Just in time for this election year, here’s a happy travel secret: The West’s state capitals aren’t just about politics. They’re also some of the most vibrant, surprising, and enjoyable travel destinations anywhere. Rich history, inspiring art, outdoor fun, delicious food and drink—these seven Western capitals dazzle. Cast your ballot for any or all of them. You can’t lose.
Juneau, Alaska
This one wins the vote for state capital with the most awe-inspiring setting. Approach Juneau by sea or air—those are your two choices—and you’ll be knocked out by the city stretching along Gastineau Channel with 3,576-foot Mount Juneau rising behind it.
Gold built Juneau—around $150 million of it (equivalent to about $7 billion today) was mined from Mount Juneau and surrounding peaks between 1880 and 1940. Even now, the town maintains a boomtown frontier spirit.
Start your visit downtown, with its brightly painted early-1900s buildings. The 1913 Alaskan Hotel’s gaudy bar is a fine place to grab a beer and, on certain nights, attempt karaoke. The Alaska State Museum, with its striking contemporary architecture, offers exhibits on the state and its history. Juneau is especially rich in Native Alaskan culture, home to the Tlingit, Haida, and Tsimshian peoples. An essential stop is the Sealaska Heritage Institute’s Walter Soboleff Building, where exhibits showcase Native Alaskan life and art. (The museum store is a good place to shop for Indigenous art, too.) And you’ll want to stroll Kootéeyaa Deiyí, Juneau’s new waterfront totem pole trail.
Outdoor opportunities are world-class. Mendenhall Glacier is a 13-mile river of ice you can gaze at from the visitor center, a 20-minute drive from downtown; for a close-up view, take the two-mile Nugget Falls Trail. For marine life fans, some 600 humpback whales swim southeast Alaska waters between April and October; you can spy some on whale-watching day trips.
Juneau is a good food town, especially strong in seafood. Take the tram up Mount Roberts to Timberline Bar & Grill for crab nachos and killer views. Back downtown, local favorite Hangar on the Wharf serves oysters and citrus salmon on the waterfront. Deckhand Dave’s taco truck pleases with shrimp tacos and halibut chowder, and acclaimed In Bocca al Lupo serves some of the best pizza in the nation.
Capital Fact
Juneau is one of two U.S. capitals not connected by any road to the outside world. (Honolulu is the other.) You get there by sea (cruise ship or Alaska Marine Highway ferry) or air (commercial flights).
Phoenix, Arizona
You love the sun? Head to Phoenix, with 300 sunny days a year, blue-sky weather that has lured millions here. Arizona’s state capital is now the nation’s fifth-largest city—the sophisticated, diverse urban center of the U.S. Southwest.
Start your visit at the copper-domed Arizona State Capitol, built in 1901 and now a museum. From here, explore Phoenix’s increasingly vibrant downtown, including the Roosevelt Row Arts District, lined with galleries and restaurants. Then head a mile or so north to a must-see: the Heard Museum with its extraordinary collection of Hopi, Navajo, and other Native American art.
Phoenix’s next-door neighbor, Scottsdale, glitters with state-of-the-art shopping. Hit the Fifth Avenue Shopping District for the local and one-of-a-kind, or go to Scottsdale Fashion Square for brand-name luxury. Scottsdale’s walkable Old Town offers a posse of galleries and some of greater Phoenix’s liveliest bars.
Phoenix and Scottsdale are home to some of the nation’s most extravagant resorts, including classics such as the Arizona Biltmore and the Royal Palms. Even if you don’t pony up for a suite, it’s fun to take a spa treatment or grab a drink and soak up the five-star ambiance. Food-wise, greater Phoenix gives you much to choose from: Bacanora for nationally acclaimed Mexican; beloved Pizzeria Bianco for, well, pizza; Fry Bread House for Native American cuisine; and Bourbon & Bones for steak.
Finally, when it’s time to play outdoors, you have choices. Stroll the lovely Desert Botanical Garden and be soothed by desert plantings from Arizona and around the world. A more strenuous option is the classic two-mile hike up and down Camelback Mountain.
Capital Fact
Baseball fans take note: Cactus League Spring Training hosts nearly a dozen major league teams here from late February through March.
Sacramento, California
The capital city can get overshadowed by California’s buzzier towns—show-biz Los Angeles and tech center San Francisco. But lovers of history, food, and outdoor fun will find much to savor in Sacramento.
Start with the history. The restored buildings of Sutter’s Fort State Historic Park introduce you to Swiss immigrant John Sutter, who in 1848 helped launch the California Gold Rush. Not far away, the magnificently domed California State Capitol is open for weekday tours; adjacent 40-acre Capitol Park is renowned for its camellias and roses. Along the Sacramento River, Old Sacramento Waterfront Historic District preserves dozens of Gold Rush–era buildings, many turned into shops and restaurants. Here, too, is the captivating California State Railroad Museum, which celebrates Sactown’s railroad history with big trains (giant 19th-century steam locomotives), little trains (model railroads), and trains you ride (beautifully restored excursion trains).
Sacramento sits in the middle of one of the world’s richest agricultural regions, and its best restaurants showcase the seasonal and locally grown. September’s annual Farm-to-Fork Festival draws tens of thousands of visitors. Any time of year you can eat superbly at spots such as Magpie Cafe (new American), Fixins (soul food), and Masullo (pizza). Wine lovers are in luck, too—some of California’s most appealing wine regions (the town of Lodi, and Amador, Placer, and El Dorado counties) are easy day trips.
The city also scores high on outdoor fun. It’s famously bike-friendly: Pedaling the scenic American River Parkway is a classic SacTown experience; bike rentals are easily available. And from April to October you can raft the American River. Trips range from gentle, novice-friendly floats to daredevil white-water outings—something for everybody, just like Sacramento.
Capital Fact
Fifth time’s the charm. Sacramento was named California’s capital in 1854, after Monterey, San Jose, Vallejo, and Benicia didn’t work out.
Helena, Montana
The word for Helena is charming. Tucked up against the Rocky Mountains foothills, Montana’s state capital has an easygoing vibe that is almost irresistible.
Start your Helena visit by boarding the Last Chance Tour Train, which introduces the city’s main attractions, including downtown’s Last Chance Gulch, where gold was discovered in 1864—so much gold that by the late 1800s Helena was said to have more millionaires per capita than any city in the nation. Historic buildings reflect Helena’s opulent era, including the 1902 Montana State Capitol, the twin-spired Cathedral of Saint Helena, and the stately homes of the city’s Mansion District.
After your train tour, explore on your own. Last Chance Gulch is now lined with shops, restaurants, and galleries. Local favorites include the Montana Book & Toy Co. and the Parrot Confectionery, which has been offering hand-dipped chocolates and lavish sundaes for over a century. For more substantial fare, you have downtown dining options such as Lucca’s (Italian), Benny’s Bistro (locally sourced steaks, salmon, salads), and the Windbag Saloon & Grill (cocktails, burgers, sandwiches).
Helena has a vibrant art scene. Don’t miss the Holter Museum of Art and the Archie Bray Foundation, a former brickyard transformed into a renowned center of ceramic arts—pottery, sculptures, more.
As for outdoor access, it’s excellent—remember, this is Big Sky Country. Hikers can take the 1906 Trail to the top of Mount Helena for 360-degree views; mountain bikers can tackle the South Hills trail system. For inspiring scenery with less effort, take a boat cruise through the Gates of the Mountains, a gorgeous limestone-walled stretch of the Missouri River.
Capital Fact
Helena started life as “Crabtown,” a name that was changed to Saint Helena then shortened to Helena. Good call.
Carson City, Nevada
To borrow a boxing term, Carson City punches above its weight. It has only 60,000 people, but its rough-hewn history and lovely setting in the Washoe Valley, with the Sierra Nevada foothills rising behind it, make it a stellar travel destination.
Get acquainted with the town along the Kit Carson Trail, a 2.5-mile route you follow on your smartphone. Highlights include the Nevada State Capitol, the Nevada State Museum, and the Brewery Arts Center. The trail also shows off Carson City’s historic mansions built during the region’s 19th-century mining boom. Not on the trail but well worth a visit is the Nevada State Railroad Museum.
You can eat well before or after your touring. The Great Basin Brewing Company offers craft beers and wood-fired pizza, and the Villa Basque Café celebrates Nevada Basque cuisine with hearty beef and lamb stews. For excellent Thai food, head to the Basil.
From Carson City, you can take two of the best day trips anywhere in the West. Fifteen miles south, quaint little Genoa is Nevada’s oldest town, founded in 1851—and it has Nevada’s oldest bar, the Genoa Bar, founded two years later. September’s annual Genoa Candy Dance is a century-old party featuring music, art, and vast quantities of homemade fudge and dipped chocolates for sale.
Fifteen miles northeast you come to Virginia City, the West’s liveliest old mining town. Starting in the 1860s, Comstock Lode silver made Virginia City rich. Landmarks from that era—Piper’s Opera House, the Fourth Ward School, and Mackay Mansion—have been restored for enjoyment today. The Chollar and Ponderosa mine tours let you experience what 19th-century mining was like; if you want to travel 19th-century style, take the historic Virginia and Truckee Railroad from Carson City to Virginia City and back again.
Capital Fact
Built in 1870, the Nevada State Capitol is the second-oldest capitol building west of the Mississippi. (The first is in Little Rock, Arkansas.)
Salt Lake City, Utah
Founded in 1847, when Brigham Young led his party of Latter-day Saints across the Wasatch Mountains, Salt Lake City is both Utah’s state capital and headquarters for the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, with 17 million members worldwide. The mix makes a city that is hospitable and surprisingly cosmopolitan. Add its stunning setting (those Wasatch Mountains) and outdoor recreation opportunities (those mountains, again) and you have an unbeatable vacation destination.
Start your visit at Temple Square, where you can gaze up at the Church’s granite, six-spired Salt Lake Temple, currently under restoration. The nearby Tabernacle is famous for its 12,000-pipe organ and 360-voice choir. (You can hear both, live, in frequent performances.) Then head up the hill to the imposing Utah State Capitol Building, open for self-guided tours.
Other attractions cluster near the University of Utah campus. Mesozoic Utah was a dinosaur playground: At the Natural History Museum of Utah, you can say hi to an allosaurus, a stegosaurus, and many more giant friends. Nearby, enjoy gorgeous roses (among other gardens) at the Red Butte Garden and Arboretum, plus five miles of hiking paths and a summer concert series.
With 10 ski resorts within an hour’s drive, Salt Lake is a deservedly popular winter destination. It hosted the 2002 Winter Olympics and is expected to host again in 2034. But summer is no slouch. The Wasatch Mountains offer terrific hiking and mountain biking, plus brilliant summer wildflower displays; Albion Basin is especially famous for its blooms.
Salt Lake dining ranges from Western rustic (Log Haven for steaks) to brewpubs (Red Rock Brewing is a standby), plus Mexican (Red Iguana), Middle Eastern (Mazza), and Japanese (Kyoto Japanese Restaurant). They’re delicious reminders that this city welcomes the world.
Capital Fact
Glimmering west of town, the Great Salt Lake is the largest saline lake in the Western Hemisphere.
Cheyenne, Wyoming
If you’ve ever had cowboy or cowgirl dreams, Cheyenne has you covered. After all, it’s the capital of the “Cowboy State.” Every Wyoming license plate shows a cowpoke riding a bucking bronc. If you’re seeking a vacation destination with Wild West swagger, Cheyenne is your jackpot.
The city’s prime claim to undying cowboy fame is Cheyenne Frontier Days; going strong since 1897, it’s the largest outdoor rodeo in the nation. For two weeks every July, Frontier Days draws tens of thousands to whoop and holler at steer roping, saddle bronc riding, and, in the evenings, big-name entertainment.
Cheyenne is also a railroad town, starting life in 1867 with the construction of the transcontinental railroad. The 90-minute Cheyenne Street Railway Trolley tours will take you to town highlights, including the Wyoming State Capitol and the historic Governors’ Mansion, both open to visitors. Built in 1886, the majestic Union Pacific Railroad Depot now houses the Cheyenne Depot Museum, which celebrates all things train. Also downtown, the Wyoming State Museum offers exhibits on Wyoming art, history, and Native American life.
Wyoming cuisine is big on beef. Order a top sirloin at The Albany, in business since 1942, or head a little out of town to the Bunkhouse Bar & Grill for ribeye**, live music, and dancing. IPA fans should hit Accomplice Beer Company, in the railroad depot; it serves pizza and beer-friendly food, too. The Paramount Café, housed in a restored movie theater, is great for lattes and the like.
Capital Fact
With 64,000 residents, Cheyenne is Wyoming’s largest city.