Nebraska

No matter what you’re looking for, Nebraska will surprise you. The state, situated in the heart of the United States, offers a plethora of tourist attractions. Its largest cities are Lincoln – also its capital – and Omaha, together they have a population of nearly one million. Omaha is home to world-famous Boys and Girls town and the nationally recognized Henry Doorly Zoo. Lincoln’s state capitol has been called one of the modern architectural wonders of the world by the American Institute of Architects, and the city’s Children’s Museum is second to none.

The arts can be celebrated at Omaha’s Joslyn Art Museum, with its renowned collection of Karl Bodmer prints; the Bemis Center for Contemporary arts, with its recognized resident artist program; or Lincoln’s Sheldon Memorial Art Gallery, noted for its excellent collection of 20th century work. Nebraska has the largest area of sandhill grasslands in the western hemisphere; they’re both a natural wonder and a sight to behold. Chimney Rock and Scottsbluff National Monument marked the trail for the pioneers and still loom large for travelers today in western Nebraska. Pulitzer Prize winning author Willa Cather called Red Cloud, NE, home, and it appeared most famously in her book “My Antonia."

Nebraska has more than 11,000 miles of flowing streams and rivers, is home to the huge Ogallala Aquifer and is a top-notch destination for birding, most notably each spring, when more than 500,000 sandhill cranes migrate through the Platte River valley, in central Nebraska. If you’re looking for the quirky, you can find that here, too. Alliance’s Carhenge is a must do in this category, as is a stop in Hastings, where Kool Aid was invented. Lincoln is the headquarters of U.S. Amateur Confederation of Roller Skating and home to the National Roller Skating Museum.