It’s no secret that I love a good scenic drive. With all of the incredible scenery in the US national parks, there’s no shortage of great scenic drives. While I don’t believe that you should pick your next national park based solely on which park has the best scenic drive (though I’ve done it), it can definitely be a good thing to keep in mind, especially if you’re looking for things to do beyond hiking at national parks.
In this post, I’m covering the best scenic drives in US national parks. Some will be obvious, but other entries may be surprising. I hope you find some inspiration for your next trip.
Best National Park Scenic Drives
This is not a complete list of every scenic drive in the US national parks. First, and most importantly, I have not done every scenic drive in the US national parks. Second, while I make it a point to check out the scenic drives when I’m at a national park, not every scenic drive impresses me. So while there are a lot of scenic drives on this list, you won’t find every scenic drive. Additionally, this list will inevitably continue to grow as I visit more and more national parks.
Lastly, this list is in no particular order.
Now let’s get into it.
Rocky Mountain National Park
Trail Ridge Road connects Grand Lake to Estes Park via Rocky Mountain National Park. It’s a top attraction in Rocky Mountain National Park and if you’re visiting, it should not be missed. In the west, you see the remains of 2020 forest fires before entering the mountains. You’ll climb up until you’re above the tree line in the tundra, before descending again in to pure mountain beauty. This is a scenic drive that has a little bit of everything.
When I visited, I entered Rocky Mountain National Park from Grand Lake on a clear day. This allowed me to only drive the road one way. From my research it seems most people will start and end their Trail Ridge Road drive in Estes Park. It’s wonderful and definitely in my top scenic drives in Colorado, but driving one way is enough.
Bonus: If you’re starting and ending your drive in Estes Park, consider using the one way Endovalley Road, which starts near the eastern side of the park and finishes at the Alpine Visitor Center. This just helps to give you a little bit different scenery (although I don’t think it’s bad if you drive through the same scenery on Trail Ridge Road twice). Again, I didn’t do this because I entered the park at Grand Lake, so I only had to drive Trail Ridge Road one way.
Glacier National Park
Easily the best experience at Glacier National Park is driving the Going to the Sun Road. This scenic drive runs the entire width of the park. Starting in the west at Apgar, you’ll wind through the trees as you follow along Lake McDonald. The trees and forests eventually give way to mountains with amazing views in all directions. You’ll eventually reach Logan Pass, the highest point on Going to the Sun Road before you start your decent. Follow along St. Mary Lake before ending at St. Mary.
While Going to the Sun Road is only 50 miles long, you should allocate an entire day for the drive. There are numerous pullouts and viewpoints and you should definitely take advantage of them. I know it may be hard to imagine it taking that long, but I promise that you’ll want to give yourself plenty of time. My dad and I took six hours to drive the entire road one way (although we did pause for about an hour so I could hike the Hidden Valley Overlook Trail, so really it was seven hours).
Going to the Sun Road can be driven in either direction. However, it is important to note that if you plan to enter from the west (at Apgar), you’ll need to purchase a reservation if you want to enter the road between 6:00 am and 3:00 pm. If you enter from the east (at St. Mary), you do not need a reservation and can start your journey at any point during the day.
Death Valley National Park
Death Valley National Park is special because it has not one, but two great scenic drives. Despite being in the same park, the drives feel very different and that makes for some great variety.
Artist’s Drive
This scenic drive is a favorite among travelers and I have to admit that my mom and I were no exception. The main drive through Death Valley National Park isn’t super eventful, so the scenic drives help to offer some variety and magnificent scenery. Artist’s Drive was our favorite of the two scenic drives that we did in the park (although both were excellent).
This drive takes you through the mountains where the different mineral deposits help to turn the mountains more colorful. Don’t skip Artist’s Palette, the major stop on this drive, which highlights the mineral deposits and colors beautifully. And if you’re a Star Wars fan, you may recognize some of the scenery.
Artist’s Drive is nine miles of windy, colorful roads.
Twenty Mule Team Canyon
Another scenic drive is Twenty Mule Team Canyon. In my opinion, this felt more adventurous than Artist’s Drive. It’s beautiful, but it was just fun to drive. While Artist’s Drive has more of the colors, Twenty Mule Team Canyon Drive is mostly all yellow. But don’t let that stop you.
Along this drive, you’ll pass mountains of packed sand and clay. While it doesn’t sound that interesting, I promise that it is a cool view (especially after the highway driving to get to Death Valley National Park). The road is short, only 2.5 miles, but it takes a little longer than you may expect thanks to the windy, dirt roads.
Kings Canyon National Park
The scenic drive through Kings Canyon is a must on your visit to the park. In fact, I think this drive might have been my favorite thing to do at Kings Canyon National Park. The views are just incredible. So while of course you could drive without any stops, pull over at a few of the viewpoints. There are plenty of viewpoints to choose along the way and I don’t think you can go wrong with any of them. Junction View and Yucca Point make excellent places to stop, but I’m not sure if there is a bad view.
If you, or someone you’re traveling with, hasn’t spent a lot of time in mountains, prepare for some jaw dropping views. We rounded a bend and my mom, who has visited many national parks with me but hasn’t really done “mountains”, exclaimed “Oh my god. Oh my god! Oh! My! God!” It was a fun experience for me, but also a reminder that the views are just that good.
To drive the entire length of the Kings Canyon Scenic Drive, you’ll want to give yourself about two hours. Even with minimal stops, it will take you about an hour to drive the length of the highway. And the road does have a definitive end so there’s no way to make it a loop. You’ll have to retrace your route, but the views are great that I doubt you’ll mind.
Sequoia National Park
Kings Canyon is managed together with Sequoia National Park, so it only makes sense to talk about Sequoia National Park next.
The Generals Highway is the main road winding through the park, so you’ll have to drive this road regardless. But don’t just use it as a means to an end. There are plenty of pullouts along the way that offer amazing views of the surrounding mountains. While I don’t think you can go wrong with any pullout, we stopped at Amphitheater Point, Vista Point, and The Four Guardsman and loved each one.
As a note, the Generals Highway is a windy mountain road. This is particularly true in the southern area of the park where it just feels like hairpin turn after hairpin turn after hairpin turn. That said, I never found it difficult, but I did have to take the drive slow. Not that you have much of a choice. With the windy roads and hairpin turns, you’re forced to drive slow.
One final note, if you get motion sickness, I’d highly suggest some Dramamine. This road is without a doubt the windiest mountain road I’ve driven to date (and that includes a road that had a 360 loop in it at Custer State Park in South Dakota).
Yosemite National Park
Yosemite National Park is beautiful. I don’t think I had a bad view anywhere in the park and for that reason alone, I’m including Yosemite National Park on this list. However, I’m going to be a little more specific and recommend the drive through Yosemite Valley.
Yosemite Valley is home to a lot of great sights. You’ll find trailheads, a visitor center, and so many great views. One of my favorite experiences is to stroll through Cook’s Meadow and take in the 360 views all around you. But if you don’t want to walk, just driving through the valley gives these same amazing views. Take a look at El Capitan and the waterfalls lining the way.
This is not a true scenic drive. It’s the route through the park and during the busy season, traffic can be bad, so make sure you plan accordingly. As much as I love the views here, I’d be pretty frustrated if I was caught in intense traffic from all of the other visitors at the park. Avoid this by driving early in the morning or late in the evening, especially if you’re traveling during the park’s busy season.
Now you may be wondering why I didn’t include Tioga Road as the entry for Yosemite National Park? Well that’s simple. I ran out of time on my visit to Yosemite National Park, so Tioga Road had to be saved for a future trip.
Saguaro National Park
Saguaro National Park is split into two different sections. For the purposes of this post, we’re going to talk about the Bajada Loop at Saguaro West. Unlike many of the other scenic drives on this list, there are no pull outs. Still, if you’re here at the right time, there shouldn’t be much traffic so if you stop for a quick second to take a photo, you should be ok.
The highlight of Saguaro National Park, and therefore this drive, is the cacti that line the area. They are more densely populated than other areas of Saguaro National Park, making the landscape a stereotypical cactus desert.
Another option is the Cactus Drive at Saguaro East, but if I’m playing favorites, I think the Bajada Loop is better, simply because the cacti is more densely populated.
White Sands National Park
At White Sands National Park, there’s a short scenic drive toward the back of the park. As you drive, you’ll eventually run out of pavement and be driving on packed sand. Once you reach this packed sand, you’re on the scenic drive.
The scenic drive is about six miles and takes about twenty minutes to drive. This was a highlight of the park for me. On the scenic drive, you leave a lot of the vegetation behind and you find yourself surrounded by bright white sand dunes. When I envisioned touring White Sands National Park, this is what I pictured.
There are several pullovers along the way for you to get out and take pictures. Climb on the sand dunes and laugh as you struggle to climb them.
Black Canyon of the Gunnison National Park
On the south rim of Black Canyon of the Gunnison National Park, you’ll find some great viewpoints and short hikes. However, if you head in the opposite direction of those viewpoints you’ll reach East Portal Road which takes you all the way to the bottom of the canyon. I liked Black Canyon of the Gunnison National Park, but this scenic drive pushed this park into one of my favorites.
The road seems simple and when I started, I didn’t even realize I was driving to the bottom of the canyon (I should have done more research before I visited). But eventually it picks up and before you know it, you’re driving downhill into a canyon with incredible views all around you. This is truly one of my favorites.
Zion National Park
Zion National Park is an interesting addition to this list because it doesn’t have a true scenic drive. At least not like so many of the other entries on this list. Rather, I’m including Zion National Park because the views along Mount Carmel Highway are incredible.
Mount Carmel Highway runs from the Visitor Center in Springdale all the way through the eastern entrance of the park. You’ll climb up in to the mountains on hairpin turns as you work your way through some incredible views.
The first time I drove this road, it was the end of a ten day road trip through the Grand Canyon and all of Utah’s National Parks. There were great drives and incredible views, but this road still stands out as one of my favorites.
And yes, the Canyon Road is great too, but during the busy season, you’ll need to take the shuttle and can’t bring your own vehicle down the road so I’m limiting this entry for Zion to just the main highway.
New River Gorge National Park
New River Gorge National Park is spread out and if I’m honest, it can be difficult to tell if you’re in the national park or not. But in the Canyon Rim area, you’ll find the iconic New River Gorge Bridge and a scenic drive nearby.
Fayette Station Road is a scenic drive that will take you down into the gorge and under the bridge several times. It’s a fun drive and only takes about 45 minutes (although it can be longer depending on the number of stops you make). To really make the most of your experience, download the audioguide from the National Park Service before you begin your drive.
Mesa Verde National Park
Mesa Verde National Park is another park where the main drive through the park is so scenic it deserves its own spot on this list. Mesa Verde has some stunning scenery but the big draw here is touring the cliff dwellings of the Ancestral Pueblo people. However to get to these cliff dwellings, you’ll need to drive deep into the park, but since the scenery is beautiful, you won’t mind too much.
On top of the main scenic drive, you’ll find some smaller routes in the park. These loops take you to other places in the park but they could also be technically be considered scenic drives.
Throughout the park you’ll be surrounded by great mountain views. And despite the fact this is the third Colorado park mentioned on this list, the scenery here still feels very different from Black Canyon of the Gunnison or Rocky Mountain National Parks.
Great Smoky Mountains National Park
Great Smoky Mountains National Park is the most visited park in the United States. While I don’t find the mountain views here as jaw dropping as some of the other parks on this list, I still enjoyed the scenery. Rather than focusing on one specific route, drive the main road through the park, stopping at Newfound Gap and head all the way from Tennessee to North Carolina.
I have to address Cades Cove which is a scenic drive at Great Smoky Mountains National Park. This might catch your eye, but I was not impressed by this drive. In fact, I wrote a whole article about it and highly recommend reading that and doing your research before heading out on the Cades Cove scenic drive.
Shenandoah National Park
Even on a short visit to Shenandoah National Park, one thing that will catch your eye is the scenic drive. In most national parks, the scenic drive is a great way to see some great views of the park. Often this scenic drive is just part of your visit, but Shenandoah is different. The scenic drive here, named Skyline Drive, spans the entire length of the park. If you want to drive the entire road, it will take you three hours (one way) if you make minimal stops.
While it can be tempting to try to do as much of Skyline Drive as you can, it gets repetitive pretty quickly. Use Skyline Drive to connect your points, but don’t stress about trying to see all of it. On a short visit to Shenandoah National Park, this is just not a good use of your time.
When I visited, my mom and I entered Shenandoah on Highway 211, drove south along Skyline Drive, stopped at a few stops along the way, and exited on Highway 33. This was only about 35 miles of the scenic drive, but it still took an hour to drive this. If you’re short on time, I recommend this section of Skyline Drive, because there’s plenty to do off this section of road.
Which Are the Best Scenic Drives?
This is subjective because everyone has different preferences. But if I had to pick, my top two favorite scenic drives are Going to the Sun Road at Glacier National Park and Trail Ridge Road at Rocky Mountain National Park. There are several other great entries on this list, but in my opinion, these two are clear front runners.
Final Thoughts
No matter which national park you visit, you’re sure to have a great time. But with this list of the best scenic drives in US national parks, hopefully you’ve found some inspiration for your next trip.
Continue Your Adventure
US National Parks: Start planning your national park vacation with my US National Park Travel Guide. You’ll find information about each park, photos, itineraries, budget tips, advice for non-hikers, and more. Plus, don’t forget to book your timed entry reservations in advance!