About 'Michael Visits All'
About
Well, first off-- welcome to my travel blog!!
Ever since I was a young boy, I've always loved travel. From the car ride to the airport, waiting in the airport, arriving at the hotel, visiting all the places, I cherished every second of the travel experience!
Fast forward to summer 2021, when I announced on my Instagram my desire to visit all 50 states in the United States. I reset the counter to zero-- even the state I am currently living in had to be visited! As of June 2024, I have been to 30/50 states.
In order for a state to be counted, I have to spend at least a few hours there exploring a city. Layovers in airports and drive-throughs do not count! My average duration for a visit to a state is two-and-a-half days.
There are certain cities I have visited multiple times-- either because they're easy to drive to, cheap to fly to, or I just love going there! Some of those cities include Minneapolis, New York, Cleveland, Detroit, and Charlotte.
Generally, when I travel, I prefer large cities. I am spellbound by the towering skyscrapers, the hustle-and-bustle of everyone around me, the wide variety of dining & entertainment options, and... the street art!! As a result, most of my content is centered around city travel.
Regarding my recommendations on things to do, my content is written with adult travelers with no children in mind. I myself am currently single with no children so I skip attractions tailored toward young kids.
My to-do lists are curated with activities that have broad appeal and which can be done most of the year, if not, all year around. Thus, suggestions like going to a sporting event are usually excluded due to them being seasonal. Plus, on a personal note, I'm not a big sports fan anyway!
I pride myself on being authentic. Some travel bloggers will just Google 'things to do in X', read reviews, and generate an article without ever having visited that place. I find that dishonest. When I publish an article, I've been to that place, done all the things I suggest, and use nearly all my own photos.
Let me briefly take you through the navigation bar of my blog!
Articles
The Articles page is a collection of all 49 articles I've written as of July 2024. It is organized by the article's original publication date, dating from most recent to oldest. I do update most of my articles rather frequently.
My favorite topic to write about is whether a city is worth visiting or not. On that topic thus far, I have covered Ann Arbor, Birmingham, Charleston, Charlotte, Cleveland, Detroit, Minneapolis, New York City, Oxford,
Portland,
Salt Lake City, and Seattle.
As for articles tailored around street art, so far I have reviewed Ann Arbor and Charlotte.
At this point in time, I have two articles dedicated to specific museums-- those being the Cleveland location of the Museum of Illusions and the Detroit Institute of Arts.
Cities
The Cities page contains articles only about particular cities in the U.S. I either provide extensive lists of things to do in that city or answer whether the city is worth visiting. The cities are divided by state.
Some cities where I have provided comprehensive to-do lists include Detroit, Minneapolis, and New Orleans.
Travel Tips
The Travel Tips page features articles regarding modes of transportation, trusted traveler programs, and packing.
Since I love flying and frequently do so, I have some articles dedicated to trusted traveler programs like TSA PreCheck ®, NEXUS, SENTRI, and CLEAR.
Which states have you been to?
As I mentioned earlier, as of June 2024, I have been to 30 out of the 50 states. Below is the full list of states I've been to, in alphabetical order:
- Alabama
- Arizona
- Arkansas
- Connecticut
- Delaware
- Florida
- Georgia
- Illinois
- Indiana
- Iowa
- Kentucky
- Louisiana
- Maryland
- Michigan
- Minnesota
- Mississippi
- Missouri
- New Jersey
- New York
- North Carolina
- Ohio
- Oregon
- Pennsylvania
- South Carolina
- Tennessee
- Utah
- Virginia
- Washington
- West Virginia
- Wisconsin
When I travel to a state, I often go to that state's largest city or cities. With some states, I've made some exceptions-- for instance, in Arizona, my favorite place to visit was Sedona.
Do you only write about cities in the U.S?
As I am still working toward my goal to visit the rest of the states in the U.S, yes, most of my content is only about cities in the U.S. That being said, once my goal is completed, I plan to visit and write about cities in Canada and Europe.
A frequent suggestion I provide for cities is to go on a mural hunt. I love taking photos in front of colorful street art. Instagram is a great medium to showcase this and it's something my followers know me for. It's pretty much "my thing" to do.
I also post articles about smaller cities and towns as well. The first article of mine that ever climbed to the coveted #1 spot on Google was an article about a small town in Michigan called Plymouth.
What have been some of your favorite cities so far?
For cities I have visited in the U.S, I would say my top five favorite cities (thus far) would be: New York City, Detroit, Pittsburgh, Charlotte, and New Orleans.
There have been some other smaller and mid-sized cities in the U.S that I enjoyed more than I expected. Milwaukee, for instance, I remember being very clean and had a gorgeous riverwalk. Salt Lake City had a surprisingly active nightlife and really interesting architecture.
One other notable city I must give some praise to is Portland. I lived there for four years.
Only three cities in the U.S. did not impress me much. Phoenix, Miami, and Baltimore were underwhelming.
Have you collaborated with others?
In winter 2024, in my hometown of Canton, MI, I was invited to dine at a new Japanese restaurant for free. This was my first "taste" (pun totally intended, come on) working as an influencer!
In spring 2024, I had the privilege of collaborating with the world's largest independently owned museum chain and was invited to attend the grand opening of their new location in Cleveland.
In summer 2024, I was featured in a Redfin article. Check it out here: Cruising the Motor City: Essential Detroit, Michigan Bucket List.
Are you a full time blogger?
Not yet.
Presently, I hold a full time day job where I have to be onsite four days a week. Luckily, I work four 10-hour days, which has made traveling on weekends and working on this blog far easier.
I never had a trust fund. I don't have a rich family member paying for my travels. Every single flight, hotel room, rental car, admission fee, etc. was paid for with my own money.
Some of those Delta roundtrip flights, however, were paid for with frequent flyer miles. And it turns out-- flying "for free" is easier than one would think.
I'm happy when I can reveal to people that travel doesn't necessarily need to be a really expensive hobby. Sure-- it costs some money, but oftentimes, many of the things I suggest in even the most active downtowns of these cities are free to do!
Welcome... to Michael Visits All!
I've enjoyed introducing myself to you!
Enjoy my personalized to-do lists on my blog! I update the blog frequently. Oftentimes, I even add new things to do, as I like to visit many of these cities repeatedly.
If you think there is something really fun I may have missed in my travels, please feel free to reach out and let me know! I love hearing from my readers!
One favor to ask before we depart here: please subscribe to the email list so you can be alerted immediately when new articles come out!