Why North Carolina Just Landed on Two National "Best Summer Road Trip" Lists, and What That Means for the Mountains

By Jon Tharp, Broker  ·  June 23, 2026

A single state where you can dip your feet in the Atlantic at sunrise, wander a Piedmont city by afternoon, and watch the sun drop behind 6,000-foot peaks by evening. That range is the reason North Carolina just showed up on not one but two national rankings of the best places to take a summer road trip in 2026.

WalletHub published its "Best & Worst States for Summer Road Trips in 2026" on June 22 and slotted North Carolina at ninth overall out of all fifty states. A separate study from Dunhill Travel Deals, focused on budget travel across the lower 48, ranked the state even higher at third. Two different methods, two different angles, and both landed on the same conclusion. North Carolina is built for the open road.

For those of us in the mountains, the timing is hard to ignore. This recognition arrives while Western NC is still climbing out from under Hurricane Helene, and a national headline calling the state a top road-trip destination is the kind of free, credible attention that money cannot easily buy.

What the WalletHub Study Actually Measured

WalletHub did not pull these rankings out of thin air. The study compared all fifty states across 32 separate metrics, then sorted those metrics into three equally weighted categories. Each category counted for one-third of the final score.

The first category was costs, which folded in gas prices, hotel and camping rates, and the cost of car repairs. WalletHub double-weighted gas, since it tends to be the line item travelers feel most on a long drive. The second category was safety, built around traffic fatalities, road quality, car thefts, and congestion. Traffic fatalities carried triple weight there. The third category, activities, looked at scenic byways, attractions, parks, and festivals, with scenic byways triple-weighted and attractions double-weighted.

North Carolina finished with a score of 57.79, just behind Georgia and just ahead of Ohio. Minnesota took the top spot at 61.11, followed by Utah and Louisiana. The Southeast did well across the board, with Louisiana third, Florida fifth, Georgia eighth, and North Carolina ninth.

Chip Lupo, the WalletHub analyst behind the study, summed up the formula plainly. "The best states for summer road trips therefore are those that keep costs low while providing the best driving experience and most fun activities." North Carolina checked enough of those boxes to crack the top ten, and a closer look at the sub-rankings shows exactly where the state pulled ahead.

Where North Carolina Shined, and Where It Stumbled

The state's strongest showing came in the activities category, where it ranked sixth in the nation. That reflects the sheer density of things to do here, from national parks to mountain festivals to small-town main streets that fill up on summer weekends.

The real standout, though, was scenic byways. North Carolina ranked fourth in the country for access to designated scenic routes, beaten only by Oregon, California, and Utah. That is rare company, and anyone who has driven the Blue Ridge Parkway on a clear morning understands why the metric matters so much to a road trip.

Not every category was kind. The state landed at seventeenth on costs, a middle-of-the-pack result, and slipped to thirty-fifth on safety. The weakest mark by far came in the cost of car repairs, where North Carolina ranked forty-sixth, among the highest in the nation. It is a reminder to get the car looked at before a long mountain drive rather than after.

Still, the overall picture is a state that delivers an enormous amount of variety and scenery without asking travelers to empty their wallets. That balance is precisely what the ranking rewards.

The Budget Angle, and a National Park Surprise

The Dunhill Travel Deals study came at the question from a different direction, focusing entirely on affordability across the lower 48 states. North Carolina ranked third with a composite score of 88.94, behind only Arkansas and Oklahoma.

The numbers behind that ranking are worth knowing if you are planning a trip on a budget. Dunhill pegged the average hotel rate in North Carolina at $131 a night and average gas at $3.95 a gallon. Everyday expenses came in about 5.7 percent below the national average, and roughly 47.5 percent of the state's roads were rated in good condition.

The most striking figure was national park visitation. North Carolina drew 18,697,757 visits to its National Park Service sites in the most recent count, across ten NPS locations. That ranks the state third in the entire country for park visitation, behind only California and Virginia. A huge share of those visits flow through the Blue Ridge Parkway and Great Smoky Mountains, both of which sit in or border the western part of the state.

Put the two studies side by side and a clear story emerges. North Carolina is affordable, it is loaded with parks and scenic drives, and it offers more geographic variety than almost anywhere else. The mountains carry a large part of that weight.

The Roads That Earned the Ranking

You cannot talk about North Carolina scenic driving without starting at the Blue Ridge Parkway. Construction began in 1935 during the New Deal era, and the finished route runs 469 miles from Shenandoah National Park in Virginia down to Great Smoky Mountains National Park here in North Carolina. It is consistently the single most-visited unit in the entire National Park System, and it carries a National Scenic Byway designation.

The Parkway gets the headlines, but it is far from the only option. The Cherohala Skyway climbs through the high country between Cherokee and the Nantahala region, offering long ridge-top views that feel closer to the Rockies than the Southeast. The Forest Heritage Scenic Byway and the Waterfall Byway loop through Transylvania County, which markets itself, accurately, as the Land of Waterfalls. Up in Watauga County, the US 421 Scenic Byway gives drivers another quieter alternative.

The sights along these routes do a lot of the work. Mount Mitchell stands 6,684 feet tall, the highest peak east of the Mississippi River. Linville Gorge and Linville Falls draw hikers and photographers all season. The waterfalls scattered across the southern mountains turn an ordinary drive into a series of short, rewarding stops.

These are the federally and state-designated routes that earned North Carolina that fourth-place byway ranking. For locals, they are simply the roads we take to get from one town to the next.

A Ranking That Lands at the Right Moment

The recognition means more than usual this year, and the reason is Helene. The storm hit late in September 2024 and devastated much of Western NC, and the week that followed brought more than a thousand news articles, much of it grim. That coverage left a mark on how the rest of the country pictures the region.

The damage to perception has been measurable. North Carolina's domestic visitation rank slipped from fifth to seventh nationally, leaving the state only about a point ahead of Tennessee. Tourism officials have been candid that misconceptions about the mountains, more than actual conditions, are still steering some travelers elsewhere. As one common phrase in the tourism world goes, perceptions are reality until people see otherwise.

That is what makes a national "best road trip state" headline so valuable. It counters the damage narrative with a credible, third-party voice, and it does so for free. Tourism is the economic backbone of these mountains. In 2025, every dollar Visit NC spent on advertising generated $133 in visitor spending and $12 in state tax revenue. A favorable ranking that gets syndicated across the country functions like advertising nobody had to pay for.

The recovery is real, too. Most WNC roads, scenic byways, and trails are fully open. Downtown Asheville, the hiking trails, the waterfall paths, and the scenic drives are back to normal across much of the region.

What This Means for Travelers Planning a Mountain Drive

If you are mapping out a summer trip, the practical news is good. The Blue Ridge Parkway is largely open and on track to fully reopen its North Carolina length by the end of 2026. The main gap remains between Linville Falls and Mount Mitchell, where crews are repairing roughly 21 landslide areas south of Linville Falls. Phase 1 work covering more than 48 miles wrapped up in fall 2025, and Phase 2 is due to finish in fall 2026.

A popular Parkway section reopened in September 2025, just ahead of leaf season, and tourists returned for fall color last year. That return is a sign the region is finding its footing again.

For a smooth trip, a little planning goes a long way. Check current Parkway closures before you set out, since segments can shift as repair work progresses. Get any nagging car issue handled before the drive, given how the state scored on repair costs. And consider building your route around the towns that anchor these byways, places like Franklin, Sylva, Brevard, Highlands, and Waynesville, where you can stop for a meal, stretch your legs, and get a feel for the small-town character that no ranking can fully capture.

The mountains have always rewarded the people who slow down and take the long way around. A pair of national studies just confirmed what folks here already knew. If spending time on these roads has you wondering what it would be like to wake up to these views every morning, I am always happy to talk about what living here actually looks like.

 

Frequently Asked Questions

What makes North Carolina one of the best states for a summer road trip?

North Carolina ranked ninth nationally in WalletHub's 2026 study because it balances affordability, activities, and scenery within a single state. It placed fourth in the country for access to scenic byways and sixth for activities, reflecting its mix of mountain drives, Piedmont cities, and coastline. A traveler can start at the Outer Banks and end on a 6,000-foot peak without crossing a state line. The state did have weak spots, including a high cost of car repairs, but its variety and the density of national park visitation pushed it into the top ten overall.

Is the Blue Ridge Parkway open after Hurricane Helene?

Most of the Blue Ridge Parkway in North Carolina is open, and the National Park Service expects the full North Carolina length to reopen by the end of 2026. The main remaining closure sits between Linville Falls and Mount Mitchell, where crews are repairing roughly 21 landslide areas south of Linville Falls. That work is scheduled to finish in fall 2026. A popular section reopened in September 2025 ahead of leaf season, and most other WNC roads, waterfall trails, and scenic drives are back to normal.

Which scenic drives in Western North Carolina are worth the trip?

The Blue Ridge Parkway is the headliner, running 469 miles and consistently the most-visited site in the National Park System. Beyond it, the Cherohala Skyway climbs the ridgelines between Cherokee country and the Nantahala area, offering wide alpine views. The Waterfall Byway and Forest Heritage Scenic Byway thread through Transylvania County, known as the Land of Waterfalls. Anchor stops include Mount Mitchell, the highest peak east of the Mississippi at 6,684 feet, and Linville Gorge. Each route is short enough for a half-day outing from most mountain towns.

How much does a North Carolina summer road trip cost compared to other states?

North Carolina ranks among the more affordable options. The Dunhill Travel Deals budget study placed the state third in the lower 48, citing an average hotel rate around $131 per night, average gas near $3.95 per gallon, and everyday expenses about 5.7 percent below the national average. WalletHub was more measured, ranking the state seventeenth on costs overall, partly because car repair costs here are among the highest in the country. For visitors, lodging and dining tend to stretch further in the mountains than in many coastal resort markets.