We鈥檝e all been there鈥攜ou鈥檙e huddled onto the crowded summit of a popular peak, at the base of that iconic waterfall, or crammed into a tiny pullout along that scenic road through a well-known national park, and everyone is snapping the same photo. You followed the masses and found yourself a beautiful vista. Well done. Now听wouldn鈥檛 you like a little solitude to go with the view? It鈥檚 time to get off the beaten path. Here鈥檚 where to go.
Austin, Texas
Where the Crowds Are: Congress Avenue Bat Bridge
Over a million Mexican free-tailed bats live under the听 in downtown Austin, and听all summer long, the creatures flock from the bridge around sunset in search of food. It鈥檚 quite a sight. But you won鈥檛 be alone鈥攈undreds of people gather there, in kayaks on Lady Bird Lake or on the grassy hill alongside the bridge.
Go Here Instead: Old Tunnel State Park
Eighty miles west of Austin is听, home to three million of the same bat species found under the famous bridge. You can watch from two different observation areas while state-park staff give presentations on summer evenings. Get there early to be one of 70 people to score a spot in the lower, close-up viewing area (entry costs $5).
If you鈥檙e set on seeing the bats in Austin, do it from the lake:听 hosts kayak bat tours. Or stay at the听 (from $199), across the lake, and watch the bats leaving the bridge from the hotel鈥檚 rooftop pool deck.
Seattle, Washington
Where the Crowds Are: Gum Wall at Pike Place Market
You have to know where it is, tucked into a hidden alley downtown underneath Pike Place Market, but once you鈥檙e there, you and hordes of other spectators will get a听look at one of the weirdest public art installations ever鈥攁 50-foot-long wall spackled with other听.
Go Here Instead: Olympic Sculpture Park
If outdoor art is what you鈥檙e after, skip staring at spit-covered bubble gum and head to the waterfront听. With nine acres, it鈥檚 downtown鈥檚 largest green space, and it鈥檚听filled with massive works of art. The Seattle Art Museum leads hourlong tours, or you can explore on your own. Plus, the park is听free, open from sunrise to sunset, and easy to find. There鈥檚 also听a waterfront path that cuts听through the grounds, a great option听for running or biking.
Glacier National Park, Montana
Where the Crowds Are: Going-to-the-Sun Road
There may be no more scenic route听in America than the 50-mile听. It crosses the Continental Divide through the park, with听 of glaciers, waterfalls, mountain goats, and snowcapped peaks. But midsummer听you鈥檒l be on the clogged roadway with a lineup of tour buses, RVs, and motorcycles.
Go Here Instead: Camas Road
For a panoramic drive through Glacier National Park without the crowds, veer toward听 from West Glacier. Listed on the National Register of Historic Places, it curves around Huckleberry Mountain (stop for a hike to Huckleberry Lookout), then leaves the park on the dirt North Fork Road toward the off-the-grid community of Polebridge, 13 miles away, following听the banks of the North Fork of the Flathead River. The听 is worth a visit听for huckleberry bear claws.
Maui, Hawaii
Where the Crowds Are: Sunrise at Haleakala National Park
So many听 want to watch the sunrise from the top of the volcano in Haleakala National Park听that the park service started requiring听 to drive up at dawn. It鈥檚 a beautiful way to start your day鈥攊f you don鈥檛 mind a bunch of other cars and Instagrammers alongside you.
Go Here Instead: Wilderness Cabins at Haleakala Crater听
The National Park Service maintains three听rustic backcountry cabins on the Haleakala Crater, accessibly only via trail. You鈥檒l start at 10,023 feet above sea level, atop the volcano, and hike down into the crater, to 7,000 feet, covering roughly four miles to reach the closest of the three cabins or nine miles to the farthest one. You鈥檒l need a听 (from $75 a night), but that鈥檒l guarantee you a bunk in a cabin with minimal crowds.
San Francisco, California
Where the Crowds Are: The Golden Gate Bridge
On a visit to San Francisco, it鈥檚 pretty much mandatory that you walk across the听, an iconic 1.7-mile span that connects the city with听Marin County, to the north. But you won鈥檛 have the place to yourself. In fact, ten听million people visit the bridge every year
Go Here Instead: Marshall鈥檚 Beach
Located within Golden Gate National Park, sandy Marshall鈥檚 Beach is adjacent to the bridge on the San Francisco side, so you can still snap a photo of it听shrouded in morning fog鈥攚ithout the mobs of people. To reach the beach, hike a half-mile along the听, where you can spot dolphins听as you descend to the ocean.
Juneau, Alaska听
Where the Crowds Are: Mendenhall Glacier
When massive cruise ships roll into Alaska鈥檚 capital city, many passengers disembark and board tour buses bound for , the only glacier听in the state听that can be reached via road. We鈥檙e not talking about just a few people鈥攁round one million cruise-ship passengers visit Juneau each summer, and the glacier sees around 500,000 visitors annually. (Most stick to the visitor听center, so you can take a walk and avoid the crowds.)
Go Here Instead: Mount Roberts
Juneau is surrounded by mountains covered in lush, green trees and听 that see minimal traffic. Ride the听 ($35 for a round-trip ticket), which departs from downtown and soars through a rainforest to an elevation of 1,800 feet; from here, if you hike a half-mile, you can have听a听view of the Chilkat Mountains to yourself. Or skip the tram entirely and hike the听 that climbs nearly 4,000 vertical feet up the mountain.
Niagara Falls, New York
Where the Crowds Are: Niagara Falls State Park
The oldest state park in America,听 is home to such wonders as American Falls, Bridal Veil Falls, and Horseshoe Falls. It鈥檚 also a predictably popular sightseeing spot, especially in the summer, when busloads of tourists show up to gawk听at the nearly 3,160 tons of water flowing over听 every second.
Go Here Instead: Taughannock Falls State Park
Located 150 miles east of Niagara Falls, near Ithaca, 750-acre听 has one standout feature: a听 that鈥檚 nearly 50 feet taller than Niagara Falls. Hike the Gorge Trail along Taughannock Creek, which is less than a mile to the base of the falls, or the North Rim Trail for a bird鈥檚-eye view. If you鈥檙e set on seeing Niagara Falls, head to the lesser known viewpoint within the park: , accessible via a pedestrian bridge with great panoramas听of American Falls and Bridal Veil Falls.
Aspen, Colorado
Where the Crowds Are: Maroon Bells
Called the most听 peaks in Colorado, the 14,000-foot听, ten听miles west of Aspen, are stunning. Due to midsummer crowds, there鈥檚 now a public bus you have to ride midday to reach Maroon Lake (or you can bike there). Most people hike the one-mile round-trip Maroon Lake Scenic Trail, which skirts听the lake at the base of the peaks.
Go Here Instead: Castle Creek Road
For a breathtaking ride听to majestic vistas, drive听or bike the 13-mile, paved Castle Creek Road, which听passes the historic Toklat Lodge and听. The听 is well worth a stop for lunch or dinner on your way, and you鈥檒l have听stellar views of Star Peak and other pinnacles in the Elk Mountain Range.
Acadia National Park, Maine
Where the Crowds Are: Cadillac Mountain
You can drive to the top of 1,533-foot听, the highest point in Acadia National Park. You鈥檒l score a picture-perfect听view of the sunrise as well as听all of Frenchman Bay and Mount Desert Island from there, along with a bunch of other people. Some 400 cars a day drive to the summit with the same idea in mind听and battle for limited parking spots.
Go Here Instead: Sargent Mountain
The second-tallest mountain on Mount Desert Island,听1,373-foot听听sees way fewer people and still has amazing views. No roads lead to the summit here, however; you鈥檒l have to hike up either the North or South Ridge Trails or the more difficult Grandgent Trail. Or hire a rock-climbing guide from the听, and they鈥檒l lead you to sheer faces within the park without a soul in sight.
Las Vegas, Nevada
Where the Crowds Are: Red Rock Canyon National Conservation Area
This听, just 17 miles west of the Las Vegas Strip and听run by the Bureau of Land Management, features a gorgeous 13-mile drive through sandstone bluffs and is home to numerous听hiking trails. But the place gets visited by some听 a year.
Go Here Instead: Spring Mountain Ranch State Park
You鈥檒l get similar views at听, five miles south of the Red Rock Canyon visitor听center, but with a fraction of the people. Once a working ranch, this 520-acre park has hiking trails,听 on a grassy meadow, and an old blacksmith shop and cabin that you can tour.
Crater Lake National Park, Oregon
Where the Crowds Are: Crater Lake National Park
Welcome to the deepest lake in the United States and Oregon鈥檚 only national park. Of the many visitors who flock to听 each summer, most drive around the lake and visit one of two visitor听centers. Another popular option? Riding bikes along the rolling roadway of听33-mile Rim Drive, which circumnavigates the crater.
Go Here Instead: Paulina Lake
Located outside of Bend, Oregon, 80 miles north of Crater Lake, high-alpine听 was also formed by a crater, but it doesn鈥檛 have the cachet of its national-park sibling. You鈥檒l get turquoise waters and trails for听hiking听and mountain biking. Don鈥檛 miss the primitive Paulina Lake Hot Springs, tubs alongside the lake鈥檚 northeastern shore made of driftwood and filled with geothermal water. Book a cabin (from $126) on the shore听at .