The best road trips in the USA
The top 3 according to 742 votes from people: Pacific Coast Highway (California State Route 1) · Route 66 · Blue Ridge Parkway. (Updated Nov 18, 2025.)
America's most celebrated drives, from coastal highways to mountain byways, as ranked by AAA, Reader's Digest and road-trip bloggers.
Top 15
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1
Pacific Coast Highway (California State Route 1)
Big Sur cliffs, Bixby Creek Bridge and elephant seals between San Francisco and Los Angeles.
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2
Route 66
The 'Mother Road' from Chicago to Santa Monica, about 2,400 miles of diners, neon motels and ghost towns.
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3
Blue Ridge Parkway
469 miles along the Appalachian ridges of Virginia and North Carolina, spectacular in autumn.
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4
Utah Scenic Byway 12
All-American Road linking Bryce Canyon and Capitol Reef across the 'Hogback' ridge.
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5
Red Rock Scenic Byway (Arizona)
Short drive through Sedona's red sandstone buttes, topped Lake.com's 2025 scenic drive ranking.
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6
Oregon Coast Highway (US 101)
363 miles of sea stacks, lighthouses and Cannon Beach's Haystack Rock.
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7
Going-to-the-Sun Road
50-mile engineering marvel across Glacier National Park over Logan Pass.
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8
Overseas Highway (Florida Keys)
113 miles of road and 42 bridges island-hopping from Miami to Key West, including the Seven Mile Bridge.
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9
Kancamagus Highway (New Hampshire)
34 miles through the White Mountains, the classic New England fall foliage drive.
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10
Great River Road
Follows the Mississippi for about 3,000 miles from Minnesota to the Gulf of Mexico.
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11
Las Vegas Strip at night
The neon boulevard is a designated National Scenic Byway when driven after dark.
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12
Road to Hana (Maui)
64 miles with around 600 curves and 50 one-lane bridges past waterfalls and black-sand beaches.
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13
Tail of the Dragon (US 129)
318 curves in 11 miles at Deals Gap on the Tennessee–North Carolina border, a motorcyclists' favourite.
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14
Beartooth Highway (Montana–Wyoming)
Climbs to 10,947 feet with switchbacks and alpine lakes on the way to Yellowstone's northeast entrance.
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15
Trail Ridge Road (Colorado)
Highest continuous paved road in the US, crossing Rocky Mountain National Park at 12,183 feet.
Candidates
They don't make it into the top 15… yet. Vote for them to move them up.
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16
Acadia All-American Road (Maine)
Park Loop Road around Mount Desert Island, with Cadillac Mountain and Thunder Hole.
How is this ranking ordered? By people's votes: each ▲ adds a point and each ▼ takes one away. Anyone can vote and add what is missing.
Is something missing?
Comments (29)
Overseas Highway to Key West, unforgettable.
Route 66 is more about the nostalgia than the views, but the diners and motels are so much fun
Going-to-the-Sun Road is the most beautiful drive I've ever done.
Utah's Scenic Byway 12, an underrated gem.
PCH from SF to LA, at least once in your life.
Book Going-to-the-Sun Road vehicle reservations in advance in summer!
PCH at #1 is the obvious choice and I agree. Big Sur stretch is unbeatable.
Check Caltrans before going, parts of Highway 1 in Big Sur close after landslides.
Saving this for next summer, thanks for putting it together!
Route 66 is more about nostalgia now, but the diners and motels are fun.
Blue Ridge Parkway in October 🍁🍁 nothing beats it
Great River Road follows the Mississippi through 10 states, never knew that
Beartooth Highway is jaw dropping but only open late May to October
How many days for the full PCH from San Francisco to LA? Thinking 4.
4 is tight but doable. 5-6 if you want to stop in Carmel, Big Sur and Santa Barbara properly.
Kancamagus in fall foliage season is stunning but go on a weekday
Road to Hana: start before 7am, stop at the banana bread stands, and don't stop on the narrow bridges.
Red Rock Scenic Byway to Sedona, short but stunning.
Blue Ridge Parkway in October with the fall colours, unbeatable.
Utah 12 through Escalante is the most underrated drive in America, the Hogsback section is wild
Overseas Highway to Key West in a convertible, did it on my honeymoon 💕
Tail of the Dragon is 318 curves in 11 miles, bikers love it, I got carsick 🤢
No mention of the Million Dollar Highway in Colorado?
Trail Ridge Road covers some of the same Rockies feel, but yeah, US 550 is amazing.
The Las Vegas Strip at night is not a road trip lol
I mean... you drive it, it's on a road 😂
It's an All-American Road actually, the only one in the country you're supposed to drive at night.
Oregon Coast is better than California's coast and nobody talks about it
Going-to-the-Sun Road needs a vehicle reservation in summer, learned that the hard way.