Mapping out the ultimate U.S. road trip

The U.S. is a beguiling place to explore. And a road trip around the country is something that’s on just about everyone’s bucket list.

Seeing National Parks, small towns, expansive beaches and beautiful stretches of open land is something everyone should do at least once in their lifetime.

However, one of the hardest parts of planning a road trip is figuring out where to stop along the way. So where to start?

Mapping it out

Dr. Randy Olson, the Lead Data Scientist at Life Epigenetics, Inc., did the legwork by creating a map of the optimal U.S. road trip. Olson’s map stops at all major U.S. landmarks, making a complete trip around the country.

According to Olson, assuming there’s no traffic (one can dream, right?), the road trip would take around 224 hours (9.33 days) of driving in total.

That’s what makes it so epic — you’ll have to set aside a solid couple months to complete this bad boy.

“The best part is that this road trip is designed so that you can start anywhere on the route as long as you follow it from then on,” said Olson. “You’ll hit every major area in the U.S. on this trip, and as an added bonus, you won’t spend too long driving through the endless corn fields of Nebraska.” What a win.

Here’s the full list of landmarks in order:

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