Routes & parks
In-depth guides to the best-known drives and parks, with maps, highlights and practical answers.
Famous routes
© Chris Lawrence from Blacksburg, VA, USA · CC BY-SA 2.0Route 66
The 1926 highway from Chicago to Santa Monica. It was officially decommissioned in 1985 and kept alive by the towns…
Photo by Thomas Ciszewski on UnsplashPacific Coast Highway
California State Route 1 runs along the ocean for much of its length. The Big Sur stretch is one of the most dramatic…
Photo by Ashley Knedler on UnsplashBlue Ridge Parkway
A national parkway along the crest of the Appalachians, joining Shenandoah and Great Smoky Mountains national parks.
Photo by Donald Giannatti on UnsplashBeartooth Highway
A high switchback road over the Beartooth Plateau between Red Lodge, Montana, and Yellowstone's northeast entrance.
Photo by Ilse Orsel on UnsplashOverseas Highway
US-1 runs down the Florida Keys on a chain of bridges built partly on the bed of Henry Flagler's railroad.
Photo by Stuart Davies on UnsplashIcefields Parkway
A mountain road between Lake Louise and Jasper through Banff and Jasper national parks. There is no cell coverage,…
Photo by Thomas Lipke on UnsplashCabot Trail
A loop road around northern Cape Breton Island, with about a third inside Cape Breton Highlands National Park. An RV…
Photo by Tom Brown on UnsplashNatchez Trace Parkway
A 444-mile parkway from Natchez to Nashville, run by the National Park Service. RVs are welcome, commercial vehicles…
© Ser Amantio di Nicolao · CC0Skyline Drive
A 105-mile road along the ridge of Shenandoah National Park in Virginia. Mary's Rock Tunnel limits vehicle height to…
National parks · Mountains & parks
© Daniel Olah danesduet10 · CC0Zion National Park
Red and cream sandstone cliffs above the Virgin River. It is Utah's most visited park.
© Astroval1 · CC BY-SA 4.0Yellowstone National Park
The world's first national park, with more than half of the planet's active geysers.
Photo by Jennifer Rogalla on UnsplashGrand Canyon National Park
A canyon 277 river miles long, cut by the Colorado River through almost two billion years of rock.
Photo by Trevor Hayes on UnsplashAcadia National Park
Granite mountains, cobble beaches and 45 miles of historic carriage roads on Mount Desert Island.
Photo by David Hertle on UnsplashGreat Smoky Mountains National Park
Old-growth forest, remains of mountain farms and one of the most varied collections of plants and animals in any…
Photo by Ken Cheung on UnsplashArches National Park
The highest concentration of natural stone arches in the world, a few minutes from Moab.
Photo by Hendrik Cornelissen on UnsplashGlacier National Park
Jagged peaks, turquoise lakes and glaciers that are shrinking, along the Continental Divide in northern Montana.
Photo by Cedric Letsch on UnsplashJoshua Tree National Park
Rock-climbing boulders and forests of spiky Joshua trees where two deserts meet.
© Supercarwaar · CC BY-SA 4.0Yosemite National Park
Yosemite lies in California's Sierra Nevada. For campers, three things matter: campground reservations, winter road…
Photo by Toan Chu on UnsplashGrand Teton National Park
Grand Teton lies in Wyoming, south of Yellowstone. All park campgrounds are reserved in advance, and RV length limits…
Photo by Oleg Chursin on UnsplashBryce Canyon National Park
Bryce Canyon in Utah has one main road and a free shuttle in season. Vehicles of 23 feet or more face parking…
Photo by Jachan DeVol on UnsplashOlympic National Park
Olympic National Park on Washington's Olympic Peninsula spans coast, rainforest and mountains. Campground rules, RV…
Photo by Dan Meyers on UnsplashCrater Lake National Park
Crater Lake in Oregon has heavy snow, a narrow rim road and one RV-friendly campground. Winter closes the Rim Drive…
Photo by Mick Haupt on UnsplashBig Bend National Park
Big Bend lies in Texas on the Rio Grande border. Peak season is October to April, and RV access to roadside camping…
Photo by Brady Stoeltzing on UnsplashCapitol Reef National Park
Capitol Reef in Utah is built around the Waterpocket Fold. The Fruita Campground is booked in advance all year, and…
Photo by Alec Krum on UnsplashMesa Verde National Park
Mesa Verde in Colorado protects more than 5,000 archaeological sites. The major cliff dwellings require a reservation…
Photo by Gary Yost on UnsplashBadlands National Park
Badlands in South Dakota has two developed campgrounds. Sage Creek is primitive and excludes vehicles over 18 feet,…
Photo by Carter Baran on UnsplashDeath Valley National Park
Death Valley straddles the California–Nevada border and is the largest national park in the contiguous US. Summer…
Photo by Sebastian Frederik Jacobsen on UnsplashSequoia & Kings Canyon National Parks
Two neighbouring parks in the Sierra Nevada, known for giant sequoias. Large motorhomes should plan the access road…
© Van Peltekian · CC BY 3.0Rocky Mountain National Park
A high-altitude park in Colorado crossed by Trail Ridge Road. In summer, entry in the middle of the day requires a…
Photo by Ron Barabash on UnsplashMount Rainier National Park
A volcano park in Washington with five entrances but only one open all year. Campgrounds have no hookups, and several…
Photo by Kush Dwivedi on UnsplashCanyonlands National Park
A remote park in Utah split by the Green and Colorado rivers into three districts. The districts are not linked by…
Photo by Jacky Huang on UnsplashBanff National Park
Canada's oldest national park, in the Rockies of Alberta. Camping is only allowed in designated places, and Moraine…
Photo by Colin Lloyd on UnsplashGreat Sand Dunes National Park
Dunes in Colorado with the tallest sand dunes in North America, at about 8,200 ft. Camping is only allowed in…
Famous routes
© Argo Navis · CC BY-SA 4.0The Amalfi Coast
A cliff road between Sorrento and Salerno, lined with lemon groves and villages stacked above the sea.
© Christian David · CC BY-SA 4.0Route des Grandes Alpes
The classic crossing of the French Alps, from Lake Geneva to the Mediterranean over more than fifteen passes.
Photo by Leonardo Venturoli on UnsplashNorway’s fjords & Atlantic Road
Deep fjords, mountain roads and a string of bridges across the sea on Norway’s west coast.
Photo by Colin Horn on UnsplashNorth Coast 500
A loop around the far north of Scotland, with white beaches, sea stacks and mostly empty roads.
Photo by Josh Reid on UnsplashIceland Ring Road
Route 1 circles Iceland for 1,309 km and is run by the Icelandic Road Administration. Single-lane bridges, mountain…
© Elias Ehmann greene · CC0Wild Atlantic Way
The Wild Atlantic Way follows Ireland's west coast for 2,500 km, from the Inishowen Peninsula in Donegal to Kinsale…
Photo by Joshua Kettle on UnsplashMoselle and Middle Rhine
The Moselle runs 544 km before it joins the Rhine at Koblenz. Together with the Upper Middle Rhine Valley, a UNESCO…
Photo by Geertje Caliguire on UnsplashSwiss Alpine Passes
Furka, Grimsel, Susten and Nufenen link the cantons of Uri, Bern, Valais and Ticino. These high roads are seasonal,…
Photo by Kaja Sariwating on UnsplashDalmatian Coast
Dalmatia runs along the Adriatic from Zadar to Dubrovnik, with many islands. Croatia bans camping outside campsites,…
© José Luiz · CC BY-SA 4.0Romantic Road
The Romantic Road runs about 460 km from Würzburg to Füssen on ordinary roads. It links medieval towns, a meteorite…
Photo by Fabrizio Coco on UnsplashGrossglockner and Hohe Tauern
The Grossglockner High Alpine Road crosses the Hohe Tauern National Park between Salzburg and Carinthia. It is a toll…
© Emmanuel DYAN from Paris, France · CC BY 2.0Transfăgărășan and Southern Carpathians
The Transfăgărășan (DN 7C) crosses the Făgăraș Mountains between Bascov and Cârțișoara. It is closed in winter, and…
National parks · Mountains & parks
© Matt Sclarandis motornomad · CC0The Dolomites
Pale limestone peaks, high passes and green meadows in northeast Italy. One of the best mountain drives in Europe.
Photo by Mike Swigunski on UnsplashPlitvice Lakes National Park
Sixteen lakes in shades of blue and green, stepping down through the forest in waterfalls.
Photo by Arnaud STECKLE on UnsplashJulian Alps and Lake Bled
The Julian Alps rise to Triglav at 2,864 m, and much of the range lies in Triglav National Park. Lake Bled, the Vršič…
© Alberto-g-rovi · CC BY-SA 4.0Pyrenees
The Pyrenees span France, Spain and Andorra. Camping is forbidden in the core of the French national park, and…
Photo by Javier Rincón on UnsplashPicos de Europa
The national park spans Asturias, Cantabria and Castilla y León. Access to the Lagos de Covadonga is regulated for…
Photo by James Armes on UnsplashLake District
The Lake District National Park in Cumbria covers about 2,360 km² of lakes, fells and valleys. Overnight parking for…
Regions
© HARTLEPOOLMARINA2014 · CC BY-SA 3.0Scottish Highlands and Skye
The North Coast 500 loop around Inverness and the Isle of Skye offer single-track roads, steep passes and wild…
© LySioS-wkp · CC BY-SA 4.0Provence: Luberon and Verdon
The Luberon massif and the Verdon Gorge lie in southeastern France. The region mixes hill villages with a canyon up…
© Michela Simoncini from Firenze, Italy · CC BY 2.0Tuscany
Tuscany covers about 22,987 km² of mostly hilly land, with eight UNESCO localities from Florence to the Val d'Orcia.…
© Andreadipiazza · Public domainSicily
Sicily covers about 25,832 km² and lies across the Strait of Messina from the mainland. Etna, Greek temples and the…
© Norbert Nagel · CC BY-SA 3.0Sardinia
Sardinia is the second-largest island in the Mediterranean, with a coastline of 1,849 km. Ferries from the mainland…
Photo by Maureen Cosnard on UnsplashBrittany
Brittany in north-west France suits motorhome trips, but wild camping is largely prohibited. Overnight stays are on…
Photo by Diego Gennaro on UnsplashAlgarve
The Algarve offers a long coast, the Ria Formosa lagoon and the Costa Vicentina cliffs. Motorhome overnight stays are…
Photo by Lili Kovac on UnsplashBlack Forest
The Black Forest in south-west Germany has lakes, high roads and a national park. Wild camping is generally forbidden…
Photo by Marco Ghirello on UnsplashLake Garda
Lake Garda is Italy's largest lake and lies in three regions. The western shore road has narrow tunnels, and wild…
Photo by Dorian Mongel on UnsplashLoire Valley
The Loire Valley is a World Heritage cultural landscape of châteaux, vineyards and river towns. In France, camping on…
Photo by Ilnur Kalimullin on UnsplashNormandy
Normandy combines cliffs, Mont-Saint-Michel and the 1944 landing beaches. According to a travel portal the Mont has a…
© Johan Allard · CC BY-SA 4.0Dordogne and Vézère
The Vézère valley in the Dordogne holds prehistoric sites and decorated caves of World Heritage rank. Book cave…
© Eduardo Milla · CC BY-SA 4.0Andalusia: White Villages
The white villages (pueblos blancos) lie in the north of the provinces of Cádiz and Málaga. Two classic routes run…
Photo by Bingqi Huang on UnsplashLofoten
The Lofoten archipelago lies north of the Arctic Circle and is linked by the E10 with bridges and undersea tunnels.…
Photo by reisetopia on UnsplashPuglia
Puglia is the heel of Italy and has a longer coastline than any other mainland Italian region. Its highlights range…
Photo by Eugene Zhyvchik on UnsplashMallorca
Mallorca is the largest Balearic island, with the Serra de Tramuntana on its west coast. Overnight rules for campers…
Photo by Lina Sproge on UnsplashCosta de la Luz
The Costa de la Luz stretches along the Atlantic coast from Huelva to Cádiz, with wetlands, long beaches and…
Famous routes
Photo by Ben George on UnsplashGrand Pacific Drive
A coastal drive south from Sydney between the Tasman Sea and the Illawarra escarpment, passing Royal National Park,…
Photo by XY YEW on UnsplashGreat Ocean Road
Built by returned soldiers after the First World War, the Great Ocean Road winds along Victoria's south-west coast…
Photo by Matthew Alexander on UnsplashCape York and the Peninsula Developmental Road
Cape York is Australia’s most famous remote 4WD journey: the Peninsula Developmental Road runs 571 km from Lakeland…
Photo by Graham Meyer on UnsplashOodnadatta Track
A classic outback drive in South Australia's far north, following the line of the old Ghan railway past Lake Eyre,…
Photo by Omar on UnsplashIndian Ocean Drive
A coastal route north of Perth through dunes, fishing towns and the limestone Pinnacles, ending at Geraldton, the…
© Ken Hodge · CC BY 2.0Stuart Highway
The Stuart Highway is the sealed backbone of the Northern Territory, crossing it from tropical Darwin to the red…
Gibb River Road
A legendary outback track of almost 660 km between Derby and the Kununurra area, passing red ranges, gorges and…
Photo by Fiona Smallwood on UnsplashNullarbor Plain and the Eyre Highway
The Eyre Highway crosses the world's largest limestone plain, a treeless expanse where the road runs straight for…
© Simon Yeo from Pakenham, Australia · CC BY 2.0Lightning Ridge opal fields
An opal-mining district in the north-west of New South Wales, known for rare black opal, hand-dug claims, quirky…
National parks · Mountains & parks
Photo by Jacques Bopp on UnsplashBlue Mountains National Park
A sandstone plateau cut by deep eucalypt valleys, cliffs and waterfalls, only about two hours from Sydney. It is the…
Photo by Kate Trifo on UnsplashKosciuszko National Park
The largest national park in New South Wales, covering the high country of the Great Dividing Range. It holds…
Photo by Christian Bass on UnsplashGrampians National Park (Gariwerd)
Gariwerd is a range of rugged sandstone ridges, waterfalls and wildflower heathland in western Victoria. It is one of…
Wilsons Promontory National Park
Wilsons Promontory, known as the Prom, is the southernmost tip of mainland Australia. Its granite peaks, white…
K’gari (Fraser Island)
The world’s largest sand island, a World Heritage site where rainforest grows on dunes, with clear freshwater lakes,…
Photo by Athithan Vignakaran on UnsplashCarnarvon National Park
A deep sandstone gorge in the central highlands, with green creek flats, side canyons and some of Queensland’s finest…
Photo by Queensland, Australia on UnsplashLamington National Park
Ancient rainforest on the rim of an old volcano just inland of the Gold Coast, with waterfalls, towering trees, a…
Photo by Aaron De Wit on UnsplashDaintree National Park and the Wet Tropics
The Daintree is the best-known part of the Wet Tropics, a World Heritage rainforest that runs along the coast from…
Photo by Queensland, Australia on UnsplashGreat Barrier Reef
The world’s largest coral reef system stretches about 2,300 km along Queensland, with more than 2,900 reefs and 900…
Photo by Stephen Mabbs on UnsplashIkara-Flinders Ranges National Park
Rugged quartzite ranges, deep gorges and the vast natural amphitheatre of Wilpena Pound, known as Ikara to the…
Photo by Ondrej Machart on UnsplashKangaroo Island
Australia's third-largest island, reached by ferry from Cape Jervis, combines sea lions, fur seals, koalas and…
Ningaloo Coast
A fringing coral reef that starts just offshore from a dry limestone coast, with whale sharks, turtles, manta rays…
Shark Bay
A World Heritage coast of shallow seagrass bays, living stromatolites, a beach of shells and dolphins that visit the…
Photo by Rod Long on UnsplashKakadu National Park
Australia's largest national park combines floodplains, escarpments and waterfalls with one of the world's richest…
Photo by Hanna Lazar on UnsplashUluru-Kata Tjuta National Park
Uluru and Kata Tjuta rise from flat red desert in a park owned by the Anangu and jointly managed with Parks…
Karijini National Park
Deep red gorges cut into the Hamersley Range, with spring-fed pools, waterfalls and cliffs more than 100 m high.…
Purnululu National Park
The Bungle Bungle Range rises in orange and grey striped beehive domes above the East Kimberley plains. Purnululu is…
Photo by Kikki Starr on UnsplashCradle Mountain-Lake St Clair National Park
Jagged dolerite peaks, glacial lakes and ancient forest in the heart of the Tasmanian Wilderness World Heritage Area,…
Photo by Josh Fotheringham on UnsplashFreycinet National Park
A granite peninsula of pink-tinged peaks called the Hazards, white beaches and clear, cold water, home to Wineglass…
© JJ Harrison (https://www.jjharrison.com.au/) · CC BY-SA 3.0Tasman Peninsula and Port Arthur
A rugged peninsula south-east of Hobart, where the ruins of Australia's best-known convict settlement meet some of…
Mungo National Park
A dry lake bed and wind-sculpted dunes in Australia's far west, where human remains more than 40,000 years old reveal…