This 469-mile East Coast Road Trip Route Is One of the Best in the U.S. — and It’s Got Stunning Hiking Trails, Too

Americans love a good road trip vacation. Like really love their road trips. According to GasBuddy’s 2024 Summer Travel Survey, 76 percent of Americans planned to take a road trip between Memorial Day and Labor Day weekends, which marked an 18 percent increase from its 2023 findings. The survey also noted that the average traveler has planned two road trips for the season. If you’re looking for the right route for your next trip, student travel company Rustic Pathways has a few options to consider. 

In late July, the company released its research on the most searched-for American road trips, which it compiled after looking at data for search terms like “road trip,” “itinerary,” “the loneliest road,” “Route 66,” and “Hana Highway.” It took that information, which it found using Google Keyword Planner, to rank routes based on their average monthly search volume. (It noted that search terms for the same routes — like “Hana Highway” and “Hana Highway road trip” — were combined to give an overall monthly figure.)

Once it had its numbers, there was a very clear winner: the Pacific Coast Highway in California, which received an average of over 257,000 monthly searches. In fact, most of the list was made up of destinations out West, with Route 66 and Big Sur Road Trip taking the No. 2 and No. 3 spots, respectively. However, there was one eastern road trip that made the list that we think drivers will fall in love with too. 

In fourth place is the Blue Ridge Parkway, which is known as “America’s Favorite Drive.” The team noted it receives an impressive 112,000 monthly searches each month. “The route runs 469 miles through the Blue Ridge section of the Appalachian Mountains in North Carolina and Virginia,” the team explained in the findings. “The trip has beautiful views of the mountains, and visitors can visit the Shenandoah and Great Smoky Mountains National Parks along the way.” 

However, this short description really doesn’t do it enough justice.  

Travelers can choose to simply meander down the route, taking in all those verdant vistas along the way, or pull over for a hike (there are more than 300 miles of hiking trails along the Blue Ridge Parkway to explore), take part in a ranger-led experience, sit in on a forest concert, stop at its various photography checkpoints, or extend your journey by camping in one of its fantastic campgrounds. 

If you need even more road trip inspiration, the team also named Hawaii’s Hana Highway, Montana’s Going-to-the-Sun Road, the Oregon Trail, the Southern Pacific route, the Beartooth Highway, and the Lincoln Highway in its top 10 roads to drive through.