Tag Archives: Blue Ridge Parkway

Travel: Ten Best Road Trips In The World (Condé Nast)

Our list of the 10 best road trips in the world covers everything from Alpine mountain passes and arid desert drives in western America, to lush forests in Japan and India, and the rugged coastlines of Norway and Scotland

Blue Ridge Parkway, USA

Afton to Cherokee, 469 miles (755km)

Just over three hours southwest of Washington DC lies the start of the most phenomenal scenic byway that carves its way through the lush, mountainous forests of Virginia and North Carolina

Great St Bernard Pass, Italy

Turin, Italy to Montreux, Switzerland, 143 miles (230km)

For movie fans, this road is a must-drive after it was immortalised in the iconic opening scene of the original Italian Job, starring Michael Caine. The film opens with a Lamborghini Muria dancing its way over the Great St Bernard Pass, which, aside from a few safety improvements, is still as unspoilt and spectacular as it was back in 1969. 

The Carretera Austral, Chile

Puerto Montt to Villa O’Higgins 770 miles (1240km)

Patagonia is a place that should appear on everyone’s bucket list. This remote, pre-historic wilderness is made of mountains, lakes, forests and fjords, which can all be absorbed from the comfort of a car driving down Chile‘s Southern Highway (Route 7) – the ‘Carretera Austral’. 

The North Coast 500, Scotland

Inverness to Inverness loop around Scotland’s coastline, 516 miles (830km)

One of the best road trips the United Kingdom has to offer is the North Coast 500. As the name suggests, the 500-mile route loops its way around Scotland‘s rugged northern coastline, taking in everything from white sandy beaches to mountains and remote fishing villages. 

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Autumn Travel Video: ‘Blue Ridge Parkway’ In The Great Smoky Mountains

“Sunday Morning” takes us along the Blue Ridge Parkway in Great Smoky Mountains National Park to witness fall foliage. Videographer: Charles Schultz.

The Blue Ridge Parkway is a National Parkway and All-American Road in the United States, noted for its scenic beauty. The parkway, which is America’s longest linear park, runs for 469 miles (755 km) through 29  Virginia and North Carolina counties, linking Shenandoah National Park to Great Smoky Mountains National Park. It runs mostly along the spine of the Blue Ridge, a major mountain chain that is part of the Appalachian Mountains. Its southern terminus is at U.S. 441 on the boundary between Great Smoky Mountains National Park and the Cherokee Indian Reservation in North Carolina, from which it travels north to Shenandoah National Park in Virginia. The roadway continues through Shenandoah as Skyline Drive, a similar scenic road which is managed by a different National Park Service unit. Both Skyline Drive and the Virginia portion of the Blue Ridge Parkway are part of Virginia State Route 48, though this designation is not signed.

Timelapse Travel Videos: “Time Passes” – Great Smoky Mountains & Blue Ridge Parkway, North Carolina

Filmed and Edited by: Richard Steinberger

A timelapse film of the Great Smoky Mountains National Park and the Blue Ridge Parkway in North Carolina. Photographed over a five-day period in August 2020. Shot in 6 & 8 k on Sony a7riii and Sony a7iii cameras. Motion timelapse equipment by Edelkrone.

Music score “Waiting for the Day” by Evocativ.

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The Great Smoky Mountains are a mountain range rising along the Tennessee–North Carolina border in the southeastern United States. They are a subrange of the Appalachian Mountains, and form part of the Blue Ridge Physiographic Province.