A super incredible cross-country road trip is on many people’s bucket lists, make it more iconic by traveling America’s longest road.
The longest road trip in America can be taken by traveling the US 20 from Massachusetts to Oregon. This is the longest single road in America, the trip will take you across 3,365 miles and through 12 states. The longest duration of a road trip according to Guinness began on October 18, 1984, and is still ongoing.
Route 20 is a bucket-list road trip for sure and if you plan it right you can see the beautiful foliage in New England, enjoy Yellowstone National Park, and pick strawberries in Oregon and everything in between.
This can be a trip of a lifetime so save up your vacation time because this trip will take 4-6 weeks.
What is the longest road in America?
The longest road in America is the US Route 20. It is 3,365 miles long and stretches across 12 states. It begins in Boston, Massachusetts, and ends in Newport, Oregon.
US Route 20 goes through:
Massachusetts
New York
Pennsylvania
Ohio
Indiana
Illinois
Iowa
Nebraska
Wyoming
Montana
Idaho
Oregon
US Route 20 will take you through the heart of Boston, Boise Idaho, Craters of the Moon National Park, Indiana Dunes National Park, and Yellowstone National Park.
The route will take you across the Mississippi River, the Missouri River, the Finger Lakes and from the Atlantic to the Pacific. You will pass by a lot of interesting landscapes including deserts, bluffs and escarpments.
Keep reading for more really cool stops along Route 20.
US Route 20 runs parallel to Interstate Highway 90 and the name US 20 does get confused at a few points along the drive, most notably around Yellowstone.
How Long Does It Take to Drive Route 20?
As a general rule, a comfortable trip will cover no more than 2-300 miles a day and allow for 2 days of rest between each driving day. Using this formula the trip would take 40 days in each direction.
When planning a more direct road trip across US Route 20 plan to spend at least 8 days driving each way. This is based on the maximum recommended 450 miles each day. 10-13 days would be a much more comfortable trip and much more realistic if you are traveling with kids or pets.
If you have two drivers and you are trying to do the drive as fast as possible, you could cover the distance in 4 days with each driver driving 8 hours a day, but you wont be breaking any records.
The fastest cross country road trip according to Guinness took 25 hours and 55 minutes, but that was not on Route 20.
I have a large family with 4 young children. We are currently traveling and it is very difficult to cover more than 4-6 hours of driving or 250 miles each day. If I was planning this trip for my family I would plan 30-40 days, 15 driving days and 15-25 rest days.
With two drivers, if we wanted to do it faster we could drive while the kids sleep as long as the adults were able to rest.
This is a long trip, but a great one for seeing a large part of America.
This trip goes through some really beautiful National Parks and through some major cities.
I would plan to take this trip beginning in Mass in Summer. The temperatures will be favorable and you can enjoy all the beautiful local foods available. The average high temperature in Newport, Oregon in June, July, and August is in the low to mid 60s.
This trip is likely to help you beat the heat.
US Route 20 Road Trip
If I have convinced you to give a Route 20 road trip a try, here are my best tips.
Tips for a US Rt 20 Road Trip:
- Go in the Summer
- Divide the Trip Into Legs
- Choose 3-4 Major Stops
- Get a Hotel Loyalty Plan
- Be Flexible
Go In the Summer
Plan your trip in either Spring, Summer or Fall to avoid dangerous winter road conditions in the Northern United States.
Driving in snow and ice is difficult even for experienced drivers, if the road conditions become poor, pull over.
I spent my childhood visiting New England and it is magical in the Summer, so I recommend starting this trip in May, June or July. Many shops and attractions do not have air conditioning so when temperatures peak in July and August, you may want to be elsewhere.
Divide the Trip Into Legs
A road trip of over 3,000 miles can be a beast to plan. Make it easier by dividing the trip up into legs.
Use this handy one page worksheet to make a simple plan for where you will stop on each leg.
Since you know you will be driving about 250-400 miles a day, plan your legs to be about that long.
You may find that you spend 3 days at one stop and just sleep and go at another stop. You do not have to make those decisions now.
Choose 3-4 Major Stops
Choose a few attractions that you KNOW you will want to spend some time exploring. This trip includes:
Yellowstone National Park
The Idaho Potato Museum
Sioux City Lewis and Clark Interpretive Center
Cedar Park Amusement Park
Michael Jackson’s Home
Baseball Hall of Fame
Dr. Seuss National Memorial Sculpture Garden
Niagara Falls (off of 20, but close)
Studebaker National Museum
RV and Motorhome Hall of Fame
Lincoln Zoo Park
This list makes it easy to see why this trip can easily take a month or more! There is so much to see and selecting a few that you are very excited about will help you plan and budget for the trip.
Get a Hotel Loyalty Plan
Road trips allow for a lot of flexibility, but if you are booking hotels ahead of time you will need to stay on a tighter schedule.
One of the best ways to plan your hotel lodging is to choose a chain and join their loyalty plan. This will help you select stops and help cut down on the decision fatigue.
Be sure to book your hotel by 2 pm in case you find you will need to travel to find a vacancy. There are a lot of really practical road trip hotel planning tips in the linked post.
Be Flexible
A long trip like this is sure to have a few bumps along the way.
Be prepared to find alternate lodging, stop at an interesting attraction or skip the water park if it starts raining.
Pack jackets and swimsuits and be ready for every possibility.
I have a whole system for planning 1-3 month-long road trips with free printable worksheets and more detailed steps. Grab them in the linked post.
Longest Car Trip without Stopping
There is another definition of the “Longest Road Trip” and that is the road trip that has been going on for the longest time.
That award has gone to a Scottish couple who started their trip in September 1983. They have been traveling in the same Toyota Land Cruser for 13,707 days. This trip is still ongoing.
The longest road trip in one country is a record currently held by an American couple who traveled over 29,000 miles and covered 39 states.
They traveled for 103 days or 14 weeks.
