11 Affordable Road Trip Destinations for Your Stunning Fall Bucket List

Are You Ready for Your Next Road Trip?

In all honesty, few other countries can compete with the United States’ diverse scenery and frugal traveling options. Better said, you can easily visit the entire country with only a couple of hundred, which is as cheap as it can get.

And when we say you’ll get to see everything, we mean it: from tropical jungles and rocky coastlines all the way to red rocks canyons and colossal peaks, we’ve got it. More often than not, it’s at half the price anyway.

No matter which part of the country you want to visit, there’s probably a scenic drive in its vicinity that you easily take your breath away. So get behind the wheel, roll your windows down (if it doesn’t rain), and cruise through astounding rivers, peaceful fjords, and heavenly mountaintops with your budget untouched! Here are some of the most scenic fall road trips that won’t cost you an arm and a leg:

Beartooth Highway, Montana, and Wyoming

The main road in and out of Yellowstone National Park runs along an entire skyline of mountain vistas that look, just like the name implies, just like a Beartooth. When you get to the Wyoming side, you’re up over 10,000 feet, which is exactly why it is open as soon as the cold weather settles in.

Even then, you might be able to catch snow-capped mountains all along the way. We can say this is America’s comeback to the Icefields Parkway in Canada. The road has a bunch of pretty sheer drops and intense elevation, so driving it isn’t always for the faint of the heart, especially during inclement weather.

However, that makes fall the ideal time to visit. Even when you catch the sights from Tibbs Butte in Wyoming and can take in the grandeur of the American West, the white-knuckle driving still seems worthwhile.

Columbia River Gorge Highway/I-84, Oregon and Washington

Your car could feel almost as if it’s floating along the Columbia, as this interstate parallels the river that meanders through its namesake gorge.

You will glide through all those granite canyons that cascade all the way down into the deep blue water, rolling up and down soft hills as the views get increasingly more expansive.

Wineries also dot the landscape beside the highway, especially as rows of meticulously planted vineyards add a drop of Napa to the already beautiful scenery.

Haines Highway, Alaska

Alaska has this kind of nature that’s simply on a completely different scale from anywhere else in America. There, the mountains look taller, the glaciers are more imposing, and the wildlife is simply untamed.

You could experience it all along the Haines Highway, where you could feel petite compared to all those gigantesque mountains. Believe it or not, it’s also where the largest concentration of bald eagles in the world resides, so we definitely recommend spending some quality time there when you pull off at Valley of the Eagles.

Million Dollar Highway, Utah

Simply put, nothing compares to the red-rock-viewing drive in America, especially the one on Utah’s Highway 12, which basically looks like a movie set made totally of paper mache.

Well, rest assured these rocks are 100% real, especially since it would be close to impossible to construct something as dramatic as the Grand Staircase-Escalante National Monument.

Even if the towering hoodoos in Dixie National Forest resemble hell-of-a-lot a cartoon version.

Needles Highway, South Dakota

South Dakota is the home of some of the most underrated scenery in America, at least that’s what those who’ve never been lucky enough to see it are stating.

Well, one jaw-dropping drive along the Needles Highway might have you seeing the state in a completely different light. The trip starts in Custer State Park, where buffalo roam freely and sometimes traffic jams are caused because of that.

The road winds all the way through the Black Hills, among a series of forests of aspen and spruce trees, where granite towers stick up from the landscape beyond.

North Shore Scenic Drive, Minnesota

Those who aren’t from the Midwest could be slightly confused when facing the staggering beauty that lies along the Great Lakes. “Is this even real?” might cross their minds, and rightfully so.

The easiest and often most dramatic way to properly appreciate it is along Minnesota’s 154-mile Highway 61.

You can start out by visiting the Lake Superior Maritime Museum in Duluth to get the right historical context of the country you’re about to visit, then set out driving up and down the hills, through those beautiful thick forests, and along open water.

Overseas Highway, Florida

Henry Flagler/s vision of a railway that would connect Florida’s mainland to the rogue island of Key West was definitely one of the best engineering ambitions of the 20th century.

Even if the railroad was wiped out by the Great Labor Day Hurricane of 1935, the road lives on as a magical overwater road trip all the way through the turquoise bays of the Florida Keys.

The road starts from the Everglades, south of Miami, crossing 42 bridges over 113 miles, each one of them bringing you further from the stresses of life and into the laid-back ethos of the Keys.

Park Loop Road, Maine

It’s quite easy to shower our most northeastern state in the country with plenty of compliments. Its extremely moody and rocky coastlines, stunning swaths of granite, and verdant expanses of fir and spruce trees are worth the wait and the effort.

The best way to coast through the Acadia National Park is to drive along the Park Loop Road. The two-lane loop spreads all the way across 27 miles of the national park, showing all passengers an abundance of natural beauty. You can stop along the way for a hike up the Beehive or even Precipice trails, a swim, or even a stroll at Sand Beach.

Pacific Coast Highway, California

The impossible-to-miss California road trip runs all the way along Highway 1, where those beautiful crashing waves, golden mountains, and the rolling hills of wine country seem to be stretching on forever.

The journey basically starts on the sun-soaked beaches of Santa Monica, running up through Malibu and Venture and right into the rows of vineyards in Santa Barbara. You can stop and reach your daily step goals by touring the grandeur of Hearst Castle.

Road to Hana, Hawaii

For a proper tropical scenery, there’s no other drive in America like the Road to Hana. The 64-mile journey is full of waterfalls, scenic views of the Pacific, and an eerie moonscape toward the end.

The only and most important thing you need to remember about driving on Maui’s well-known Road to Hana is that it’s meant to be taken on island time. That basically means you might as well find yourself behind a slow-moving car whose occupants are definitely taking in all the tropic beauty, rather than getting impatient, look at it as wonderful opportunity to join in the whole aloha spirit.

Skyline Drive, Virginia

You could find yourself musically inspired as you get all the way up to the Blue Ridge Mountains on Skyline Drive, which is best experienced in fall when the normally blue-hued mountains turn all orange, red, and gold.

If you found this article insightful, we also recommend checking: 5 Affordable and Small Beach Towns That Will Take You Back in Time