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In Search of Sanctuary

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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Moments for Meditation: Deep breaths, desert labyrinths, and more.

  • Amitabha Stupa and Peace Park

    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.

  • Los Angeles, California

    Self-Realization Fellowship Meditation Gardens

    This peaceful garden is hidden on the grounds of a spiritual organization founded by a pioneer yogi.

  • Laughlin, Nevada

    Laughlin Labyrinths

    A series of labyrinths in the Nevada desert inspire meditation and calmness.

  • Labryinth

    Los Angeles, California

    Peace Awareness Labyrinth and Gardens

    A spiritual retreat in the heart of Los Angeles offers stunning gardens and a labyrinth to lose yourself in.

  • Mazzariello Labyrinth

    Oakland, California

    Mazzariello Labyrinth

    Spiral labyrinth hidden in the hills above Oakland, CA.

Hot Springs: Take a dip and soak away your woes.

  • Glenwood Hot Springs Pool

    Glenwood Springs, Colorado

    Glenwood Hot Springs Pool

    Take a dip in the world's largest mineral hot springs pool.

  • Flowers on the hike to the springs

    Aspen, Colorado

    Conundrum Hot Springs

    It takes a nine-mile hike to reach these hot springs, but weary hikers are rewarded with stunning views and a warm soak.

  • Hot springs at sunrise.

    Salmon, Idaho

    Goldbug Hot Springs

    This set of hot springs also comes with fantastic views.

  • Meadow Hot Springs

    Meadow, Utah

    Meadow Hot Springs

    This set of three large, volcanic hot springs is a favorite haunt for intrepid divers.

  • The Jefferson Pools

    Warm Springs, Virginia

    Warm Springs Pools

    Bubbling up from deep underground is the warm crystal clear water that fills the Warm Springs Pools, America's oldest spa.

  • One of the many messages etched into the cement tubs at Remington.

    Bodfish, California

    Remington Hot Springs

    One of the last free public hot springs is decorated with hippie art.

  • Mystic Hot Springs

    Monroe, Utah

    Mystic Hot Springs

    One man has installed bathtubs into the Utah desert floor to harness the powers of a natural hot spring.

  • Warm Mineral Springs

    North Port, Florida

    Warm Mineral Springs

    This ancient sinkhole-turned-healing-pool is a treasure trove of archeological discoveries and may even be the Fountain of Youth.

  • Florence, Colorado

    Desert Reef Hot Springs

    This naturally-sourced hot spring is now home to a clothing-optional resort.

Magical Gardens: Horticultural mastery on display.

  • Trail through rose bushes.

    Tyler, Texas

    Tyler Rose Garden

    The largest public collection of roses in the United States.

  • Balboa Park Botanical Building

    San Diego, California

    Balboa Park Botanical Building and Lily Pond

    Built for an exposition in 1915, these horticultural displays have stood the test of time.

  • Seattle, Washington

    Seattle Chinese Garden

    This beautiful landscape is the only Sichuan-style garden outside of China.

  • Hesperus Peace Park

    Durango, Colorado

    Hesperus Peace Park

    A quiet rock and botanical garden is the beautiful centerpiece of Fort Lewis College.

  • Radium Springs

    Albany, Georgia

    Radium Springs Gardens

    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.

  • Sunnyside Conservatory

    San Francisco, California

    Sunnyside Conservatory

    Over a century old, this restored Victorian building is surrounded by a lush garden filled with rare palms.

  • Garden pavilion at the pool of the Chanticleer home

    Wayne, Pennsylvania

    Chanticleer Garden

    A beloved horticultural oasis on the grounds of a wealthy family's former estate.

  • The garden’s replica of the Aiwan Pavilion.

    Saint Paul, Minnesota

    St. Paul-Changsha China Friendship Garden

    A piece of solitude and tranquility in the heart of East Saint Paul.

  • Hidden Paths & Trails

    Seattle, Washington

    Dunn Gardens

    A lush Seattle garden designed by the same landscape architects responsible for New York's Central Park.

  • The Enchanted Forest

    Whitethorn, California

    Enchanted Forest

    A grove of "candelabra redwoods" deep in California's Lost Coast.

  • Taconic Mountain Ramble Zen Gardens

    Castleton, Vermont

    Taconic Mountain Ramble Zen Gardens

    This magnificent Japanese garden provides a moment of Zen in rural Vermont.

  • Agapetes miniata

    Federal Way, Washington

    Rhododendron Species Botanical Garden

    This 22-acre botanical garden is home to the largest collection of rhododendrons in the world.

  • Mildred E. Mathias Botanical Garden.

    Los Angeles, California

    Mildred E. Mathias Botanical Garden

    This “living museum” at UCLA exhibits thousands of plant species from all over the world.

  • Innisfree Garden.

    Millbrook, New York

    Innisfree Garden

    This once-private estate is now a dreamy, meditative garden that's open to the public.

  • A beautiful bridge.

    San Antonio, Texas

    Japanese Tea Garden

    A gorgeous garden oasis with winding paths, stone bridges, and a troubling history.

  • Paths wind through the rose bushes.

    Charlotte, North Carolina

    McGill Rose Garden

    This scented city oasis was a labor of love.

  • Lotus blossoms.

    Washington, D.C.

    Kenilworth Aquatic Gardens

    A lovely aquatic park built by a one-armed Civil War veteran who made a fortune from lotuses.

  • Hot Springs, North Carolina

    Gratitude Garden at ArtiSun Gallery

    An art instillation for the sake of "raising vibrations."

  • Fort Worth, Texas

    Fort Worth Water Gardens

    A modernist landscape of water and sci-fi concrete.

Secret Forests: Stroll through a wonderland of towering trees.

  • Tusayan Lookout Tree in 2018

    Grand Canyon Village, Arizona

    Kaibab Lookout Trees

    The remnants of a creative early method of wildfire prevention.

  • Flora, Mississippi

    Mississippi Petrified Forest

    A preserved stretch of ancient fossilized trees with an impressive gem collection to boot.

  • Thain Family Forest.

    Bronx, New York

    Thain Family Forest

    This plot of old-growth forest is the largest surviving remnant of New York City's original woodland.

  • The Pygmy Forest.

    Little River, California

    Pygmy Forest Trail

    A raised boardwalk winds through a thicket of stunted, century-old trees no more than nine feet tall.

  • Olympic National Park: Hoh Rainforest.

    Forks, Washington

    One Square Inch of Silence

    A tiny red pebble marks what may be the quietest outdoor spot in the United States.

  • Regular fireflies. Just use your imagination.

    Hendersonville, North Carolina

    Blue Ghost Fireflies

    These eerie outliers of the lightning bug family glow a mysterious blue color.

  • Proxy Falls (technically, Lower Proxy Falls)

    McKenzie Bridge, Oregon

    Proxy Falls

    This frequently-photographed waterfall takes only a short hike to visit.

  • Octopus Tree of Oregon

    Tillamook, Oregon

    Octopus Tree of Oregon

    No one knows how this Pacific Northwest spruce tree came to have so many trunks.

  • The garden inside the Ford Foundation Building

    New York, New York

    New York's Hidden Tropical Forest

    A miniature rainforest is growing inside of a Midtown Manhattan office building.

  • Hall of Mosses

    Forks, Washington

    Hall of Mosses

    Stroll through a wonderland of stupendous moss-covered trees.

  • Pando, the Trembling Giant

    Richfield, Utah

    Pando, the Trembling Giant

    One of the world's oldest and most massive living organisms is a grove of quaking aspens.

  • Adak Forest

    Adak, Alaska

    Adak "National Forest"

    America's smallest "national forest" has only 33 trees.

Dreamy Landscapes: Pink sand dunes, sedimentary spires, and giant arches.

  • Coral Pink Sand Dunes State Park

    Kanab, Utah

    Coral Pink Sand Dunes State Park

    Colorful sand dunes create a unique attraction in this part of Utah's red-rock country.

  • Sahalie Falls

    McKenzie Bridge, Oregon

    Sahalie Falls

    Rushing water plunges over a 100-foot drop created by an ancient lava flow at this majestic waterfall.

  • Landscape Arch

    Moab, Utah

    Landscape Arch

    The fifth-longest natural arch in the world, and the longest outside China.

  • Palms flourish around McCallum Pond.

    Thousand Palms, California

    Thousand Palms Oasis Preserve

    Hike amid the palm trees that thrive among Southern California's Indio Hills.

  • Kodachrome Basin State Park

    Henrieville, Utah

    Kodachrome Basin Spires

    This quiet park's strange sedimentary spires were named after Kodak's color film.

Hidden Caves: Palaces of endless stalagmites and pseudoscorpions wait within.

  • Smoke Hole Caverns

    Cabins, West Virginia

    Smoke Hole Caverns

    Spectacular mineral formations fill these caves, which have been used for everything from smoking meat to stashing illicit liquor.

  • Ice stalagmites.

    Tulelake, California

    Crystal Ice Cave

    Each winter this underground cave forms a dazzling ice palace.

  • Ash Cave.

    Logan, Ohio

    The Caves of Hocking Hills State Park

    Rare recess caves fill this unbelievably beautiful Ohio park.

  • Baker, Nevada

    Lehman Caves

    A gothic palace of endless stalagmites and pseudoscorpions waits within one of the world's most beautiful caves.

  • Apostle Island Caves

    La Pointe, Wisconsin

    Apostle Island Sea Caves

    These Great Lakes sea caves accessible by boat in the summer turn into temples of ice reachable by foot in the winter.

  • Smooth, massive walls make for an intriguing surprise compared to typical cave architecture

    Flagstaff, Arizona

    Coconino Lava River Cave

    Eons ago, a rushing lava river formed this pristine passage through solid rock.

  • Permanently Closed

    Juneau, Alaska

    Mendenhall Ice Caves

    Breathtakingly blue walls shimmer inside the "Glacier Behind the Town."

Wildlife Sanctuaries: Monarch butterfly groves, an island of bunnies, and a home for hawks.

  • Hawk Mountain Sanctuary

    Kempton, Pennsylvania

    Hawk Mountain Sanctuary

    Beautiful views of the surrounding hills and birds of prey can be found at this sanctuary.

  • Spruce Hill Bird Sanctuary.

    Philadelphia, Pennsylvania

    Spruce Hill Bird Sanctuary

    Hidden behind West Philadelphia rowhomes is a haven for migratory and local bird species both ordinary and rare.

  • A winter monarch cluster roosting in a eucalyptus tree at Pismo Beach.

    Pismo Beach, California

    Monarch Butterfly Grove

    Thousands of migrating monarchs overwinter clustered amongst the eucalyptus trees.

  • Ponce de Leon, Florida

    Vortex Spring

    A humid oasis combines recreation with exploration in a unique underwater cavern.

  • Fort Jefferson, moat and wall

    Key West, Florida

    Dry Tortugas

    These remote Florida islands have a history of sea turtles and sunken treasures, and one of the world's largest coastal brick fortresses.

Coastal Hikes: Discover blue waters, crashing waves, and hidden beaches.

  • View from Golondrinas Cave

    Manatí, Puerto Rico

    Cueva de las Golondrinas (Cave of the Swallows)

    The short hike is worth the stunning views and crystal blue waters of a secluded beach.

  • Big Sur, California

    Keyhole Arch at Pfeiffer Beach

    Centuries of crashing waves carved out this small hole in the rock, which lights up at certain parts of the year.

  • Calla Lily Valley

    Carmel-by-the-Sea, California

    Calla Lily Valley

    This little valley along Highway 1 is engulfed by thousands of lilies during the spring season.

  • A view of Crescent Beach from Ecola Point.

    Cannon Beach, Oregon

    Crescent Beach

    This gorgeous beach hides behind two headlands in Oregon's Ecola State Park.

  • The dramatic Napali Coast visible from the Kalalau Trail.

    Kapa'a, Hawaii

    Kalalau Trail

    This narrow coastline trail through the dense Kauai wilderness is among the most beautiful and dangerous in the world.

  • Fern Canyon at Prairie Creek Redwoods State Park

    Orick, California

    Fern Canyon

    Canyon walls shrouded in ferns.

Hidden Gems: Flower-shaped temples, secret river canyons, and Turkish baths.

  • New York, New York

    Russian and Turkish Baths Cafe

    Have a steam and some blini at this cafe in a century-old bathhouse.

  • Brooklyn, New York

    Farm.One

    Underneath the bustling city streets, a hydroponic farm grows unique herbs in an urban oasis.

  • New York, New York

    Matryoshka at Wall Street Bath & Spa 88

    This Russian bar-restaurant lies within a three-story underground bathhouse.

  • The gong chamber set up for one of Nancy’s soothing Sound Journeys.

    Memphis, Tennessee

    Memphis Gong Chamber

    Ethereal alien hums and haunting whale songs emitting from...a giant sheet of vibrating metal?

  • Buckingham, Virginia

    The Light Of Truth Universal Shrine

    The flower-shaped temple in Virginia aims to transcend the boundaries of the world’s religions.

  • The lithia water fountain.

    Ashland, Oregon

    Lithia Water Fountain

    A public fountain that spouts "health water" from a nearby spring.

  • Supai, Arizona

    Havasupai Falls

    This secluded aqua waterfall in the Grand Canyon is the perfect swimming hole, and the Havasupai tribe's fiercely protected natural wonder.

  • The “Wall Street” section of Zion Narrows in Zion National Park

    Springdale, Utah

    The Narrows

    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.

  • Sand dunes…NOT snow!

    Alamogordo, New Mexico

    White Sands National Park

    Explore the largest pure gypsum deposit in the world, and go dune sledding while you're at it.

  • Schoolhouse Beach

    Washington Island, Wisconsin

    Schoolhouse Beach

    This pebble beach is so beautiful that taking its rocks is against the law.

  • West Baden Springs, Indiana

    Historic West Baden Springs Hotel

    A turn-of-the-century architectural marvel built on healing mineral springs and salt licks.

  • Group and private baths

    Clackamas County, Oregon

    Bagby Hot Springs

    Hollowed out cedar log tubs set in an ancient towering forest.

  • This way to the Caravansary of Joy.

    Joshua Tree, California

    Institute of Mentalphysics

    Located on 420 acres in the high desert, this spiritual center is dedicated to the "science of the future."

  • The Integratron by day.

    Landers, California

    The Integratron

    Experience a quartz crystal sound bath inside a storied, all-wood sound-chamber.

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