Charleston, SC- Civil War history, beautiful scenery, low-country hospitality, great food, you can't beat it. Chattanooga, TN- Great downtown area, beautiful scenery, Civil War battlefields, baseball on the side of a bluff on the Tennessee River and riding on a train pulled by a real steam locomotive. Asheville, NC- Biltmore Mansion, Blue Ridge Pkwy and lots of other attractions near by. You can't go wrong with any of those places.
I would highly recommend the Bitter End Yacht Club on Vigin Gorda (British Virgin Islands). Loads to do, great atmosphere, excellent food. Probably the best vacation I have ever been on.
I've done several of the places on your list, and although you claim you can't pick the best, I did notice that you put the two Western Canada picks at the top of the list. Vancouver/Victoria/Whistler would certainly be my top choice....closely followed by Banff/Lake Louise/Jasper (nothing wrong with Calgary).
All the suggestions here look pretty good. But if you're looking for exciting and unique consider exploring beyond North America. Apart from air costs (which can sometimes be done on points) the balance of your trip can be surprisingly affordable. My recent trips: Morocco India Turkey SE Asia Guatemala, Belize and Honduras (North America -- but off the beaten track) Places we're raring to go... Equador Nepal Let us know what you decide.
Should have been Las Vegas / Grand Canyon. Yes Calgary is just the airport for the Canadian Rockies. Don't waste any time there. Played fabulous golf at Kananaskis, and Banff Springs (didn't make it all the way to Jasper) And Lake Louise is perhaps the most beautiful place I've ever seen. We watched the 1994 Rockets Championship game there in a condo with a moose grazing outside of the door. I forgot SF/Nappa/Carmel/Big Sur (it's actually cheaper to fly to Oakland) When we travel I don't like to be gone more than a week but I like to go, go , go when we go. All of the trips I listed can be done in a week.
BTW, I've never found it cheaper to fly to Oakland. You can find good deals to all three major airports in the area. San Jose's where I've found the most.
That's another of my favorites. That and New Orleand/Biloxi (and Biloxi only for Beau Rivage and the pleasant drive) are two of my favorites in the lower 48. Grand Tetons/Yellowstone/Glacier is another favorite, but you need a few weeks.
It's my wife's 50th and our 30th this summer so I have come up with something very special for her ( aww, no golf) Anyway she's a big nature lover so I think I'll take her to Alaska to see bear, whales , eagles etc. My problem is there are two sorta different areas and we would only have time (and money) for one. Either the Southeastern Panhandle( Juneau, Ketchikan, Glacier Bay) or the Anchorage Area (Prince Edward Sound, Kenai Penensula, Denali). I haven't been able to pick so if anyone has been to both let me know what you think. By the way Alaska is very expensive. I guess because the operators have such a short season to make their year's return but be forewarned if your thinking about going.
I did a salmon fishing trip near Ketchikan in 1994, and saw more wildlife than I ever have before or since....otters, a zillion bald eagles, killer whales, and bears. Plus I brought home over 100 pounds of salmon. If your wife loves wildlife, she will love it there.
Love that king crab at the seafood buffett! Beau Rivage rules. My parents live about an hour from there in Mobile and we go to the buffett all the time.
If you do the Ketchikan route, MAKE SURE you see the Misty fjords. Also, BC has a Grizzly bear sanctuary very close to there. In fact, may I suggest: Fly to Seattle and spend the night there. Drive to Vancouver the next morning and let her shop on Robson St. Spend the night in Vancouver Take the ferry over to Nanaimo the next morning, and spend a night at the Kingfisher Resort Make sure you both enjoy the hydropath spa treatment, and make sure you're outside when the tide goes all the way out. The tidal movement is around twenty feet, so it really moves, and when it's out, you'll find hundreds of these big beautiful, brightly colored starfish. After the Kingfisher, drive up to Port Hardy and catch the inside Passage ferry to prince Rupert (just south of Ketchican). Stay at The Crest and if you stay in a "Treat Suite" you can watch several different bald eagles use a tree right in front of your window (literally...about 15 feet away) as a place to roost or hunt from. From Prince Rupert, you can take a float plane (not as expensive as you'd think) out to a zodiac in the fjord that runs through the Grizzly Bear Sanctuary After Prince Rupert, you can take anAlaska Ferry up to Ketchikan. I just added four or five days to your itinerary, but you'll sure thank me. If you REALLY want to impress your wife, take two extra days and go down towards Victoria before you go up to Port Hardy. Spend the two nights at The Aerie -- you won't regret it.
