America’s Best Fall Color Drives

Starting Point: Traverse City

The Route: 100 miles.

What to Expect: Lake Michigan’s northeastern shores have charming coves, towering sand dunes, and tiny fishing towns. Drive along Grand Traverse Bay, where, in the fall, fiery-hued maple and oak leaves stand out against green pine, fir, and spruce trees.

Where to Stop: The lakeside villages of Peshawbestown, Omena, and Northport; Inspiration Point, for views of Lake Michigan and the Manitou Islands; the 19th-century Grand Traverse Lighthouse; Sleeping Bear Dunes National Lakeshore.

Don’t Miss: Visit Kilcherman’s Christmas Cove Farm, in Northport, to pick apples from among 250 heirloom varieties.

—Bree Sposat

Starting Point: Roanoke, Virginia

The Route: 500 miles.

What to Expect: This slice of the iconic Blue Ridge Parkway combines Virginia’s laid-back farmsteads with North Carolina’s Appalachian hardwood forests.

Where to Stop: North Carolina’s artsy city of Asheville; scenic Price Lake; mountain towns such as Blowing Rock, Floyd, and Galax, home to the Blue Ridge Music Center, which showcases the area’s bluegrass tradition.

Stay: The eight-room Black Walnut Bed & Breakfast Inn (Asheville) was created by the architect behind the Vanderbilts’ Biltmore Estate.

—Bree Sposato

Starting Point: Portland

The Route: 450 miles.

What to Expect: The upper reaches of U.S. Route 1 are filled with seaside mansions, striking foliage, and lighthouses set on craggy peninsulas.

Where to Stop: Cape Elizabeth, for lobster rolls at the Lobster Shack at Two Lights; Acadia National Park’s five-and-a-half mile Sargent Mountain Loop hiking trail; off-the-beaten-path coastal towns such as Stonington and Bath; Kennebunkport, for its historic feel and low-key clam shacks.

Stay: The light-filled Inn at English Meadows, in Kennebunk, is an ideal base.

—Bree Sposato

Starting Point: Seattle

The Route: 350 miles.

What to Expect: The northern coast of this still-wild, 5,000-square-mile peninsula is inhabited by elk, cranes and sea otters.

Where to Stop: Olympic National Park’s scenic Hurricane Ridge, for some of the best views of the park’s eponymous snowcapped peaks; Lake Crescent, for a hike to the 90-foot Marymere Falls; Cape Flattery, known for its Sitka spruces and misty coves.

Don’t Miss: On the way back to Seattle, the historic seaport of Port Townsend is lined with Victorian houses and has a thriving boat-building industry.

—Bree Sposato

The Route: 197 miles.

From Bentonville, head east to the funky town of Eureka Springs, full of gingerbread houses and art galleries. U.S. Highway 62 and State Highway 21 then lead past spectacular hardwood forests on the way to the town of Jasper. En route, you’ll find hand-thrown pottery at Osage Clayworks, and have the chance to float in a small boat 10 miles along the Upper Buffalo National River, framed by 500-foot-high bluffs and dense flame-tipped oak forests. Once in town, treat yourself to the Ozark Café’s pecan pie. If you continue along Highway 21 to pick up Highway 16, you can visit the 86-acre Botanical Garden of the Ozarks, in Fayetteville, before riding I-540 back to Bentonville.

Where to Stop: Bentonville highlights include the art-filled 21c Museum Hotel; fried chicken and waffles dinner at Tusk & Trotter; and the Crystal Bridges Museum of American Art, which opened in 2011.

—Bree Sposato

The Route: 75.2 miles.

Foliage Update: maine.gov

Visit the spectacular foliage of Maine’s largest lake, Moosehead. Start at The Forks, Maine’s white-water-rafting hub, then to Jackman, deep in the North Woods. Stop at the Attean Overlook for an extraordinary view of the Moose River Valley all the way to the Canadian border. Head to Rockwood on the shores of Moosehead Lake and spend the night in Greenville. In the morning, drive beneath spectacular tree canopies on unpaved logging roads.

Where to Stop: Overnight at the luxurious Blair Hill Inn; book a moose safari, white-water raft or hike to Moxie Falls, and take a scenic floatplane tour for a bird’s-eye view of Moosehead Lake.

—Margie Goldsmith

The Route: 23.9 miles.

Foliage Update: foliage-vermont.com

Vermont is known as the mecca for serious leaf viewers in the eastern United States. Drive on one-lane highways meandering through valleys and mountains painted glorious shades with yellow alder leaves, purplish-red pin cherry, and brilliant orange and red maple trees. Begin in Waitsfield, where the Mad River runs, continue through Waterbury, and end in Stowe to see Vermont’s highest colorful peak, Mount Mansfield.

Where to Stop: Visit Cold Hollow Cider Mill for a tour and cider tasting; dine at Michael’s on the Hill, with panoramic views of Green Mountain; and shop for local products at Cabot Annex, home of eight specialty shops, including Cabot Cheese, Danforth Pewter and Lake Champlain Chocolates.

—Margie Goldsmith

The Route: 45 miles.

Foliage Update: iloveny.com

The Adirondacks, the largest natural wilderness region in the eastern United States, offers a dazzling palette of autumnal colors in the six-million-acre Adirondack Park, designated “forever wild.” Start in Lake Placid and go northeast on Route 86 along the high cliffs of the Au Sable River to view the sugar maples, American beech and yellow birch trees’ dazzling color display. Pass Jay and Keene, continue up the mountain along Cascades Lake, then head back into Lake Placid.

Where to Stop: Overnight at the Lake Placid Lodge; take the Whiteface Mountain gondola ride; attend the annual Flaming Leaves Festival in October; and go to Santa’s Workshop in Wilmington.

—Margie Goldsmith

See more colorful fall drives featured on Travel + Leisure.