.

Oregon

We move south and leave the borders of the state of Washington. The West Coast of the United States continues with Oregon. By tradition, the state capital is the small town of Salem. And the largest metropolis is Portland. also offers tourists many natural beauties. These are Mount Hood and Deschats national parks with the Newberry volcano. Tourists are attracted by the Rocky Mountains, which stretch from north to south along the west coast of the United States. To the east of this ridge, at an altitude of more than one thousand two hundred meters, stretches the "Oregon Desert" - very arid lands. And, in addition, the state will delight beach lovers with sandbanks and shores, bays and secluded coves between the rocks.

California

The West Coast of the United States completes this sunny state in the south. It is the longest along the Pacific Ocean. And, we add, the most filled with a variety of attractions. Here are such world-famous urban agglomerations as Las Vegas, Los Angeles, San Diego, Hollywood. It is also the birthplace of Disneyland. The endless beaches of California are Sunbathing on the legendary Malibu, you can see whales, and take a walk in one of the many natural parks on the coast, watch the rookeries of fur seals. But even in the depths of the mainland on the territory of the state, the traveler is waiting for various attractions.

Grand Canyon, Death Valley, Sequoia and Yosemite National Parks, Route 66

The first sight is known all over the world. The Grand Canyon stretches for four hundred and forty kilometers. Its beauty cannot be described in words - it must be seen!

Death Valley is the lowest point on the mainland (eighty-six meters below sea level), the driest and hottest. In summer, +57 C is observed here! During the year, 40 mm of precipitation falls in Death Valley, while in the Sahara - 384 mm.

The name of the park "Sequoia" speaks for itself. Here you can see not just huge trees, but real giants. "Here God has surpassed himself" - this is said about the park "Yosemite". You will not find such a variety of flora and fauna species anywhere else.

The east - west coast of the United States is still connected by the legendary road number 66. Every American dreams of driving it from beginning to end (almost four thousand kilometers). The highway links Los Angeles with Chicago.

City of angels and sins

The West Coast of the United States in California is famous for cities such as Hollywood, the capital of the gambling industry, Las Vegas, and San Francisco. In Los Angeles, you should definitely visit the museum at the Universal film studio, and if you are traveling with children, the very first Disneyland in the world. In Las Vegas, it's hard not to stop by some casinos. And, of course, you just need to walk along the Walk of Fame, where stars dedicated to Hollywood celebrities are laid out under your feet.

The northwestern coast of North America from Yakutata Bay in the north to the river. Colombia in the south was inhabited, and partly inhabited now, by Indian tribes, the basis of whose existence was fishing and hunting. The coast ~ has a mild climate; coastal-. nye waters never freeze. There is an excess of moisture, due to which the slopes of the mountains and the valleys are covered with dense forests, which once abounded with all kinds of game. The shores are cut by fiords and rivers, rich in various species of fish, especially salmon, masses rising into the rivers during the spawning season.

The coast is separated from the mainland by the chains of the Rocky Mountains. They made it difficult for the tribes inhabiting it to communicate with the Indians of the interior of the mainland, and thus left the area in a certain isolation. Communications were maintained only along the Nassu, Skin, Lososeva, Fraser and Columbia rivers. The isolation of the territory of the northwestern Indians, close, thanks to convenient waterways of communication, relations between individual tribes and the similarity of the geographical environment in which they lived, left a common imprint on their entire cultural and economic life. However, despite the common features of the economy, the culture of individual tribes had its own characteristics. The tribes also differed in language and anthropological type. Based on all these features, in American ethnography it is customary to divide all the tribes of the coast into three groups: 1) the northern one - Tlingit, Haida and Tsimshian; 2) the central group of Waqash, which was divided into two subgroups - Kwakiutl and Nootka; 3) the southern group of tribes who spoke Selish languages.

The Tlingit (the Russians called them Koloshi) inhabited the southeastern outskirts of Alaska and the islands adjacent to it: Baranova, Admiralty, Chichagov, and others. From the north and east, their neighbors were the western Eskimos and Athapasky (the last they converge linguistically.

By the time the Russians arrived on the coast, the Tlingit were divided into 14 territorial tribal groups (Kuan in Tlingit), the main of which were: the Yakutas, the Chilkats, the Sitkas, the Khunovs, the Khutsnovs, and the Tongans 1 .

To the south of the Tlingit on the Queen Charlotte Islands and in the southern part of the Prince of Wales Island lived the Haida, divided into two groups: the Masset and the Skidegate. Part of the Haida - Kaigani, according to legend, moved 200-300 years ago to the southern regions of the Prince of Wales Island. Veniaminov ranked them among the Tlingits as Kaigan and Chasin kuans 1 . The Haida language is also classified as an Athabaskan language, although it is distinct from Tlingit. The Tsimshian lived along the northern coast of British Columbia between the Nass and Skeena rivers; they fell into three groups - gitksan, tsimshian proper and niska. In terms of language, they are close to the tribes speaking the Penuti languages.

The Kwakiutli occupied the eastern part of Vancouver Island and the opposite part of the coast of the mainland, where there were about 35 of their villages. Linguistically, they fell apart into proper, or southern, Kwakiutl, Heiltsuk, and Haisla.

The Nootka lived in the southwest of Vancouver Island. A small branch of the nootka poppy lived on the coast of Washington state at Cape Fluttery. Three dialects of Nootka were known: Nootka proper, Nitinat and Makah. Nutka were divided into 16 tribal territorial groups.

South British Columbia, river basin. Fraser, as well as northern Washington state, south of the Makahs, was inhabited by the Coast Selish tribes. The northernmost branch of them, the Bela-Kula, near the river of the same name and at the bays of Dean and Burke, was cut off from the rest of the coastal selish and wedged between the Kwakiutl Indians and the Athabascan tribes of Chilcotin and Taculli, or porters. In addition, a small part of the Selish lived in the south and east of Vancouver Island.

The extreme southern group, the Chinook, who lived at the mouth of the river. Colombia, and widely known in its time for its lively trade relations with other northwestern Indians, has now almost completely disappeared. Its language, which belongs to the group of Penuti languages, has become widespread. It became the intertribal trading language, the medium of communication for all Indian tribes from southern Alaska to northern California.

Population origin

Differences, both linguistic and anthropological, suggest that the Northwest Indians came from different places and were preceded by a series of migrations to the coast. The early history of the northwest coast is connected with the problem of settling the American continent; It is believed that one of the main routes of settlement on the mainland of the ancient tribes that came from Asia passed here.

Extremely important in the study of the ethnogenesis of this region is the assumption of E. Sapir, expressed by him in 1915, about the genetic relationship of the Haida and Tlingit languages ​​​​with the Athabaskan languages ​​\u200b\u200b(united by him into the Na-Dene group), the languages ​​\u200b\u200bof the Wakashi and Selish with Algonquian and Tsimshian with penuty tongues. Sapir's rapprochement determined the further way of studying this problem, although so far very little practical research has been done. But on the basis of Sapir's remarks, it is suggested that the Tlingit and the Haida are the newcomers of the first wave of tribes of the Na-Dene group; later and last was a wave of Athabaskans of the same group. The advance of the Athabaskans to the south pushed the Algonquian tribes to the east, the Wakashi tribes to the south, to the territory of the Selish, and caused a number of "movements of the Selish tribes, which are indicated by the linguistic comparisons of individual dialects of the Selish 1 cited by M. Swadesh.

Materials of archaeological excavations of the last decades, carried out in the south of British Columbia and in Oregon, testify to the great antiquity of man in these areas. On the basis of archaeological finds in the most ancient cultural layer of Frederick de Laguna, Maryam Smith, F. Drucker and others hypothesized that the culture of the northwest coast arose on the ancient subarctic basis of fishing and sea hunting of the coast of the Bering Sea and southwestern Alaska, the basis, which gave rise to various Eskimo and Aleut cultures 2 . Some finds in a later layer also make it possible to raise the question of the proximity of the culture of the ancient inhabitants of the coast with the mainland cultures of river fishermen and hunters of the Athabaskans and Algoikins. Archaeological finds also indicate that the lower reaches of the river. Colombia once had a large population, whose culture reached its peak by the end of the 17th century. By the time the Whites arrived here, it was already in decline, the reasons for which are still a mystery 3 .

The knowledge of the tribes

The northwest coast is the most ethnographically studied region of North America.

Acquaintance with the tribes of the northwestern coast of America begins in the 18th century: the Tlingit of Alaska were studied and well described by Russian travelers and researchers. The earliest information about them was reported by G. Steller, a member of Bering's second expedition (1741) and, at the end of the 18th century, G. Shelikhov, who also cited observations by the navigators of his expedition, Bocharov and G. Izmailov, in a book about his travels. In the first half of the XIX century. Ethnographic information about the Tlingit appeared in the descriptions of Russian navigators traveling to the western shores of America: N. A. Khvostov and G. I. Davydov (1802-1803), Yu. F. Lisyansky (1804-1805), G. I. Langsdorf (1805 -1806) A. P. Lazarev (1822), O. E. Kotzebue (1823-1826), F. P. Litke (1826-1829). Many observations were published by employees of the Russian-American Company: F. P. Wrangel, L. A. Zagoskin, K. Khlebnikov. The works of V. Romanov and P. Tikhmenev are also of considerable interest. Of great importance was the five-year (1840-1845) activity of collecting collections on ethnography, zoology, mineralogy and botany of I. G. Voznesensky. But the monographs of the missionaries I. Veniaminov and Archimandrite Anatoly are of paramount importance for studying the culture of this tribe. A great contribution to the study of the Tlingit. there was also a monograph by the Krause brothers.

The earliest information about the other tribes of the northwestern coast comes from Western European and later American authors. In the last quarter of the 18th century. the area was invaded by the Spanish, the British and the French. In 1774, the Spaniard Juan Perez reached the northern tip of the Queen Charlotte Islands. In 1775 and 1779 two Spanish expeditions with the participation of Francisco-Antonio Morelle reached Sitka. In 1778, the expedition of the Englishman J. Cook visited Nootka Bay and reached the southeast of Alaska. Behind them, in 1786, the French expedition of J. La Perouse reached the Cook Strait. The discoveries of these travelers served as an impetus for a number of trading expeditions for the purpose of exporting furs, and in parallel for ethnographic research. The first merchant ships were brought to the coast by captains Hannah, J. Meares, Portlock and J. Dixon. The last two described the Haida and Tlingit tribes; Dixon also named the group of Queen Charlotte Islands after the name of his ship. In the 90s of the XVIII century. A. Vancouver visited and described the Northwestern Indians, in particular the Tlingit (1792-1793) and the Tsimshians. Almost simultaneously in 1793, a representative of the North-West Trading Company, A. Mackenzie, crossed the mainland of North America from the westward and penetrated into the northwestern outskirts. Later, other tribes became known to Europeans with lish; they were first described by researchers M. Lewis and W. Clark (1805). Further study of these tribes was carried out by English trading companies and missionaries (missionary Walker Irving and others) and the Wilkins Pacific Scientific Expedition.

At the end of XIX and beginning of XX century. the major works of the largest American ethnographers, F. Boas and J. Swanton, devoted to the Indians of the North-West of America, appeared. The works of other researchers of the northwest (J. Emmons, A.-P. Niblak, and others) date back to this time.

General features of the social order

Many modern scientists of the USA (Viola Garfield, V. Olson, F. Drucker, Marian Smith, Elena Koder, J. Barnett) and Canada (Marius Barbeau, T. Mac Ilret, J. Laviolette and others) are studying the culture of the Indians of the northwest coast. .).

Northwestern Indians are almost the only group of American tribes north of Mexico that has reached a high level of development of a distinctive culture based on fishing and hunting. In terms of their level of development, they can only be compared with the descendants of the famous embankment builders - the agricultural and hunting tribes of the southeastern United States. The peculiarity of the development of the Indians of the Northwest lies in the fact that, along with the preservation of the tribal organization, the features of the decomposition of primitive communal relations and the formation of the rudiments of a class society were clearly manifested here; in conditions of productive fishing, hunting and stone technology, hereditary patriarchal slavery arose here. These basic features of social relations were manifested in all aspects of the life of the Indians of this area, they were characteristic of all the Indian tribes living here and allow us to consider their culture as a whole.

The social organization of the northwestern Indians was based on the tribal system. The relations of production were still based on archaic relations of kinship, but along with them slavery, developed trade and property differentiation already existed. By the time the Europeans arrived, the northwestern Indians were in various stages of the decay of the tribal organization. The northern group (Tlingit, Haida and Tsimshian) retained the maternal kinship account and the inheritance of property, totems, names, etc. went through the female line. However, marriages were already predominantly patrilocal, in connection with which the custom of avunculata was of great importance. The institutions of this group of tribes testify to the fact that there once existed a classical maternal clan.

Yuyotee, among the Kwakiutl, the maternal clan was almost supplanted by the patriarchal community, but significant traces of it were preserved in marriage norms, in a kind of transmission of the ritual inheritance (names, objects of the totem cult) through the female line, along with the inheritance of property through the paternal line. The Nootka and the Selish were dominated by patriarchal norms with only slight traces of matriarchy in the area of ​​marital relations and some features of avunculate.

The northern tribes (Tlingit, Haida, Tsimshian, and northern Kwakiutli) still maintained a phraterial division. The Tlingit and the Haida were divided into two phratries, which bore the names: Crow and Wolf - among the Tlingit, Crow and Eagle - among the Haida. The Tsimshian were divided into four phratries: the Crow, the Wolf, the Eagle, and the Killer Whale. The Kwakiutli-heiltsuk were divided into three phratries: the Crow, the Eagle, and the Killer Whales. The terminology of the kinship of the tribes of the coast indicates that in the past they had a dual division of the tribe. This is also indicated by the prevalence along the coast, as the preferred form, of cross-cousin marriage. The phratries were bound by ties of ritual mutual assistance. The eponymous phratries of all tribes were mutually exogamous. For example, a member of the Haida Crow phratry could not marry a Tsimshian or Tlingit woman of the Crow phratry.

The phratries were divided into clans. Each clan led its origin from the ancestor-totem, by which it was called. The history of the family was told in the genealogical legend of the family. Ancestral totems were most often from the animal world, however, plant totems are also found among the Tsimshians: wild rice, water lily, fern, etc.

It was widely believed that the leaders of clans, during their lifetime, personifying clan totems during the festivities, putting on a ritual costume with the image of a totem, after death turned into a totem animal. This was especially evident in the funeral rite, the apogee of which was the appearance among the assembled masks in the costume of the totem of the deceased's family. This should have meant that the deceased had become a kind of totem.

Each tribe had several original clans. The genus consisted of several large home communities - households. With an increase in the population, households turned into daughter clans, in turn breaking up into separate households, which often moved to free lands, forming a new village. The process of splitting up the main clans and the formation of new daughter clans from households is well traced among the Tlingit 1 . This is also evidenced by the fact that among a number of coastal tribes the name of the home community often denotes a clan group.

The home community consisted of several kindred families living in one large wooden house. According to Murdoch, for example, the Haida home community consisted of the head, his wife or wives, his unmarried daughters and sons under ten years of age, married daughters with husbands and children, and, in addition, from the families of his younger brothers, the minor sons of his sister, and several nephews with families, as well as several poor relatives and slaves 2 . Although marriage among the Indians by the time the coast was discovered was already patrilocal, but along with it, there are frequent cases of matrilocality, especially among the northern group of tribes, as evidenced by the composition of the Haida home community surveyed above. Sons after ten years were brought up by their mother's brother.

Among the Kwakiutl and Bela-Kula, marriages were patrilocal, but among these tribes there was a custom of ransoming a married woman from her husband's clan. Her father or brother gave her son-in-law gifts that significantly exceeded the so-called kalym, and the marriage was thus considered annulled: the woman had to return to her family, after which her father could immediately marry her to another. The restoration of the marriage was possible only after a new gift from the husband to his wife's relatives. This custom, called “hawanaka” 1 , however, was most often just an excuse to redistribute wealth between the clans of father-in-law and son-in-law and demonstrate their generosity and nobility. Sometimes the woman herself brought valuable gifts to her husband, as if on behalf of her relatives, arranged a hvanak for him, and thereby paid off the bride price paid for her.

Home communities remained among the Indians until the end of the 19th century. For the longest time, the community of dwellings was preserved. As early as 1930, several large communal houses could be seen near the Kwakiutl of Fort Rupert, they were already uninhabited and served as a place for festivities. These houses were built together. The Tlingit, Tsimshian, and Haida retained the ancient rule that the house was built by members of the opposite phratry; only they could put images of the totems of its inhabitants on the facade of houses, on pillars supporting roof beams, and on totem poles installed near houses. Inside the house, along all its walls, at a height of 1 m from the floor, plank bunks 2 m wide were arranged, on which each family had its own bedroom, separated by mats or a partition of boards. They were adjoined in the form of a step by another row of bunks 0.5 m lower and already the first one, which served for sitting. In the middle of the house, in a quadrangular recess, a common fire was lit. But each family already had its own hearth. Houses bore family names, and their inhabitants were called by the names of houses. For example, among the Tlingits, one of the households of each clan bore the name of the totem of the clan; in tribal genealogical legends, such a house was called the house of the ancestors of the clan. The households that separated from it were already named according to body parts or features of the animal - the totem of the clan, or acquired new names according to geographical or other characteristics. For example, one of the six houses of the Eagle clan was called the Eagle's house, the other five had the following names: the house of the Eagle's Tail, the house of the Eagle Claw, the house of the Eaglet, the house of the Eaglet's Claws and the house of the Flounder. The last name is explained by the fact that the remnants of the Kambala clan merged with the Eagle clan. A number of testimonies indicate that not only the budding of genera took place, but also their merging.

Houses of the same kind stood together in the village. Fishing grounds, hunting grounds, berry fields, etc. were considered tribal property, but were directly used by household communities, which were the main economic unit of society. However, each family in the household stocked food products independently.

According to tribal orders, coming from antiquity, the head of the home community acted as the organizer of its economic activities in the field of both production and distribution of products. He was in charge of the exploitation of natural resources - fishing and hunting grounds, etc., owned by the community. In fact, the head of the community was already considered the sole owner of the community-clan property. His power was hereditary. He secured the best lands for himself and transferred the rights to use them to his heir. The relatives living in the house were economically dependent on the head. He granted them the right to use the land, while establishing their right to the first collection, the first. On these pervinkas, he arranged refreshments and explained that the food distributed was received by him from such and such for the use of his property. The head of the community was the owner of the slaves who worked for him along with the poor relatives. The leader was responsible for the death of a relative, he also had the right to use the newly discovered or occupied territory. There was a process of economic isolation of the family of the head of the home community, the usurpation of communal-tribal lands, which began to be identified with his property; the beginnings of exploitation appeared along with slaves and their relatives. The property stratification within the home community was also reflected in the placement of its inhabitants. Among the Nootka, for example, the head of the community occupied the most honorable part of the house - one of the corners of the back of the house; families closer to the head occupied the remaining three corners of honor, and ordinary members of the community lived between the corners.

The head of the most influential and wealthy home community was the tribal leader, and the leader of the most influential family in the village was considered the leader of the village (among the Haida, he was also called the "mother of the village").

Most people who are planning their first trip to are wondering if which coast of America to choose? After all, the USA is a huge country and a huge number of attractions and such desirable objects that you want to see are located on both sides of the country!

To immediately answer the main question, which coast to choose, I will say this. If you love cities - choose the east, if you love nature - turn your attention to the west!

East Coast USA

1. New York

Let's start with the fact that the East Coast of the United States has a big advantage - it's New York. A huge and insanely interesting city, which can hardly be compared with any other city in the United States and on the whole planet. It is very difficult to describe New York in a few words. But, if you want to get into the most sleepless metropolis, if you dreamed of walking along such familiar streets where "Sex and the City", "Breakfast at Tiffany's", "Autumn in New York" and hundreds or even thousands of favorite films, meet people of different nationalities and religions, you're in New York! This city charges you with energy, positive emotions and the belief that you really will succeed and you will succeed!

1. Niagara Falls

If you find yourself in New York, then organize a trip to Niagara Falls. From New York to Niagara about 5-7 hours by car or 9 hours by bus. I won’t talk about the beauty of Niagara Falls, you just have to see the waterfall! Instead, I will give some practical advice. Many argue that it makes no sense to look at Niagara from the United States, since the waterfall is located on the US side and is better seen from the coast of Canada. It's right! The waterfall is really better seen from the coast of Canada. But, the magical steamboat Maid of Mist goes to the waterfall, which collects passengers from both Canada and the States. Having taken a ticket for such a steamboat, you swim right up to the waterfall and see everything perfectly!

1. Washington

Since you're on the east coast, don't miss a trip to the capital! However, before the trip, study the information about the museums in the city. If you are not a big fan of museums, then one day is enough for you - you will visit the Capitol, walk along the national alley to George Washington Monument and Lincoln Memorial, look White House and this, in principle, may be enough. If, while preparing for the trip, you realized that you are interested in several museums in the capital, then do not hesitate and take 2 days for Washington - one for attractions, the second for museums.

1. Miami

Sunbathe on one of the beaches Miami Beach the dream of beach lovers all over the world! And those who love hot and cool parties dream of getting to one of them in Miami - a city where the fun never ends. Even in Miami, there is no winter, the ocean is always warm here, unlike the west coast, where you can swim "without pain" only in southern California. And yet, many cruises to exotic islands begin their journey in Miami.

1. Orlando

Orlando is a beautiful city in the state of Florida, in which Disney World and Universal Studio Park. Not worth considering Disney World like a park for kids. In this magical place, everyone becomes a child, including adult uncles and aunts. Both parks have a huge number of attractions and entertainment. The difference is that Disney rides are based on popular Disney cartoons and films, while Universal Studio rides are based on popular films from Universal Studios. Choose what you like best and go on an adventure.

1. Florida Keys

Florida Keys - a chain of small islands in the south of the United States, connected by one large bridge. The color of the water here is "from the advertisement of the bounty", the atmosphere of complete relaxation and bliss is very quiet, calm and peaceful. Spend time on one of the Florida Keys beaches, take an excursion on a glass bottom boat, get acquainted with the beautiful underwater world of the Atlantic Ocean. And, of course, rent a cabriolet and drive to Key West - the southernmost city in the USA and enjoy the sunset!

US West Coast

1. Los Angeles

If you are planning your trip to Los Angeles, I strongly recommend that you rent a car. Because despite the fact that Los Angeles is a city, it is very difficult to get around by public transport.

In Los Angeles, you can organize a very interesting and rich program. Go to the famous beach Santa Monica. If you are lucky, you can even swim in the ocean - if the water is warm or if you are not afraid of cold temperatures. You can also go to DisneyLand or park Universal. Universal is in the city itself, DisneyLand is 30 minutes south of Los Angeles.

Of course, you should take a walk along Hollywood Boulevard along the Avenue of Stars, go to the inscription Hollywood, drive around Beverly Hills, take a tour of celebrity homes, or visit the theater where the Oscars take place.

1. San Francisco

San Francisco is a special, cozy and very sunny city. Be sure to take a walk Pier 39 eat fish soup Clam Chowder and watch the lazy fur seals sunbathing right by the pier. Be sure to ride the famous tram along the steep slopes of the city, and walk down the steepest street in the world - Lombard street. And of course, take a walk to the Golden Gate Bridge and take pictures with the real symbol of the city.

1. Las Vegas

Everything is very simple. Do you want to get rich fast? Go to Las Vegas! If you don't like gambling - just walk around the casino and get acquainted with this huge industry. Be sure to wander around the night Las Vegas, it shines like a Christmas tree. Visit several shows, including singing fountains. Well, if you want extreme sports, then go to a cool attraction on the roof of the Stratosphere tower.

1. Grand Canyon

The beauty and uniqueness of this place is hard to forget! They are admired even by those who have never been here! There are many ways to spend time in the Grand Canyon. You can take a walking tour or book a helicopter tour of the Grand Canyon and enjoy all the beauty of this place from a bird's eye view (I highly recommend it by the way)

1. redwood park

This is the place where the bigger and thicker sequoia trees grow! Some trees are so large that a car can easily drive through them, and to hug such a tree, you will need a company of 10-15 people. This is an incredibly beautiful and green place where you can truly understand the greatness, strength and beauty of nature.

This trip is a Road Trip (road trip) in comfortable cars.
Traveling with us, you will not encounter anything that we do not like the usual "package" tours so much. We do not have: cramped buses, dull or, conversely, feigned cheerful guides with signs, standard boring excursions.
The number and type of cars we use depends on the size of the group and the preferences of its members.

For many, the United States of America is associated with huge metropolitan areas, tall skyscrapers and noisy streets filled with people. And while this may be true for the states as a whole, it is equally not true for the US West Coast.

With the exception of a few oases of civilization, the Wild West remains the Wild West to this day - with its dense forests, endless prairies, Rocky Mountains, Indians and cowboys, although the latter have long preferred sports cars to frisky horses, and even those do not remove scalps from enemies , nor others.

Purpose of Travel

Visiting the most famous sights of the US West Coast: San Francisco, Los Angeles, Las Vegas, Grand Canyon, Death Valley, Yosemite and Sequoia National Parks, as well as many other interesting places in the Wild West.

Group size: up to 12 people.

Price:$2779 per person.