Adam McCann, Financial Writer

Jun 17, 2019

Summer is the perfect time to hit the open road: School’s out, the weather’s warm, and the possibilities are endless. The only dilemmas? Deciding on a destination and somehow affording everything you want to pack into your itinerary.

Gas prices might be one thing to worry about. They’ve been growing this year, with the national average rising 67 cents between January 1 and May 4. On top of that, you’ll need to consider accommodations, activities and dining. All of these certainly contribute to the more than $761 billion we spend on leisure travel each year.

None of the expense and hassle, however, seems to discourage Americans from traveling. In fact, 53 percent of families traveling this summer still plan to take road trips, according to AAA.

With road warriors in mind, WalletHub compared the 50 U.S. states based on 33 key metrics to find the most fun, scenic and wallet-friendly road-trip destinations — plus those that’ll have travelers pulling a quick U-turn. Our data set ranges from the number of attractions to road conditions to costs. Read on for the full ranking, our methodology and expert road-trip advice.

Main Findings

Best Road-Trip Destinations for Summer

Overall Rank

(1 = Best) State Total Score ‘Costs’ Rank ‘Safety’ Rank ‘Activities’ Rank 1 North Carolina 57.57 9 30 8 2 Wyoming 57.26 1 19 20 3 Minnesota 56.95 25 3 19 4 Virginia 56.52 16 12 16 5 Texas 56.52 4 42 7 6 New York 55.44 48 4 2 7 Louisiana 55.29 2 40 11 8 Oregon 55.14 39 10 6 9 Utah 55.02 22 18 12 10 Wisconsin 54.70 8 8 31 11 Washington 53.45 45 20 4 12 Maine 52.96 32 2 26 13 Michigan 52.93 18 15 28 14 Ohio 52.65 29 22 13 15 Pennsylvania 52.47 43 11 9 16 Massachusetts 50.64 41 7 24 17 Illinois 50.37 38 13 22 18 Nebraska 50.08 15 14 38 19 Florida 50.05 31 50 3 20 Iowa 50.02 23 5 40 21 South Dakota 49.67 11 25 34 22 Georgia 49.57 20 33 27 23 Idaho 49.48 44 9 23 24 South Carolina 49.31 5 49 25 25 Colorado 49.20 35 35 10 26 Oklahoma 49.03 6 34 36 27 New Hampshire 48.74 30 6 37 28 Maryland 48.36 40 31 14 29 Vermont 48.26 28 1 50 30 Nevada 48.18 34 32 18 31 New Jersey 47.68 36 21 30 32 Tennessee 47.65 12 43 32 33 California 47.39 50 37 1 34 Missouri 47.37 13 45 29 35 New Mexico 47.28 14 48 21 36 West Virginia 46.97 7 29 47 37 Arizona 46.96 24 47 15 38 Alaska 46.60 46 46 5 39 Kentucky 46.45 26 26 35 40 North Dakota 46.03 17 17 44 41 Montana 45.20 21 38 33 42 Alabama 44.31 3 44 39 43 Mississippi 43.65 10 41 43 44 Kansas 43.54 27 27 45 45 Indiana 43.12 33 24 42 46 Arkansas 43.07 19 39 41 47 Hawaii 42.63 49 28 17 48 Connecticut 39.41 47 16 46 49 Delaware 39.05 37 36 48 50 Rhode Island 39.02 42 23 49

Ask the Experts

You can enjoy a summer road trip without breaking the bank or compromising your safety. For advice, we asked a panel of experts to share their travel wisdom. Click on the experts’ profiles below to read their bios and responses to the following key questions:

Do you have any budget saving tips for those looking to hit the open road? Do you think more people will take road trips this summer than in previous years? In evaluating the best states for summer road trips, which are the top five factors? How can local officials enhance safety and promote tourism during the busy summer road trip season?

Methodology

To find the best road-trip destinations for summer, WalletHub compared the 50 states across three key dimensions: 1) Costs, 2) Safety and 3) Activities.

We evaluated those dimensions using 33 relevant metrics, which are listed below with their corresponding weights. Each metric was graded on a 100-point scale, with a score of 100 representing the most favorable conditions for summer road trips. For metrics marked with an asterisk (*), we used the square root of the population to calculate the population size in order to avoid overcompensating for minor differences across states.

We then determined each state’s weighted average across all metrics to calculate its overall score and used the resulting scores to rank-order our sample.

Costs – Total Points: 33.33

Average Gas Prices: Double Weight (~8.89 Points)

Maximum Toll Costs: Full Weight (~4.44 Points)

Average Cost of Car Repairs: Half Weight (~2.22 Points)

Lowest Price of Three-Star Hotel Room: Full Weight (~4.44 Points)

Lowest Price of Camping: Full Weight (~4.44 Points)

Lodging Units per Capita: Full Weight (~4.44 Points)

Note: “Lodging units” include campgrounds, hostels, condominiums, villas and lodges.

Cost of Living Index: Full Weight (~4.44 Points)

Safety – Total Points: 33.33

Vehicle Miles Traveled per Capita: Full Weight (~2.34 Points)

Population Density: Full Weight (~2.34 Points)

Share of Urban Interstates Congested during Peak Hours: Full Weight (~2.34 Points)

Increase in Vehicle Travel on Highways (2017 vs 2010): Full Weight (~2.34 Points)

Driving Laws Rating: Full Weight (~2.34 Points)

Traffic Indiscipline: Full Weight (~2.34 Points)

Note: This is a composite metric that measures incidents due to poor behavior: phone use, speeding, aggressive acceleration, harsh braking, and poor turning.

Quality of Roads: Full Weight (~2.34 Points)

Quality of Bridges: Quarter Weight (~0.58 Points)

Traffic-related Fatalities per 100 Million Vehicle Miles Traveled: Triple Weight (~7.02 Points)

Share of Uninsured Drivers: Full Weight (~2.34 Points)

Car Thefts per 1,000 Residents: Full Weight (~2.34 Points)

Rate of Larceny: Full Weight (~2.34 Points)

Violent Crimes per 1,000 Residents: Full Weight (~2.34 Points)

Activities – Total Points: 33.33

Share of Total Area Designated as National Parkland: Full Weight (~2.08 Points)

National Parks Recreation Visitors per Capita: Full Weight (~2.08 Points)

Zoos and Botanical Gardens per Capita*: Full Weight (~2.08 Points)

Amusement & Theme Parks per Capita*: Full Weight (~2.08 Points)

Fairs and Festivals per Capita over Summer Time*: Full Weight (~2.08 Points)

Number of Attractions: Double Weight (~4.17 Points)

Note: Nightlife options excluded.

Nightlife Options per Capita*: Full Weight (~2.08 Points)

Access to Scenic Byways: Triple Weight (~6.25 Points)

Note: This metric takes into account both the number of scenic byways and the length of scenic byways.

Historical Sites per Capita*: Full Weight (~2.08 Points)

Miles of Shoreline: Full Weight (~2.08 Points)

Idealness of Summer Weather: Full Weight (~2.08 Points)

Note: This metric is based on WalletHub’s “ Cities with the Best & Worst Weather ” ranking.

Accommodation & Food Services Establishments per Capita*: Full Weight (~2.08 Points)

State & Local Direct General Expenditures on Parks & Recreation per Capita: Full Weight (~2.08 Points)



Videos for News Use:



Sources: Data used to create this ranking were collected from the U.S. Census Bureau, Council for Community and Economic Research, Federal Bureau of Investigation, National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, National Park Service, The Insurance Research Council, National Conference of State Legislatures, American Automobile Association, The Road Information Program, America’s Scenic Byways, Advocate for Highway & Auto Safety

, NOAA Office for Coastal Management, CarMD, Kayak.com, Kampgrounds of America, TripAdvisor, EverQuote, FairsandFestivals.net and WalletHub research.

Image: Africa Studio / Shutterstock.com

Was this article helpful? Yes No Awesome! Thanks for your feedback. Thank you for your feedback. Sorry! Failed to send the feedback. Please try again later. Submit

Disclaimer: Editorial and user-generated content is not provided or commissioned by financial institutions. Opinions expressed here are the author’s alone and have not been approved or otherwise endorsed by any financial institution, including those that are WalletHub advertising partners. Our content is intended for informational purposes only, and we encourage everyone to respect our content guidelines. Please keep in mind that it is not a financial institution’s responsibility to ensure all posts and questions are answered. Ad Disclosure: Certain offers that appear on this site originate from paying advertisers, and this will be noted on an offer’s details page using the designation "Sponsored", where applicable. Advertising may impact how and where products appear on this site (including, for example, the order in which they appear). At WalletHub we try to present a wide array of offers, but our offers do not represent all financial services companies or products.