--- title: "Road trips, the 10 best drives in the world | Wimup" description: "The world’s best road trips, from the Icefields Parkway to Iceland’s Ring Road and Big Sur, ranked by the drive, with route, time and season." url: https://wimup.com/road-trips type: Themed list updated: 2026-10-26 publisher: Wimup (https://wimup.com) --- # Road trips, the world’s best drives. By Wimup desk · 10 picks · 4 films · ≈ 4 min read Ten drives where the road is the reason to go: mountain passes, cliff roads and coastal loops long enough to build a whole trip around, ranked by what you see from the wheel. We ranked these ten by the drive itself: how much scenery each hour at the wheel delivers, then the road and the stops it links. Each route is linked through the guide at one end of it, or through its country where we have no guide yet. ## Road trips, the world’s best drives. ### 1. Icefields Parkway, Canada Alberta Rockies · Canada The best 232 km of road on this list: glaciers, icefields and turquoise lakes line Highway 93 from Lake Louise to Jasper, with Peyto Lake and the Columbia Icefield on the way. Parks Canada lists one gas station and no cell coverage, so fill up first. - **Route:** Lake Louise–Jasper - **Time:** 1–2 days - **Season:** Jun–Sep Links: [Canada guide](https://wimup.com/country/canada.md) ### 2. Ring Road, Iceland Route 1 · Iceland Route 1 circles Iceland for more than 1,300 km, now paved the whole way, past waterfalls, black-sand beaches and the Jökulsárlón glacier lagoon. The south coast earns its reputation; the East Fjords are where the traffic thins out. - **Route:** Loop from Reykjavik - **Time:** 7–10 days - **Season:** Jun–Aug Links: [View the Top 10](https://wimup.com/city/reykjavik.md) · [Watch the Reykjavik film](https://wimup.com/watch/reykjavik.md) ### 3. Pacific Coast Highway, United States California coast · United States Highway 1 between San Francisco and Los Angeles is a cliff road over the Pacific, and Big Sur is the reason to drive it. Through traffic resumed in January 2026 after a three-year landslide closure, so check Caltrans before you set off. - **Route:** San Francisco–Los Angeles - **Time:** 3–4 days - **Season:** Apr–Oct Links: [View the Top 10](https://wimup.com/city/san-francisco.md) · [Watch the San Francisco film](https://wimup.com/watch/san-francisco.md) ### 4. Great Ocean Road, Australia Victoria · Australia The Great Ocean Road runs 243 km from Torquay to Allansford, built by soldiers back from the First World War as their memorial. The Twelve Apostles are the climax; stay a night in Apollo Bay or Port Campbell to see them at dawn. - **Route:** Torquay–Allansford - **Time:** 2–3 days - **Season:** Nov–Apr Links: [View the Top 10](https://wimup.com/city/melbourne.md) · [Watch the Melbourne film](https://wimup.com/watch/melbourne.md) ### 5. Amalfi Coast, Italy Campania · Italy About 50 km of the SS163 from Positano to Vietri sul Mare, cut into cliffs above the sea with Amalfi and Ravello on the way. No road here packs more into a kilometre, and the traffic matches it: drive early in the morning or outside summer. - **Route:** Positano–Vietri sul Mare - **Time:** 1–2 days - **Season:** Apr–Jun, Sep–Oct Links: [Italy guide](https://wimup.com/country/italy.md) ### 6. Transfăgărășan, Romania Southern Carpathians · Romania Ceaușescu’s 151 km road over the Făgăraș Mountains climbs to 2,042 m at Bâlea Lake through a stack of hairpins. Snow keeps the high section shut most of the year: it usually opens in early July and closes by the end of October. - **Route:** Bascov–Cârțișoara - **Time:** 1 day - **Season:** Jul–Oct Links: [View the Top 10](https://wimup.com/city/sibiu.md) ### 7. Carretera Austral, Chile Aysén · Chile Chile’s Route 7 runs more than 1,000 km from Puerto Montt to Villa O’Higgins through fjords, rainforest and hanging glaciers, with ferries where the road runs out. Long stretches are still gravel, so take it slowly, with a good spare tyre. - **Route:** Puerto Montt–Villa O’Higgins - **Time:** 2–3 weeks - **Season:** Dec–Mar Links: [Chile guide](https://wimup.com/country/chile.md) ### 8. North Coast 500, Scotland Scottish Highlands · United Kingdom A 516-mile loop from Inverness through Applecross, Ullapool and Durness, where the far north of Scotland is at its emptiest. Much of the west is single-track road with passing places; use them to let faster traffic by. - **Route:** Loop from Inverness - **Time:** 7–10 days - **Season:** May–Sep Links: [United Kingdom guide](https://wimup.com/country/united-kingdom.md) ### 9. Garden Route, South Africa Western Cape · South Africa The N2 from Mossel Bay to Storms River, about 200 km, links lagoons, forest and the Tsitsikamma coast, with Knysna and Plettenberg Bay as the stops. Short enough for a day and good enough for a week; Gqeberha is the airport at the eastern end. - **Route:** Mossel Bay–Storms River - **Time:** 3–5 days - **Season:** Oct–Apr Links: [View the Top 10](https://wimup.com/city/gqeberha.md) ### 10. Wild Atlantic Way, Ireland West coast · Ireland Ireland’s 2,500 km signed coastal route runs from Kinsale to Muff in Donegal, through Kerry, the Cliffs of Moher and Connemara. Few drive it whole: pick a county or two and take the small roads out to the headlands. - **Route:** Kinsale–Muff - **Time:** 2 weeks+ - **Season:** May–Sep Links: [View the Top 10](https://wimup.com/city/cork.md) · [Watch the Cork film](https://wimup.com/watch/cork.md) ## FAQs ### What is the most scenic road trip in the world? On our ranking, the Icefields Parkway in the Canadian Rockies: 232 km of glaciers and lakes with almost nothing built in between. Iceland’s Ring Road and Big Sur on California’s Highway 1 come next. ### How many days do you need for Iceland’s Ring Road? Plan seven to ten days for the full loop of more than 1,300 km. It can be driven faster, but the side trips to waterfalls, glaciers and the East Fjords are what take the time, and summer is the easy season. ### Is Highway 1 through Big Sur open? Highway 1 reopened to through traffic in January 2026, after landslides had closed it since early 2023. The coast stays prone to slides after heavy rain, so check Caltrans QuickMap before you drive. ### When is the Transfăgărășan open? The high section over the Făgăraș Mountains normally opens in early July and closes by the end of October, depending on snow. Outside that window, Bâlea Lake is reached from the north by cable car. ### Do I need a park pass for the Icefields Parkway? Yes, if you stop. The whole road runs through Banff and Jasper national parks, and every visitor stopping in them needs a Parks Canada pass, which you can buy online or at the park gates. ## Sources - Rankings are Wimup editorial picks. Prices, durations and budgets are editorial estimates, not live quotes; check the official site before you go.