Hudson valley, New York

Native Americans, Dutch settlers, thief barons, U.S. presidents, and also the fictional Headless Horseman have all known as the Hudson natural depression home. The endless sights can keep you coming for years. My four favourites are: Kykuit, home to four generations of Rockefellers, with its grounds, sculptures and underground art gallery; Mohonk Mountain House, a 259-room Victorian castle edifice engineered on the cliffs of the Shawangunk Ridge; Springwood, the house of Franklin D Roosevelt, America’s solely four-term president; and also the U.S. academy at military installation, the oldest unendingly occupied military installation in America. These mix the sweetness and history of this natural depression utterly.