Category Archives: Hip Guide to the USA

Whether you come for a quick visit or cross-country tour, you will find a wealth of information about destinations from coast to coast. The Hip Guide to USA offers the highlights of the country, and contains many tips for making your stay here more rewarding.

The Hip Guide is the United States most complete and up-to-date source for hotel reservations, tourist information, events, reviews, shopping and much more! Don’t forget to visit our USA Photo Gallery! Bookmark this site, and visit whenever you need to find out what’s happening in the US.

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Saugatuck, Michigan

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Wikipedia says:

Originally a lumber town and port, Saugatuck, along with the adjacent city of Douglas, became a noted art colony and tourist destination in the Arts and Crafts movement of the late 19th century. In the early 20th century, Saugatuck was home to the famous Big Pavilion, a large dance hall that attracted bands and visitors from across the Midwest. The building was a popular destination on Lake Michigan from its construction in 1909 until it burned down on May 6, 1960.

Today, tourists are drawn to the art galleries, harbor, marinas, scenery, unusual stores, the view from atop Mount Baldhead, and tourist attractions as well as Oval Beach on Lake Michigan, which enjoys a worldwide reputation. Nearby are Saugatuck Dunes State Park and Allegan State Game Area as is the city of Holland.

Our Hip Reviewer notes:

This is truly a hip community, located along the shores of beautiful Lake Michigan, surrounded by picturesque sand dunes. Saugatuck is the epicenter of many western Michigan coastal communities offering a very laid-back chilled atmosphere, and amongst the population you will find an immense multitude of artists and a majority of open-minded people. The downtown is very eclectic, with many far-out shops, including the popular Shakedown Street, offering a variety of Grateful Dead and hippy-related merchandise. Coffee shops are also quite abundant here. There’s also a lot of very cool natural attractions, such as Mt. Baldhead and Oval Beach. The entire scene here reeks of peace. I must say that this town is the ultimate chill-spot.

Silver City, New Mexico

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Silver City is a small hippy mecca. They have lsome herbal stores in the city with “classes” on locating and identifying local herbs. Their co-op bulletin board is loaded with new age info. The annual Blues Festival brings out the most hippies. They have drum circles and a number of communes within 25 miles of the city, some better than others. Don’t forget to ask about the hot springs.

Columbia, Missouri

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Downtown Peace Park and Peace Nook (book store).

On May 5th 1971, around 1,500 people gathered in McAlester Park and marched together for peace. Businesses closed in honor. They ended back in the park for a re-dedication ceremony: naming the space “Peace Park.” It included speeches, a rally, and then an all-night rock concert in the park. “It’s dedicated to a concept that’s not that foreign – a simple but elusive notion of peace.”

Westport, Missouri

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Missouri has more then two hippy hangouts (gasp!). Westport’s a very cool place. It has head shops, VW buses, and lots of drugs.

Westport is a section in Kansas City.

Midtown-Westport is an eclectic area, known for the Westport entertainment area, with festive brewpubs, DJ bars and retro-chic diners serving American comfort food. During the day, the scene centers on trendy fashion boutiques. Neighboring Midtown has historic buildings like the Thomas Hart Benton Home, with tours of the painter’s studio and gardens. Trails wind through nearby Roanoke Park, encircled by bluffs.

Ogunquit, Maine

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Just south of the Rachel Carson National Wildlife refuge, Ogunquit is known for it’s miles of cliff walk with coastal views, benches and a lighthouse. Musicals are staged at the Ogunquit Playhouse summer theater. The Ogunquit Museum of American Art is known for its waterside sculptures and works by Maine-related artists.

Ogunquit is an artsy/funky town 66 miled north of Boston. We have a thriving alternative community (Approx 25% are gay). Lots of coffee shops, gay bars and gay guesthouses.

Makanda, Illinois

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It’s way out there among hills in a forrest, but once you set foot on the “sidewalk” of the town square (which is barely anything) you notice the overall atmosphere of art. The place SCREAMS hippie haven!! It’s a calm, peaceful town, it’s creative and close to nature,a favorite for me!!

And nearby is a great collage town,Carbondale,Il. it’s big and booming,but if your in the right part of town you run into some groovy stuff. There’s a wonderous hippie hang out cafè with alot of college kids working there who are into the all natural hippie way of life. There’s local artwork on the walls,alot of food for thought. There’s a vietnam poet who hangs out in the back dining room of the cafè with long hair and a beard,but kind eyes. And the next room toward the back is the ‘Babba Shop’ which is very middle eastern,lots of clothes, prayer shawls, philosophy books…..which i didn’t really get into. But for that type of hippie…it’s prob’ly heaven. LOL behind that is a vintage clothing shop….

Also a great college town is Charleston,Il. There’s a head shop called absolutely 4th street records (on 4th street) and a bar or something called the rabbit hole. And a shop called the Alice Emporium or something like that.

Bloomington, Indiana

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Bloomington is an Indiana city, southwest of Indianapolis. The WonderLab science museum has hands-on kids’ exhibits, plus insects and reptiles. Indiana University’s Eskenazi Museum of Art has paintings, sculptures and decorative arts from around the world. The 1835 Wylie House is now a museum with period furnishings and an heirloom garden. Southeast, trails lace Hoosier National Forest’s Charles C. Deam Wilderness.

“This town has a modest, but decent, hippie community. At 4:20 (p.m.) at a park on 9th Street, there is a drum circle. Also a cafe/restaurant called the Runcible Spoon is visited by many hippies and other interesting people. A few hippies (roughly 6) work there as well. The restaurant is located on 6th Street downtown. Across the back parking lot of this restaurant is a little natural foods Co-op store called Bloomingfoods, where many hippies are employed, and where most hippies buy all their essentials.

On Kirkwood Avenue, the most active part of the downtown, there is a little shop called the Dharma Emporium, owned and frequented by lots of groovy people. On Walnut Street, there lies a shop called the Magic Bus, owned and operated by a bunch of hippies that live in the back; kind and gentle folk. Also, the town of Bloomington is mostly liberal, and there are a lot of interesting people. Just stay away from the west side of town: this is a “thriving” commercial part of town with no trees and a lot of new subdivisions. Bad, bad, bad.”