Discover the most captivating and exhilarating roadways across the country.
Warm weather and longer days are the ideal ingredients for a late-season summer road trip. From iconic coastal routes to breathtaking mountain passes and scenic byways, America has an abundance of captivating and exhilarating roadways that will make for a memorable and enjoyable experience. Whether you’re with friends, family, or flying solo, check out some of the best driving roads in America and get out there.
Pacific Coast Highway - California
No list of the top roads in America would be complete without the legendary Pacific Coast Highway. What’s not to love about breathtaking views, winding roads, ocean waves, and jaw-dropping mountain passes?
The PCH checks all the boxes when it comes to the quintessential road trip, which is probably why it’s one of the most popular highways in the country. Stretching 656 miles along California’s coast, it offers a wide variety of scenery – and one of life’s great “white knuckle” drives.
In one day, you can explore pristine sand beaches, rugged underdeveloped coastline, and towering, majestic Sequoia trees that make for some of the best photographs to capture your favorite moments for posterity. Not to mention that the highway winds through a plethora of California’s most popular cities, including Malibu, Big Sur, Half Moon Bay, and San Francisco, which invite endless pitstops for unique food and beverages to keep you (and your Insta feed) full.
Tail of the Dragon - Tennessee/North Carolina
The Tail of the Dragon is widely considered to be the top motorcycle and sports car drive in America -- some would even argue the world. While the road is only a short 11-mile jaunt, it contains an impressive 318 curves. So, if you’re looking for a full-throttle dragstrip, this isn’t it, but if you want to soak in some amazing scenery and put your ride to the test in terms of handling, this is your spot.
Bordered by the Cherokee National Forest and the Great Smoky Mountains, this pristine stretch of winding road remains unhampered by intersecting roads or driveways, making it an ideal and well-loved destination for many automotive enthusiasts. As an added bonus, the Dragon is also remote and seemingly untouched by much of civilization (except for its top-notch paving job).
With so much of the winding roadway bordered by forests, it’s common to see wildlife, including deer, turkeys, bears, wild boars, and more, not to mention downed trees and debris in the winter and early spring months. It’s an exciting and literal ride on the wild side.
Million Dollar Highway - Colorado
Constructed in the late 1880s, the aptly-named Million Dollar Highway is considered by many to be the most beautiful road in the U.S. If you’re looking for a bit of a nail-biting thrill, this fits the bill; much of this top-of-the-world road is conspicuously lacking silly safety measures like shoulders or guardrails. However, that fact doesn’t seem to stop large RVs from traveling up and down it frequently.
As part of the San Juan Skyway, the road is about 25 miles long and runs from Silverton to Ouray and can take about 45 minutes to traverse, making it a relatively short run that will get you back in time for lunch. That said, this road is not for the faint-hearted or those with blood pressure issues. Many who’ve driven it have definitely questioned their life choices, so take it seriously.
Usually open year-round, the Million Dollar Highway threads through three cloud-reaching mountain passes: Coal Bank Pass (10,640 ft), Molas Pass (10,970 ft), and Red Mountain Pass (11,018 ft). Wintry conditions do set in as early as October, and the road can often be closed due to snow, so double-check before you set out. As an added consideration, the Million Dollar Highway also boasts North America’s highest avalanche hazard per mile.
The epic views and bragging rights of this road definitely make it worth the effort — especially if you’re not the poor sucker who has to do the driving.
CanAm Highway - Texas to Canada
If you’re looking for an epic, multi-day excursion, try the CanAm Highway, which spans the entire length of the country from El Paso, Texas all the way up to Saskatchewan, Canada. Constructed in the 1920s, this road traverses 1,479 miles of some of the most varied and diverse scenery in the nation. From the plains of Texas, up through the deserts of New Mexico, straight through the town of Deadwood, South Dakota, this drive has a little something for everyone.
The highway runs through 6 states - Texas, New Mexico, Colorado, Wyoming, South Dakota, and North Dakota. As you can probably imagine, that’s about the widest variety of climate and elevation changes you can get in a single drive.
There’s no shortage of fun and charming pit stops to make along the way, either. You can choose to tackle it all in one go or break it up into shorter legs that allow you greater opportunities to explore the highway’s unique surroundings and attractions.
Lolo Motorway - Idaho
For a more remote, rugged, off-road experience, we’d like to offer up the Lolo Motorway in Idaho. Constructed by the Civilian Conservation Corps in the 1930s, this route is really more of a gravel road than a “motorway.”
Running 92.9 miles, it offers zero stores, gas stations, or services of any kind along the way. Cell service? Fuggedaboutit - it’s overrated anyway. Just be sure you have a well-tuned and reliable vehicle before you set out.
Driving the road nonstop takes most folks between 6-8 hours, but this isn’t the kind of trip you want to just tear through. There’s some beautiful scenery and history to be enjoyed along the way. This path was actually taken by the famed Lewis and Clark Expedition, and it was used as a route to cross the Bitterroot Mountains by Native American tribes such as the Nez Perce.
Since this road tops out at about 7,014 feet above sea level near Indian Post Office, rough winter weather can mess with your travel plans from October all the way through June, so be sure to double-check that the motorway is open before you go.
Great River Road - Minnesota to Louisiana
Traversing 3,000 miles through 10 states, the Great River Road isn’t just one road, but more a bunch of interconnecting numbered highways and streets that trace the path of the famous Mississippi River from Minnesota all the way down to Louisiana.
The waterfront road itself is about 2,000 miles long and includes some impressively diverse scenery as you work your way through Minnesota, Wisconsin, Iowa, Illinois, Missouri, Kentucky, Tennessee, Arkansas, Mississippi, and Louisiana. If you want to really do the route right and get out and explore the picturesque towns and historic sites, give yourself about 5-10 days to make the full journey.
This is a great road trip for first timers, since it’s fully paved and offers an abundance of services, shops, restaurants, hotels, and mechanics along the way. Be forewarned though, not all the trip will be as quaint and scenic as you’d like, since in several places, the road is located out of sight of the river itself. It will give you a true sense of what life is like in the middle of the country, though, and is easy to jump in and jump out at any point.