Courtesy of RV Business
According to a new national survey from the Goodyear Tire & Rubber Company and America’s Byways, 70% of Americans are planning to take at least one road trip this autumn and a combination of stable gas prices and abundant scenic routes should contribute to opportunities for weekend road trips or getaways.
The survey also finds that most travelers want their journey to be something that is beautiful and unique, not just another trip on a superhighway. In fact, the overwhelming majority of people (80%) would opt for a scenic, touring drive rather than driving directly to their destination. Unlike summer road trips, which focus on the destinations, fall getaway trips are built on the overall experience of the journey.
“Our survey showed that 97% of Americans planning a fall road trip agree that their overall comfort is the key to enjoying it, so we joined together with America’s Byways to unveil a list of the ’50 Most Comfortable Touring Drives,'” said Gary Medalis, general manager for Goodyear consumer tires. “These top 50 touring drives encompass comfort and scenery to enhance the trip and are all within reasonable distance of major metropolitan areas.”
“This fall, for not a lot of money, travelers can skip the superhighways and exit to the smaller roadways to experience some of the best roads America has to offer,” said Derrick Crandall, spokesperson for America’s Byways and president of the American Recreation Coalition. “While there are hundreds of fantastic drives along America’s Byways, we worked with Goodyear to create a list of some of the best, providing Americans with what they told us they are looking for — comfortable, nearby drives that provide scenic and unique landscapes. The list follows”
- Delaware River Scenic Byway — New Jersey.
- Merritt Parkway — Connecticut.
- Great Lakes Seaway Trail — New York, Pennsylvania.
- Arroyo Seco Historic Parkway — California.
- Ebbetts Pass Scenic Byway — California.
- San Luis Obispo North Coast Byway — California.
- Historic Route 66 — Illinois, Arizona, New Mexico, Oklahoma.
- Lincoln Highway — Illinois.
- Brandywine Valley Scenic Byway — Delaware.
- Historic National Road — Pennsylvania, Illinois, Indiana, Maryland, Ohio, West Virginia.
- Blue Ridge Parkway — North Carolina, Virginia.
- Journey through Hallowed Ground — Pennsylvania, Maryland, Virginia.
- George Washington Memorial Parkway — Virginia.
- Millstone Valley Scenic Byway — New Jersey
- Baltimore’s Historic Charles Street — Maryland.
- Woodward Avenue Automotive Heritage Trail — Michigan.
- Red Rock Scenic Byway — Arizona.
- Stevens Pass Greenway — Washington.
- Chinook Scenic Byway — Washington.
- Mountains to Sound Greenway — Washington.
- Grand Rounds Scenic Byway — Minnesota.
- Florida Keys Scenic Highway — Florida.
- Florida Black Bear Scenic Byway — Florida.
- A1A Scenic and Historic Coastal Byway — Florida.
- Ormond Scenic Loop and Trail — Florida.
- Lariat Loop Scenic & Historic Byway — Colorado.
- Gold Belt Tour Scenic & Historic Byway — Colorado.
- Ohio River Scenic Byway — Ohio, Illinois, Indiana.
- Amish Country Byway — Ohio.
- Lake Erie Coastal Ohio Trail — Ohio.
- Meeting of the Great Rivers Scenic Route — Illinois.
- Mt. Hood Scenic Byway — Oregon.
- West Cascades Scenic Byway — Oregon.
- Cherokee Foothills Scenic Byway — South Carolina.
- Natchez Trace Parkway — Tennessee, Alabama, Mississippi.
- Connecticut State Route 169 — Connecticut.
- Nebo Loop Scenic Byway — Utah.
- Loess Hills Scenic Byway — Iowa.
- Woodlands Trace — Tennessee, Kentucky.
- Selma to Montgomery March Byway — Alabama.
- Flint Hills Scenic Byway — Kansas.
- Wetlands and Wildlife Scenic Byway — Kansas.
- Talladega Scenic Drive — Alabama.
- Alabama’s Coastal Connection — Alabama.
- Las Vegas Strip — Nevada.
- Death Valley Scenic Byway — California.
- Route 1, San Luis Obispo North Coast Byway — California.
- Santa Fe Trail — New Mexico, Colorado.
- Turquoise Trail — New Mexico.
- Lincoln Heritage Scenic Byway — Kentucky
Additional results from the survey revealed 49% of Americans would sacrifice their GPS units, while others (32%) would sacrifice music and good gas mileage (29%) to experience a comfortable drive.
America’s Byways is a collection of 150 distinct and diverse roads designated by the U.S. Secretary of Transportation. The National Scenic Byways Program is part of the U.S. Department of Transportation, Federal Highway Administration. The program is a grass-roots collaborative effort established to help recognize, preserve and enhance selected roads throughout the United States.
For more info about RV travel visit the Good Sam Club Trip Planning section where you can route your RV trip, read interesting RV travel articles, learn about points of interest, find RV campgrounds and print out RV checklists.
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Ken Beard
The exact location of most of these may be had by simply Googling the name and state. On this page, highlight the drive in which you’re interested, copy it and paste it in the search box of your browser.
I checked a few of them and the search results will give you links to more information than you really wanted. The ones I checked have information on the nature of the drive, and include information on what vehicles are inappropriate – i.e., vehicles over 25 feet are not permitted, parts of this are unpaved and narrow, etc. Some of the Websites I found provided Accessibility information for those with disabilities. If nothing else, you’ll get a phone number you can call.
George Vandenberg
How about scenic byAways in Alaska?
Jim victor
The complete list with links to each drive can be found at
http://www.byways.org/stories/themes/12-top-50-touring-drives
John Griffith
This list, while correct for scenic drives, was not for RVs. Most have narrow roads, or low bridges. No consideration was made for large or tall vehicles.
Marsha Jackson
Is the picture of the 5th Wheel and Ford Truck taken at Gettysburg? Also, is the truck plate from Ohio? Since we recently traveled to Gettysbury, I can not help but think this picture is our camper and truck.
Woody T
I would like to know what the criteria was. Because like Martha, I find it hard to believe that the Route 1 Maine coastal road was not mentioned nor the Kancamagus Highway in New Hampshire
martha
I can’t believe that there is no mention of the beautiful Maine coastal scenic Route 1 drive. New England is hardly mentioned.
D.v.harvey
Yes, Ebbetts Pass is great – if you like a 25 percent grade, don’t take the motorhome!
Thomas O'Malley
The Merritt Parkway has a number of low bridges and will in no way accommodate an RV.
sharon
We love the list of scenic byways as we are soon going full time. Would love to know an approximate location in each state. Northeast, southwest, central, etc. Thank you
Margot
I love this list of the top 50 byways. We’ve taken many scenic trips around the US and want to take more. Please supply us with a link so we can find out more about these byways. We need more details.
Sue
Yes, how do we find these scenic byways?
D. Weese
Goodyear’s 50 scenic byways are quite interesting, but how does one find them on the map? The State is listed, but that’s not a big help.
Ben Hart
Where is the place on your front Page ?
Always tell us where the picture was taken.