The 6 Best Foodie Road Trips in the U.S.
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Experiencing local cuisine is at the very heart of an authentic travel experience. In fact, many plan entire trips around culinary itineraries, from food festivals to checking out hot new restaurants. But if you’re looking for an even more eye-opening journey, it can be especially worthwhile to get in the car and hit the road with your appetite. Read on for the best foodie road trips in the U.S., according to travel experts.
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As one of the most geographically and demographically diverse states in the U.S., California is a no-brainer for any travelers looking to get the most out of a food-focused road trip. In fact, you can experience a lot of globally inspired cuisine without even crossing the border.
Kitty Maerz , travel writer and founder of Kitty Meets World , suggests beginning your jaunt down the coast in San Francisco’s Chinatown. There, you can sample tasty dim sum or Beijing Duck before heading south towards Monterey for delicious seafood. Once you’ve had your fill, your next major stop will be for some Danish delicacies in Solvang, a famously quaint town that makes it feel as though you’ve been transported to Europe.
Next, you’ll continue south to bustling Los Angeles. “Of course, here you have a choice of pretty much any cuisine, but your best bet might be Korean,” says Maerz. “Whether you prefer Korean BBQ, bibimbap, or Korean fusion, you are sure to find it!”
You’ll finish up your drive in San Diego, where Mexican delicacies abound. “Just 17 miles from the southern border, you will be sure to find truly authentic food without having to take your passport!” she says.
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Georgia is no stranger to culinary acclaim, from local delicacies in smaller cities to the buzzy restaurants of Atlanta. But according to Pam and Sara Brand , founders of local travel blog Discovering Coastal Georgia , a drive up the state’s relatively short seashore can provide an entirely new perspective on what the state is capable of.
They recommend taking U.S. Highway 17 from south to north as your route and staying off the interstate. This will provide you with the same experience drivers had almost a century ago before the expressways were constructed
“You’ll begin with a super casual (almost dive-style) location in Kingsland named Ops,” says Sara. “The fish and chips are excellent, and their small Greek salad is big enough to be a meal.”
From there, you’ll head north to the small port city of Brunswick. “Downtown, you’ll find fun pub grub at Tipsy McSway’s or barbecue at Twin Oaks,” says Pam. “It’s been there since 1943, so you know it’s got to be great with that kind of staying power.”
Continue north to the shrimping capital of Georgia, the historic village of Darien. “Skipper’s Fish Camp is a sprawling place right on the water with views of the picturesque shrimp boats,” says Sara. “Guess what we recommend here? That’s right: You can’t go wrong with shrimp!”
After an additional hour’s drive, you’ll arrive in Coastal Georgia’s most famous town: Savannah. “The culinary options are practically endless, but whatever you have, we suggest winding down with a nightcap at a rooftop bar like Peregrin or Myrtle & Rose,” says Sara.
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New York is a multifaceted state, from the bright lights of New York City to the rustic charm of the Adirondacks. Naturally, this leads to a lot of possibilities when it comes to exploring great food, impressive wine, and stunning scenery—but especially in the Finger Lakes.
According to Matt Read and Alex DeRosa , hosts of the cooking show Spatchcock Funk on PBS, a drive through the storied region provides a chance to eat and drink in “one of the most beautiful places in the entire country.”
“Cruise up the Erie Canal and lock in at Lock 24 in Baldwinsville for a small plates scratch kitchen named BG 1,” says Read, adding that a seasonal menu there never disappoints. “There’s usually the right blend of locals and Great Loop visitors to share stories with over the acoustic rock playlist that has the coolest laid-back vibe.”
From there, you’ll continue deeper into the FLX (the local acronym) to Anyela’s Vineyards, which they say has more views and “a vibe that can’t be beaten,” thanks to its approachable sophistication. Here, you can sample some of the best wines from the region while working on a charcuterie plate and taking in the scenery.
Your next stop should be Elephant and the Dove in downtown Skaneateles, where you’ll find creative Mexican cuisine. “The vibe inside is eclectic, surprising, and just smooth all around,” says Read. “The tacos and the margaritas are worth the time, and they constantly change the menu based on what’s around that season.”
Finally, you can end your driving with a meal at F.L.X. Table in Geneva, which Read says is a love letter to the area. “They have incredibly talented chefs—some of whom have worked in Michelin kitchens—that set you up family style with a whole bunch of options,” he tells Best Life . “It’s a great mix of high-end and down-home food that goes with anything. And if you’ve got room, check out their equally impressive fried chicken joint next store!”
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An hour north of Seattle, the Skagit Valley has long drawn in crowds for its stunning tulip fields. But according to Adria Saracino , travel expert and owner of The Emerald Palate , local agriculture and access to amazing seafood make it worth a culinary-focused trip alone.
“I always send people here so they can experience both surf and turf on their culinary adventures,” she says. “And the best part is that pretty much every business is an under-the-radar mom-and-pop shop.”
She suggests starting at The Rex Bar & Grill—which is located in a converted historic gas station—for some exceptional road trip sandwiches. Nibble on them as you meander through the valley and stop at the various farm stands to pick up goodies. “Some of my favorites include Waxwing Farms, Boldly Grown Farms, Hedlin Farms, and the famous Snow Goose Produce where people wait in line for ice cream,” she says.
Saracino also suggests diving into the thriving local craft beer scene. “Many breweries use malt made with grains grown right in the valley,” she says. “Some of my favorites include Farmstrong Brewing for their approachable beers and family-friendly vibe; Garden Path Fermentation for their funky brews using yeast caught from the air; and Terramar Brewstillery, which has a gorgeous patio overlooking a slough and homemade spirits in addition to beers.”
Next up should be seafood sampling, which she suggests doing by visiting Taylor Shellfish Farms on the famous Chuckanut Drive. But while this is considered the quintessential Skagit experience, Saracino says she loves visiting the smaller fish shacks to truly understand the region’s seafood.
“First up should be Skagit’s Own Fish Market where you can find both fresh fish and delicious seafood snacks like oyster ‘po boys and lobster rolls,” she suggests. “Next head to The Oyster Shuckers, owned by an oyster farmer who wanted to create a seafood-forward taqueria and oyster shop. Don’t miss the grilled oysters either on a tray or in a taco!”
And to round things out, any foodie road trip in the region must include Bow and Edison. “This button of a town is small, but it’s lined with excellent foodie stops,” she says. “The most famous is Breadfarm, which is a leader in the local grain-to-table movement. There’s also Slough Foods for charcuterie and wine, Mariposa for tacos, Tweets for breakfast, and Samish Cheese for homemade cheeses.”
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Kentucky provides one of the best on-the-ground culinary crawls you can find east of the Mississippi. Lia Garcia , founder of Louisville Food Tours , says it’s best to start your trip in Louisville, the biggest city in the state and home to several of its best culinary creations.
“Experience the Hot Brown—an open-faced turkey, bacon, and tomato sandwich smothered in cheesy Mornay sauce—where it was created at the glamorous Brown Hotel,” she suggests. “Then, visit Muth’s Candies to try a caramel-covered marshmallow Modjeska, a Louisville original.”
No trip to Kentucky would feel complete without sampling some of its namesake chicken. On your next stop, head to Claudia Sanders’ restaurant in Shelbyville to taste Kentucky-style fried chicken cooked in the style of the master himself, Colonel Sanders , founder of the iconic chain.
On your way to the bourbon distilleries near Frankfort, Kentucky’s capital city, Garcia suggests a stop at Rebecca Ruth Candy to experience the “perfection that is the Bourbon Ball,” a buttery truffle made with bourbon, pecans, and chocolate. Then, head to Holly Hill Inn in Midway, just outside of Lexington, to experience the Kentucky cooking of renowned Chef Ouita Michel . “The fine dining menu changed seasonally and features farmer-to-table Southern food made from Kentucky’s best,” she says.
Looking for a true local specialty? Down along the Ohio River is Owensboro, Kentucky’s barbecue capital and home to a traditional, Kentucky-style barbecued mutton that you’ll only find in one place. “Try it at Moonlite Bar-B-Q Inn, where folks will drive hours to experience their lunch buffet,” says Garcia. “And pair your hickory-smoked mutton with another Kentucky creation: A rich stew called Burgoo.”
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For centuries, travelers have been drawn to New England by the promise of mouthwatering seafood pulled fresh from its coastal waters. Fortunately, it’s easy enough to get in a wide range of what the charming region has to offer on little more than a tank of gas.
Your scenic trip should start with some classic New England clam chowder at Boston’s Union Oyster House—the purported “oldest restaurant in the United States,” says Joe Bowab , CEO and founder of Maine-based premium seafood delivery company Lobster Anywhere .
Then, head north to Portsmouth, New Hampshire, a quaint and often overlooked coastal town. There, you’ll be able to enjoy buttery lobster rolls at The Beach Plum and revel in historical buildings and waterfront landscapes.
Just short of an hour down the road, your final destination will be Portland, Maine, where the rugged coastline and spectacular lighthouses set the scene for a seafood extravaganza.
“From fresh oysters at Eventide Oyster Co. to the famous Maine lobster at The Lobster Shack at Two Lights, you’ll get a taste of it all,” says Bowab. “With all those bustling harbor views, iconic landmarks like Boston Common, and vibrant waterfront districts, this is a road trip perfectly balanced between taste and sightseeing.”
30 Travel Movies to Help Inspire Your Next Trip
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One of the great things about movies is that they can take you places without you having to squeeze into an uncomfortable airplane seat or with all the other hassles that real-life travel entails. There are lots of great movies about people setting out to see the world , so let the big screen scratch your wanderlust by checking out these 31 films.
Some of the movies on this list are romantic, following two people as they come together in that special way that happens when you’re away from home. Others are about journeys of self-discovery, showing what can happen when you hit the road solo. Some movies are uproarious comedies that will transport you away from your troubles as you laugh along to the antics on screen. There are also movies that are less of a vacation than they are an adventure, sure to get your blood pumping. And there are some scary movies about travel—the sort that might make you think, “You know, actually, maybe let’s make this one a staycation.”
Don’t bother packing your bags. All you need to do is hit “play” to embark on any one of these 30 great travel movies.
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Romantic Travel Movies
Diane Lane stars in this charming 1996 movie as a recently divorced woman who travels to Italy in an attempt to break out of her post-divorce funk. (In her defense, her husband was cheating on her and he got to keep the house, so she’s right to be miffed.) Once in Tuscany, though, she somehow becomes the owner of a villa, and as she begins to make a new life for herself, the potential for new love emerges amidst some of the most beautiful scenery and delicious-looking wine ever put to film. It’s the type of movie that will have you looking up flights to Florence.
A destination wedding counts as travel, and the breakout comedy of 2023 was shot on location in Australia. Glenn Powell and Sydney Sweeney play two people who left on bad terms after a one-night stand only to have to make nice when their mutual friends get married. Anyone But You is enough to make you want to take a trip Down Under, although perhaps without all the rom-com shenanigans.
Kate Winslet and Cameron Diaz play lovelorn women who swap homes so that they can get away from their respective heartbreaks over Christmastime. When Winslet’s Iris and Diaz’s Amanda get to Los Angeles and London, respectively, they find new love in Jack Black and Jude Law’s characters. The 2006 movie, from the great Nancy Meyers , works extra well as a travel movie because, thanks to the house-swapping premise, it’s a reminder that everyone’s home is somebody else’s trip.
The first of Richard Linklater’s Before trilogy introduces audiences to Ethan Hawke’s Jesse and Julie Delpy’s Céline as they meet on a train from Budapest and decide to spend the night together wandering Vienna. Widely regarded as one of the more romantic movies ever made, Before Sunrise will also make you want to explore Vienna with someone you’ve just met—someone who maybe you could see yourself spending the rest of your life with.
Technically, Woody Allen’s Midnight in Paris is a travel movie (because Owen Wilson’s character is visiting Paris with his fiancee, played by Rachel McAdams ) and a time travel movie (because he goes back in time to 1920s). It’s a romantic movie both because of the relationship Wilson’s Gil strikes up with Marion Cotillard’s Adriana and because of how it romanticizes Paris and nostalgia—and deftly interrogates that romanticism.
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Movies About Traveling Solo
Dev Patel stars in this 2016 film, which is based on the true story of Saroo Brierley , who was separated from his parents in India at a very young age and adopted by an Australian couple. Once he grew up, he went back to his birth country in an attempt to find his biological parents. Saroo’s trek through India and into his own forgotten past is a tear-jerking, emotional travel story, and Lion was rewarded with six Oscar nominations.
This 2014 adaptation of Cheryl Strayed’s memoir Wild: From Lost to Found on the Pacific Crest Trail stars Reese Witherspoon as Strayed sets out to hike from Southern California to Washington State in an attempt to find herself. The tour of the West Coast’s trails is a tour-de-force for the actor as her character remakes her life one hiking boot-clad step at a time.
In 1977, Robyn Davidson set out on a nine-month journey across the unforgiving Australian Outback with her dog and four camels. She later wrote about her adventure in National Geographic and in her memoir Tracks . In 2013, her story was adapted into a film with the same name. Mia Wasikowska plays Davidson in the movie, which features stunning cinematography of the Australian desert in all its harsh beauty.
A lot of solo travel stories are tales of self-discovery where the voyager has learned something by the time they reach their destination. Into the Wild offers no such catharsis, instead telling the true story of Christopher McCandless , a man who hiked across America and eventually ended up in the Alaskan wilderness—an environment he was not prepared for. It’s a poignant, tragic counterpart to the more common celebrations of wanderlust you tend to see in pop culture.
Julia Roberts stars as Elizabeth Gilbert in this 2010 adaptation of her memoir of post-divorce travel and self-discovery. Feeling her life is aimless and without purpose, Liz elects to travel around the world, stopping in Italy, India, and Bali where she eats, prays, and well, you can probably guess.
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Travel Horror Movies
Ari Aster’s supremely disturbing folk horror movie stars Florence Pugh as a young woman who is begrudgingly invited by her not-great boyfriend and his friends to go to Sweden to observe a commune’s midsummer festival. Upon getting there, Pugh’s Dani soon learns that the Hårga are not all sunshine and flowers, and that there are dark rituals and sinister plots. It’s the type of movie that will make you think twice about a Nordic vacation, and you’ll never look at a taxidermied bear the same way.
This 2005 horror movie, from director Eli Roth , is one of the biggest examples of the so-called “torture porn” subgenre, but there’s more to Hostel than just blood and guts. (There are a lot of blood and guts, though.) The film follows some American backpackers who, while traveling in Eastern Europe, become the victims of a shadowy organization that lets the ultra-rich live out their most depraved fantasies by torturing and killing unsuspecting tourists. Let’s just say that Hostel is not exactly a great promotional tourism campaign for Slovakia—something that the country was actually pretty upset about .
This 2022 film, released by the horror-centric streaming service Shudder, follows a social media influencer who, when traveling in Thailand, meets and befriends a young woman. It’s the type of movie that lives or dies on its twists, but let’s just say that Influencer is what you would get if The Talented Mr. Ripley were set in the social media age and a full-on horror film instead of a thriller.
The Creator director Gareth Edward’s 2010 debut follows a photojournalist as he tries to escort a young woman through Mexico, which has been taken over by kaiju-sized alien monsters. There are moments of beauty and discovery along their journey, as well as high-stress moments of terror when they encounter these creatures, which Edwards brings to life on a shoestring budget—though you can’t tell that by watching.
It’s right there in the title: John Landis’ 1980 comedy horror is about an American in London, although he’s not a werewolf when he first arrives in the UK. No, that happens after he’s mauled by a strange beast in the moors of Yorkshire—and that same beast kills the friend he was backpacking with. When he recovers in London, things get gnarly in the light of a full moon.
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Comedy Movies About Traveling
If you like the misadventures of the Griswold family’s first vacation attempt, great news: There are five sequels to this 1983 Chevy Chase comedy. Before the European , Vegas , or Christmas Vacation , though, Clark Griswold tries to drive his family from Chicago to southern California. Their journey makes for some classic comedy, though it might hit a bit too close to home if you’ve had to endure a family vacation that went awry.
A lot of Wes Anderson’s movies are about travel, including his most recent film, Asteroid City , and The Grand Budapest Hotel . His ultimate travel movie, though, is 2007’s The Darjeeling Limited , which stars Owen Wilson , Adrien Brody , and Jason Schwartzman as three estranged brothers who agree to make a trip through India together in the hopes of reconnecting after their father’s death.
Lots of movies are about travel, but are they about a big adventure, the way Tim Burton’s directorial debut is? Paul Reubens stars as his Pee-wee Herman character, who hits the road in an attempt to recover his beloved bicycle, which has gone missing. Following a psychic’s totally legit vision of his bike in the basement of the Alamo, Pee-wee encounters a ghost trucker, biker gangs, and all the madness of a Hollywood backlot.
Netflix’s Oscar-nominated animated movie has a setup that’s not too dissimilar from that of National Lampoon’s Vacation . Aspiring filmmaker Katie Mitchell can’t wait to get away from her family and start film school. Her dad, voiced by Danny McBride , feels his daughter slipping away and opts to have the whole fam drive her across the country rather than take a plane to school. At the same time, an A.I. gone rogue has started a robot uprising. Oops!
In addition to featuring a hall-of-fame cameo from Matt Damon as the singer of “Scotty Doesn’t Know,” Eurotrip is a classic, if not especially intelligent, teen sex romp. It’s not the movie to watch if you want to get a feel for Europe, but it is what you put on when you want to enjoy some good, dumb laughs.
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Adventure Travel Movies
Ben Stiller directed and stars in The Secret Life of Walter Mitty , an imaginative adaptation of a 1939 short story about a mild-mannered man who gets lost in his daydreams. When circumstances force Walter to embark on a trip around the world, he starts living his daydreams for real, going to Greenland and the Himalayas. Featuring a fantastic soundtrack and gorgeous cinematography of some truly beautiful, off-the-beaten-path places, The Secret Life of Walter Mitty is the type of movie that might make you stop just thinking about taking a trip and actually buy a ticket.
William Friedkin , best known for directing The Exorcist , also helmed this 1977 thriller about possibly the worst road trip of all time. When four people, all on the run from their various sordid pasts, find themselves trapped in a remote oil village in Colombia, they are desperate to get out by any means necessary. The opportunity presents itself when the bosses need people to drive boxes of dynamite that are extremely unstable and could blow at any minute across miles of rainforest. There is one sequence in Sorcerer that’s some of the most unbelievably tense filmmaking you’ll likely ever see. (Note that it’s a remake of another classic film, Wages of Fear , should you want another movie that’ll keep you on edge.)
Johnny Depp stars as an average man who finds himself smack in the middle of an international criminal incident when on vacation in Europe after a woman, played by Angelina Jolie , tries to trick the authorities into thinking Depp’s the fugitive they’re looking for. Thrills, laughs, and a little romance ensue.
Charlie Hunnam plays real explorer Percy Fawcett in this adaptation of the book by the same name from author David Grann , who also wrote Killers of the Flower Moon . The film follows the British explorer in the early 1900s as he tries, time and time again, to prove the existence of a mythical city deep in the jungles of Brazil. Think of it as a somber, reflective take on a real-life Indiana Jones, one whose obsession with traveling to hostile environments in search of knowledge may prove to be his undoing.
This gripping survival drama about the infamous 1996 Mount Everest Disaster, as documented by Jon Krakauer in the book Into Thin Air, is the type of film that will probably make you consider an all-inclusive beach resort for your next vacation rather than mountain-climbing.
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Movies About Roadtrips
This biopic follows the man who would become the Che Guevara when he, as a young man in the early ‘50s, travels across South America with his friend Alberto Granado . The film, which is based on Guevara’s trip diary, is both a road movie and a coming-of-age film about an important historical figure, as we see him become radicalized by the poverty and inequality he sees on this journey.
Margaret Qualley and Geraldine Viswanathan star in Ethan Coen’s romp from earlier this year, and it wouldn’t be inaccurate to call Drive-Away Dolls “ The Big Lebowski , but just the silly parts.” Set in the late ’90s, it follows two lesbian friends who learn that the car they’ve rented has a human head and a briefcase in the trunk—and that some shadowy types really, really want whatever’s in that case back.
Burt Reynolds stars in this 1977 classic, which was the second-highest-grossing movie of its release year after the original Star Wars . He plays a legendary bootlegger who accepts a job to smuggle 400 cases of Coors from Texarkana to Atlanta in under 28 hours. Along the way, he encounters a runaway bride played by Sally Field , and Sheriff Buford T. Justice, who wants to stop the Bandit. Smokey and the Bandit also features an incredible theme song, “ East Bound and Down ,” and while the lyrics describe the plot of the movie almost beat-for-beat, you’ll find that it’s a fitting song to blast on your own car stereo when you’re on the road.
Il Sorpasso , which is sometimes given the English title The Easy Life , is a masterpiece of 1960s Italian cinema. It follows a boisterous middle-aged man who decides to take a timid, bookish college student he meets under his wing for a good time out on the road—whether or not the younger man actually wants to tag along or not. Hilarious and poignant when you might not expect it, Il Sorpasso ’s well worth the watch.
This seminal adaptation of Hunter S. Thompson’s novel of the same name stars Johnny Depp and Benicio del Toro as they drive to Sin City under the influence of an absurd amount of drugs. In that way, it’s the ultimate travel movie. It’s about a trip, but it’s also about a trip .
