Enjoy this collection of the best road trips for couples in the US. From sticky tropical heat to snowy cityscapes, America has everything a romantic road trip could ask for. Starting with these great road trip ideas…
The Best Road Trips for Couples in the US
Nothing can make or break a relationship faster than taking a road trip together. Hour after hour, mile after mile. You either realise that you’re soul mates or… Well, you learn sooner rather than later that it’s time to move on and up!
But presuming that we’re hoping for a romantic road trip, here are the best road trips in the US for couples to take. According to, well, travel experts, alas, not love experts…
Happy road tripping! And to help your love flourish rather than wither and die, take a look at our other road trip planning articles first:
- The Road Trip Planner and Toolkit© that will help you hit the road in no time
- Your road trip checklist: find the road trip essentials for any trip
- 101 fun road trip questions for your next drive
- Road trip quotes to inspire you along the way
- The best campervan accessories that you will actually use
A California Road Trip for Couples
Ah, California. The size of the state means that instead of one romantic Californian road trip, there are several. Hundreds perhaps, all weaving in and out of the Pacific Coast Highway.
But when it comes to the best road trips for couples in the US, these are the Californian routes to zoom in on.
- Los Angeles to San Francisco. Take in two of America’s most famous cities in one trip, passing through Santa Barbara as you go. In between the Hollywood sign and the Golden Gate Bridge, you’ll stop off at national parks and stunning sandy beaches. Perfect for a romantic sunset.
- Loop from LA to Yellowstone and Vegas. This is a true road trip of contrasts. Head from sunny LA to the natural wonders of Yellowstone National Park. Spend a few days hiking, scrambling and relaxing amid nature before heading to the neon City of Sin.
- Loop to San Diego and Palm Springs. Grab a taste of the laid back, sun-kissed life at the coast in San Diego and amid the spas and golf courses of Palm Springs.
Check out our guide to planning a San Francisco to Santa Barbara road trip here.
Highlights
- The Golden Gate Bridge
- The beach at Santa Monica
- The San Diego Zoo
- Yellowstone National Park
Inside Tip
Leave some time to stroll around Venice Beach and Santa Monica in LA at the end of your trip. Snap photos at the end of the Route 66 sign and look out for one of the sweetest bookshops along the coast at Venice.
Where to Stay
Try any one of these gorgeous glamping properties in California to make your road trip stand out.
A Hawaii Road Trip for Couples
Wait, isn’t Hawaii an island?! Or at least a series of islands? What’s it doing on a list of the best road trips for couples in the US?!
Well, my friends, never fear. You can take a road trip through and across the islands of Hawaii. Popular routes start at Waikiki and loop around the island of Oahu. Or on the island of Maui, you can take the road to Hana and bend your way through 620 hairpin turns. The scenery makes it stunningly romantic – unless you’re prone to travel sickness, that is.
- Recommended reading: how to plan a road trip by yourself
Highlights
- Pearl Harbor and the USS Arizona Memorial
- Stunning beaches
- Volcano hikes
- The dramatic Hana Road
Inside Tip
Make sure you use reef safe sunscreen and follow these other sustainable travel beach tips.
Where to Stay
Add a touch of luxury to your romantic road trip by staying at one of these stunning villas in Kauai.
A Florida Road Trip for Couples
One of the most romantic road trips in the world is the drive along the Overseas Highway to Key West in Florida. As the name suggests, the road takes you, quite literally, over the seas for over 100 miles, connecting island after island until you reach the closest spot to Cuba in the US at Key West.
For meteorological reasons, this part of America also summons in some of the best sunsets in the world. So snuggle up beneath romantic sunsets, stretch out on white sand beaches, stroll around the former home of Hemingway and fall in love with your partner all over again on this epic, glittering road trip.
Alternatively, soak up some art and city sights with this road trip itinerary through the west coast of Florida instead.
Highlights
- Swimming with manatees
- The whimsical swirls of the Salvador Dali Museum
- The character of Key West
- Stunning beaches
- The Hemingway history
Inside Tip
Make sure you taste the zing of a Key Lime pie.
Where to Stay
For a really special place to stay in Florida, head to Crystal River and swim with the manatees in an ethical way.
An Alabama Road Trip for Couples
Alabama may not instinctively be at the top of most people’s mental list for the best road trips for couples in the US. But I would say that that’s a mistake.
Alabama is home to many household names. From Martin Luther King Junior to Rosa Parks. From Harper Lee and To Kill a Mockingbird to the home of F. Scott Fitzgerald, author of the Great Gatsby. From wild walks in the Appalachian Mountains to sunset strolls along the sandy beaches of Gulf Shores National Park.
Simply put, a road trip through Alabama should be on any and every US road trip list.
Highlights
- Standing in the church where Martin Luther King Jr preached
- Seeing space history at the Space Center in Huntsville
- Visiting the Civil Rights Museum in Birmingham
- Taking sunset strolls along the white sand beaches of Alabama
- Revisiting the spot where Rosa Parks refused to stand
- Enjoying the oldest Mardi Gras spot in the US in Mobile
Inside Tip
Visit the real Maycomb from Harper Lee’s Mockingbird.
Where to Stay
Soak up views of lakes and sunset strolls along the beach by staying in one of the world’s most sustainable beach properties in Gulf Shores, Alabama.
A New Orleans Road Trip for Couples
New Orleans is a city which knows how to have a good time, from Mardi Gras to jazz cruises and nightly debauchery on Bourbon Street.
But you can escape the crowds and easily find space for a romantic time in New Orleans. And you can certainly do that with a road trip through Louisiana.
Visit plantation homes and appreciate their beauty while also taking in the horrors of the past. Head on a swamp tour and glide amid alligators and marshmallow. Take in the college cities and, once again, stroll along sandy shores you never even realised were there.
Drive the Great River Road. And then realise how much more there is to see with this step by step guide through a road trip through Louisiana.
Highlights
- Stunning avenue of live oaks at Oak Alley Plantation.
- Letting the good times roll in the party city of New Orleans.
- The surprisingly fresh scent of marshmallow on a swamp tour.
- Gourmet oysters in Baton Rouge.
- Following French Acadian history across Louisiana.
Inside Tip
Listen out for any place to stop and have a dance. From Cajun to Creole to Zydeco, music rules in this part of America.
Where to Stay
A New England Road Trip for Couples
Ah, New England, It’s like England, but newer! No, in all seriousness, even if you’re form the UK, New England is a cool area to explore and one of the best road trips for couples in the US.
The main starter city for the East Coast is Boston, home of Harvard, Good Will Hunting and the invention of Facebook. Oh yes, and the original Boston Tea Party.
From Boston, you can tour through all the counties of New England and head south to New York City. Or you can focus and just limit yourself to a road trip through Massachusetts.
And wow, can Massachusetts offer up a lot. The Salem witch trials. The sandy shores of Cape Cod and the Kennedy connection. The pilgrims’ first settlement in Plymouth, plus a more modern telling of the tale through the eyes of the Wampanoag at the Plimouth Patuxet. And the mesmerising tale of the whaling captains of Nantucket.
Highlights
- The history of Harvard in Boston
- The white sand of Cape Cod
- The secret side of Cape Ann
- Seeing history a different way at the Plimouth Foundation
- The beauty and ugliness of Nantucket
Inside Tip
Visit America’s oldest baseball stadium at Fenway Park in Boston.
Where to Stay
Notch up romantic coastal strolls by staying on the isolated island of Nantucket.
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More About Road Trips
You’re in road trip heaven here, as we have everything from a full list of road trip essentials to the Ultimate Road Trip Planner for people who love freedom and hate spreadsheets. Stop worrying about parking charges and rules of the road and get ready for an epic road trip with a great road trip playlist instead. Adventure is waiting…
Road Trip Planning
- The Road Trip Planner and Toolkit© that will help you hit the road in no time
- Your road trip checklist: find the road trip essentials for any trip
- 101 fun road trip questions for your next drive
- Road trip quotes to inspire you along the way
- The best campervan accessories that you will actually use