Colorado is home to no less than twenty-six ski resorts such as those in Vail and Breckenridge; other winter activities include snowboarding, sledding, sleigh rides, snow hiking and snowmobiling. The state is blessed with national parks, grasslands and forests where in warmer weather you can enjoy hiking, mountain biking or rock climbing. Wildlife abounds, from bears to moose and raccoons to wolverines. More interested in local history? Head for either the Ute Indian Museum or the Koshare Indian Museum, and don't miss the forts such as Fort Garland and Bent's Old Fort. For a complete change, why not take a ride in a hot air balloon from South Park Valley or Boulder and admire Colorado's picturesque landscape from above?

Take the Big Red cable car to the top of Rendezvous Mountain for spectacular views, fossils and wildflowers; from the summit you can go paragliding, or skiing in winter. Be sure to visit Grand Teton National Park with superb views of its granite mountains. Whilst you're there, take a boat trip across Jenny Lake followed by a walk up Cascade Canyon for stunning scenery. Sit on top of a volcano in Yellowstone National Park, and don't miss its two stunning waterfalls. See elk at the National Elk Refuge during the winter and spring, as well as a host of other animals and birds. Find time to visit the Bridger-Teton National Forest, a picturesque unspoilt wilderness where you can go hiking, canoeing or horse riding in summer. If you plan your trip for winter, there will be opportunities for skiing, ice climbing and snowmobiling.

The US state of Arizona is one that features a fantastic diversity of landscapes and areas of geological interest. North Arizona is famous for the Grand Canyon, a colourful chasm with steep rocky walls more than a mile deep and stretching some 277 miles alongside the Colorado River. Other notable destinations in North Arizona include Flagstaff set alongside the San Francisco Peaks which has the largest ponderosa pine forest, Museum of Northern Arizona, and is close to a number of national parks and monuments. On the south side of Arizona lies the city of Phoenix, the largest in Arizona. Notable day trips in Phoenix include the Heard Museum which is one of America's largest collections of Native American art, Phoenix Museum of History, as well as the Desert Botanical garden which has a great collection of desert plants.