The restored homestead known as Audubon House contains the works of renowned ornithologist, John James Audubon, who visited the Florida Keys in 1832 and completed drawings of 18 new birds for his folio in the gardens of this house. The house was originally built in the 1840s by Captain John H. Geiger, harbour pilot and wrecker, who lived here with his wife and nine children. The house has been furnished in the typical comfortable style of a prosperous Key West home of its era. Entertaining audio tours are available. Visitors can enjoy wandering through the gorgeous gardens, planted with orchids, bromeliads and other tropical, exotic and native plants.

Busch Gardens is a massive zoo-come-theme park, which predates Florida's more famous Walt Disney World and offers an equally exciting and entertaining experience for visitors. The park is based on an overall African theme, divided into eight different areas with thousands of animals living in naturalistic environments. The site also contains thrill rides, live entertainment venues, shops and restaurants, all easily viewed from above from the Skyride cable car that crosses the park. In one day it is possible to visit Tutankhamen's Tomb in Egypt, cross the plains of the Serengeti and watch snake charmers in a Moroccan sultan's tent.

The Key West Butterfly Conservatory is billed as a trip to paradise, and a walk through the tropical wonderland filled with free-flying butterflies and colourful birds is certainly a magical experience.

In the downtown area of Marathon is a tropical oasis of nature trails and educational displays set among hardwood trees on a piece of land that was originally occupied by a Bahamian immigrant family in the early 20th century. Known as Crane Point Hammock, the Adderley's made a sparse and simple life here by selling sponges gathered from the sea and making charcoal. Their home has been restored and the grounds laid out with several miles of walking trails and wooden walkways through the botanic wonderland. One trail takes in the Marathon Wild Bird Center where injured Keys' birds are rehabilitated. There is also a natural history museum on site, dedicated to sea turtles, and a children's museum. Visitors can also witness fish feedings at a tropical saltwater lagoon, and an iguana enclosure.

One of the most enjoyable activities on a visit to the Florida Keys is to get close to the friendly dolphins, which abound in the area. At the Dolphin Research Center visitors can enjoy half-day education programmes, walking tours and a 'dolphin encounter', spending 20 minutes of structured swimming with the Atlantic bottlenose resident dolphins.

Famous inventor, Thomas Edison, and his friend, automobile magnate Henry Ford, both spent dozens of winters in the city of Fort Myers in the early years of the 20th century. Edison's home is the region's top historic attraction, and has been preserved as it was during his lifetime. The Victorian house called Seminole Lodge still boasts working light bulbs, which he invented. They burn in the laboratory where he worked on more than 1,000 inventions during his winter visits. The house next door, Mangoes, was built by Ford in 1916. Visitors are given guided tours of both houses by costumed guides giving 'living history' accounts. Scenic river rides on board a replica of Edison's electric boat are also offered.

For a scenic drive and interesting art experience, head for the Enchanted Highway near Regent. The numerous whimsical metal sculptures along the road include The World's Largest Tin Family, Pheasants on the Prairieand Fisherman's Dream, and are all constructed by artist David Greff. Miniatures of each sculpture are available from the gift shop in Regent.

In the heart of Key West's old town is the house where Nobel Prize winner Ernest Hemingway, one of America's most respected authors, lived and wrote for more than 10 years. The rooms and gardens are open to the public, enabling visitors to step back in time to Hemingway's most productive period, and to enjoy the lush garden where more than 60 cats have taken up residence. Entertaining guided tours are given.

More than 5,000 aquatic creatures, including crocodiles and moray eels, live at the three-storey Florida Aquarium where it is possible to explore the underwater world in air-conditioned comfort. The aquarium utilises behind-the-scenes tours, dive shows, audio tours, close-up animal encounters and touch-tanks to spice up the experience. There are also numerous informative and entertaining theme exhibits.

The lives of prairie pioneers are showcased at the Frontier Village, with original prairie town buildings housing many frontier antiques and artefacts. Features of the village include the Kirkpatrick Gallery, the Louis L'Amour Writer's Shack and outdoor amphitheatre, as well as stagecoach and pony rides. The National Buffalo Museum has a buffalo herd on its property with three albino bison: White Cloud, Dakota Miracle and Dakota Legend. Native Americans traditionally hold the white buffalo as sacred and they are extremely rare.

When the early explorers and pioneers of the 18th century sailed this way, Glacier Bay was hidden under a huge sheet of solid ice, more than 4,000ft (1,219m) thick and up to 20 miles (32km) wide. Today the branching 65-mile (105km) long fjord is the work of the fastest-receding glacier on earth, the melting ice of the Grand Pacific Glacier opening up a spectacular carved terrain of steep rock walls lining deepwater fjords. Sliding out of the mountains are 16 active glaciers that fill the sea with different shaped icebergs, creating the icy blue landscape that is world-renowned. At the head of the fjord is the massive ice wall of the Grand Pacific Glacier, slowly melting and sculpting the still-unfinished land as it backs away from the sea, a natural work of art in progress. An added attraction is the variety of aquatic life including humpback whales, sea otters, seals and porpoises, while bears, moose, mountain goats and many species of birds inhabit the land. This rugged landscape can only be accessed by boat or small plane as most of the park is made up of water. Because opportunities to see this huge wilderness are limited, facilities can be crowded, especially on the tour boats; activities are also expensive, and wildlife sightings cannot be guaranteed. Gustavus is the small settlement that services the park, but the park headquarters is at Bartlett Cove from where boats can be arranged or alternate means provided to enjoy the park experience. Kayaking or camping in the backcountry, ranger-led programs or walks, hiking and fishing are all available.

Situated in Boca Raton at Red Reef Park on a barrier island, Gumbo Limbo (named after a species of tree) is an eight-hectare (20-acre) marine and estuarine reserve dedicated to showcasing and preserving a concentration of plants known as a 'tropical hammock'. The Environmental complex also includes large outdoor aquariums containing local marine life, including the area's ubiquitous sea turtles. Visitors can also visit a butterfly garden, see visual presentations and interpretive displays, catch the view from an overhead observation tower, and stroll an elevated boardwalk through the hammock and mangrove swamp.

The Henry B. Plant Museum in the heart of downtown Tampa is designed to transport visitors back to the turn of the century. The ornate building is Moorish in design, featuring 13 silver minarets, said to be a copy of the famed Alhambra Palace in Spain, and in itself is worth a visit. Railroad tycoon Henry Plant built the edifice in 1891 as the 511-roomed Tampa Bay Hotel. Today it houses period art and furnishings from Europe and the Orient, and details via exhibits the history of the resort and the early days of the tourist industry.

The John F. Kennedy Space Centre at Cape Canaveral, 46 miles (74km) southeast of Orlando on Florida's east coast, is one place in this fantasyland state where fact is just as entertaining as fancy. Visitors to the centre follow the story of NASA's exploration of space through interactive exhibits, movies and tours. Guests can tour a full-size replica of the space shuttle 'Explorer'; walk through a giant model of a module from the new International Space Station; view films about Mars and the Pathfinder exploration; view historic authentic rockets, like that piloted by pioneer astronaut, John Glenn; and marvel at the Apollo/Saturn Centre, which houses all the artefacts from the historic moon landing. The Space Centre requires several hours to digest, and on the same site is the Merritt Island National Wildlife Refuge, established on the land NASA did not require for its space operations. The 220-square-mile (570 sq km) refuge contains more endangered species than any other wildlife refuge in the US, including the southern bald eagle and Atlantic loggerhead turtle. The US Astronaut Hall of Fame, in the nearby town of Titusville, is another of the area's attractions.

The landmark beacon of the Key West Lighthouse was built in 1847 to warn ships of the hazardous reefs lying off the lower Keys, and, having been taken out of commission in 1969, is now a popular tourist attraction. Visitors can climb the 86-foot (26m) high tower to marvel at the spectacular view. The clapboard bungalow that was the keeper's quarters has been restored and maintained as a museum, providing a glimpse of life in Key West in the 19th century.

In the dying years of the 19th century a former Civil War surgeon, Dr Cyrus Teed, founded a pioneer settlement on the banks of the Estero River south of Fort Myers where he led the community to practice a religion he termed Koreshanity. Chief among his beliefs was the equality of men and women and that the universe was a hollow sphere containing everything within it. Planning to build a utopian city, the community generated their own electricity, built boats, established a general store and constructed numerous buildings, of which 11 remain today to be explored by visitors. The last four members of the sect donated the land to the State of Florida in 1961 and it is now preserved as a park with a nature trail, picnic tables and campsite. Guided tours of the Koreshan buildings are offered.

A sighting of an endangered West Indian manatee, a shy and lumbering walrus-like creature whose numbers are dwindling, is a must for visitors to Florida. At the Lee County Manatee Park on the Orange River in eastern Fort Myers these animals can be viewed in their natural habitat from observation decks. The Park also offers information, walking tours and workshops, as well as picnic facilities, a fishing cove with deck and a pier. Kayak and canoe trails are also available.

Some years ago Juno Beach resident Eleanor Fletcher, affectionately known locally as 'the Turtle Lady', began assembling a collection of turtle artefacts and information that has grown to become the Marine Life Center on the oceanfront at Loggerhead Park, which monitors turtles along the Gold Coast. The Center is essentially a turtle hospital, and visitors can see ill and injured creatures being rehabilitated. The Center has numerous exhibits, including tropical fish and shells, and a gift shop. Evening guided 'turtle walks' are offered during June and July, but bookings must be made in advance.

The hands-on Tampa Science Museum is designed to educate, amaze and amuse both young and old with more than 450 interactive exhibits. Visitors can, for example, experience what it is like to be in a Gulf Hurricane with winds of up to 74 miles per hour (200km/h), or defy the laws of gravity in space. The biology section features a unique way to explore the human body and stroll through a butterfly garden. Also at the museum is Florida's first IMAX dome theatre, and the museum building is set in a 47-acre nature reserve which features walking trails.

The endangered, attractive and unique tiny white-tailed Key deer have found a safe haven in their refuge at Big Pine Key, where they can roam in 14 square miles (36 sq km) of their natural threatened tropical hardwood hammock habitat. There were only 27 or so Key deer surviving in 1957 when the refuge was established; this number has now grown to about 800. The refuge is also home to 22 other federally listed endangered and threatened species of plants and animals, five of which are found nowhere else in the world. More than 90,000 visitors come to the refuge each year.

Culture vultures should not miss out on one of Florida's major cultural attractions, the Norton Museum of Art in trendy, upmarket West Palm Beach. The museum's permanent collection is internationally renowned, including European, American, Chinese and contemporary art, from Renaissance through Baroque. There is also a photography section. The museum also hosts travelling exhibitions and offers education programmes for children. There is a museum shop and café serving refreshments. Guided tours are available.

Tiny Pigeon Key is an island west of Marathon on the Overseas Highway, which originally served as a construction camp for the original railroad built through the Keys. It is now listed on the National Register of Historic Places and operated by the non-profit Pigeon Key Foundation as an historic preserve. Visitors can explore a railroad museum featuring artefacts and photographs about the original Flagler railroad and building of the old Seven Mile Bridge. Some of the cottages have been restored.

An hour west of Fort Lauderdale on the road to Naples the Big Cypress Seminole Reservation boasts the Ah-Tah-Thi-Khi Museum, giving visitors an insight into the history and culture of Florida's so-called 'unconquered' Indian tribe. The museum features exhibits and a living village where visitors can watch artisans at work. There is also a nature trail to explore, and a film on Seminole history is shown regularly.

The beaches along this area of the Florida coast are world-renowned for their seashells and the largest collection of shells, fossils, corals and sponges in the world is the focus of a unique family oriented attraction north of Fort Myers. The Shell Factory not only exhibits a fascinating collection, but the 18-acre complex includes shops selling a range of jewellery, ornaments, lamps, objets d'art and glassware. It is even possible to pick your own pearl and have it mounted in gold. The complex includes a petting zoo, wildlife refuge, eco laboratory, a restaurant, game arcade, miniature golf course and boating lake.

Six Flags Great Adventure is the largest theme park in New Jersey, and one of the most popular on the east coast of the US. It has eleven themed areas with various rides and attractions for all ages, and thirteen roller coasters. Much of the park is themed with DC superheroes like Superman, Batman, and the Green Lantern. The park has a number of restaurants, cafes and souvenir shops. The attached Six Flags Wild Safari is a drive-through game park with lions, elephants, giraffes, kangaroos and bears. Next door is Hurricane Harbour, a waterpark with a wave pool, adventure river, and more than a dozen speed slides.

The Museum of History in Fort Myers is housed in the former Atlantic Coastline Railroad depot and chronicles the history of Southwest Florida, from the Paleo Indians through the Calusa, the Seminoles and the Spanish explorers to the early settlers. A pioneer cracker house, a 1926 fire pump and a 1929 Pullman private railroad car are among the exhibits. Pride of place is held by the 'Land of Giants' section depicting the huge animals like mammoths, mastodons and the Bison Antiqus that roamed the area about 12,000 years ago.

The Tampa Museum of Art boasts stunning facilities, and is located along Gasparilla Plaza. The 66,000-square-foot building houses a collection of 20th-century and contemporary art, as well as a renowned collection of Greek and Roman antiquities. There is also a changing special exhibitions programme. The new building, which opened in February 2010, is itself a work of art. From the innovative translucent ceilings to walls covered with LED lighting, the seven interior galleries and one exterior sculpture gallery offer visitors a world-class experience.

It is no surprise that the beautiful Catskills Mountains area, north west of New York City, has long been a popular vacation spot and the choice of many a wealthy New Yorker for their summer home. The region is dotted with picturesque towns, reservoirs, forests and parks, historic buildings and plenty of resorts, and there is much to see and do. Nicknamed the Borscht Belt, from the 1940s to the 1960s, The Catskills was highly popular with Jewish New Yorkers in particular, and some of the finest Jewish comedians sprung from the area, including Woody Allen, Mel Brooks and Joan Rivers. The region is also famous for hosting one of the world's best-known entertainment events, the 1969 Woodstock Festival. Over 500,000 free spirits gathered on Max Yasgur's dairy farm in Bethel to see some of the finest musicians of the era and today, the site is open to the public, as is a museum that houses archives and interesting information from the event. The Catskills also boasts plenty of exciting activities, including hunting, fly-fishing, canoeing, hiking and camping. The region is also home to several ski resorts, including Belleayre Mountain Ski Center and Hunter Mountain.

The New York Yankees are the most recognisable baseball team in the world, and fans from many countries make the pilgrimage to Yankee Stadium each year. The current stadium in the west Bronx opened in 2009, and features monuments to past players like Babe Ruth, Mickey Mantle, Lou Gehrig and Joe DiMaggio. The open-air stadium is the perfect place to spend warm summer nights in New York City, cheering on present stars like Derek Jeter and Alex Rodriguez.

Ybor City in central Tampa, with its cobblestone streets and huge old cigar factory buildings, is a National Historic Landmark District that beckons visitors back to an era when this Latin Quarter was known as the cigar capital of the world. The historic enclave, founded in 1886, has been fully restored and although the cigar factories are no longer operational, the buildings now house shops, restaurants, clubs and art galleries drawing large numbers of visitors. It is still possible to watch locals demonstrate the ancient art of premium hand-rolled cigar making, or spend a wild night applauding Spanish Flamenco dancers.