Top Things to Do in St. John's
20 must-see attractions and experiences
St. John's is a name that spans geography and imagination — from the historic harbor city of St. John's, Newfoundland, the oldest English-settled city in North America, to the sunny shores of St. John in the U.S. Virgin Islands, where Caribbean ruins whisper of the sugar trade era. The attractions gathered under this name reflect this extraordinary range, encompassing excellent metropolitan museums, national parks of petrified wonder, Caribbean plantation history, and coastal wilderness that stretches from the Atlantic to the Arizona desert. What unites these varied destinations is a spirit of discovery. Whether you are tracing the footsteps of indigenous peoples through a petrified forest, climbing the steps of a Gilded Age castle overlooking the Pacific, or snorkeling above the ruins of a Danish sugar plantation in turquoise waters, the experience rewards curiosity and a willingness to look beneath the surface. These are places where natural history, human ambition, and the passage of time have left marks that continue to captivate.
Don't Miss These
Our top picks for visitors to St. John's
The Metropolitan Museum of Art
Museums & GalleriesOne of the largest and most complete art museums in the world, The Metropolitan Museum of Art on Manhattan's Fifth Avenue holds more than two million works spanning 5,000 years of human creativity. From the Temple of Dendur — an entire Egyptian temple reconstructed in a glass-walled gallery — to Vermeer's intimate domestic scenes and the American Wing's period rooms, the Met's encyclopedic collection makes it possible to travel through civilizations in a single afternoon. The rooftop garden offers seasonal sculpture installations with Central Park views.
1000 5th Ave, New York, NY 10028, USA ·View on Map
City Museum
Museums & GalleriesHoused in a former International Shoe Company warehouse in downtown St. Louis, the City Museum is unlike any museum in the world — a massive, multi-story indoor-outdoor playground, architectural marvel, and art installation built almost entirely from repurposed industrial materials. Visitors climb through salvaged airplane fuselages, crawl through miles of tunnels made from industrial springs, slide down ten-story slides, and explore caves, a rooftop Ferris wheel, and a school bus teetering on the building's edge. It is the vision of sculptor Bob Cassilly and defies conventional description.
750 N 16th St, St. Louis, MO 63103, USA ·View on Map
The Dalí Museum
Museums & GalleriesOverlooking Tampa Bay in St. Petersburg, Florida, the Dali Museum houses the most complete collection of Salvador Dali's work outside Spain. The building itself is a work of art — a concrete rectangle erupted by a free-form glass 'enigma' structure inspired by the mathematical form of a geodesic dome. Inside, the collection spans Dali's entire career from early Impressionist experiments through his Surrealist masterpieces to the monumental late works, including the 13.5-foot-tall 'The Hallucinogenic Toreador.'
1 Dali Blvd, St. Petersburg, FL 33701, USA ·View on Map
Petrified Forest National Park
Natural WondersSpanning the painted badlands of northeastern Arizona, Petrified Forest National Park protects the world's largest concentration of petrified wood — ancient trees transformed into brilliant jewel-toned quartz crystals over 225 million years. The park's scenic drive winds through the otherworldly Painted Desert, where banded hills of red, orange, purple, and gray shale shift color with the light. Beyond the petrified logs, the park preserves ancient Puebloan petroglyphs, a historic Route 66 alignment, and one of the most spectacular desert landscapes in the American Southwest.
Arizona, USA ·View on Map
Hearst Castle
Notable AttractionsPerched on the hilltops of San Simeon along California's Central Coast, Hearst Castle is the opulent estate of newspaper magnate William Randolph Hearst, designed by architect Julia Morgan and built between 1919 and 1947. The compound includes 165 rooms across four buildings, two swimming pools (the outdoor Neptune Pool and the indoor Roman Pool are both stunners), and gardens filled with ancient Roman and Greek sculptures. The castle's wild menagerie once included zebras, whose descendants still roam the surrounding hills.
750 Hearst Castle Rd, San Simeon, CA 93452, USA ·View on Map
Belvedere Castle
Notable AttractionsA Victorian folly perched on Vista Rock, the highest point in Central Park, Belvedere Castle was designed by Calvert Vaux and Jacob Wrey Mould in 1869 as a decorative structure offering panoramic views of the park. Today, it houses the Henry Luce Nature Observatory with exhibits on the park's ecology, and its terraces provide sweeping views over Turtle Pond, the Delacorte Theater, and the Great Lawn. The castle's fairy-tale silhouette against the Manhattan skyline is one of Central Park's most recognizable images.
New York, NY 10024, USA ·View on Map
The Harvard Museum of Natural History
Museums & GalleriesHarvard University's public museum shows the university's extraordinary scientific collections, including the world-famous Glass Flowers — over 3,000 models of 847 plant species created by Leopold and Rudolf Blaschka between 1887 and 1936 with an astonishing level of botanical accuracy. Beyond the flowers, the museum holds extensive mineral, fossil, and zoological collections, including a 42-foot-long Kronosaurus skeleton and one of the finest meteorite collections in the world.
26 Oxford St, Cambridge, MA 02138, USA ·View on Map
Lightner Museum
Museums & GalleriesHoused in Henry Flagler's former Alcazar Hotel in St. Augustine, Florida, the Lightner Museum displays the eclectic collection of Chicago publisher Otto C. Lightner, spanning Victorian-era art glass, Tiffany lamps, natural science specimens, mechanical musical instruments, and decorative arts. The building itself — a grand Spanish Renaissance Revival structure with an interior courtyard that once held the world's largest indoor swimming pool — is as impressive as the collection. The pool has been converted into a cafe, creating one of Florida's most unique dining settings.
75 King St, St. Augustine, FL 32084, USA ·View on Map
John's Pass Village & Boardwalk
Urban ExplorationA waterfront shopping and dining district on the barrier island between Madeira Beach and Treasure Island in the St. Pete Beach area of Florida, John's Pass Village & Boardwalk is a lively mix of over 100 shops, restaurants, and recreational outfitters clustered around a fishing village-turned-tourist destination. Deep-sea fishing charters, dolphin-watching cruises, jet ski rentals, and parasailing operations launch from the boardwalk docks, making it the activity hub of Pinellas County's Gulf beaches.
12945 Village Blvd, Madeira Beach, FL 33708, USA ·View on Map
Rainbow Forest Museum and Visitor Center
Museums & GalleriesLocated at the southern entrance of Petrified Forest National Park, the Rainbow Forest Museum introduces visitors to the park's 225-million-year geological story. Exhibits explawhile petrification, display polished cross-sections of petrified wood revealing their crystal interiors, and show fossils of the Triassic creatures that once roamed this ancient tropical landscape. A short trail behind the museum leads through the Giant Logs concentration, where some of the park's most massive and colorful petrified trees lie scattered across the desert floor.
6618 Petrified Forest Rd, Holbrook, AZ 86025, USA ·View on Map
Natural Wonders
Natural wonders include the 225-million-year-old petrified forests of Arizona, the pine-forested White Mountains, and the wildlife-rich Becker Lake — landscapes that span geological time and ecological variety across the American continent.
St. John's Park
Natural WondersA historic public park in the Tribeca neighborhood of Lower Manhattan, St. John's Park occupies a block-sized green space that has served the community since the 19th century. The park features mature London plane trees, benches, a playground, and a dog run, providing a welcome green respite in one of Manhattan's densest neighborhoods. Its quiet, neighborhood character has a contrast to the more famous and crowded parks of Midtown and Central Park.
Troy Ave, Brooklyn, NY 11213, USA ·View on Map
White Mountain Nature Center
Natural Wonderslocated in the pine forests of the White Mountains near Pinetop-Lakeside, Arizona, this intimate nature center offers guided hikes, wildlife programs, and environmental education in one of Arizona's most biodiverse mountain ecosystems. The center's trails wind through ponderosa pine forest, riparian meadows, and elk habitat, providing accessible encounters with wildlife and plant communities rarely associated with Arizona. Educational programs emphasize the ecological significance of the Sky Islands region.
425 S Woodland Rd, Lakeside, AZ 85929, USA ·View on Map
Museums & Galleries
The museum offerings span an extraordinary range, from The Metropolitan Museum of Art's encyclopedic holdings and the Dali Museum's complete Surrealist collection to the gloriously anarchic City Museum and the eclectic Lightner Museum in a Gilded Age hotel. Each has an experience impossible to replicate elsewhere.
Joslyn Castle & Gardens
Museums & GalleriesA impressive Scottish Baronial-style mansion in Omaha, Nebraska, Joslyn Castle was built in 1903 for George and Sarah Joslyn, whose philanthropy later established the Joslyn Art Museum. The 35-room castle features hand-carved oak woodwork, Tiffany stained glass, gold-leaf ceilings, and a 5.5-acre English garden that is among the finest in the Great Plains. The castle hosts tours, community events, and offers its grounds as a venue for weddings and cultural gatherings.
3902 Davenport St, Omaha, NE 68131, USA ·View on Map
Notable Attractions
The notable attractions range from California's opulent Hearst Castle and Central Park's fairy-tale Belvedere Castle to the evocative sugar plantation ruins scattered across St. John in the U.S. Virgin Islands, each telling stories of ambition, labor, and the passage of time.
Annaberg Sugar Plantation
Notable AttractionsPerched on a hillside overlooking Leinster Bay on St. John in the U.S. Virgin Islands, the ruins of Annaberg Sugar Plantation are the most substantial and best-interpreted remnants of the island's Danish colonial sugar industry. Stone walls of the sugar factory, horse mill, windmill tower, slave quarters, and boiling house stand among tropical vegetation with views of the British Virgin Islands across the narrows. National Park Service signs interpret the brutal labor system that made this landscape profitable.
977C+34J, St John 00830, USVI ·View on Map
Jasper Forest
Notable AttractionsOne of the most visually striking concentrations of petrified wood in Petrified Forest National Park, Jasper Forest is a hillside strewn with hundreds of massive petrified logs that have tumbled down a slope over millions of years. Viewed from the overlook along the park road, the scattered logs resemble an ancient logging operation frozen in time, their bark-textured exteriors concealing interiors of red, yellow, and white jasper and agate. The contrast between the jewel-toned logs and the blue-gray badlands beneath is otherworldly.
Petrified Forest National Park, AZ 86028, USA ·View on Map
Catherineberg Estate Ruins
Notable AttractionsSet on a verdant hillside above Cinnamon Bay on St. John, the Catherineberg Estate Ruins preserve the remains of a 18th-century Danish sugar plantation, including a massive windmill tower, rum still foundations, and slave quarter walls. The site's elevation provides sweeping views over the bay and surrounding tropical forest, and the surrounding national park trails connect Catherineberg to other plantation sites, creating a walking tour of the island's colonial agricultural past.
86VQ+PHH, Rte 206, St John 00830, USVI ·View on Map
Cinnamon Bay Plantation Ruins
Notable AttractionsLocated just steps from one of St. John's most popular beaches, the Cinnamon Bay Plantation Ruins include the remains of a sugar factory, a rum still, and a bay rum distillery dating to the 18th-century Danish colonial period. The ruins are shaded by enormous century-old trees, and interpretive panels describe the operation of the plantation and the lives of enslaved workers who operated it. The contrast of Caribbean beach leisure and plantation ruins creates a layered experience unique to the Virgin Islands.
962W+H68, Rte 20, Great Cinnamon Bay, St John 00830, USVI ·View on Map
Reef Bay Sugar Mill Ruins
Notable AttractionsReached via the scenic Reef Bay Trail — one of the finest hikes in the U.S. Virgin Islands — the Reef Bay Sugar Mill Ruins preserve the remains of a substantial Danish colonial sugar operation, including a remarkably intact stone boiling house, a chimney stack, and the rusted remains of 19th-century steam-powered sugar processing equipment. The trail to the ruins descends through tropical forest past ancient Taino petroglyphs, connecting indigenous, colonial, and natural history in a single 3-mile hike.
87F3+6W4, Reef Bay, St John 00830, USVI ·View on Map
Galley Bay Beach
Notable AttractionsA beautiful crescent of sand on the western coast of Antigua, Galley Bay Beach stretches along a lagoon backed by sea grape trees and tropical vegetation. The beach is known for its spectacular sunsets, gentle waves on the protected inner shore, and a more secluded atmosphere compared to Antigua's busier resort beaches. The adjacent lagoon attracts wading birds, and the lack of large-scale commercial development preserves a relaxed, natural Caribbean beach experience.
44F5+5J8, St John's, Antigua and Barbuda ·View on Map
Family Attractions
Becker Lake Wildlife Area offers family-friendly wildlife viewing in a serene mountain setting, with bald eagles, waterfowl, and elk providing accessible nature encounters for visitors of all ages.
Becker Lake Wildlife Area
Family AttractionsA managed wildlife area near Springerville in Arizona's White Mountains, Becker Lake Wildlife Area centers on a shallow lake that attracts migratory and resident birds including bald eagles, osprey, great blue herons, and numerous waterfowl species. The lake's grassy shoreline and surrounding meadows provide habitat for elk, pronghorn, and mule deer, making it one of the best wildlife viewing spots in the White Mountains. A fishing pier and short walking trails provide access to the lakeshore.
272 W Main St, Springerville, AZ 85938, USA ·View on Map
Planning Your Visit
Best Time to Visit
Timing depends heavily on which destination within this varied collection you are visiting. Florida and the U.S. Virgin Islands are best November through April (dry season). Arizona's Petrified Forest is most comfortable in spring and autumn. New York's museums are excellent year-round but most pleasant in spring and fall.
Booking Advice
The Metropolitan Museum and City Museum are walk-up. Hearst Castle tours must be booked in advance — the Grand Rooms tour (Tour 1) is recommended for first visits. The Reef Bay ranger-led hike on St. John books out weeks ahead. The Dali Museum benefits from timed-entry tickets purchased online.
Save Money
Many of the best experiences are free — Belvedere Castle, all St. John plantation ruins and trails, Becker Lake, and St. John's Park cost nothing. The Met has a suggested-price policy for New York residents. National Park passes cover both Petrified Forest and the Virgin Islands National Park.
Local Etiquette
In museums, silence phones and respect photography policies — the Met allows photography without flash, but the Dali Museum restricts it in certain galleries. On St. John, stay on marked trails through plantation ruins and never remove artifacts. In the Petrified Forest, taking petrified wood is a federal offense.
Book Your Experiences
Guided tours, tickets, and activities in St. John's