Arizona

A year-round destination with a lot to shout about, Arizona is famously an outdoor state, home to showstopping landmarks like the Grand Canyon and Monument Valley, as well as scintillating cities such as Scottsdale and Sedona.

Few things on earth are as staggering to behold as the Grand Canyon. The mile-deep chasm carved by the Colorado River is 277 miles long and up to 18 miles wide. Its striated walls change colour by the hour and its numerous hiking trails are virtually peerless when it comes to dramatic views.

But Arizona’s wonders don’t end there. The towering Saguaro cacti of the Sonoran Desert can reach 50 feet high. Camelback Mountain rewards climbers with sweeping views over Scottsdale and the McDowell Sonoran Preserve. While on the border with Utah, the magnificent stone monoliths of Monument Valley Navajo Tribal Park have formed the backdrop to Westerns since the 1930s.

Linking it all together are a string of lavish resorts and a couple of key cities. Scottsdale is a hub for adventure, shopping and culture, boasting a vibrant Old Town filled with bars, restaurants and Native American art, as well as dozens of desert golf courses bathed in sunshine 330 days a year. To the north, Sedona rises against pine-clad hills and red-rock towers, renowned for its energy vortexes and exceptional spas.