The only royal palace on U.S. soil has been a territorial capitol, a military headquarters, and a prison for a queen.

Take shelter from Hawai'i's tropical heat under the massive canopy of largest Banyan tree on the island.

A series of waterfalls and pools that flow through the 'Ohe'o Gulch and into the ocean.

This black shoreline is made up of exploded lava particles.

These ancient sacred grounds granted amnesty to those who managed to reach them.

Hide from the tourist hordes in these relatively unknown, and unguarded lava caves.

This institution collects the history of burlesque dancing with a titillating collection of ephemera and pasties.

A Texas museum filled with Broncos and Betties.

A modernist landscape of water and sci-fi concrete.

A trio of colossal statues spread across a Dallas neighborhood chart the emergence of a giant robot born of a locomotive and spilled gin.

Golden Gate Park's historic collection of plants.

In all of the 29 years it was in operation, no prisoners ever escaped successfully... or so they claim.

Staircase winds down the side of Telegraph Hill through gardens, wild parrots flying overhead.

Carnivorous plants, medieval aphrodisiacs, and the largest original wood structure glass conservatory in the western hemisphere.

Gold Rush-era tombstones line the park's paths.

The oldest burial ground in the city, final resting place of city founders, Ohlone natives and murderers alike.

The last remaining relic of San Francisco's glittering 1915 Panama Pacific Exposition.

Not merely a museum – but a whirring powerhouse that offers a subterranean peek into the heart and soul of cable car operations.

San Francisco's newly reopened hands-on science museum.

An exercise in patience and imagination, where Mother Earth turned common stuff into precious hidden treasures.

An obscure waterfall that looks like something out of a fantasy novel.

A wild west land agreement was etched right onto this historic Idaho stone.

Where Nor'easters go to die.

A massive sea stack famous for its appearance in The Goonies.