Sedona, Arizona
Amitabha Stupa and Peace Park
This 24-acre park offers a place for meditation in the midst of Sedona's iconic red rocks.
This collection of Places is all about finding sanctuary in unique settings. Here at Atlas Obscura, we love to delve into special off-the-beaten-path places. From enchanted redwood forests to quartz crystal sound baths, bathtub hot springs in the desert, and breathtaking gardens, we’re drawn to environments that provide refuge, pique curiosity, and inspire wonder.
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Visit the Lincoln websiteSedona, Arizona
This 24-acre park offers a place for meditation in the midst of Sedona's iconic red rocks.
Los Angeles, California
This peaceful garden is hidden on the grounds of a spiritual organization founded by a pioneer yogi.
Laughlin, Nevada
A series of labyrinths in the Nevada desert inspire meditation and calmness.
Los Angeles, California
A spiritual retreat in the heart of Los Angeles offers stunning gardens and a labyrinth to lose yourself in.
Oakland, California
Spiral labyrinth hidden in the hills above Oakland, CA.
Glenwood Springs, Colorado
Take a dip in the world's largest mineral hot springs pool.
Aspen, Colorado
It takes a nine-mile hike to reach these hot springs, but weary hikers are rewarded with stunning views and a warm soak.
Salmon, Idaho
This set of hot springs also comes with fantastic views.
Meadow, Utah
This set of three large, volcanic hot springs is a favorite haunt for intrepid divers.
Warm Springs, Virginia
Bubbling up from deep underground is the warm crystal clear water that fills the Warm Springs Pools, America's oldest spa.
Bodfish, California
One of the last free public hot springs is decorated with hippie art.
Monroe, Utah
One man has installed bathtubs into the Utah desert floor to harness the powers of a natural hot spring.
North Port, Florida
This ancient sinkhole-turned-healing-pool is a treasure trove of archeological discoveries and may even be the Fountain of Youth.
Florence, Colorado
This naturally-sourced hot spring is now home to a clothing-optional resort.
Tyler, Texas
The largest public collection of roses in the United States.
San Diego, California
Built for an exposition in 1915, these horticultural displays have stood the test of time.
Seattle, Washington
This beautiful landscape is the only Sichuan-style garden outside of China.
Durango, Colorado
A quiet rock and botanical garden is the beautiful centerpiece of Fort Lewis College.
Albany, Georgia
The ruins of a resort and casino sit on the banks of this blue hole spring that pumps 70,000 gallons of warm, clear water every minute.
San Francisco, California
Over a century old, this restored Victorian building is surrounded by a lush garden filled with rare palms.
Wayne, Pennsylvania
A beloved horticultural oasis on the grounds of a wealthy family's former estate.
Saint Paul, Minnesota
A piece of solitude and tranquility in the heart of East Saint Paul.
Seattle, Washington
A lush Seattle garden designed by the same landscape architects responsible for New York's Central Park.
Whitethorn, California
A grove of "candelabra redwoods" deep in California's Lost Coast.
Castleton, Vermont
This magnificent Japanese garden provides a moment of Zen in rural Vermont.
Federal Way, Washington
This 22-acre botanical garden is home to the largest collection of rhododendrons in the world.
Los Angeles, California
This “living museum” at UCLA exhibits thousands of plant species from all over the world.
Millbrook, New York
This once-private estate is now a dreamy, meditative garden that's open to the public.
San Antonio, Texas
A gorgeous garden oasis with winding paths, stone bridges, and a troubling history.
Charlotte, North Carolina
This scented city oasis was a labor of love.
Washington, D.C.
A lovely aquatic park built by a one-armed Civil War veteran who made a fortune from lotuses.
Hot Springs, North Carolina
An art instillation for the sake of "raising vibrations."
Fort Worth, Texas
A modernist landscape of water and sci-fi concrete.
Grand Canyon Village, Arizona
The remnants of a creative early method of wildfire prevention.
Flora, Mississippi
A preserved stretch of ancient fossilized trees with an impressive gem collection to boot.
Bronx, New York
This plot of old-growth forest is the largest surviving remnant of New York City's original woodland.
Little River, California
A raised boardwalk winds through a thicket of stunted, century-old trees no more than nine feet tall.
Forks, Washington
A tiny red pebble marks what may be the quietest outdoor spot in the United States.
Hendersonville, North Carolina
These eerie outliers of the lightning bug family glow a mysterious blue color.
McKenzie Bridge, Oregon
This frequently-photographed waterfall takes only a short hike to visit.
Tillamook, Oregon
No one knows how this Pacific Northwest spruce tree came to have so many trunks.
New York, New York
A miniature rainforest is growing inside of a Midtown Manhattan office building.
Forks, Washington
Stroll through a wonderland of stupendous moss-covered trees.
Richfield, Utah
One of the world's oldest and most massive living organisms is a grove of quaking aspens.
Adak, Alaska
America's smallest "national forest" has only 33 trees.
Kanab, Utah
Colorful sand dunes create a unique attraction in this part of Utah's red-rock country.
McKenzie Bridge, Oregon
Rushing water plunges over a 100-foot drop created by an ancient lava flow at this majestic waterfall.
Moab, Utah
The fifth-longest natural arch in the world, and the longest outside China.
Thousand Palms, California
Hike amid the palm trees that thrive among Southern California's Indio Hills.
Henrieville, Utah
This quiet park's strange sedimentary spires were named after Kodak's color film.
Cabins, West Virginia
Spectacular mineral formations fill these caves, which have been used for everything from smoking meat to stashing illicit liquor.
Tulelake, California
Each winter this underground cave forms a dazzling ice palace.
Logan, Ohio
Rare recess caves fill this unbelievably beautiful Ohio park.
Baker, Nevada
A gothic palace of endless stalagmites and pseudoscorpions waits within one of the world's most beautiful caves.
La Pointe, Wisconsin
These Great Lakes sea caves accessible by boat in the summer turn into temples of ice reachable by foot in the winter.
Flagstaff, Arizona
Eons ago, a rushing lava river formed this pristine passage through solid rock.
Juneau, Alaska
Breathtakingly blue walls shimmer inside the "Glacier Behind the Town."
Kempton, Pennsylvania
Beautiful views of the surrounding hills and birds of prey can be found at this sanctuary.
Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
Hidden behind West Philadelphia rowhomes is a haven for migratory and local bird species both ordinary and rare.
Pismo Beach, California
Thousands of migrating monarchs overwinter clustered amongst the eucalyptus trees.
Ponce de Leon, Florida
A humid oasis combines recreation with exploration in a unique underwater cavern.
Key West, Florida
These remote Florida islands have a history of sea turtles and sunken treasures, and one of the world's largest coastal brick fortresses.
ManatĂ, Puerto Rico
The short hike is worth the stunning views and crystal blue waters of a secluded beach.
Big Sur, California
Centuries of crashing waves carved out this small hole in the rock, which lights up at certain parts of the year.
Carmel-by-the-Sea, California
This little valley along Highway 1 is engulfed by thousands of lilies during the spring season.
Cannon Beach, Oregon
This gorgeous beach hides behind two headlands in Oregon's Ecola State Park.
Kapa'a, Hawaii
This narrow coastline trail through the dense Kauai wilderness is among the most beautiful and dangerous in the world.
Orick, California
Canyon walls shrouded in ferns.
New York, New York
Have a steam and some blini at this cafe in a century-old bathhouse.
Brooklyn, New York
Underneath the bustling city streets, a hydroponic farm grows unique herbs in an urban oasis.
New York, New York
This Russian bar-restaurant lies within a three-story underground bathhouse.
Memphis, Tennessee
Ethereal alien hums and haunting whale songs emitting from...a giant sheet of vibrating metal?
Buckingham, Virginia
The flower-shaped temple in Virginia aims to transcend the boundaries of the world’s religions.
Ashland, Oregon
A public fountain that spouts "health water" from a nearby spring.
Supai, Arizona
This secluded aqua waterfall in the Grand Canyon is the perfect swimming hole, and the Havasupai tribe's fiercely protected natural wonder.
Springdale, Utah
The hike through a narrow river flanked by the 2,000-foot-tall walls of Zion Canyon is one of the best in the world.
Alamogordo, New Mexico
Explore the largest pure gypsum deposit in the world, and go dune sledding while you're at it.
Washington Island, Wisconsin
This pebble beach is so beautiful that taking its rocks is against the law.
West Baden Springs, Indiana
A turn-of-the-century architectural marvel built on healing mineral springs and salt licks.
Clackamas County, Oregon
Hollowed out cedar log tubs set in an ancient towering forest.
Joshua Tree, California
Located on 420 acres in the high desert, this spiritual center is dedicated to the "science of the future."
Landers, California
Experience a quartz crystal sound bath inside a storied, all-wood sound-chamber.