National Geographic has released its list of the best trips for 2013. Here is a selection of their top picks from North and South America:
Hudson Valley, New York
"New York's original art show"
The Hudson Valley is the home Woodstock and musician Pete Seeger, who found the Clearwater Festival in Croton-on-Hudson 35 years ago.
"The Hudson must surely be one of the world's most extraordinary streams," Seeger said. "Other rivers are longer and start higher, but my wife and I and our daughter looked every day from the windows of our two-room house and see the Hudson. Bless it!"
A couple hours north of New York City, the Hudson Valley has a lot of "pick your own" orchards and organic farm stands. It is also home of the Hudson River School Art Trail, which follows 17 sites in New York that inspired America's great mid-19th-century landscape paintings.
"The views that compose the art trail are a national treasure," Elizabeth B. Jacks, director of the Thomas Cole National Historic Site, said.
The best time to go is from May-October.
Quito, Ecuador
"The fresh face of Ecuador's old city"
A visit to Quite brings a lesson in Andean healing practices. Rosa Lagla performs soul-cleansing limpia treatments, where she rubs handfuls of nettles, sweet herbs and rose petals into the skin to drive out bad energy.
The Spanish colonial center of Quito is a UNESCO World Heritage site, and the area has undergone a renaissance drawing visitors to stay longer. City officials have invested nearly $500 million to make improvements to the historic quarter.
Quito's historic center is also cultivating a vibrant nightlife, with music pouring out of restaurants and bars.
The best time to go is from June-September. Foods to try include coffee and artisanal chocolate.
This article is copyrighted by Travelers Today, the travel news leader
