Short Road Trips that are Worth The Visit

Most people think of road trips as a week or even months-long activities that include making a lot of different stops and taking your time with each of them. It can be just that but it doesn’t need to be. There are many short road trips you could take and still have a great time and a meaningful experience.

If these trips require crossing country borders or going to a foreign country at all, you’ll need to prepare for the trip as you would for any other. This means you can’t drive in a foreign country without a permit issued by IDA (International Drivers Association). It’s only valid if you have a valid national permit as well.

Cascade Loop, Washington

This short trail is the most famous road trip Washington has to offer. The road is about 440 miles long and it goes through local villages and passes the striking mountain view, as well as a lush and well-preserved forest. The best part of the trip will take you past a magnificent waterfall.

The trip will also take you right to the hiking trail and it may be a good place to stop and continue the rest of the trip on foot. Make sure you have the equipment with you as well as an extra layer of clothes.

A Trip From San Diego To Los Angeles

It’s another short trip that you can expand into a longer one if you have the time to do so. The trip itself is about 500 miles long and it follows the coastline of California starting with a Pelican State Beach in the north and going to San Diego down south.

There are beaches you can stop at all along the way and they vary from quiet and small-town resorts that are best suited to enjoy with your family to busy tourist centers that are filled with divers where you can also go whale watching los Angeles.

Jackson to Bozeman

This is the shortest trip on our list so far but even these 250 miles of road are enough to take you through the two most famous and most well-liked US national parks – Grand Teton and Yellowstone. 

The peaks of the Teton park are breathtaking and should be your first stop before you move on the north and go to Yellowstone. It’s the world’s biggest national park and by visiting it you get to see both the geysers and fumaroles but also the amazing wildlife that still exists and roams free in the park.

Byway 2, Utah

Some road trips are about the destinations and others are about the trip itself. This means that the scenery that you pass through will be the most beautiful and most important part of the trip. It’s the case with a trip down byway 2 in Utah.

The trip is just 132 miles long and it goes through the amazing landscape of local nature preserves and national parks. The high point of the trip will be the sandstone arches that you can pass through the south of Panguitch. The trip ends in Torrey, a great spot for hiking and outdoor recreation, which is still peaceful enough to meditate in and enjoy on your own.

San Juan Skyway, Colorado

A road trip that passes through San Juan Skyway is a loop so you’ll end up where you started once you finish the 230-mile-long road trip. It passes through historic mining towns as well as the local mountains for which it was named.

The view from the mountain road seems as if it could be made in Germany or Switzerland and it often comes as a surprise to American tourists and those that have a somewhat different idea of what the American West looks like.

Blue Ridge Parkway, North Carolina and Tennessee

The Great Smoky Mountains are one of the most beautiful and most visited national parks in the country. The parkway goes right through it and it allows you to enjoy the scenery alone or to stop when you see fit and experience the park from a close range.

The road itself is about 500 miles long and it passes near the Appalachian Mountains which form a beautiful scenery. Even if you’re planning to rush through the trip with little time on your hands, you should make it to at least one hiking stop and enjoy the nature outside of your vehicle.

 There are plenty more short-distance road trips that will make a great family outing and our list is just a sample of what’s out there – feel free to add your own.