The Best U.S. Road Trips in the South

Aerial view of highway bridge to flat Orange Beach, with buildings in distance — Alabama has 50 miles of Gulf Coast beaches, including Orange Beach, and nearly 70 miles of bay beaches.

This article is part of our America 250 coverage. See more stories on epic adventures, music and culture festivals, unexpected experiences, and signature foods to eat in each of the 50 states (plus D.C. and Puerto Rico).

Few travel experiences are as quintessentially American as the road trip: a fueled (or charged) up car, a loose itinerary, and the promise that something exciting waits just past the next curve. For generations, loading up the car has been a rite of passage—equal parts discovery and reinvention. As the country approaches its 250th anniversary, we’re celebrating that restless spirit with unforgettable drives in each state.

In this list, we’re focusing on road trips in the South, with all its waterfalls, blues music, Black history, falcons and gators, charming small towns, Ozark foliage, beaches, and iconic food. There’s no better way to soak it all up than on a leisurely drive, winding your way to whatever parts of the region call out to your heart, your ears, your eyes, or your stomach the most. Below, we’ve picked the best road trip in each Southern state (plus bonus trips in Washington, D.C. and Puerto Rico). And if you find yourself in another part of the U.S., we also have picks for the best road trips in the Northeast, the Midwest, and the West.

Alabama for barrier islands and bird sanctuaries

Start: Daphne
End: Grand Bay
Distance: 130 miles

Alabama is one of the most underrated beach states in the USA, and its Coastal Connection National Scenic Byway celebrates the state’s 50 miles of Gulf Coast beaches and nearly 70 miles of bay beaches. From Daphne, the scenic byway heads south until it hits its barrier island, Dauphin Island, and then follows the coast west. The route then turns north and eventually finishes in Mobile County, at a small community called Grand Bay. This road trip is a fine way to explore Alabama’s beaches, but take time to see the beauty in its sand dunes and marshlands, too. The state has more than 12,000 acres of protected lands, where travelers can enjoy bird-watching and hiking: the Dauphin Island Audubon Sanctuary, Bon Secour National Wildlife Refuge, and Gulf State Park, to name a few. —Chloe Arrojado

Arkansas for an underrated fall foliage route in the Ozarks

Start: Harrison
End: Harrison
Distance: 60 miles

Fall foliage in the Ozarks heats up relatively late—weeks later than the Smokies or New England. But the show of flashing gold and copper hits right when you need it. Central to the Ozarks’ appeal is that the area doesn’t garner the same fanfare as more famous destinations for autumn colors.

The 60-mile “Jasper Disaster” loop through the Buffalo National River region, with a staggering 316 curves, delivers some of the region’s most memorable scenery, especially when late-season color paints the forest russet and yellow, and elk bugles ring out across valleys.

Starting in Harrison, follow scenic Highway 7 south toward the appealing mountain town of Jasper. On the way, grab burgers and old-school crinkle-cut fries for lunch at local institution Daisy Queen, open since 1969. Detour a few minutes south to the Arkansas Grand Canyon, the deepest in the Ozarks at more than 1,400 feet, and enjoy a slice of famous Company’s Comin’ pie at nearby Cliff House Inn, which has three pet-friendly cabins.

Back in Jasper, take Highway 74 through Ponca and Compton, past elk herds, peekaboo river views, and dozens of waterfalls and bluff-top overlooks. Close to Ponca, highlights include Balanced Rock Falls and spectacular Whitaker Point, also called Hawksbill Crag, one of the signature overlooks in the Natural State.

The 2.7-mile out-and-back hike is even better in early November, when fiery color blankets the landscape. If you’re keen on roughing it, Steel Creek Campground offers river access and frequent elk sightings. Highway 43 takes you back toward Harrison, passing through Boxley Valley, where elk often graze in open fields—especially at dawn and dusk. —Taryn Shorr-McKee

Delaware for coastal wetlands, horseshoe crabs, and historic hamlets

Two Canada geese fly above golden reeds and water at Bombay Hook National Wildlife Refuge — For Canada geese, Bombay Hook National Wildlife Refuge is a migration stop.

Start: New Castle
End: Milton
Distance: 157 miles

Fun-loving seashore towns such as Rehoboth Beach and Dewey Beach get all the attention come summertime, but farther up the coast, Delaware’s Bayshore offers a quieter take on coastal life. The Delaware Bayshore Byway, a National Scenic Byway, kicks off in the colonial town of New Castle, founded by Dutch settlers in the 1650s, then meanders south through tidal marshes and quiet dunes, corn and grain farms, and historic villages long tied to fishing and oyster harvesting.

The First State might not be synonymous with wildlife-watching, but this stretch is especially lovely for communing with the mid-Atlantic region’s unsung nature. Pickering Beach, for instance, is an official sanctuary for the state marine animal, the horseshoe crab, which gathers by the millions in May and June to spawn. Along the route, the Bombay Hook and Prime Hook national wildlife refuges provide vital stopover habitat for migratory species such as snow geese, black-necked stilts, and pintail ducks; in winter, you might even spot nesting bald eagles.

Make a weekend of it by venturing a few miles off-route to stay at Dover’s State Street Inn, set in a Tudor revival home built around 1911. Or finish the drive in a day and toast a trip well done at Dogfish Inn, a converted motel in Lewes owned by the brewery Dogfish Head. —Nicholas DeRenzo

Florida for reefs, mangroves, and marine wilderness

Two flamingos on beach (L); distant view of white Boca Chita Lighthouse (R) — Flamingos are among the many bird species to see in Everglades National Park; Boca Chita Lighthouse is in Biscayne National Park.

Start: Everglades National Park
End: Dry Tortugas National Park
Distance: 150 miles

Drive across Florida’s southern tip for some of the most memorable marine ecosystems and underrated national parks in the nation. The Everglades are the starting point for this road trip, introducing travelers to the “river of grass” Marjory Stoneman Douglas fought to conserve. (Her book The Everglades: River of Grass was published in 1947, the same year the Everglades became a national park.)

From the Ernest F. Coe Visitor Center, it’s about a 20-mile drive east to get to Homestead Bayfront, where travelers can take a boat out to Biscayne National Park. The park is 95 percent water, and its few strips of land are only accessible by boat, so the most convenient option is to explore on a guided tour.

After coming back to the mainland, hop on Florida’s Highway 1 for another 135 miles—braking for the occasional seafood dish, of course—before ending at Key West.

The car stops here because Dry Tortugas National Park is 70 miles west and can only be reached via boat or plane. Spend the day in a national park that’s 99 percent water and explore the 30 species of coral in its reefs, then hop on that 1 percent of land to explore the historical Fort Jefferson. Key West is a practical base for those taking a day trip to Dry Tortugas. The 100-room Ocean Key Resort & Spa offers sunset views, Caribbean cuisine, and a calendar full of live music and other nightly events. —Chloe Arrojado

An image of vintage dinosaur statues on Route 66 in Arizona.

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Georgia for falcons, waterfalls, and gators

Start: Tallulah Falls
End: Okefenokee Swamp
Distance: 540 miles

Georgia’s biodiversity, ranked sixth among U.S. states, is a wild mix of pine savannas, Appalachian peaks, and shadowy black-water wetlands. The state is home to more than 4,400 species of plants and animals. On a weeklong drive, you can travel from misty mountain gorges, where peregrine falcons patrol, to moss-draped coastal swamps teeming with pitcher plants and alligators. Along the way, dip into some of Georgia’s 60 state parks and many National Park Service sites (including monuments, historic sites, recreation areas, and heritage areas).

Start in the Blue Ridge with a hike along some of the 20 miles of trails that quilt Tallulah Gorge State Park. Five waterfalls tumble down the nearly 1,000-foot canyon; all but one are visible from rim-trail overlooks. Keep an eye out for falcons nesting along the cliffs.

An hour west on U.S. 76 brings you to Amicalola Falls State Park, featuring the tallest cascading waterfall in the Southeast, an 8.5-mile approach trail to the Appalachian Trail, and the Hike Inn, the state’s only backcountry lodge.

From here, U.S. 19 winds south through mountain foothills to Atlanta. The city’s dynamic food scene merits an overnight stay—book a room at Forth to be within walking distance of the restaurants and bars of Old Fourth Ward, Inman Park, and Midtown.

Continue southwest on U.S. 280 for a day of hiking in Providence Canyon State Park, Georgia’s “Little Grand Canyon,” where massive gullies plunge up to 150 feet and you can spot wildflowers and amphibians in the canyon’s microhabitats.

Finally, travel south on U.S. 441 to end your trip at Okefenokee Swamp National Wildlife Refuge, North America’s largest black-water swamp. Paddle beneath cypress boughs and old oaks strung with Spanish moss on a four-hour guided kayak tour, spotting great blue herons—and perhaps some of the swamp’s estimated 15,000 alligators—in this ancient, otherworldly wilderness. —Lucy Kehoe

Kentucky for Black history and a new heritage trail

Start: Hardin
End: Lexington
Distance: 260 miles

Kentucky may be best known for bourbon and racehorses, but last year the state launched a new African American Heritage Trail spanning 50 historically and culturally significant sites. For an outdoors-focused road trip in spring and fall, build your itinerary around three of them.

Start at the 300-acre Kenlake State Resort Park in western Kentucky. Originally established in 1951 as Historic Cherokee State Park, this park was the first Black-only state park in the southern USA; in 2009, it was added to the National Register of Historic Places. Stroll the lakeshore trails, visit the resort lodge, and take in a sunset over Kentucky Lake.

The next morning, drive 150 miles to central Kentucky toward Perryville Battlefield State Historic Site. While the landmark preserves one of Kentucky’s most significant Civil War battlefields, it also tells the lesser-known story of Sleettown, a thriving African American community that existed here from 1865 into the early 20th century, with homes and businesses. Sleettown is regarded as an example of postwar community life, where—despite segregation-era Kentucky—Black and white residents worked and socialized together. Spend an afternoon walking the interpretive trails and touring the battlefield museum.

Thirty-five miles away on U.S. 68 is Lexington, once called the “Athens of the West” for its cultural and intellectual life on the early American frontier. Step back in time at the Waveland State Historic Site, a Greek revival mansion built in 1848 that tells dual narratives: the Bryan family who owned the estate and the enslaved individuals whose labor sustained it. Tours of the mansion and slave quarters are available, and 13 acres of gardens and walking trails provide ample opportunity for reflection. —Katherine LaGrave

Louisiana for a boudin crawl in Acadiana

East Bridge Street in downtown Breaux Bridge with commercial buildings and parked cars (L); a pepper jack boudin ball sliced in half on plate — Sausage is the star at Billy’s Boudin & Cracklins.

Start: Breaux Bridge
End: Vinton
Distance: 104 miles

While New Orleans often dominates conversations about Louisiana’s food culture, the Pelican State’s culinary heartbeat is just as strong in Acadiana, the southwestern region known as Cajun Country. One of the most flavorful ways to experience it is along the Cajun Boudin Trail, a collection of specialty markets, butcher shops, and, yes, gas stations tracing the I-10 corridor from Breaux Bridge toward the Texas line. The route celebrates boudin, the region’s emblematic sausage of rice, pork, onions, green pepper, liver, and Cajun seasoning that has fueled many a road trip through the Deep South.

The Breaux Bridge–to–Vinton stretch offers a particularly satisfying cross-section. Stop at Poche’s Restaurant & Market for crawfish boudin—made with cooked crawfish tails and rice—and boudin balls, formed from the sausage mixture, breaded, and deep-fried. In Scott, be prepared to wait in line for perfectly seasoned links from Billy’s Boudin & Cracklins, or try their crowd-favorite boudin roll-ups, essentially a boudin-stuffed egg roll.

Lake Charles has one of the largest clusters of boudin purveyors in the state, but the smoked jalapeno boudin at the Market Basket grocery store is award-winning. Finally, at Insane Sausages in Vinton, smoked pork enchilada boudin reflects the town’s proximity to the Texas border and its strong Mexican culinary influence. Plan to graze rather than rush. The real joy of this trail lies in the counter convos with the family-run shop owners who’ve been perfecting their craft for decades. —Shayla Martin

Maryland for blue crab, bay views, and towns that shaped America

Short white lighthouse on stilts in harbor — Drum Point Lighthouse is part of the Calvert Marine Museum.

Start: St. Mary’s
End: Smith Island
Distance: 230 miles

Maryland is defined by the Chesapeake Bay, the country’s largest estuary and a cultural and maritime hub for centuries. For this bay-centric drive, start in St. Mary’s County, about two hours outside Washington, D.C. Known as the “Birthplace of Maryland,” the area has Historic St. Mary’s City, a living history museum that illuminates life in the colony’s first capital, which held that status until 1694.

Continue north along the water, stopping at Calvert Cliffs State Park to explore its fossil-rich shoreline—once a warm sea during the Miocene epoch. You can hunt for ancient shark teeth and whale bones with local outfitters like Chesapeake Heritage and Paleontology Tours or see specimens on display at the Calvert Marine Museum.

In Annapolis, the current state capital, book a room at one of the Historic Inns of Annapolis—each housed in an early 18th-century home—then dine at Preserve or Sailor Oyster Bar. Cross the Chesapeake Bay Bridge to Maryland’s scenic Eastern Shore, passing through Kent Narrows and its density of dockside seafood spots (Harris Crab House is a favorite).

St. Michaels makes an excellent base for exploring Talbot County’s inlets and harbor towns. Stay at the stately Inn at Perry Cabin or the newer Wildset, housing the celebrated restaurant Ruse. Visit the Chesapeake Bay Maritime Museum and Lyon Rum distillery along the main drag, then venture to nearby port towns such as Oxford, Cambridge, and Easton.

Driving south into Dorchester County, you’ll connect with the Harriet Tubman Byway, which links sites including the Harriet Tubman Underground Railroad State Park and Visitor Center and the setting of the abolitionist’s childhood home.

Before returning home, park your car in Crisfield and board the passenger ferry to Smith Island, Maryland’s only remaining inhabited island accessible solely by water. Here you’ll find cozy vacation rentals and B&Bs, plus opportunities for birding, boating, and sampling the iconic Smith Island Cake, the state’s official dessert. After your ferry back, continue south via the Chesapeake Bay Bridge–Tunnel into Virginia or loop back toward Baltimore or D.C. —Hannah Walhout

Mississippi for a blues pilgrimage

Brick exterior of Ground Zero Blues Club (L); painted wall depicting Mississippi bluesmen, plus sign for Highway 61(R) — Actor Morgan Freeman owns Ground Zero Blues Club in Clarksdale; in Leland, a painted wall in honors Mississippi Bluesmen.

Start: Tunica
End: Vicksburg
Distance: 180 miles

Memphis may be a major blues hub, but true aficionados know that you have to make a pilgrimage to the genre’s birthplace in the Mississippi Delta. Highway 61 weaves through the flat, fertile fields and historic farming communities that birthed legends like Muddy Waters and B.B. King—and that has earned the Delta the nickname “the Most Southern Place on Earth.”

Get your bearings at the Gateway to the Blues Museum, housed inside the town of Tunica’s 1890s train depot, near the boyhood home of Robert Johnson, and then continue along to Clarksdale, where he reportedly sold his soul to the devil at the Crossroads. (While the exact location has always been up for debate, there’s a popular Crossroads Monument at the intersection of Highways 61 and 49.)

After wandering through the Delta Blues Museum, immerse yourself in the sounds of the South at the Morgan Freeman–owned Ground Zero Blues Club or the cash-only juke joint Red’s Lounge, before checking in at the Travelers Hotel. It originally opened in the 1920s as a bathroom-down-the-hall stopover point for railroad workers, but it’s been reimagined as a shabby-chic boutique hotel decorated with quilts and artwork from Mississippi artists.

As you continue driving south, each town reveals a new chapter in the story of the blues. Rural Cleveland is home to the Grammy Museum Mississippi (the state boasts more Grammy winners per capita than anywhere else in the USA) and Dockery Farms, a cotton gin where blues pioneers like Howlin’ Wolf and Willie Brown worked as they wrote songs. Pick up some hot tamales (a local Delta specialty) at Airport Grocery and make a detour to the gravesite of Robert Johnson in Greenwood and the birthplace of B.B. King in Berclair, 15 miles away, before checking out a museum in King’s honor in nearby Indianola.

Back on Highway 61, Leland has its own scrappy Highway 61 Blues Museum, a worthy stopping point before finishing up in Vicksburg. The riverside birthplace of Willie Dixon is now a buzzing city of riverboat casinos and restaurants like 10 South Rooftop Bar & Grill, which offers extensive views of the Mississippi River and the Yazoo Canal. —Nicholas DeRenzo

North Carolina for creative districts and Civil Rights history

Start: Raleigh
End: Charlotte
Distance: 185 miles

North Carolina gets a lot of love for its beaches on the east and the Blue Ridge mountains on the west, and now its previously unsung Piedmont region is garnering attention for road-trip wanderers.

Start your trip in Raleigh, where you can spend time admiring art installations, murals, and museums like the North Carolina Museum of Art and CAM Raleigh, and stay in historical accommodations like the Heights House Hotel, an 1858 Italianate-style mansion downtown. Next: Drive 80 miles west to Greensboro, a city rife with southern history. Check out the International Civil Rights Center & Museum at the F.W. Woolworth building, where four college freshmen helped launch the sit-in movement in 1960—the museum even displays a restored lunch counter, preserved in the original location of where the momentous event took place.

A mere 30-minute drive is the small and artistic city of Winston-Salem, whose Downtown Arts District hosts a cluster of murals, galleries, boutiques, breweries, and distilleries, and the monthly First Friday gallery hop nights are a must-experience event.

Finally, end your trip by the South Carolina border in Charlotte. See the Queen City’s fast growth up close through its sprawl of neighborhoods—one of them being NoDa, an arts and entertainment district known for street art, creative people, and colorful establishments. When it comes to cuisine, restaurants like Midnight Diner and Mert’s Heart & Soul will fill your body with southern-fried goodness. End things with a beer at the Olde Mecklenburg Brewery—the city’s oldest. —Sheryl Nance-Nash

Oklahoma for cattle drives and frontier lore

Statue of a cavalryman blowing a bugle atop a brown horse inside the National Cowboy and Western Heritage Museum — The National Cowboy and Western Heritage Museum in Oklahoma City currently has exhibits on the spirit of cowboys and Route 66.

Start: Duncan
End: Enid
Distance: 140 miles

Trace the historic Chisholm Trail on an Oklahoma road trip filled with museum stops, trail-marker sightings, and rolling miles through wide-open prairie. In the late 1800s, cowboys drove thousand-strong herds of longhorn north from Texas along this route. Today, wagon ruts and hoof-worn paths can still be spotted on some sections, which loosely parallel U.S. 81 through red-dirt grasslands and small farming towns beneath Oklahoma’s famously expansive skies.

Start in Duncan at the Chisholm Trail Heritage Center, where hands-on exhibits cover roping skills and checkers games, and visitors can sit beside an animatronic Jesse Chisholm, the Cherokee Scottish trader who pioneered the route. If you’re visiting in August, time your trip to the annual Stephens County Free Fair for bull riding, barrel racing, and rodeo action. Farther north, the trail’s wilder side emerges in Marlow. The Marlow Area Museum digs into the outlaw tales of the Marlow brothers, while interpretive panels along a creek walk in nearby Redbud Park detail their legend.

Back on the road, stop in Okarche for legendary fried chicken at Eischen’s, Oklahoma’s oldest bar. Continue to Oklahoma City, where the National Cowboy & Western Heritage Museum offers a polished look at modern rodeo culture. Then head north to Enid, where the Cherokee Strip Regional Heritage Center tells the full story of the 1893 land run—the day nearly 100,000 settlers raced to claim land once held by the Cherokee Nation.

If you have an extra day, continue to Joseph H. Williams Tallgrass Prairie Preserve, a 40,000-acre sweep of protected grassland where you can drive a scenic loop, photograph roaming bison, and spot scissor-tailed flycatchers, Oklahoma’s state bird, soaring above the grass. —Lucy Kehoe

South Carolina for marshlands, Gullah history, and quiet beaches

Start: Charleston
End: Murrells Inlet
Distance: 80 miles

For a version of the Lowcountry treasured by locals, head north from Charleston along U.S. 17 through Francis Marion National Forest, where wetland ecosystems teem with swamp tupelo and bald cypress. Pause in Awendaw for genuinely impressive flight demonstrations at the Avian Conservation Center, a nonprofit rehabilitation sanctuary with one of the most diverse collections of birds in the country. Or hike the one-mile Seewee Shell Mound Trail, which ends at a prehistoric Native American midden that’s more than 4,000 years old.

Continue past the marshes of Santee Coastal Reserve toward Georgetown, where The Gullah Museum of Georgetown offers a deeper look at Gullah Geechee history, which is so vital to the region’s culture and foodways.

Then it’s time for the beach. Start at Pawleys Island, a longtime local favorite for escaping Myrtle Beach crowds. If the surf is choppy, drive eight minutes to calmer Litchfield Beach, accessed via Parker Drive. Nearby Kudzu Bakery is the spot to stock up on pimento cheese or pastries for the next morning.

Wrap up your day trip at Brookgreen Gardens in Murrells Inlet, a botanical jewel and wildlife preserve home to the country’s largest collection of American figurative sculpture. —Jennifer Hope Choi

Tennessee for tracing the roots of American music

Beale Street at night, with neon signs and crowds on sidewalks — Memphis’s Beale Street is packed with blues bars.

Start: Memphis
End: Bristol
Distance: 500 miles

Although it’s the 36th-largest state by area and the 15th by population, Tennessee has always punched way above its weight class musically. This eastbound itinerary starts in Memphis, where you can choose your own adventure: Honor rock history with tours of Sun Studio and Graceland, listen to the blues on Beale Street, or feel the spirit at the Stax Museum of American Soul Music.

Drive about 60 miles east to Brownsville’s West Tennessee Delta Heritage Center, which is housed in the one-room schoolhouse Anna Mae Bullock (later Tina Turner) attended as a child. It’s now filled with her memorabilia and is the only Tina Turner museum in the world. Begin the countrified portion of your trip by paying your respects at the spot in Camden (85 miles farther east) where Patsy Cline died in a 1963 plane crash, and then drive another 40 minutes and drop into Loretta Lynn’s Ranch in Hurricane Mills for a guided tour.

When you finally get to Nashville, you could stay for a day or a week or a month and still not see all the greatest hits—Country Music Hall of Fame and Museum, National Museum of African American Music, Ryman Auditorium, and the Grand Ole Opry among them.

As you make your way into the Appalachian half of the state, visit Dollywood theme park in Pigeon Forge, which is home to the Dolly Parton Experience and the beloved singer-songwriter’s HeartSong Lodge & Resort, or continue to the place where it all started: Bristol, Tennessee, home to the Smithsonian-affiliated Birthplace of Country Music Museum. It tells the story of the 1927 recording sessions that are considered the “big bang” of the country music genre. —Nicholas DeRenzo

Texas for tree houses, tubing, and breakfast tacos

A woman sitting with a dog in her lap between a lit fireplace and tall windows in a red-brick lobby — The Hotel Emma, in San Antonio’s Pearl District, was a brewhouse in the 19th century.

Start: San Antonio
End: San Antonio
Distance: Approximately 230 miles

In the loosest geographic terms, the Hill Country is where South Texas, Central Texas, and West Texas meet. It’s where enormous live oaks and Ashe junipers flirt with dusty scrubland and granite karsts rise like hunchbacks from the plains.

Begin this five-day excursion in San Antonio, exploring the Apache-woven baskets and a full-size replica of a Wells Fargo & Co. stagecoach at the Briscoe Western Art Museum, strolling along the ever-expanding River Walk, and feasting on puffy tacos at Ray’s Drive Inn before calling it a night at Hotel Emma, located in the heart of San Antonio’s revitalized Pearl District.

From there, you’re heading to Utopia (population: 227), where you’ll be checking into Treehouse Utopia on the lazy Sabinal River. It was the creation of Texas-born chef Laurel Waters and “tree whisperer” Pete Nelson of Animal Planet’s Treehouse Masters. Inspired by Waters’s extensive travels throughout France, Chapelle has a 25-foot steeple, stained glass, and a decor rife with French ecclesiastical artifacts; Carousel inspired by a vintage merry-go-round horse. The grounds are blessedly remote yet centrally located to everything you’ll want to do in Uvalde and Bandera counties—like hiking in Garner State Park or floating the spring-fed Rio Frio, with gear rentals available at Andy’s on River Road. Come sundown, there’s only one place to be: on a Frio Bat Flight tour, which visits the second-largest colony of Mexican free-tailed bats in the world. Their en masse flight is spectacular.

On your last day, hop onto scenic Ranch Road 187 toward Sabinal. Your final breakfast in Hill Country will no doubt be your best: Nora’s Tacos. The unimpeachable egg, potato, bacon, and cheese combo is the top choice if you’re craving a classic breakfast taco.

From Sabinal, pick up U.S. 90 East back to San Antonio, visiting San Antonio Missions National Historical Park, which encompasses four historic missions spaced two and a half miles apart. And don’t you dare board your plane home without sampling San Antonio’s best brisket at 2M Smokehouse. Arrive by 11:30 a.m. to avoid a crazy line and the crushing disappointment of seeing the words Sold Out. —Ashlea Halpern

Virginia for ridge-top views and fall color

Start: Shenandoah National Park
End: Shenandoah National Park
Distance: 105 miles

Most of the curving Skyline Drive in Shenandoah National Park has a 35 mph speed limit, which encourages drivers to take it slow and bask in the peaks and valleys of the Appalachian Mountains as they change colors. Start your drive at the Front Royal Entrance Station and continue south as the road winds along Crimora Lake Overlook and Hogback Overlook.

The 3,284-foot peak of Old Rag Mountain offers a challenging hike for a brilliant panoramic view, but easy hikes like Blackrock Summit make a fall foliage trip accessible for kids. If you can’t get enough of the regional foliage, we suggest you continue along the Blue Ridge Parkway, which starts at the end point of the Skyline Drive and offers 469 more miles of Appalachian autumn scenery. —Chloe Arrojado, Katherine LaGrave, Aislyn Green

West Virginia for exploring America’s newest national park

Sunrise on valley of the New River Gorge, with sunrays falling over forested hills — New River Gorge became a national park in 2020.

Start: Blackwater Falls State Park
End: New River Gorge National Park
Distance: 200 miles

New River Gorge is one of the youngest national parks in the country; it became the 63rd national park in 2020. Despite its name, the river is not new—it’s between 260 million and 325 million years old, making it one of the oldest waterways in North America. Locals have long known about all the state has to offer, and a three-day adventure is enough to prime visitors on West Virginia’s major points of interest.

Start the trip in Blackwater Falls State Park, where hikers can climb steps to a 57-foot cascade. Then drive about 30 miles south to get to Seneca Rocks, a stunning formation in Monongahela National Forest. Can’t get enough excitement from the hairpin turns it takes to get to New River Gorge National Park? Then don’t miss the opportunity to do some whitewater rafting on the New River, which offers Class II–IV rapids, depending on the stretch. It’s a great place to try out the activity as a beginner, but experienced rafters should keep their calendar open for the six weeks or so following Labor Day, when the rapids are wild.

Don’t sweat it if high-intensity waters aren’t in your plans. Hiking is always available as a tried-and-true way to get the lay of the land. If you have time for one hike in this national park, Afar’s Jessie Beck recommends the 2.2-mile Endless Wall Trail: “It’s especially magical at sunrise, when fog and mist drift in and out of the canyon.” —Madeline Weinfield

Bonus trip: Washington, D.C. for scenery on two wheels

Start: Washington, D.C.
End: Washington, D.C.
Distance: 8–17 miles

At under 70 square miles, the compact District of Columbia isn’t exactly conducive to road-tripping (you can drive end to end in about half an hour without traffic). To truly enjoy the scenery, slow down and trade four wheels for two.

Pick up a bicycle from the Capital Bikeshare program—available at more than 800 stations—and choose your own adventure: the 11-mile Capital Crescent Trail, which follows a former rail line from Georgetown into the Maryland suburbs; the C&O Canal Towpath, which begins in Georgetown and runs 184.5 miles along the historic Chesapeake and Ohio Canal; the Anacostia Riverwalk Trail, an evolving network that cuts through fields and marshlands; or the Rock Creek Trail, which winds through the country’s oldest urban national park unit, passing an 1820s mill and the National Zoo. You can even take in the monuments from the saddle: The National Mall contains eight miles of dedicated biking trails. —Nicholas DeRenzo

Bonus trip: Puerto Rico for a culturally immersive tour of the Taino Route

Start: Arecibo
End: Condado
Distance: 215 miles

For a deeper, lesser-known side of Puerto Rico, take a self-guided road trip along the Taino Route to trace the island’s Indigenous roots through petroglyphs, artifacts, and ceremonial sites. Long before hotels and salsa clubs, Puerto Rico was home to an Indigenous population referred to as the Taino, a name given to the Caribbean Arawak-speaking peoples by Christopher Columbus upon his arrival in 1493. For centuries afterward, they were subject to foreign rule and colonization, to the point where they were (wrongfully) declared to be extinct. Their legacy lives on not only in the DNA of Puerto Rican people but also in petroglyphs (rock carvings that were an original form of writing) and artifacts.

From San Juan, start at Cueva del Indio in Arecibo, a sea cave with the largest collection of petroglyphs along Puerto Rico’s coastline. The journey continues one hour south to Caguana Indigenous Ceremonial Center in the mountains of Utuado, with 10 bateys—plazas believed to have been used throughout the centuries for sports and gatherings—and a small, free museum. The next day, drive a little more than an hour south to the Tibes Indigenous Ceremonial Center near Ponce, the oldest Indigenous ceremonial complex and astronomical observatory in the Caribbean and the largest Indigenous cemetery in Puerto Rico. Finish in Jayuya, the Indigenous capital of the island, to see sites including La Tumba del Indio and petroglyph stops like La Piedra Escrita. —Jen Ruiz

Ashlea Halpern

Ashlea Halpern is the cofounder of Minnevangelist, a site dedicated to all things Minnesota. She’s on the road four to six months a year (sometimes with her toddler in tow) and contributes to Afar, New York Magazine, Time, the Wall Street Journal, T: The New York Times Style Magazine, Bon Appétit, Oprah, Midwest Living, and more. Follow her adventures on Instagram at @ashleahalpern.