This Map Shows The Quickest And Ultimate Road Trip Across America

Planning holidays in USA? This map has got you covered for a great American road trip this year.
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A few years back a savvy University of Michigan researcher figured out the fastest route to drive across the US, hitting all the country’s major landmarks before coming full circle.

Using a carefully calculated algorithm, it would take about nine days of driving – or 224 total hours – to complete the 13,699-mile (22,046-kilometre) journey across the United States, according to Randy Olson‘s calculations.

If you’ve got the time to complete the full circuit, you’ll encounter some of the United States’ most famous sights, including Arizona’s Grand Canyon, Washington DC’s White House, New York’s Statue of Liberty and Wyoming’s Yellowstone National Park. And if you were curious, Randy calculated the whole thing in less than a minute. Genius.

Here’s a full list (in order) of everything you’ll encounter on your holidays in USA for an epic road trip:

Grand Canyon, Arizona

Bryce Canyon National Park, Utah

Craters of the Moon National Monument, Idaho

Yellowstone National Park, Wyoming

Pikes Peak, Colorado

Carlsbad Caverns National Park, New Mexico

The Alamo, Texas

The Platt Historic District, Oklahoma

Toltec Mounds, Arkansas

Elvis Presley’s Graceland, Tennessee

Vicksburg National Military Park, Mississippi

French Quarter, New Orleans, Louisiana

USS Alabama, Alabama

Cape Canaveral Air Force Station, Florida

Okefenokee Swamp Park, Georgia

Fort Sumter National Monument, South Carolina

Lost World Caverns, West Virginia

Wright Brothers National Memorial Visitor Center, North Carolina

Mount Vernon, Virginia

White House, Washington DC

Colonial Annapolis Historic District, Maryland

New Castle Historic District, Delaware

Cape May Historic District, New Jersey

Liberty Bell, Pennsylvania

Statue of Liberty, New York

The Mark Twain House and Museum, Connecticut

The Breakers, Rhode Island

USS Constitution, Massachusetts

Acadia National Park, Maine

Mount Washington Hotel, New Hampshire

Shelburne Farms, Vermont

Fox Theater, Michigan

Spring Grove Cemetery, Ohio

Mammoth Cave National Park, Kentucky

West Baden Springs Hotel, Indiana

Abraham Lincoln’s Home, Illinois

Gateway Arch, Missouri

C. W. Parker Carousel Museum, Kansas

Terrace Hill Governor’s Mansion, Iowa

Taliesin, Wisconsin

Fort Snelling, Minnesota

Ashfall Fossil Bed, Nebraska

Mount Rushmore, South Dakota

Fort Union Trading Post, North Dakota

Glacier National Park, Montana

Hanford Site, Washington

Columbia River Highway, Oregon

San Francisco Cable Cars, California

San Andreas Fault, California

Hoover Dam, Nevada

Love maps? Check out this handy map that shows you every single airport’s Wi-Fi codes across the world!

About the author

Luke Abrahams

Luke Abrahams is a born and bred Londoner and is proud to call the capital his home. He mostly writes about popular culture trends and pugs but isn’t afraid to tackle food, art and style from time-to-time.