Following analysis of global Google search data, experts at Audley Travel are now able to reveal the most popular road trip routes worldwide, with four of the top five being based in the US.
Leading the pack is the legendary Route 66, followed by California’s Pacific Coast Highway. The New England route from Boston to Maine rounds out the top three, while the Blue Ridge Parkway from Virginia to North Carolina takes the fourth spot on the list, which it shares with Australia’s Great Ocean Road.
What is it about US road trips that we love so much?
Audley Travel’s USA experts believe they know what makes the country so special for a self-drive holiday.
“Only in North America can you enjoy such wide open roads,” says Audley USA expert Carl Smith. “Some of these routes span the length of whole countries — several countries even — and they boast a patchwork quilt of landscapes to match.
“Scorched gold deserts. Snow-dappled mountains. Placid blue lakes. In the US, you can delight in such scenery on a single highway, cruising along in comfort on spacious roads built to last.”
It helps, too, that driving is such a fixture of the culture. Road trips are as American as apple pie, especially along the gold standard of US drives, Route 66.
“Nowhere illuminates nostalgia-tinged Americana quite like Route 66,” remarks another Audley USA specialist, Ellie Stone. “Red-boothed diners selling hearty hamburgers and thick, creamy milkshakes, neon-lit motels and hole-in-the-wall gas stations, giant art installations harking all the way back to the Space Race… A journey down ‘the Mother Road’ is a voyage back to the road-tripping heyday of the 1950s and 1960s.”
For a shorter, single-state journey, the Pacific Coast Highway is another winning road trip. Audley specialist Ewan Petrie recalls his time on this Californian coastal road:
“It’s like all your California dreams come true. The counter-cultural streets of San Francisco, the glitz and glamour of LA, the laidback surfer towns of Cambria and Huntington Beach…They’re all tied together on a trip along the Pacific Coast Highway.
“Completing the picture are miles upon miles of sky-scraping redwoods, winding coastal roads, and silky sand beaches of all shades, from the purply pinks of Big Sur to the sheer whites of Malibu.”
As for the other two US road trips on the list — the classic New England route and Blue Ridge Parkway — both are excellent options for travellers looking to explore the splendours of the Eastern Seaboard.
“Both drives are a veritable haven for nature lovers,” says Audley East Coast specialist Shannon Cooney. “It just depends what sort of landscapes draw you in most.
“Up in New England you have all these wild, windswept coastlines and far-reaching salt marshes. They’re all knitted together between seaside towns of brightly coloured fishing boats and weatherboard-clad homes, which you’d never see on a typical US city break.
“Along the Blue Ridge Parkway,” she continues, “it’s the national parks that take centre stage. Driving through Shenandoah National Park, you’ll pass city-sized valleys of blue-hazed maple, birch, and poplar forests, but it’s the overlooks that make the journey so special. There are over 200 of them on the parkway, but I’m particularly drawn to Rockytop Overlook, from which the forested hills look like a rippling sea of emerald waves.”
Why are self-drive holidays so popular?
Audley’s Carl Smith is of the opinion that driving holidays give travellers greater freedom and flexibility.
“People like to explore the world in different ways at different paces,” he states. “A self-drive trip allows you to discover the locations you want to see, take the stops you want to take, and do it all in a time span that suits you best. You can’t do that on a trip you take by train or coach; you’re bound by a tight schedule.”
“What we do in this scenario is advise and guide you on what we believe from experience would suit you best,” Carl explains. “It’s the little details that we can use to fill in the gaps. Take, for example, the type of vehicle you might want to take on a self-drive holiday. It will depend on the destination. Whereas in Europe or on shorter journeys, a small budget-friendly car might suit just fine, in the US you might want something larger and automatic, preferably an SUV for those longer, potentially bumpy routes.”
For those seeking alternatives to commonly travelled road trip routes, check out Audley Travel’s guide to lesser-known road trip destinations in the US.
Full top five list:
- Route 66 — Chicago to Santa Monica
- Pacific Coast Highway — San Francisco to San Diego
- New England road trip — Boston to Maine
- Green Ocean Road — Victoria, Australia (joint 4th)
- Blue Ridge Parkway — Virginia to North Carolina (joint 4th)
