Referred to as the “Ellis Island of the West,” Angel Island served as an active military installation during the Civil War and World War II, and was later transformed as an immigration station in 1905. Between 1910 and 1940, the site, which is located on the largest island in San Francisco Bay, processed up to an estimated one million Asian and other immigrants into the US. Today, visitors can step back into time and peruse historic photographs, artifacts, and a life-like recreations.

With a steadfast mission of bringing Asian art and culture to everyone, this must-see museum houses one of the most comprehensive Asian art collections in the world, with more than 18,000 works of art in its permanent collection, as well as a functioning authentic Japanese tea room on the second floor. There are 2500 works on display in the permanent collection, in addition to an impressive offering of virtual events all year round.

Built in 1910, this six-story hotel, deemed a National Treasure by the National Park Service, remains impressively intact, still holding the original belongings, suitcases, trunks and more of Japanese Americans who were incarcerated in relocation centers during World War II and never returned to retrieve their goods. The hotel now hosts an authentic tea room that is open to the public, and the basement houses the best surviving example in the US of an urban Japanese-style bath house, or sento.

There’s no better cultural immersion experience than stepping into New York City’s bustling Chinatown, a lively neighborhood rich with history, built on the backbone of immigrants and carried on by multiple generations of families, entrepreneurs, and organizations.

In the late 1800s, to protect themselves from harsh discrimination by the white population, Chinese workers built an underground environment where they could move about freely and still conduct business. Today, you can visit the Pendleton Underground, unearthed by city workers in the 1980s, and explore the defunct shops, saloons, apothecaries and bordellos.

On May 10, 1869, US history was made when the Transcontinental Railroad was completed, an enormous feat, primarily due to the hard work of Chinese immigrant workers (an estimated 11,000 of whom were employed at below-average wages while managing unfair working and living conditions.) The Golden Spike Monument strives to honor the Chinese immigrant workers that died and their accomplishments.

The only community-based museum in the United States dedicated exclusively to the history of pan-Asian Pacific Americans, the Wing Luke Museum (named after the first Asian American elected to public office in the Pacific Northwest) is located in the heart of Seattle’s Chinatown Historic District.

Housed inside the oldest surviving Chinese building in Southern California, the 1890 Garnier Building, the CAM boasts unique artifacts ranging from antique furniture and children’s toys, to herbal store furnishings and traditional wedding gowns. Discover delicate, faded photographs and yellowing letters from loved ones in China, and listen to precious audio recordings from elderly Chinese Americans sharing their memories of growing up in Old Chinatown.

In 1942, the United States government ordered more than 110,000 men, women, and children (many of whom were American citizens) to leave their homes and detained them in remote, military-style camps. Manzanar War Relocation Center was one of ten camps where Japanese American citizens and resident Japanese aliens were incarcerated during World War II, and it’s certainly worth a visit today to gain a deeper perspective on the past.

For an authentic taste of Chinese and Southeast Asian cultures in Chicago, head to Uptown’s Asia on Argyle, where you can find a steady stream of mouth-watering restaurants and bakeries, and booming grocery stores and small businesses. Designated as a historic district thanks to an effort by local Asian immigrants and refugees, this culturally rich area also boasts several impressive murals that colorfully depict the community’s journey.