Coast to Coast, USA road trip
Cross Country Road Trip itinerary
A cross country road trip is the ultimate American drive: a coast-to-coast run that threads the great cities, the open plains and the headline national parks into one journey. This itinerary covers roughly 3,500 miles from New York to San Francisco over 12 to 14 days, taking the northern, scenery-first line through Chicago, the Badlands and the Black Hills, Yellowstone and the Grand Tetons, then across the Great Basin to Lake Tahoe and down to the Pacific. If you would rather chase warmer weather and Route 66 nostalgia, the classic southern alternative runs Chicago to Los Angeles on Interstate 40 — there are notes on that option below.
- Duration
- 12–14 days
- Distance
- 3,500 miles
- Start and finish
- New York City to San Francisco (east to west)
- Best time
- Late spring to early autumn (May to September) is the only realistic window. Yellowstone's roads and the high Sierra passes are reliably open only from late May into October, and the northern plains are bitterly cold and snowbound in winter. Early September is the sweet spot — warm days, open roads and thinner crowds once the school holidays end.
See the ready-made plan
The full Cross Country Road Trip itinerary is already plotted in the planner, day by day. Open it to see the route on the map, then drag stops, add your own and keep notes as you go.
Why drive the Cross Country Road Trip?
A 12–14 day cross country road trip itinerary from New York to San Francisco — Chicago, the Badlands and Mount Rushmore, Yellowstone, the Great Basin and Lake Tahoe.
- Chicago's lakefront and Millennium Park
- The Badlands, Mount Rushmore and the Black Hills
- Yellowstone's geysers and the Grand Teton range
- The Bonneville Salt Flats and Lake Tahoe in the Sierra Nevada
12–14 days Cross Country Road Trip itinerary
Day 1
New York City to Pittsburgh
Leave New York and cross New Jersey and Pennsylvania on Interstate 80, climbing through the Pocono Mountains and the long Allegheny ridges — about 370 miles to Pittsburgh, a steel city reborn around its three rivers and the Mount Washington overlooks.
Day 2
Pittsburgh to Chicago
A big Midwest day of around 460 miles across Ohio and Indiana on Interstate 80/90, the toll road that skirts the southern shore of Lake Erie. Arrive in Chicago in the evening and leave the car parked for the next day.
Day 3
Chicago
Spend a full day in Chicago without the car: Millennium Park and the Bean, the lakefront and Navy Pier, the Art Institute and an architecture cruise along the river. It is the last true big city until the coast, so enjoy it.
Day 4
Chicago to Sioux Falls
The first long prairie push — roughly 570 miles across Illinois, a corner of Wisconsin and southern Minnesota on Interstate 90, with the Wisconsin Dells a possible mid-morning break. Overnight in Sioux Falls, South Dakota, beside its namesake waterfalls.
Day 5
Sioux Falls to the Black Hills
Cross South Dakota on Interstate 90, around 390 miles of rolling grassland punctuated by the kitsch of the Corn Palace in Mitchell and the billboards for Wall Drug. Detour into Badlands National Park's moonscape of spires before reaching Rapid City for the night.
Day 6
The Black Hills
A short-driving day among the Black Hills: Mount Rushmore, the tunnels and pigtail bridges of the Needles Highway, the wildlife loop and bison herds of Custer State Park, and the in-progress Crazy Horse Memorial. Overnight again around Rapid City or Keystone.
Day 7
Black Hills to Cody
Head west into Wyoming, about 430 miles via Interstate 90 and the Bighorn Mountains, dropping into the Bighorn Basin. Cody, founded by Buffalo Bill, is the gateway to Yellowstone's quieter East Entrance and a good place to overnight.
Day 8
Yellowstone and Grand Teton
Enter Yellowstone from the east for Old Faithful, the Grand Prismatic Spring and the Grand Canyon of the Yellowstone, then turn south through the jagged Grand Teton range to Jackson. The mileage is modest, around 180 miles, but the day is long and full.
Day 9
Jackson to Salt Lake City
Drive south through Star Valley and into Idaho before crossing into Utah, roughly 290 miles ending in Salt Lake City beneath the Wasatch Range. Stretch your legs at Temple Square or by the Great Salt Lake before a city night.
Day 10
Salt Lake City to northern Nevada
Strike west on Interstate 80 past the blinding white Bonneville Salt Flats, then across the empty basin-and-range country of the Great Basin — around 390 miles of long horizons to an overnight in Winnemucca or Elko.
Day 11
Nevada to Lake Tahoe
Continue on Interstate 80 to Reno, then climb into the Sierra Nevada to Lake Tahoe, about 270 miles in all. Swap the desert for alpine forest and one of the deepest, bluest lakes in the country; overnight on its shore.
Day 12
Lake Tahoe to San Francisco
The final leg, around 230 miles over Donner Pass and down out of the mountains through Sacramento and the Central Valley, finishing across the Bay Bridge into San Francisco — coast to coast complete.
Planning tips
Pick your route: northern parks or southern Route 66
This itinerary takes the northern, national-park line to San Francisco. The classic warm-weather alternative is the southern Route 66 corridor — broadly Chicago to Los Angeles on Interstate 40 via Oklahoma City, Amarillo, Albuquerque and the Grand Canyon — which stays open and mild for far more of the year.
Book the park gateways early
Lodging around Yellowstone, the Grand Tetons and the Black Hills fills months ahead for the summer, and in-park rooms book out first. Lock those nights down before you fill in the city and interstate stops, which are far easier to find on the day.
Respect the long, empty stretches
Across the Dakotas, Wyoming and Nevada, towns and fuel can be a hundred miles apart. Top up the tank whenever it drops to half, carry water and snacks, and download offline maps — mobile signal disappears for long sections.
Plan for a one-way hire and time zones
Flying home from the opposite coast means a one-way car hire, which carries a drop-off fee worth budgeting for. You will also cross four time zones heading west, gaining three hours, so build in a buffer rather than racing the clock.
Cross Country Road Trip FAQ
How long does a cross country road trip take?
Driving coast to coast non-stop takes about 45 hours behind the wheel, but no one does it that way. Two weeks is the comfortable sweet spot for a New York to San Francisco trip with national parks and city stops; you can rush it in a week, or stretch it to three to slow down.
How many miles is a cross country road trip?
It depends on the route. The most direct coast-to-coast drive on Interstate 80 is around 2,900 miles, while a scenery-first itinerary that loops in the Badlands, Yellowstone and the Sierra Nevada, like this one, runs closer to 3,500 miles.
What is the best route for a cross country road trip?
The two classics are the northern route — New York or Chicago west via the Badlands, Mount Rushmore, Yellowstone and Lake Tahoe to San Francisco — and the southern Route 66 line from Chicago to Los Angeles on Interstate 40. Pick the northern route for national parks and summer driving, the southern route for warmer weather and Americana the rest of the year.
When is the best time to drive across the country?
For the northern, parks-heavy route, June to September is the only dependable window, as Yellowstone and the high mountain passes are closed or snowbound outside it. The southern Route 66 corridor stays drivable for much more of the year, with spring and autumn the most comfortable.
Which direction should you drive coast to coast?
East to west, from New York to San Francisco, is the traditional choice — it follows the historic westward journey and saves the dramatic mountains and the Pacific for the finale. Driving west to east works just as well and you gain an hour at each time-zone change rather than losing one.
Is a cross country road trip worth it?
If you have the time, yes. Few drives change as much from one day to the next: skyscrapers and Great Lakes one day, prairie and badlands the next, then geysers, salt flats and an alpine lake before the Golden Gate. It is the trip that shows you how big and varied the country really is.
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