The Lilac Scrapbook: 7 American cities on my bucket list

When it comes to travelling, city breaks are my favourite kind of holiday - I wrote a city break bucket list last year, but they were European cities that are within easy reach and of course, within my budget. But there's a few cities further afield that I want to tick off before I die so I thought I'd make a post about the 7 American cities on my bucket list...

Chicago, Illinois

One of the cities I'd love to visit is Chicago - the architecture looks phenomenal, there's a free zoo, loads of museums and art galleries (like the American Writers Museum, which would just be such a thrill for me) and so many incredible bars and eateries. Most of all, though, I want to visit Chicago for the jazz scene that is still so big in the city; how cool would it be to see some live jazz music at Green Mill?!

Photo by This Ugly Beautiful City

Where to stay: click here to see hotels in Chicago

Pigeon Forge, Tennessee

This is relatively new addition to my travel bucket list, but one that I'm now absolutely desperate to visit. Pigeon Forge is a mountain town and somewhere that attracts a lot of tourists, as it's full of exciting things to do: there's a Titanic museum (my mum would love that), a place called 'The Island' which is so bright and full of rides, fun shops and more, and an outdoor gravity park. For a big guide to Pigeon Forge check out this post I found by Taylor Pittman Hardy.

The absolute jewel in Pigeon Forge's crown, though, is Dolly Parton's very own Dollywood - a theme park with adjoining water park where you can see her tour bus, outfits and more as well as live music, a spa and plenty of other entertainment.

Photo courtesy of Steve Shreve

Where to stay: click here to see hotels in Pigeon Forge

Salem, Massachusetts

I've been to Massachusetts before, and I stayed in a city called Newton which was absolutely charming - we of course ventured in Boston and a couple of other places but I didn't manage to visit Salem. It is, of course, famous for its 1692 witch trials - there's a witch museum and you can do a tour of the 17th century house which was the home of Judge Jonathan Corwin. There's various other things to do in Salem, like the Peabody Essex Museum and the House of the Seven Gables, and it just looks utterly gorgeous.

Photo courtesy of Todd Diemer

Where to stay: click here to see hotels in Salem

Philadelphia, Pennsylvania

I'm not going to lie to you, I mostly want to visit Philadelphia to see the bits from my favourite film in the whole world, National Treasure. And there's a lot of them: Benjamin Franklin Bridge, Washington Square, City Hall, Reading Terminal Market and loads more. 5 years ago a website called Curbed put together this really helpful guide to the locations that are used in the film and it's honestly got me even more desperate to visit the city. There's also the Philadelphia Museum of Art and the Eastern State Penitentiary which both look amazing.

Image courtesy of Kirsty Leanne

Where to stay: click here to see hotels in Philadelphia

New Orleans, Louisiana

Okay, a bit cliché to have this one on my bucket list I guess? But it just looks like the mot fascinating city in the world, and colourful to boot. I watched Katie Ellison's travel vlog when her & her family visited New Orleans, and a couple of travel bloggers I follow have been to New Orleans and posted the most gorgeous photos. There's the French Quarter, the National WW2 Museum, a jazz concert hall and some really interesting cemeteries.

Image courtesy of One Trip at a Time

Where to stay: click here to see hotels in New Orleans

Juneau, Alaska

More than anything, this city just looks absolutely breathtaking; you can go bear watching, pan for gold, go kayaking or take a sightseeing tour in the air. There's glaciers and mountains and it just looks so bloody pretty. The Alaskan Brewing Company was founded here, so if you're into beer you can go and see the brewery, and there's plenty of museums and galleries in the city too.

Photo courtesy of Mark Fennell

Where to stay: click here to see hotels in Juneau

Nashville, Tennesse

Another city in Tennessee (it'd be a cool state visit for me) and this time, the real home of country music aka my absolute all time favourite kind of music. There's the Country Music Hall of Fame and Museum where I would easily be able to spend an entire day, and the Johnny Cash Museum (!!!!) as well as a really old printing shop called Hatch Show Print Shop. Other than country music phenomena, Nashville has a true-to-size replica of the Greek Parthenon. Pretty cool.

Where to stay: click here to see hotels in Nashville

So there you have it - 7 American cities on my bucket list. These are definitely a pipe dream but I'm still young and have the rest of my life ahead of me to travel, so maybe one day! What cities are on your US bucket list?