Most Scenic Drives in the World: 15 Breathtaking Road Trips

The most scenic drives in the world include the Great Ocean Road in Australia, Route 66 in the USA, the Amalfi Coast in Italy, Iceland's Ring Road, the Garden Route in South Africa, Trollstigen in Norway, the Pacific Coast Highway in California, the Wild Atlantic Way in Ireland, the Transfagarasan in Romania, Chapman's Peak Drive in South Africa, the Cabot Trail in Canada, the Atlantic Road in Norway, the Milford Road in New Zealand, Ruta 40 in Argentina, and the Hai Van Pass in Vietnam.

Introduction

These drives offer more than just transportation — they are destinations in themselves. Each one passes through landscapes of extraordinary beauty, from sheer ocean cliffs and volcanic highlands to ancient forests and alpine meadows. Some take an afternoon; others require weeks to complete.

Here are 15 of the most spectacular road trips on Earth, with key details on distance, best time to visit, and highlights along the way.

1. Great Ocean Road — Australia

• Location: Victoria, Australia
• Length: 243 km
• Highlights: Twelve Apostles, London Arch, Loch Ard Gorge
• Best Time: December to February (summer)

The Great Ocean Road along Victoria's southwestern coast is one of Australia's most iconic drives. Built by returned soldiers between 1919 and 1932 as a memorial to World War I casualties, it hugs dramatic limestone cliffs above the Southern Ocean. The star attraction is the Twelve Apostles — towering limestone stacks rising from the surf — but the entire route offers world-class scenery.

The road passes through temperate rainforest in the Otway Ranges, surfing meccas like Bells Beach, and charming coastal towns. Keep an eye out for koalas in the wild at Kennett River and whale sightings during the migration season (June to September).

2. Route 66 — USA

• Location: Chicago to Santa Monica
• Length: 3,940 km (original route)
• Highlights: Grand Canyon, Painted Desert, Cadillac Ranch
• Best Time: April to June, September to October

Route 66, the "Mother Road," runs from Chicago to Santa Monica through eight states and three time zones. Though decommissioned as an official US highway in 1985, the nostalgic route remains drivable and is lined with vintage motels, diners, and roadside attractions that capture mid-20th-century Americana. Detours to the Grand Canyon and Painted Desert add natural wonders to the cultural experience.

3. Amalfi Coast — Italy

• Location: Campania, southern Italy
• Length: 50 km
• Highlights: Positano, Amalfi, Ravello
• Best Time: May to June, September to October

The SS163 Amalfitana hugs sheer cliffs above the Tyrrhenian Sea along the southern edge of the Sorrentine Peninsula. In just 50 kilometers, the road passes through some of Italy's most beautiful towns — Positano's cascading pastel buildings, Amalfi's medieval cathedral, and Ravello's clifftop gardens. The narrow road with its hairpin turns and passing tour buses adds an element of adventure.

4. Ring Road (Route 1) — Iceland

• Location: Circumnavigates Iceland
• Length: 1,322 km
• Highlights: Waterfalls, glaciers, geysers, volcanic landscapes
• Best Time: June to August

Iceland's Ring Road circles the entire island, passing through landscapes that look like another planet. In a single drive you encounter erupting geysers, cascading waterfalls (Seljalandsfoss, Skogafoss, Dettifoss), vast glaciers, black sand beaches, volcanic craters, and fjords teeming with puffins. The entire circuit can be completed in a week, though two weeks allows for proper exploration.

5. Garden Route — South Africa

• Location: Western Cape to Eastern Cape
• Length: 300 km (core route)
• Highlights: Tsitsikamma, Knysna, Storms River
• Best Time: Year-round (Mediterranean climate)

South Africa's Garden Route runs along the southeastern coast between Mossel Bay and Storms River, passing through indigenous forests, coastal lakes, and dramatic rocky shores. The Tsitsikamma National Park offers the famous suspension bridge over Storms River Mouth, while Knysna's lagoon and its famous Heads (sandstone cliffs guarding the entrance) are highlights. The route also passes through wine regions and offers whale watching at Hermanus.

6. Trollstigen — Norway

• Location: Rauma, Møre og Romsdal
• Length: 106 km (scenic section)
• Highlights: 11 hairpin turns, Stigfossen Waterfall
• Best Time: June to August

Trollstigen ("Troll Ladder") in western Norway is one of the country's most dramatic mountain roads. The road climbs through 11 hairpin bends with a 9% gradient, passing the 320-meter Stigfossen waterfall that plummets alongside the road. A viewing platform at the top extends over the edge of the cliff, offering vertigo-inducing views down the valley.

7. Pacific Coast Highway (Highway 1) — USA

• Location: California (Dana Point to Leggett)
• Length: 1,055 km
• Highlights: Big Sur, Bixby Bridge, Hearst Castle
• Best Time: April to October

California's Pacific Coast Highway is arguably the most famous scenic drive in the United States. The Big Sur section, where the Santa Lucia Mountains plunge directly into the Pacific Ocean, is the crown jewel. The iconic Bixby Creek Bridge, perched 85 meters above the canyon, is one of the most photographed bridges in the world. The drive also passes through charming towns like Carmel-by-the-Sea and offers stops at Hearst Castle and numerous state parks.

8. Wild Atlantic Way — Ireland

• Location: West coast of Ireland
• Length: 2,500 km
• Highlights: Cliffs of Moher, Skellig Michael, Dingle Peninsula
• Best Time: May to September

The Wild Atlantic Way stretches 2,500 kilometers along Ireland's western coast from the Inishowen Peninsula in Donegal to Kinsale in Cork, making it one of the longest defined coastal touring routes in the world. The drive passes the 214-meter Cliffs of Moher, the remote Skellig Islands (filming location for Star Wars), and the spectacular Dingle Peninsula with its ancient beehive huts.

9. Transfagarasan — Romania

• Location: Transylvanian Alps, Romania
• Length: 90 km
• Highlights: Balea Lake, Vidraru Dam, hairpin turns
• Best Time: June to October

The Transfagarasan highway crosses Romania's Carpathian Mountains through a series of dramatic switchbacks, tunnels, and viaducts. Built by dictator Nicolae Ceausescu in the 1970s as a military route, it was famously declared "the best road in the world" by the BBC's Top Gear program. The road climbs to 2,042 meters at Balea Lake, a glacial lake surrounded by alpine meadows.

10. Chapman's Peak Drive — South Africa

• Location: Cape Town, South Africa
• Length: 9 km
• Highlights: 114 curves, ocean views, Hout Bay
• Best Time: Year-round

Chapman's Peak Drive, carved into the near-vertical face of Chapman's Peak between Hout Bay and Noordhoek near Cape Town, packs 114 curves into just 9 kilometers. The road was carved out of the rock face between 1915 and 1922 and offers uninterrupted views of the Atlantic Ocean and the distant mountains of the Cape Peninsula.

11. Cabot Trail — Canada

• Location: Nova Scotia, Canada
• Length: 298 km
• Highlights: Cape Breton Highlands, whale watching
• Best Time: June to October (fall foliage in October)

The Cabot Trail loops around the northern tip of Nova Scotia's Cape Breton Island, passing through the Cape Breton Highlands National Park. The drive combines dramatic coastal cliffs, dense boreal forests, and charming Acadian and Scottish fishing villages. October brings spectacular fall foliage, and pilot whale sightings are common from June to September.

12. Atlantic Road — Norway

• Location: Møre og Romsdal, Norway
• Length: 8.3 km
• Highlights: Wave-swept bridges, stormy seas
• Best Time: Year-round (storms add drama)

The Atlantic Road (Atlanterhavsveien) is a short but spectacular stretch of road connecting a series of islands in western Norway via eight bridges. The most famous section, the Storseisundet Bridge, curves dramatically upward and appears to launch cars into the sky from certain angles. During storms, waves crash over the road and bridges, creating extraordinary — if terrifying — driving conditions.

13. Milford Road — New Zealand

• Location: Te Anau to Milford Sound, South Island
• Length: 119 km
• Highlights: Mirror Lakes, Homer Tunnel, Milford Sound
• Best Time: November to March

The Milford Road (State Highway 94) travels from Te Anau through Fiordland National Park to Milford Sound, widely considered one of the most beautiful fjords on Earth. The drive passes Mirror Lakes, dense temperate rainforest, and enters the Homer Tunnel — a narrow, unlit tunnel carved through solid granite. The arrival at Milford Sound, with Mitre Peak rising 1,692 meters from the water, is unforgettable.

14. Ruta 40 — Argentina

• Location: Cabo Virgenes to La Quiaca
• Length: 5,194 km
• Highlights: Patagonian steppe, Andes, wine regions
• Best Time: November to March

Ruta 40 is one of the longest national routes in the world, stretching over 5,000 kilometers along the spine of the Argentine Andes from Patagonia to the Bolivian border. The drive passes through at least 20 national parks, crosses 18 major rivers, and traverses landscapes ranging from Patagonian steppe and glacial lakes to high-altitude deserts and wine-producing valleys around Mendoza.

15. Hai Van Pass — Vietnam

• Location: Da Nang to Hue, Vietnam
• Length: 21 km
• Highlights: Mountain pass, ocean views, French bunkers
• Best Time: February to May

The Hai Van Pass ("Pass of the Ocean Clouds") crosses the Truong Son mountain range between Da Nang and Hue in central Vietnam. The winding road climbs to 496 meters, offering sweeping views of the South China Sea and Danang Bay. French-built fortifications at the summit are a reminder of the pass's strategic military importance. The Top Gear team declared it one of the best coastal roads in the world.

Key Facts

• The Wild Atlantic Way in Ireland at 2,500 km is one of the longest defined coastal touring routes in the world.
• Ruta 40 in Argentina stretches over 5,194 km — longer than the distance from London to New York.
• The Transfagarasan in Romania was built as a military strategic road on the orders of dictator Ceausescu.
• Norway's Atlantic Road is only 8.3 km long but consistently ranked among the world's most beautiful drives.
• The Great Ocean Road in Australia was built as a war memorial by returned WWI soldiers.

Fun Facts

• Iceland's Ring Road passes more waterfalls (over 30 notable ones) than traffic lights along its entire 1,322-kilometer length.
• Chapman's Peak Drive near Cape Town packs 114 curves into just 9 kilometers of road.
• The Transfagarasan was named "the best road in the world" by BBC's Top Gear, catapulting it to global fame overnight.
• Route 66 crosses three time zones — Central, Mountain, and Pacific — on its journey from Chicago to Santa Monica.

Final Thoughts

The world's most scenic drives prove that the journey truly can be the destination. Whether you're navigating Norway's storm-lashed Atlantic Road, cruising California's sun-drenched Pacific Coast Highway, or winding through Romania's Carpathian switchbacks, these roads offer experiences that no flight or train ride can replicate. The best advice: slow down, stop often, and let the landscape unfold at its own pace.