Britons are not the only ones rediscovering their backyard this summer, with holidaymakers everywhere searching for road trips and staycation inspirations. Searches for “road trip” have gone up over 75 percent, and with flying still not back to normal and airports’ queues, this could be a long-term “new normal.”
Jumping into a car and heading off on the road is attracting more and more people.
While the world may automatically think of Route 66 when “road trip” is mentioned, Britons may imagine themselves driving the NC500 in the Scottish Highland.
However, the world offers more than these two great road trip options and planning a trip somewhere special doesn’t necessarily mean going away for weeks on end.
It’s not surprising that the term “road trip” has become a popular hashtag on Instagram, a social media platform known for its inspirational content.
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Road trips seem to have become the holiday – and hobby – of choice for many over the past few months.
To figure out where people were going, car buying service Goodbyecar analysed social media data.
To compile their list, the service looked at Rough Guide’s 36 best road trips, on which both the NC500 in Scotland and the Atlantic Highway, running from Bridgewater to Bude feature.
In the new top 10, the UK appears twice again.
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But while the NC500 in Scotland has not gone anywhere, the Atlantic Highway is nowhere to be found.
Instead of an English road trip, another Scottish one joins the classic NC500.
The Outer Hebrides in Scotland give the country two “must-do” road trips, at least according to social media.
Joining Scotland as a road trip destination, the USA also boasts two great routes, while Australia rounds up the top five list.
The North Coast 500 and its 516-mile of Highlands scenery arrives in fourth place. Starting and ending at Inverness Castle, the NC500 is on many Britons’ bucket lists.
Rounding up the top five is the Outer Hebrides road trip, which sees people driving through the islands and take in all the sights in one go.
The full list of the world’s most beautiful road trips
1. Route 66, USA
2. Great Ocean Road, Australia
3. Ocean Drive, Miami, USA
4. NC500, Scotland
5. Outer Hebrides, Scotland
6. Ruta 40, Argentina
7. Tasman Peninsula, Australia
8. Powder Highway, Canada
9. Black Forest, Germany
10. Cabot Trail, Canada
