6 Best Road Trips in the USA (and When Each One Is Open)

If you only do one road trip in the USA, make it California's Highway 1 through Big Sur. If you have a week or more, southern Utah's five national parks are the better trip. Those are the two we recommend most, and the other four below each win for a specific season or kind of traveler.

Every route here comes with the number of days we actually allow, the months it works, and what is open as of October 2026. Roads in the US close more often than people expect (landslides, snow, hurricane damage), so that last part matters.

Road status checked against Caltrans, NPS and park news releases on October 25, 2026, by the Private USA Tours planning team.

At a glance

Road trip	Distance	Days to allow	Best months
Highway 1, Big Sur (California)	About 90 miles, Carmel to San Simeon	2 to 3	April to October
Utah's Mighty 5 national parks	About 1,000 miles round trip from Las Vegas	8 to 10	April to May, September to October
Route 66 (Chicago to Santa Monica)	About 2,400 miles	14 or more	May to October
Blue Ridge Parkway (Virginia, North Carolina)	469 miles	4 to 6	May, October
Going-to-the-Sun Road (Montana)	About 50 miles	2 to 3 in the park	July to mid-September
New England fall foliage	600 to 900 miles, depending on loop	7 to 9	Last week of September to mid-October

1. Highway 1 through Big Sur, California

This is the one people picture when they think of an American road trip: a two-lane road cut into cliffs above the Pacific, with Bixby Creek Bridge (built in 1932) about 13 miles south of Carmel. The Big Sur stretch is only about 90 miles, but it is slow driving, and with stops at Pfeiffer Big Sur, McWay Falls and the elephant seals near San Simeon it fills a full day. We usually stretch it to two nights with a stay in Big Sur itself.

Road status: Caltrans reopened the Regent's Slide closure on January 14, 2026, which restored the through route between Carmel and Cambria for the first time since 2024. Short closures for debris cleanup happened again in February. Check Caltrans QuickMap the morning you drive.

2. Utah's Mighty 5 national parks

Zion, Bryce Canyon, Capitol Reef, Arches and Canyonlands, linked on one loop. Most people start in Las Vegas because flights are cheaper, drive 2.5 hours to Zion, and finish in Moab for Arches and Canyonlands before the long drive back.

The best single day of driving is Utah Scenic Byway 12 between Bryce Canyon and Capitol Reef. It runs along a ridge called the Hogback with drops on both sides, and it is one of the few roads in the country designated an All-American Road.

Two 2026 notes. Arches dropped its timed-entry reservation system for 2026, according to the park's February announcement, but expect lines at the entrance by 9 a.m. in spring and fall. Zion and Bryce Canyon are both on the list of 11 parks where nonresidents now pay a $100 surcharge, so overseas visitors should buy the $250 annual pass instead. Our article on how many national parks there are in the US explains the new fees.

3. Route 66, in its 100th year

Route 66 was commissioned on November 11, 1926, which makes 2026 its centennial. The original road ran about 2,400 miles from Chicago to Santa Monica through eight states. The interstates replaced it decades ago, but long stretches are still drivable, and the towns along it have been putting on centennial events all year.

Driving the whole thing well takes two weeks or more. If you don't have that, the section from Albuquerque to the California line is the best part: Gallup, Petrified Forest (the only national park with a stretch of Route 66 inside it), Winslow, Seligman and the long empty run to Oatman. We run two private trips on it: The Road to Santa Monica follows the old road west through Monument Valley, the Grand Canyon, Seligman and Kingman to the Pacific, and American Horizons starts in Chicago, where Route 66 begins, and adds Mount Rushmore and Yellowstone on the way to Los Angeles.

4. Blue Ridge Parkway, Virginia and North Carolina

469 miles of road with no stoplights, no billboards and a 45 mph speed limit, connecting Shenandoah National Park to Great Smoky Mountains National Park. In mid-October the leaves turn and it is the busiest it gets all year.

Road status: Hurricane Helene in September 2024 caused about $1.7 billion in damage to the parkway. As of the NPS update on October 5, 2026, 458 of the 469 miles are open again. The remaining 11 miles, between Linville Gorge and Mount Mitchell State Park, are expected to reopen by the end of 2026. Check the parkway's road status map before you go, because the detour around the closed section is long.

Blue Ridge Parkway, Virginia. Photo: Acroterion via Wikimedia Commons, CC BY-SA 4.0.

5. Going-to-the-Sun Road, Glacier National Park

About 50 miles across Glacier National Park in Montana, climbing to Logan Pass at 6,646 feet on the Continental Divide. It is the shortest drive on this list and the one with the shortest season. Snow keeps the full road closed until late June or early July most years, and it usually closes again in mid-October.

Vehicles longer than 21 feet, wider than 8 feet (mirrors included) or taller than 10 feet are not allowed on the central section, so this is not an RV road. The free park shuttle or a private guide with a smaller vehicle solves that. Glacier is also on the nonresident surcharge list.

Going-to-the-Sun Road. Photo: Ken Thomas, public domain, via Wikimedia Commons.

6. New England in the fall

There is no single road here. The trip we plan most often starts in Boston, goes up through Vermont on Route 100, crosses New Hampshire on the Kancamagus Highway (about 34 miles through the White Mountains) and comes back down the Maine coast. Peak color moves south over about three weeks, starting in northern Vermont in late September. Book inns early; October weekends sell out months ahead.

How to pick

Short on time: Big Sur. First time in the West: Utah. Have two weeks and like small towns: Route 66. Traveling in October: Blue Ridge Parkway or New England. Want mountains and can go in July or August: Glacier.

FAQ

What is the most scenic road trip in the USA?

Highway 1 through Big Sur, California. For a longer trip, the Utah national parks loop.

How long does a USA road trip take?

From two days (Big Sur) to more than two weeks (Route 66). One week covers Utah's five parks without rushing.

Is Highway 1 in Big Sur open in 2026?

Yes. The through route between Carmel and Cambria reopened on January 14, 2026, though short closures can follow heavy rain.

Is the Blue Ridge Parkway fully open?

Not yet. 458 of 469 miles were open as of October 5, 2026, with the last section near Mount Mitchell due to reopen by the end of 2026.

Plan your road trip

We build private road trips with routes, hotels and park reservations sorted, or with a driver-guide if you would rather look out the window than at the map. See where to go in the USA, or talk to a USA specialist.

Sources: Caltrans District 5, Highway 1 reopening; Blue Ridge Parkway, NPS; Going-to-the-Sun Road, NPS; Arches National Park, NPS.

Cover photo: Diliff via Wikimedia Commons, CC BY-SA 3.0.