Under-the-radar road trips
Want to follow a route-less-traveled on your next family drive? Check out these four kid-friendly options.
Route 66 Roadside Attractions
Elk City to Tulsa, Oklahoma
Snap family selfies on the “Mother Road” at iconic sites like the 80-foot-long Catoosa Blue Whale, 66-foot-tall Pops soda bottle, and a 90-foot-tall concrete totem pole.
Extraterrestrial Highway
Crystal Springs to Warm Springs, Nevada
Take this 98-mile route through “the UFO capital of the world” by launching your mission at the Alien Research Center gift shop and returning to reality at U.S. 6 in Warm Springs. Bunk at Little A’Le’Inn in Rachel, the closest town to Area 51.
North Carolina Pirate Route
Atlantic Beach to Hatteras Island
Go on a swashbuckling adventure cruise aboard the Revenge, a 40-foot pirate replica ship; discover Blackbeard’s hideouts; and visit the Graveyard of the Atlantic Museum to learn about shipwrecks along the coast—many of which were caused by attacking buccaneers.
Quirky California Loop
Carlsbad—Joshua Tree National Park—Palm Springs
Start and finish at Legoland for out-of-this-world stargazing, Dr. Seuss-style trees, and the world’s largest rotating tram car (Palm Springs Aerial Tramway) on this 300-mile loop.