Lonely planets usas best trips: 52 Amazing road trips

WELCOME TO THE USA

Fill up the gas tank and buckle up the USA is an unforgettably crazy trip. And theres no better way to get to know this enormous, energetic and engaging country than by hitting the road, Jack.

With this book as your travel companion, you can drive up, down, across or straight through every state on the continental map. If youre on the hunt for that perfect California seafood shack, Texas hill-country swimming hole or New England ivy-clad college town, weve got you covered.

Whether you want to dive into the wildest terrain or connect the dots between the USAs brightest, most buzzing cities, youll find a trip designed just for you in this book. And if youve only got time for one journey, pick from our 15 Classic Trips, which take you on a tour of the very best of the USA. Turn the page for more.

Bixby Creek Bridge, Monterey, CA
Phitha Tanpairoj / Shutterstock

THE USA HIGHLIGHTS

The USAs best sights and experiences, and the road trips that will take you there.

Route 66

No US road trip is more classic than Route 66, Americas Mother Road. Running over 2400 miles between windy Chicago and sunny Los Angeles, this mostly two-lane ribbon of concrete passes neon-signed motor courts, old-fashioned diners dishing up pie, and drive-in theaters under the stars. Meet genuinely friendly, small-town Americans on Trip 1: Route 66.

TRIPS

Route 66 Americas classic road trip
AARON MORGAN / AJMORGAN591 / 500PX

Grand Canyon

Protected by a national park and Native American tribal lands, this canyon cut by the Colorado River is an eye-popping spectacle of colorful rock strata. Its spiring buttes, sculpted cliffs and waterfall springs make up an ever-changing landscape that shifts moods with the weather and seasons. Be awed by Mother Natures showstopper on Trip 33: Fantastic Canyon Voyage.

Trips

Grand Canyon North Rim, AZ Spectacular colors at sunset
PEERASITH PATRICK TRIRATPADOONGPHOL / SHUTTERSTOCK

Pacific Coast Highways

Stretching from Mexico to Canada, the West Coasts ocean-view highways snake past dizzying beach cliffs and dozens of beach towns, all with their own idiosyncratic personalities. On Trip 40: Pacific Coast Highways youll uncover hidden strands, ancient redwood forests, seafood shacks grilling up the catch of the day and creaky old wooden piers for watching glorious sunsets.

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National Mall

Kick off Trip 7: The Civil War Tour in Washington DC, the USAs capital. Along the National Mall stand iconic monuments styled like ancient Greek and Roman temples, moving memorials to wars and civic heroes, and the Smithsonian Institutions immense museums. Theres no better place to take the countrys pulse than on the long, grassy lawn, where Americans gather in protest and celebration.

Trips

National Mall, Washington, DC A summer day by the Lincoln Memorial
KAMIRA / SHUTTERSTOCK

BEST ROADS FOR DRIVING

US 101 Panoramic views from the West Coast. Trips

Blue Ridge Parkway Roll alongside Appalachian hills. Trips

Going-to-the-Sun Road Glimpse glaciers before they vanish. Trip

Route 66 A nostalgic journey back in time. Trip

Route 100 Wind through Vermonts green mountains. Trip

Great Smokies

Welcoming more visitors annually than any other US national park, this 800-sq-mile pocket of southern Appalachian woodland is ribbed by forested ridges where black bears, white-tailed deer, wild turkeys and over 1600 different kinds of wildflowers all find refuge. Take an unforgettable trip amid gold, orange and flame-colored autumn foliage on Trip 21: The Great Smokies.

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BEST ODDBALL ROADSIDE ATTRACTIONS

Gemini Giant Ready to rocket down Route 66. Trip

Wall Drug The USAs most shameless tourist trap. Trip

Tunnel Log Drive through a fallen giant sequoia tree. Trip

Marfa Lights Watch for otherworldly apparitions in West Texas. Trip

Salvation Mountain A folk-art monument to religious fervor. Trip

Floridas Beaches

Blessed with almost year-round sunshine, Florida is a beautiful, sexy, semitropical peninsula edged with bone-white sand, lapped by aquamarine waters and drenched in lurid, neon sunsets. Floridas beaches are its calling card: you could hit a different one every day for a year. Track down some of the very best on Trip 16: Floridas Highway 1.

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