good car trip movies

27 Road Trip Movies Every Traveler Needs To Watch

The road is one of the most enduring images in film history because it can be used for so many different purposes. It can mean the freedom of adventure, or adventure's inevitable dead-end. Road trips can result in meeting interesting new characters, or they can be the worst kind of isolation or even the worst kind of forced bonding. Filmmakers from all over the world are continually drawn to the road movie and specifically the road trip movie, where a simple car or bus ride can become something much more meaningful. It offers plenty of opportunity for unexpected change, and it often does so in front of beautiful, overwhelming landscapes. They'll never stop making movies about road trips because people will never stop taking them, always wanting to see the sights and maybe become a little wiser in the process.

The 27 films in this list all take their own approaches to portraying the road trip cinematically, emphasizing its best and worst tendencies and playing them for both comedy and drama. But even the worst trips taken here offer something to appreciate, sometimes deep thought about the meaning of the road and sometimes a laugh at the expense of the poor fools stuck in the car.

1. Easy Rider

One of the most iconic road trips in cinematic history was taken by Peter Fonda and Dennis Hopper in Hopper's 1969 classic "Easy Rider." The legendary image of Fonda and Hopper riding their motorcycles while Steppenwolf's "Born To Be Wild" plays remains people's main association with "Easy Rider." But the movie itself is more complicated than just the thrill of riding down wide-open roads. The tagline tells of a man who went looking for America and "couldn't find it anywhere," and that's a good summation of the cynical eye this takes toward the country it explores.

Fonda and Hopper encounter some friendly people in their travels, most famously Jack Nicholson in his breakout role as a drunken lawyer. They encounter just as much resistance as they do support, from people with no tolerance for their countercultural attitudes and long hair. In one scene, Nicholson tells Hopper that people are scared of him because "what you represent to them is freedom," and the film's bleak ending offers little hope that freedom can be maintained in the face of such strong opposition. But the power of the film's images of freedom and joy is still enough to keep this as one of the beloved road movies.

2. Lost in America

Despite its cynicism, "Easy Rider" inspired many Americans to go out on the road themselves, even ones who couldn't be further away from Fonda and Hopper's biker lifestyle. This is the subject of writer, director, and actor Albert Brooks's 1985 film "Lost in America," in which a middle-class yuppie couple (Brooks and Julie Hagerty) hits the road and quickly realizes they can't handle it. By the end of the trip, they've destroyed their lives and their savings, and they've rid themselves of any romantic notions about traveling America without a plan.

Brooks' directorial work is defined by bitterness and discomfort as much as by laughs, and "Lost in America" can be particularly caustic. Brooks and Hagerty sink to some miserable depths during the course of their trip, reduced to begging for the money they just lost gambling or treating each other with naked hostility. A trip to the Hoover Dam doesn't offer scenery, instead serving as a backdrop to the couple's most vicious fight. "Lost in America" is a satire of the waste and excess of the American '80s, but it's also a reminder to make sure you've carefully thought through your road trip before you embark on one. Some people aren't ready for the road, and Brooks and Hagerty learn that too late.

3. The Color Wheel

Getting stuck with someone annoying on a long road trip can be a miserable experience, so spending the entirety of the 2011 comedy "The Color Wheel" with two annoying people on a road trip can make it a tough sell. But the film's writer-director, Alex Ross Perry, has an uncommon talent for writing people who only seem to be awful and irritating so that they're both funnier and more tragic than they would be in real life. That skill serves him especially well for the two leads of "The Color Wheel," an obnoxious brother and sister (played by Perry and Carlen Altman) whose road trip through New England leads them to meet strangers and old friends who are all even more awful than they are. The scenery offers little comfort when every scene becomes a passive-aggressive argument.

"The Color Wheel" is above all else a comedy, happy to laugh at its main characters for their abysmal social skills and undisguised contempt for each other and everyone around them. But as the trip goes on and they keep meeting hostile exes and classmates, their situation starts to seem a little sad, like they've been molded into hateful jerks by the whole world around them. Their final attempt to escape the cycle of anger and venom is shocking, but it's also unexpectedly tender, because Perry respects his characters even as they embarrass themselves.

Even the awful road trip of "The Color Wheel" can't compare to the nightmare trip taken by the title character of "Zola," and hers really happened. "Zola" was adapted from the famous Twitter thread detailing a disastrous trip to Florida taken by a part-time stripper (Taylour Paige) and a woman she just met (Riley Keough). There's not much time to enjoy Florida on this trip, the scenery consists of strip malls and different men's hotel rooms, and the business Zola has been dragged into quickly spirals into exploitation and violence.

"Zola" is about very bad events in a woman's life, but like the Twitter thread, it believes those events to be hilarious above anything else. The band of fools Zola winds up with can seem dangerous, particularly Colman Domingo's ambiguously accented pimp, but mostly they're all bluster and no brains. When they encounter people who are actually dangerous, they escape by the skin of their teeth. There's tension but never fear in "Zola," and that helps to make it a wonderful comedy even once the blood starts getting shed.

5. American Honey

"Zola" isn't the only movie where Riley Keough is a uniquely awful road trip presence. There's also the 2016 drama "American Honey", where Keough enlists a young girl played by Sasha Lane into a crew of door-to-door magazine salespeople. They travel blissfully across the Midwest, and Lane falls in love with a member of the crew, played by Shia LaBeouf. But their peaceful, off-the-grid existence is threatened by Keough and the precarity of their jobs.

A common thread across many of the great American road movies is that they're not directed by Americans, with international directors often looking at American landscapes in a different way than their American counterparts who've grown up with them. English director Andrea Arnold joins that group of directors with how she films America here, pushing the colors of the landscapes to such extremes that the emotions associated with them are also heightened, whether they be romance or danger. Her beautiful imagery is accentuated by her pulsing soundtrack, which switches between big-name pop hits and obscurities that perfectly match the mood of youthful excitement and negligence that defines "American Honey."

6. Stranger Than Paradise

While road trips can be fun and exciting, they can also be tedious, especially when there's not much scenery to look at. Writer-director Jim Jarmusch expertly captured the boredom of a bad road trip in his 1984 breakthrough "Stranger Than Paradise," in which the three leads take off in search of new experiences and don't find them anywhere they look.

Two of the leads are Hungarian émigrés hoping to find more from America than they did from their home. But the America portrayed in "Stranger Than Paradise" is just the most unremarkable areas of New York, Ohio, and Florida, presented so that the camera is just as unimpressed by them as the characters are. And only the most monotonous aspects of the road trip are shown, like driving through the endless expanse of Pennsylvania or arguing about who has to sleep on the cot when they get to a motel. Despite its tedium, "Stranger Than Paradise" is a very funny study of how the myths of the road can collapse in the face of the realities of going out on the road.

7. Badlands

Not all road trips start from good intentions. The one undertaken by Kit (Martin Sheen) and Holly (Sissy Spacek) in 1973's Bonnie and Clyde story "Badlands" starts after Kit murders Holly's father and burns down their house. That's where the journey begins, and eventually Kit is responsible for much more than one murder. But there's still an innocence to young Kit and Holly's trip, where they create their own society out in the wilderness and encounter all kinds of gorgeous nature. "Badlands," writes Sheila O'Malley for Criterion , is based on the 1958 murder spree of Charles Starkweather and Caril Ann Fugate, but its power doesn't come from its killings so much as its troubling naivete, where the blinkered teenage attitudes of its protagonists and the pastoral beauty of their surroundings say nothing about the horrible violence occurring right in front of them.

"Badlands" was the debut of writer-director Terrence Malick, who would go on to develop a reputation for his eye for natural landscapes. That's present even this early, shooting trees and sunsets so that they appear magical more than natural. But that magic here comes with a terrible price, and Malick seems as disturbed by nature's non-reaction to the evil committed all around it as he is entranced by its power.

8. My Blueberry Nights

Wong Kar-wai has directed some of the most beloved films of all time in his native Hong Kong, but to date, he's only made one movie in the United States. That was 2007's "My Blueberry Nights," which explores the unique geography of America through a road trip starting in New York and ending in Las Vegas. Wong is renowned for his intensely stylized movies, and "My Blueberry Nights" is no exception. Wong's America is beautiful in a way it isn't in real life — only Wong's oversaturated colors and beautiful golden light could make it look this gorgeous. In this way, Wong captures the feeling of a great road trip, of falling in love with every location you pass. And Wong ties all these stunning locales to his usual themes of heartbreak and melancholy, showing beautiful places inhabited by sad, lonely people.

"My Blueberry Nights" is held back from the levels of Wong's best movies by a weak script and inconsistent performances. Otherwise talented actors like Natalie Portman and Rachel Weisz go over the top, while even strong performances from Jude Law and David Strathairn have to go against the bland lead performance from singer and first-time actor Norah Jones. But such flaws don't matter too much in light of how enchanting Wong's vision of the world is. This is the kind of movie that makes people want to keep taking road trips.

9. Alice in the Cities

Few directors are as synonymous with the road and road movies as Wim Wenders, the German director who's made several of the best-loved movies about the road ever made. His most overt takes on the road genre are the three movies that make up his "Road Trilogy," starting with "Alice in the Cities" in 1974. "Alice in the Cities" concerns German writer Philip (Rüdiger Vogler), who follows a disappointing assignment by meeting a woman (Lisa Kreuzer) and her young daughter Alice (Yella Rottländer), then agreeing to go on a trip through Amsterdam. Their trip is marked by complications, boredom, and a lot of music, including a Chuck Berry concert and a jukebox playing Canned Heat. And all the while, Philip and Alice begin to develop a friendship.

"Alice in the Cities" is one of the most lasting Wenders movies, inspiring the work of filmmakers like Allison Anders and Mike Mills, particularly Mills' own adult-and-child road movie "C'mon C'mon." "Alice in the Cities" holds special power for its tale of unexpected companionship, where the road has the magic to bring together people who never would have even met under different circumstances. Even when the sights aren't exciting, getting to experience those sights with someone new can be a rewarding experience.

10. Magic Mike XXL

The success of the male-stripper comedy "Magic Mike" left star Channing Tatum and writer Reid Carolin with the duty of following up a movie that seemed to neatly wrap up at the end. Rather than repeat the first one's formula, Tatum and Carolin decided to go in another direction, turning 2015's "Magic Mike XXL" into an exuberant road trip movie about friends and the joy of performing. "Magic Mike" was an often melancholy movie about the recession, and while there are still economic worries all over "Magic Mike XXL," they mostly take a back seat to just enjoying the chance to escape from them for a few days.

The first film's director, Steven Soderbergh, didn't return to direct "Magic Mike XXL," but he did serve as its cinematographer, and he deserves special credit for how beautiful he makes the film's Southern locations look. Even an ordinary gas station comes to life with Soderbergh's golden light, to say nothing of the beaches and palatial estates Mike and his friends visit on their journey. The beauty of these locations also represents the simple beauty of hanging out with people you love, and this is where "Magic Mike XXL" separates itself from its predecessor. Mike's fellow strippers barely had personalities in the first one, but here they're best friends who love each other's company even as they razz each other. It's a unique pleasure to go on the road with such a tight-knit group.

11. Y tu mamá también

After making 2001's "Y tu mamá también," Alfonso Cuarón stuck to making large-scale spectacles and big-budget blockbusters. But in "Y tu mamá también," Cuarón applies his usual technical excellence to a simple story of a woman and two teenage boys going on a road trip. The Mexican landscapes they drive past are beautifully shot by future Oscar-winning cinematographer Emmanuel Lubezki, and their conversations are profane and hilarious, especially as delivered by Diego Luna and Gael García Bernal in their breakthrough roles. But a serious side creeps into "Y tu mamá también" as it goes on, eventually taking it over entirely.

As the three take their trip, they pass by political strife and Mexican culture soon to die out entirely. The characters may only be passing through these areas, but there are people living in the areas whose lives will be very difficult long after the leads are gone. Despite its main characters' immaturity, this is a surprisingly thoughtful road trip movie, understanding that even the most pristine locales are burdened by troubling history. That also turns out to be true about the main characters' dynamics, where the teenage leads eventually realize the depths of sadness and desperation they and their traveling partner carry with them. But before they get to that point, they have a great time, and so does the viewer watching them.

12. My Own Private Idaho

Gus Van Sant's "My Own Private Idaho" opens with River Phoenix's character, Mikey Waters, saying that he's traveled so much down so many roads that he can recognize the roads just by sight. His life on the road is a beautiful but lonely one until he finds someone he can briefly share it with, a senator's son, Scott Favor ( Keanu Reeves ). Their journeys across deserted roads and rocky landscapes are sometimes silly but mostly poetic and sad, showing two young men as lost in the scenery as they are in their own lives.

Van Sant makes a lot of odd digressions in "My Own Private Idaho," including a sequence with talking erotic magazines and an entire plot loosely adapted from Shakespeare's "Henry IV" saga, writes Amy Taubin for Criterion . But the heart of the film is the relationship between Mikey and Scott, one where Mikey may be the only one of the two to realize how special and intimate it is. A heartbreaking scene at a campfire sees Mikey get tantalizingly close to professing his love to Scott and not quite doing so. While Mikey may have lived his life by the isolation of the road, he needs Scott to share that life with him, and the film offers little hope that this will happen.

13. The Straight Story

The films and TV of David Lynch are usually filled with the darkness and violence that lurk beneath the beautiful landscapes of America. But Lynch still loves those landscapes and the people who inhabit them, and never is that clearer than his only movie to get a G rating, 1999's "The Straight Story." He tells the story of a real-life road trip, where an elderly, almost blind farmer named Alvin Straight (Richard Farnsworth) drove a lawn mower from Iowa to Wisconsin to see his ailing brother (Harry Dean Stanton).

There's not much dialogue in "The Straight Story," especially for the long stretches where Alvin is on his own out on the road, but it's not necessary when Lynch is working with the wide-open expanses of the midwest. He finds magic in the crop dusters and near-empty roads Alvin encounters, setting the sights to a moving Angelo Badalamenti score and making them even more powerful. And when Alvin does meet other people, their encounters are simple and touching, showing the hard lessons Alvin has learned about family over the course of a long, difficult life.

Channing Tatum and Reid Carolin made their directorial debuts in February 2022 with "Dog," which followed the "Magic Mike XXL" model of a road trip encountering lesser-known sections of American life. "Dog" is a sadder movie than "Magic Mike XXL" because the trip's ultimate destination is a military funeral, and along the way, Tatum and his dog co-star must contend with the trauma they've suffered as soldiers. This makes the bond of friendship between Tatum and the dog even more important than it is in "Magic Mike XXL," as it provides both of them life-saving help when they need it the most.

The most impressive aspect of Tatum and Carolin's first directing job is how well they film the landscapes encountered over the course of the trip. They make them symbols of the beauty of everyday life without making them overly stylized. The duo learned well from Steven Soderbergh's visual excellence without merely copying it. While "Dog" has its faults, including some awkward comedy at the beginning and a too-brief attempt to deal with the racism instilled into Iraq War soldiers, the strength of Tatum and Carolin's filmmaking and storytelling suggests that they could have a good future as directors.

15. Kings of the Road

The third film in Wim Wenders' Road Trilogy, "Kings of the Road" is a three-hour opus combining two of Wenders' favorite subjects: the road and cinema. The two titular "kings" are a movie theater projector repairman (played by "Alice in the Cities" lead Rüdiger Vogler) and a depressed psychologist (Hanns Zischler), who band together on a road trip after the psychologist has experienced a life-shattering breakup. They drive across what was then the East German border, touring worn-down movie theaters so that Vogler can make repairs.

"Kings of the Road" offers even less of a plot than "Alice in the Cities" does, also offering one of the purest, simplest depictions of a road trip on film. There's no inevitable endpoint for the characters to reach, just a sprawling journey where they come to slightly better understand each other and themselves. It encompasses all the joy and melancholy of road trips in one package, people searching for more from life hoping that they'll find it behind the wheel.

16. Having a Wild Weekend

1965's "Having a Wild Weekend," also known as "Catch Us If You Can," is technically a vehicle for The Dave Clark Five, the British group that came into popularity at the same time as The Beatles . "Having a Wild Weekend" would seem to put the band in a comedy just like "A Hard Day's Night," but director John Boorman instead made a lovely, melancholy road movie, showing two people trying in vain to escape their confining lives back home.

Dave Clark plays a stuntman who takes off on a road trip with a model (Barbara Ferris) dissatisfied with her position as the face of ad campaigns for meat. On their journey, they encounter the youth who will soon become the counterculture and the old men still obsessed with the imagery of old Hollywood. Everywhere they go, Clark and Ferris are reminded of the culture they're trying to fight against, but they're powerless to stop it. The two have impressive chemistry together, but their relationship is a sad one, one that can only last the length of the road trip even though they're the only people who could possibly understand each other. Even once the remaining four Dave Clark Five members show up to do some slapstick, the tone is more elegiac than silly.

17. Wild at Heart

For a more representative David Lynch road trip movie, there's "Wild at Heart," which manages to be funny and romantic as well as frightening. Sailor and Lula, the giddy young couple played by Nicolas Cage and Laura Dern, hit the road only after Lula's mother has unsuccessfully tried to kill Sailor, and on their journey they'll deal with more killers and more victims. But their love may be strong enough to keep them safe every step of the way.

The giddy energy of "Wild at Heart" is unusual for Lynch movies, which usually have a more deadpan tone. Cage and Dern are balls of energy in this, engaging in grand romantic gestures and, in Cage's case, frequently falling into Elvis impersonations. The world around them has gone mad with rage and violence, the road bringing as many terrors as beauties, and they seem to have adapted to that madness by matching it. The title doesn't lie — these are two wild kids who will let nothing, not even a horrifying figure like Willem Dafoe's psychopathic Bobby Peru, stand in the way of their love. And for all the darkness of the rest of the movie, Lynch is still kind-hearted enough to give them a happy ending.

18. Two For the Road

All the good and bad feelings associated with going on the road are present in 1967's "Two for the Road," and they also represent the ups and downs of a marriage. The good and the bad are shuffled together in a nonlinear style, where pieces of the beginning, middle, and end of Audrey Hepburn and Albert Finney's characters' relationship are presented as a series of out-of-order road trips. There is some beautiful European scenery over the course of the trips, but the fractured editing means that the destinations of the trips are less important than the trips themselves, and how they function as both bonding exercises and sources of arguments.

The film's most hilarious section is when Hepburn and Finney commit the error of going on a road trip with another couple, an obnoxious American family that makes the two sure of the mistakes they don't want to make in their own relationship. But of course they end up making those mistakes, and by the end "Two for the Road" is a bittersweet movie about how difficult and tricky it is to stay close to someone, whether that means marrying them or staying with them on a long car ride.

19. Don't Come Knocking

Wim Wenders and playwright-actor Sam Shepard first collaborated on the 1984 road movie "Paris, Texas," one of the most acclaimed films in the genre. Their decades-later second collaboration was 2005's "Don't Come Knocking," another road movie that couldn't match the critical success of its predecessor. But "Don't Come Knocking" is a very good movie in its own right, finding a lot of power both in western vistas and the tragic figure passing in front of them.

Shepard wrote and stars in "Don't Come Knocking," playing a washed-up Western star who ditches the set of his new movie in favor of driving to Nevada and then Montana, where both cheap thrills and old family await him. As with Wenders' other films, he makes the western settings of "Don't Come Knocking" look incredibly beautiful, shooting casinos, small-town squares, and vast deserts with the same level of vibrant color and light. And it also shares with Wenders' other work a tremendous sadness, where Shepard has abandoned the people who need him most and has only realized this too late to do much of anything about it. This trip may not be able to redeem Shepard, but it can get him one step closer, and that's better than he's done yet.

20. Highway 61

Canadian director Bruce McDonald followed in Wim Wenders' footsteps and made his own trilogy of road movies through the 1980s and '90s. The middle film in the trilogy was 1991's "Highway 61," a joyous comedy about American rock 'n' roll. Highway 61 is the highway named in Bob Dylan's legendary "Highway 61 Revisited" album, and one of the two leads (Valerie Buhagiar) is a rock-obsessed drug dealer trying to smuggle a dead body from Canada to New Orleans. Her partner (Don McKellar) is a nervous, shy barber who prefers jazz. Their odd-couple dynamic is very charming, and it only gets more charming as the trip brings them closer together.

"Highway 61" is led not just by romance and scenic views of all of North America, but by a great soundtrack at every step of the journey, often from obscure local bands McDonald is kind enough to introduce to his audience. And there's also plenty of oddball humor, particularly with a character who may or may not be the devil (Earl Pastko) chasing the two leads. "Highway 61" doesn't have much of a reputation outside of its native Canada, but it's a blissful film that deserves more attention.

21. Get On the Bus

One of the least commonly filmed ways of going on a road trip is taking the bus, perhaps because getting stuck with many unfamiliar people is not the most romantic way to see the country. But Spike Lee found a lot of drama, comedy, and political relevance in a story of a bunch of guys trapped on the bus. That story is 1996's "Get On the Bus," following a group of Black men en route to the famed Million Man March. Lee believes that every one of those million men has their own story, and he fits as many of those stories as he can into one bus.

As usual with Lee, "Get On the Bus" has an impressive cast, including Ossie Davis, Charles S. Dutton, Andre Braugher, and Bernie Mac. The characters touch on social issues, including homophobia and the anti-Semitism of Million Man March leader Louis Farrakhan, but mostly they have frank and funny conversations that naturally reveal their prejudices and moral stances rather than shout them out. Lee didn't write "Get On the Bus" (that was Reggie Rock Bythewood), but it shares the perceptive dialogue and unexpected comedy of Lee's best screenplays, including his beloved "Do the Right Thing." "Get On the Bus" is a smaller movie than "Do the Right Thing," but its confined setting doesn't mean it's any less riveting.

22. Thelma & Louise

The road trip that runs through 1991's "Thelma & Louise" is most famous for where it ends, with Thelma and Louise's car in the middle of a jump off a cliff. But their journey shouldn't just be defined by its endpoint, as the entirety of "Thelma & Louise" is a rollicking ode to female friendship and the healing power of the road trip, showing it as a rare opportunity for two women to take their lives into their own hands.

A few things remain consistent throughout Thelma (Geena Davis) and Louise's (Susan Sarandon)'s road trip, namely the beauty of the southwest locations as shot by director Ridley Scott and the appalling behavior of the men both women meet along the way. "Thelma & Louise" is today best-known as the breakthrough film for breakout film for Brad Pitt , but he's only one of the film's parade of awful, often violent men, including the rapist who begins the journey in the first place. With such overpowering adversity, it's no wonder Thelma and Louise are so tight-knit — they must make their bond as strong as the forces united against them. And their bond can sustain even the steepest fall from a cliff.

23. Little Miss Sunshine

"Little Miss Sunshine" was the sensation of the 2006 Sundance Film Festival (per IndieWire ), its story of a dysfunctional family trapped in a Volkswagen van on the way to a child beauty pageant in California proving irresistible to both critics and audiences. The famous images of the film, like the family chasing after the bright yellow Volkswagen, suggest the kind of quirky, Wes Anderson-inspired comedy that was all the rage in the 2000s. But like actual Wes Anderson movies , "Little Miss Sunshine" deals with real pain and hurt, trapping several very fragile people in a small space where they might all combust.

It's helped by having such a sturdy cast playing those fragile people, including Steve Carell in one of his first dramatic performances, a silent Paul Dano, an Oscar-winning Alan Arkin, and most of all an Oscar-nominated Abigail Breslin as the girl all this trouble is in service of. The movie might have collapsed into road-movie cliches without a strong presence anchoring it, and Breslin, then 10 years old, proves more than capable of being that presence.

24. Two-Lane Blacktop

The most existential of all road movies might be 1971's "Two-Lane Blacktop," where driving is the only way of life for its main characters. But they aren't driving with any destination in mind; they're driving because it's the one thing they know how to do. Car culture was a big part of the '60s and '70s, and "Two-Lane Blacktop" has a supporting part for Dennis Wilson, whose work with the Beach Boys helped to cement cars as the ultimate symbol of cool and independence. But it's not all fun for the characters of "Two-Lane Blacktop," with the emptiness of the road ahead of them also representing the emptiness of their own obsessions and personalities.

Shot on the famed Route 66, with minimal dialogue to distract from the scenery, "Two-Lane Blacktop" is not short on great shots of cars in motion. But "Two-Lane Blacktop" also decries the hollowness of making cars the centerpiece of one's life, showing that a lifestyle based solely on speed and appearance cannot be sustained. The film's most famous line is "Those satisfactions are permanent," but the pleasures prove to be a very impermanent, fleeting bliss that doesn't disguise much deeper troubles.

25. The Adventures of Priscilla, Queen of the Desert

In addition to being one of the great road trip movies, "The Adventures of Priscilla, Queen of the Desert" was also a breakout LGBTQ film when it was released in 1994, offering such a sunny view of its group of drag queens that it would be pointless to resist. The next year, America was already attempting its own "Priscilla" with the fellow drag-queen road movie "To Wong Foo, Thanks For Everything! Julie Newmar," but it couldn't compete with the original, particularly regarding the gorgeous vistas passed by the central trio. The stunning deserts of the Australian Outback prove to be an ideal setting for a story with outrageous outfits and colors, offering a plain brown backdrop on top of which every outfit and character pops out.

Not that the characters need any help standing out, especially when they're brought to life with such exuberance and talent. Only Terence Stamp, playing the transgender matriarch of the group, was an internationally known actor at the time of the release of "Priscilla." But the film also catapulted its other two leads, Hugo Weaving and Guy Pearce, to their stardom. Even as all three actors are now almost three decades out from "Priscilla," it remains one of their crowning achievements, as well as one of the most infectiously cheerful road movies yet made.

26. Pee-Wee's Big Adventure

One of the goofiest, most enjoyable road trips ever taken on film was the one taken by Pee-Wee Herman (Paul Reubens) as he searched for his lost bike in Tim Burton's feature directorial debut "Pee-Wee's Big Adventure." Pee-Wee would later become famous for his television show, where he created his own wacky universe, but in "Pee-Wee's Big Adventure," he travels through the real America and finds that it's just as silly as he is. Whether visiting dive bars, Hollywood backlots, or even The Alamo, he bends every place he visits to his own indescribable wavelength.

Burton has made flashier, more expensive movies since "Pee-Wee's Big Adventure," but he's rarely made anything better. His work becomes so defined by production design and special effects after this that it's a shock to see him working mostly with real locations, making the natural world ridiculous rather than creating ridiculous worlds from scratch. And the road movie proves an ideal match for his love of middle-American eccentricity, where every new character Pee-Wee meets on his travels is an oddball in their own way. This remains Burton's funniest and sweetest movie, free of the bitter edge that distinguishes many Burton movies and instead celebrating the goofiness of life.

27. Something Wild

Jonathan Demme's "Something Wild" takes a sharp turn around its midpoint, turning from a joyous road comedy to something scarier and more intense. But all of "Something Wild" is united by Demme's love of the road and of the people you can meet along the way. Sometimes those people can change your life, like how Melanie Griffith's free-spirited Lulu gets Jeff Daniels' yuppie businessman Charlie to admit that he has a wilder side than he presents to the world. And other times they can threaten that life, like Ray Liotta as Lulu's malevolent ex-husband, Ray, who resolves to force Charlie out of Lulu's life and win her back.

Even as "Something Wild" gets dark, Demme still finds something magical in every location visited, and often in places that seem perfectly ordinary. A friendly convenience-store employee, a dog on the back of a motorcycle, and a waitress singing outside of a New York greasy spoon — these details all come to vibrant life in front of Demme's camera. Few people have taken a road trip involving this many wacky, endearing characters, but the world as Demme portrays is a better, brighter place than it is in real life. It's a joy to experience a road trip in this world, even if only for two hours.

The 27 best road trip movies to watch so you forget you're stuck at home

• Can't go anywhere right now? A good road trip movie could put you in a better mood.
• Here are the 27 all-time best.
• Classics like "Easy Rider" and "Thelma & Louise" are on our roundup.
• There are also more recent movies like "Logan" and "Magic Mike XXL." 
• Visit Insider's homepage for more stories .

Hollywood has always had a soft spot for road trip movies, and some have become memorable not just for what was shown on screen, but what the spirit of the movie meant for the people who saw them.

Take "Easy Rider" for example, whose no-rules approach launched a new way that movies were made for decades. Or "Thelma & Louise," which was as much about female empowerment as it was about a movie about two people on the run from the law.

Here are 27 road trip movies (listed alphabetically) you should check out before heading on your own adventure:

"Almost Famous" (2000)

Cameron Crowe's love letter to the 1970s rock and roll scene, which he covered as a writer for Rolling Stone, is a fun look at adolescence, fame, and highlights the non-stop grind of a band being "on the road."

"The Blues Brothers" (1980)

John Belushi and Dan Aykroyd play two brothers on a mission from God. Trying to get on the straight-and-narrow after getting out of prison, Jake Blues (Belushi) and his brother Elwood (Aykroyd) decide to help raise the money the Catholic home they were raised in needs to stay open. That leads to a road trip around Illinois to get the band back together.

"Borat: Cultural Learnings of America for Make Benefit Glorious Nation of Kazakhstan" (2006)

With the help of director Larry Charles, Sacha Baron Cohen creates one of the funniest road trip movies ever made as he takes his character, Borat, to America to marry Pamela Anderson. But in the process, the movie highlights the US itself, as Borat travels the country doing everything from singing the Kazakhstan national anthem at a rodeo to hanging out with some fraternity kids.

"Dumb and Dumber" (1994)

In this Farrelly brothers classic, friends Lloyd (Jim Carrey) and Harry (Jeff Daniels) are convinced the gas man is out to get them after the death of their bird, so they decide to drive to Aspen to hand-deliver a briefcase the beautiful Mary (Lauren Holly) "forgot" at the airport. Oh, and they are hitting the road in a truck that's made up to look like a dog.

"Easy Rider" (1969)

It's the movie that launched the "New Hollywood" era of the 1970s and was made with little money and lots of drugs.

Directed by Dennis Hopper, the Hollywood bad boy also stars alongside Peter Fonda as two hippie bikers (Jack Nicholson also shows up) who travel from LA to New Orleans after cashing in on smuggling cocaine from Mexico. On their freewheeling trip, they find an America that's split between the stuffy establishment and the younger generation that is starving for change.

"The End of the Tour" (2015)

The days of conversations between Rolling Stone reporter David Lipsky (Jesse Eisenberg) and author David Foster Wallace (Jason Segel) are beautifully profiled in director James Ponsoldt's intimate story that has the two men interacting while on the road for Wallace's book tour.

"Into the Wild" (2007)

Based on a true story, Christopher McCandless' quest to go off the grid and hitchhike to Alaska to live in the wilderness is a powerful exploration of human desire and the kindness of strangers.

"It Happened One Night" (1934)

Frank Capra's famous movie is romantic comedy at its best. Claudette Colbert plays a spoiled heiress running from home, and Clark Gable is a reporter who finally thinks he's found a story that will get him some attention as he follows her to New York. But it will be forever known for its hitchhiking scene in which Colbert's character gets them a ride by pulling up her skirt to show off her legs.

"Little Miss Sunshine" (2006)

Filled with an all-star cast including Steve Carell, Toni Collette, Greg Kinnear, Paul Dano, Alan Arkin, and Abigail Breslin, we follow a dysfunctional family as they jump in a VW bus to drive the young Olive (Breslin) on a cross-country trip to the finals of a beauty pageant she's competing in.

"Logan" (2017)

Marking the coda of the Hugh Jackman era as Wolverine, director James Mangold delivers a somber drama of the superhero's final days. Here he and Charles Xavier set out to drive a young mutant to a refuge in North Dakota. That sounds simple, but it definitely isn't.

"Magic Mike XXL" (2015)

In this fantastic sequel to the 2012 original, Mike (Channing Tatum) sets out on the road with the remaining members of the Kings of Tampa in a food truck to Myrtle Beach for one final performance.

"Midnight Run" (1988)

Robert De Niro is fantastic in this foul-mouthed comedy as bounty hunter Jack Walsh who plans to cash in when he tracks down a sneaky accountant (played by Charles Grodin) who has jumped bail.

But with the FBI, other bounty hunters, and the mob also trying to get their hands on his bounty, things aren't easy for Jack.

"The Motorcycle Diaries" (2004)

Based on the Che Guevara memoir he wrote before becoming the Marxist revolutionary, Gael García Bernal plays young Guevara who, in 1952, went on a trip across South America with his friend Alberto Granado (Rodrigo de la Serna). The experience shaped Guevara's life as it showed him the injustices of the world.

"The Muppet Movie" (1979)

Marking the first time the Muppets appear on the big screen, Kermit, Fozzie Bear and the rest of the gang go on a cross-country drive to Hollywood in hopes of making it big. A load of cameos, songs, and hilarity occur along the way.

"National Lampoon's Vacation" (1983)

This classic from director Harold Ramis stars Chevy Chase as one of his most memorable characters, Clark W. Griswold, the ambitious father whose vacation plans always never work out.

Clark takes the family cross-country to Walley World and in the process leaves chaos in his wake.

"On the Road" (2012)

Based on the iconic Jack Kerouac novel, Sam Riley plays the book's narrator, Sal Paradise, who after meeting Dean (Garrett Hedlund) and Marylou (Kristen Stewart), head on a free-spirited road trip across the country.

"Over the Top" (1987)

Sylvester Stallone plays trucker and arm wrestling pro Lincoln Hawk who needs to get to Las Vegas to compete in the world arm wrestling tournament. But he also has to get his estranged son to his dying mother. This all leads to a big-rig father-and-son road trip.

"Pee-wee's Big Adventure" (1985)

A loose parody of Vittorio De Sica's classic "Bicycle Thieves," Tim Burton makes his own classic around the zany antics of Paul Reubens' hit character Pee-wee Herman.

The movie follows the "boy" as he goes to search of his stolen bike, which he's been told by a psychic is in the basement of the Alamo (spoiler alert: there's no basement in the Alamo).

"Planes, Trains & Automobiles" (1987)

Steve Martin and John Candy play two men who suddenly have to become travel companions as they try to get home for the holidays. Written and directed by John Hughes, Martin and Candy together are a delight.

"Rain Man" (1988)

Tom Cruise plays sleazy Charlie Babbitt and Dustin Hoffman is his brother Raymond, who suffers from savant syndrome. Hoping to cash in on the fortune Raymond got from their father, Charlie sets the two out on a cross-country trip leading to a lot of self-discovery.

If you've never seen Barry Levinson's Oscar-winning movie, now's the time.

"Road Trip" (2000)

Of course "Road Trip" was going to be on this list. Todd Phillips' insane raunchy comedy about four college friends on a race against time to retrieve a sex tape sent in the mail to one of their girlfriends is always a fun watch.

"Smokey and the Bandit" (1977)

Burt Reynolds teams with his pal and longtime stunt double Hal Needham for his first directing effort, and it would go on to become a classic road trip movie.

Reynolds plays a fast-driving bootlegger who has to transport 400 cases of Coors beer safely from Texarkana to Atlanta. But things get complicated when Reynolds picks up a runaway bride (played by Sally Field) along the way.

"The Straight Story" (1999)

In one of David Lynch's most traditional storytelling offerings, Richard Farnsworth plays a man who sets out on a trip via riding a lawnmower to make things right with his ill brother.

The story is based on a real-life event, in which Alvin Straight traveled 240 miles from Iowa to Wisconsin on a lawnmower.

"Stranger Than Paradise" (1984)

Jim Jarmusch's second feature film follows Willie and his friend Eddie as they set out on a road trip to Cleveland to visit Willie's cousin from Hungary, Eva.

The movie went on to be regarded as a landmark work in the independent film world for its unconventional long takes and do-it-yourself aesthetic.

"Thelma & Louise" (1991)

Ridley Scott's look at the road-trip-turned-manhunt adventure of friends Thelma (Geena Davis) and Louise (Susan Sarandon) is arguably more powerful today because of the #MeToo than when it opened in the early 1990s.

"Tommy Boy" (1995)

Perhaps the best Chris Farley/David Spade collaboration, in this one Farley plays an underachieving college graduate who suddenly has to travel the nation (with Spade as the geeky sidekick) to keep the accounts for his auto-parts family business after his father dies. This one truly shows off Farley's high-energy comedy greatness.

"Y Tu Mamá También" (2001)

Director Alfonso Cuarón received a best screenplay Oscar nomination with his brother Carlos for this powerful road trip movie that made Diego Luna and Gael García Bernal international stars.

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15 Certified Fresh Road Trip Movies

For the 25th anniversary of thelma & louise , we look at some of the best-reviewed road trips put on film..

TAGGED AS: Certified Fresh

Twenty-five years ago today, Thelma and Louise jumped behind the wheel in search of a little freedom — and although the trip didn’t turn out quite the way they’d planned, their movie has enjoyed a far smoother journey, becoming one of the best-reviewed (and most popular) road trip movies of the last quarter-century. In celebration of Thelma and Louise ‘s latest milestone, we’ve compiled a list of audience-tested and critic-approved road trip movies that’ll keep you going for hours.

The Blues Brothers (1980) 72%

The Roadblocks:  Unfortunately, the brothers embark on their journey with a suspended license, and they aren’t about to slow down for a little inconvenience like the police (or mall pedestrians). Meanwhile, one of Jake’s spurned girlfriends (a bazooka-toting Carrie Fisher) is hot on their tail, and has no intention of letting the Blues Brothers reunite — or, for that matter, letting Jake live. Confined to the highways and byways of Illinois, The Blues Brothers  doesn’t cover as much ground as most road movies, but it’s a high-speed trip — and it culminates in one of the most righteous car crashes ever filmed.

Notes from the Road:  “Constantly hilarious, with a comic supporting cast to die for.” — Jeffrey M. Anderson, San Francisco Examiner

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Borat: Cultural Learnings of America for Make Benefit Glorious Nation of Kazakhstan (2006) 91%

The Roadblocks:  Borat is essentially his own roadblock — if he isn’t shocking and/or offending middle Americans with his witless comments about women and minorities, he’s picking an epic, distressingly naked fight with his best friend and producer (Ken Davitian). It will not surprise you to learn that things don’t go according to plan.

Notes from the Road:  “Although I knew it was dishonest, cynical, and the ultimate in cheap-shot humor, I laughed more at Borat  than at any other film this year. So I guess the joke is on me.” — Peter Keough, Boston Phoenix

Easy Rider (1969) 84%

The Roadblocks:  It’s the establishment, man. Okay, so they might be biking across the country with drug money stuffed in a tube, but Wyatt and Billy aren’t bad guys. Problem is, their scruffy appearance and relaxed attitude toward local customs have a way of attracting untoward attention from The Man.

Notes from the Road:  “This is a glorious widescreen vision of a hot and bothered America, at once beautiful and lost.” — Ian Nathan, Empire

Grandma (2015) 91%

The Roadblocks: They’re both broke and the girl needs $850, for starters — and then there’s the complicated tangle of personal relationships that forces its way into their path at seemingly every turn, initiating a series of uncomfortable reckonings along the way.

Notes from the Road: “ Grandma is a small film, but one with huge things to say about the meaning of family and the value of living on one’s own terms.” — Calvin Wilson, St. Louis Post-Dispatch

It Happened One Night (1934) 98%

The Roadblocks:  Screenwriter Robert Riskin pulled out all the stops for Colbert and Gable’s journey, including a series of screwball misunderstandings, the most famous hitchhiking scene in movie history, and an added dash of last-minute wedding excitement in the final act. If its ingredients all seem overly familiar now, it’s because they worked so brilliantly here.

Notes from the Road:  “ It Happened One Night  is a true classic in every sense of the word, one that withstands the test of time and indeed defies it completely.” — Scott Nash, Three Movie Buffs

Little Miss Sunshine (2006) 91%

The Roadblocks:  The Hoovers are on a tight 48-hour timetable, for starters; making matters more difficult is their lack of funds, as well as the gloomy presence of Sheryl’s brother (Steve Carell), who recently tried to commit suicide, and Richard’s father (Alan Arkin), whose heroin habit just got him kicked out of a retirement home. And then there’s the matter of that ancient yellow Microbus…

Notes from the Road:  “This inspirational, hilariously sad dysfunctional-family-road-trip dramedy offers absolutely everything — except pretension.” — Brian Marder, Hollywood.com

Midnight Run (1988) 95%

The Roadblocks:  Once Mardukas loudly feigns fear of flying and gets them kicked off their flight to L.A., he and Walsh are forced to embark on a hellish cross-country journey that finds them dodging interference from the mob, a competing bounty hunter (John Ashton), and their own loathing for one another. A sequel is reportedly in the works; here’s hoping the decades in between haven’t softened their mutual disdain/begrudging respect.

Notes from the Road:  “When it comes to odd-couple action comedies, this is pretty much the epitome of how to do it.” — Luke Y. Thompson, New Times

The Motorcycle Diaries (2004) 83%

The Roadblocks:  As pretty much everyone who watched it already knew, Ernesto grew up to be the revolutionary Che Guevara — and The Motorcycle Diaries  dramatizes his political awakening on the trip, sparked by firsthand experience with systemic corruption and a poverty-stricken populace.

Notes from the Road:  “You get so caught up in the beauty of the images, and lost in the weathered faces found along the way, you quite forget that you’re traveling with Che Guevara — which is, of course, exactly what the original experience would be.” — Moira MacDonald, Seattle Times

The Muppet Movie (1979) 88%

The Roadblocks: Unfortunately, Kermit also attracts the attention of Doc Hopper (Charles Durning) and his mealy-mouthed sidekick Max (Austin Pendleton), whose frog legs restaurant franchise needs a new spokesman — and who doesn’t take kindly to being spurned by a banjo-playing frog.

Notes from the Road:  “Still one of many great reasons to be a movie buff.” — Rory L. Aronsky, Film Threat

National Lampoon's Vacation (1983) 94%

The Roadblocks: Things go wrong early and often, from the eight-headlighted lemon Clark buys from an unscrupulous car salesman (Eugene Levy) to an ill-advised pit stop at the depressing Kansas homestead of Cousin Eddie (Randy Quaid) and his off-putting clan. It doesn’t help that beneath Clark’s family values exterior lurks the heart of a drooling lech; his panting pursuit of an unnamed beauty (Christie Brinkley) causes almost as many problems as his refusal to ask for directions.

Pee-wee's Big Adventure (1985) 88%

The Roadblocks: Well, for starters, the Alamo doesn’t have a basement. And then there’s the biker gang, and the fire at a pet store, and the former child star in possession of the bicycle… what doesn’t  stand between poor Pee-Wee and his bike?

Notes from the Road:  “It’s a true original — a comedy maverick that looks and feels like no other movie I know.” — David Steritt, Christian Science Monitor

Rain Man (1988) 88%

The Roadblocks: Cruise’s efforts to get back to Los Angeles by plane are thwarted by his brother’s phobia, forcing the two to travel by car (and make regular stops for viewings of The People’s Court ). Naturally, the slow journey in close quarters brings the two closer together — and brings up long-buried family secrets.

Notes from the Road:  “A fascinating, often very moving, frequently funny film.” — Jay Boyar, Orlando Sentinel

Sideways (2004) 97%

The Roadblocks: Sideways is full of messy detours and unfortunate events, including a broken nose for Jack, a car crash, and a howling early-morning pursuit by a naked giant (memorably played by Lost ’s M.C. Gainey) — but they can all be traced back to one thing: Jack’s fear of commitment and unquenchable thirst for sexual conquest.

Notes from the Road:  “From its first minutes, maybe even from the credits, you know you are seeing something very special.” –Terry Lawson, Detroit Free Press

Thelma & Louise (1991) 86%

The Roadblocks: Men, mostly. After Louise fatally intervenes in an attempted rape on Thelma, the duo turn fugitive — and their journey is further complicated when a run-in with a hunky young thief (Brad Pitt) leaves them caught for cash and stuck in an increasingly desperate spot.

Notes from the Road:  “Their adventures, while tinged with the fatalism that attends any crime spree, have the thrilling, life-affirming energy for which the best road movies are remembered.” — Janet Maslin, New York Times

Y tu mamá también (2001) 91%

The Roadblocks: To begin with, the idyllic secluded beach they’ve promised their female companion doesn’t exist — which actually isn’t as big a problem as the hornet’s nest of secrets and repressed desires that’s knocked over after they all start fooling around. It’s the end of an era for Mexican politics, and for our protagonist’s relationships.

Notes from the Road:  “Easily one of the sexiest and funniest films about class struggle ever made.” –Manohla Dargis, L.A. Weekly

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The 10 Best Road Trip Movies, from ‘It Happened One Night’ to ‘Easy Rider’

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A good road trip is one of the most cinematic experiences that a person can have in real life. Different cities and landscapes blur together as scenery flies by your windows and day gradually turns into night. The car can begin to feel like an isolated bubble where nothing matters except the people inside. Whether you’re laughing and singing with friends, fighting with your family, or simply letting your thoughts settle while you drive solo, road trips seem to stop time and create distinct memories that can be revisited over and over again .  

So it’s not surprising that filmmakers have been inspired by road trips for as long as there have been movies. From the titans of the Old Hollywood studio system to international arthouse auteurs and contemporary independent directors, virtually every great filmmaker has tried their hand at a road trip movie at one point or another. Locations and genres can change, but the motif of people going from one place to another in a car is one of the building blocks of the international language of cinema.  

Road trip movies are versatile enough to encompass a wide variety of subject matter, but they often fall into two genres: comedies and contemplative dramas. The road trip comedy is a Hollywood standard because its built-in structure (characters need to get somewhere in a finite amount of time and are stuck together in a small space) lends itself to endless funny scenarios. From disgruntled fathers driving their badly-behaved children to strangers who fall in love after being forced to travel together, cars serve as confined spaces that allow a variety of relationships to flourish. On the other end of the spectrum, you have dramas from auteurs like Wim Wenders and Ingmar Bergman that see the road as a place for humans to think. Those films prioritize the destination much less than the self-discovery that can take place when you’re not in any particular rush to get somewhere.  

The road trip movie has endured for over a century, and its timeless appeal means that it’s unlikely to disappear any time soon. Keep reading for ten of our favorites, listed in chronological order.  

“It Happened One Night” (1934)

What It Is:  The archetypal Hollywood romantic comedy, Frank Capra’s “It Happened One Night” stars Claudette Colbert as pampered socialite Ellie, who boards a Greyhound bus from Florida to New York City to reunite with her new husband, pilot King Westley (Jameson Thomas), after her father attempts to annul the marriage. Unused to fending for herself, she ends up relying on the help of sarcastic newspaper reporter Peter (Clark Gable) to make the journey, despite despising his personality. At least at first — hitchhiking adventures and stays in motels quickly cause sparks to fly between the mismatched pair.

Perfect For:  Couples looking for date night films, “Looney Tunes” fans who want to watch the Gable performance that inspired Bugs Bunny, and lovers of pretty much every romantic comedy made in the last nine decades. —WC

“Wild Strawberries” (1957)

What It Is:  Not exactly the fun road trip romp the genre usually promises, “Wild Strawberries” uses a long car ride as the backdrop for a surreal exploration of aging, loneliness, and death. Ingmar Bergman’s film stars Victor Sjöström as cold-hearted professor Isak Borg, who is set to receive a lifetime achievement award for his career in bacteriology. On the drive to the university where the ceremony will take place, he’s accompanied by his pregnant daughter-in-law Marianne (Ingrid Thulin) and a group of young hitchhikers — one of whom is a double in looks and name for his childhood sweetheart Sara (played by Bibi Andersson). Over the course of the trip, Isak slowly warms to his younger companions, and experiences a series of flashbacks and dreams that forces him to confront the impending end of his life and his many regrets from his empty existence.

Perfect For:  Existential types, dying old men, and those whose only exposure to Bergman’s films are the HBO “Scenes From a Marriage” remake and the chess scene from “Seventh Seal.” —WC

“Easy Rider” (1969)

What It Is : A counterculture classic, Dennis Hopper’s “Easy Rider” stars the director and Peter Fonda as two drug-smuggling motorcyclists on a journey from Los Angeles to New Orleans, where they’re hoping to celebrate Mardi Gras. Along the road, they encounter a colorful cast of hippies, free love commune residents, addicts, prostitutes, and other outsiders. Their free-wheeling adventures are contrasted by the judgment they face from small town types and law enforcement looking to lock them up.

Perfect For:  Rebels, stoners, general miscreants everywhere, and fans of the iconic rock bands like The Byrds, The Jimi Hendrix Experience, and Steppenwolf that soundtrack the film. —WC

“Two-Lane Blacktop” (1971)

What It Is: “Two Lane Blacktop” is so clearly a product of its time that we could never hope to reverse engineer it. But when watched in 2023, it’s a fascinating countercultural artifact and a remnant of a film industry that now looks completely unrecognizable. Monte Hellman’s portrait of youthful angst and the freedom of the open road stars James Taylor and Beach Boys drummer Dennis Wilson as speed-obsessed drifters whose encounter with a mysterious driver named GTO prompts them to embark on a cross-country race.

Who It’s For:  Anyone with a need for speed and pop culture geeks who enjoy seeing famous non-actors trying to act. —CZ

“Paris, Texas” (1984)

What It Is: After making a name for himself in the German arthouse scene with his Road Movie Trilogy consisting of “Alice in the Cities,” “The Wrong Move,” and “Kings of the Road,” Wim Wenders brought his brand of contemplative cinema to America and made his magnum opus. “Paris, Texas” tells the story of a broken man (Harry Dean Stanton) wandering through the desert before his brother finds him and convinces him to reconnect with the family he walked out on. Wenders continued to find poetry in the loneliness of the road, and the desolate American scenery and Stanton’s heartbreakingly expressive face ended up being the best muses of his career. 

Perfect For:  Fans of slow cinema and anyone looking to brush up on the 20th century’s most impressive works of filmmaking. —CZ

“Pee-Wee’s Big Adventure” (1985)

What It Is: After developing a cult following from his stage show at the Roxy, Paul Reubens brought his comedic persona known as Pee-Wee Herman to the big screen in a whimsical road trip comedy directed by a young animator named Tim Burton. The film sees the idiosyncratic man-child traveling across the country to recover his stolen bike — and using his charm and joie de vivre to defuse conflicts with all of the shady characters he meets along the way. 

Perfect for: Loners, rebels, and anyone who wants to revisit the work of a comedic genius at the height of his powers. —CZ

“Planes, Trains, and Automobiles” (1987)

What It Is:  John Hughes’ holiday classic stars Steve Martin and John Candy as a mismatched pair of travelers who team up to make it home to Chicago for Thanksgiving. Martin’s suave ad executive constantly clashes with Candy’s bumbling shower curtain ring salesman as their cursed trip leads them onto — you guessed it — planes, trains, and automobiles in an attempt to get home before the holiday ends. Utterly ridiculous until it gets touching, the film is one of the strongest entries in the seemingly endless string of hits that Hughes churned out in the 1980s. 

Perfect For:  Families at Thanksgiving and anyone on a delayed flight who wants to remember that things could be so much worse. —CZ

“Thelma & Louise” (1991)

What It Is:  Ridley Scott and screenwriter Callie Khouri flipped the script on the conventional gender roles of the buddy comedy genre, opting to tell a story about two women having a blast while running from the law. Susan Sarandon and Geena Davis give career-best performances as the eponymous duo — and both picked up well-derved Oscar nominations for Best Actress. The film is best remembered for its shockingly bold ending, but stands out as one of the 20th century’s most vibrant portrayals of friendship and the highways of America.

Who It’s For:  Ridley Scott completionist s, feminist film scholars, and anyone in the mood for a great time. —CZ

“The Straight Story” (David Lynch, 1999)

What It Is: Perhaps the biggest anomaly in David Lynch’s filmography, “The Straight Story” saw the beloved auteur shifting away from surrealism to tell a G-rated story of a man who travels the country on a riding lawnmower. While the Disney movie doesn’t feature any of the twisted nightmares that define many of Lynch’s best works, it’s filled with the wholesome Americana imagery that appears throughout his filmography. The film is a reminder that for all of his signature stylistic flourishes, Lynch is a filmmaker whose grasp of the fundamentals allow him to tell compelling stories without hiding behind bells and whistles.

Perfect for:  Anyone whose favorite parts of “Twin Peaks” were the wholesome small town antics. —CZ

“Little Miss Sunshine” (2006)

What It Is:  One of the most darkly amusing road trip comedies in recent memory follows the plight of a dysfunctional family who takes an 800-mile road trip to support their daughter’s entry in the Little Miss Sunshine beauty pageant. Piling into a van that’s breaking down almost as rapidly as the familial ties that bind them, they find themselves confronting their delusional dreams and long-simmering resentments (and a horn that never stops honking). While “Little Miss Sunshine” is a classic example of the “Sundance road trip movie” trope that’s often maligned in indie film circles, there’s no denying that it’s one of the best entries in the subgenre. 

Perfect For:  Anyone who is beginning to question their belief that child beauty pageants are an unambiguous societal good. —CZ

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Screen Rant

The 17 best road trip movies of all time.

Some films are at their best when the characters are on the move. Here are the 17 best road trip movies of all time.

The basest definition of a road trip is simply this: a person or people moving across a great distance, usually in an automobile. Road trips, despite our romantic cultural idea of them, are usually unremarkable chores – moving (the worst), driving home for the holidays, heading to school, etc. Even when driving to a vacation, the travel usually ends up being the worst part. Exciting, sure; but eventually those trips drone, and drone, and drone and… are we there yet?

In cinema, though, road trips are important in ways that seldom match reality. Some are heroes’ journeys, transformative experiences that elevate characters or bring them to age. Others are farcical comedies of error, presenting hilarious roadblocks and setbacks that exist only in fiction. Some are both, and few are neither. Despite having tonal differences and unique genre elements, road trip movies constitute a category all themselves. This list is about the best of that category.

These are the 17 Greatest Road Trip Movies of All Time.

17. Road Trip

Road Trip is a time capsule, stuffed with what young adults found funny around start of the century. The film grossed $120 Million against a $16 million dollar budget, and the credits list includes names like Seann William Scott, Amy Smart, Fred Ward, and Tom Green. If those names don’t induce flashbacks, maybe the film’s plot will.

Road Trip is about a college kid who, as a way to maintain a long distance relationship with his girlfriend, films himself in daily video blogs. On tape . He then mails the tape – in the mail – across the country to his girlfriend. This system works fine, until a tape that captured the boyfriend’s infidelity is accidentally mailed. So he and his friends get in an car and drive across the country to try to intercept the tape.

The film is ultimately a forgettable entry in the road trip genre – it comes in last on the list, included because its premise is an homage to the road trip itself, and because its name is, well, Road Trip.

16. Zombieland

Some film road trips are quests of self-discovery. Some serve practical purposes, like recovering an accidental sex-tape or heading to vacation. Or running from zombies.

When Zombieland arrived in theaters in 2009, we saw a polar extreme of road trip insanity. Starring Woody Harrelson, Emma Stone, Jesse Eiesenberg, and Abigail Breslin, the film takes place in a world ravaged by the zombie apocalypse. These characters aren’t traversing the country on some field trip, they are desperately (and hilariously) seeking asylum - and twinkies.

As with any good road trip, barriers are broken down in the film, and relationships are formed.  When we first meet the protagonists of Zombieland , they identify themselves by birthplace exclusively (“ Hi, I’m Columbus ”) as a way to resist forming bonds, but by the end of the film romances spark and surprising friendships form. The film presents the road trip as a transformative event, with a satisfying emotional payoff. Plus a whole lot of zombies ( and maybe more to come) .

Borat : Cultural Learnings of America for Make Benefit Glorious Nation of Kazakhstan , which we will call simply Borat moving forward, was either ahead of its time or timeless in its lampooning of xenophobia, homophobia, and jingoism in America. Sacha Baron Cohen plays the film's titular character, driving cross country to do two things: chronicle American culture, and find Pamela Anderson, who he saw on TV and is determined to take for a wife.

There’s a chance that whatever freshness or edginess  defined Borat when it released has been worn away, blunted by the bad impressions and recountings that were inescapable for a long time after the film’s initial release. But what Borat did as a road trip film was ingenious. By perverting the relationship between road trip and country (a relationship usually defined by discovery, and understanding), Sacha Baron Cohen turned a fun house mirror toward our national image. It was hilarious.

14. Mad Max: Fury Road

Fury Road is one of two things: it is either a stretched definition of “road trip”, or it is the apotheosis of “road trip”. We lean toward the latter. The film’s protagonists, Max (Tom Hardy) and Imperator Furiosa (Charlize Theron) do, in fact, complete two long journeys in a truck, and all the hallmarks of a film road trip are present. The pressures of travel reveal hidden truths about the characters, who both discover each other and discover themselves. Relationships are formed; others, more destructive, are shed.

That the “pressures of travel” in this case includes radiated war-boys launching fire spears into trucks, sandstorms destroying caravans, and one faceless man playing a flamethrower guitar do not in any way discount the road-trip tropes highlighted above. If anything, the unique perils of this particular trip reinforce what we love about travel films, at the same time adding some of the best action  films anyone has ever seen.

13. Into The Wild

Into The Wild doesn’t follow the normal road trip format, usually including one or more characters in a car on the way to wherever, only to discover that the trip itself was more important than the destination. For Into The Wild , and the film’s protagonist Chris McCandless (Emile Hirsch), the trip was never about anything other than the trip, destinations be damned.

In Into The Wild , McCandless strips himself of society’s strappings entirely, and resigns himself to travel wherever the wind blows. The film’s perspective is ultimately disturbing, but refreshingly original – what starts predictably as a paean to nature and a condemnation of society turns into a nightmare, as McCandless’ life comes to its conclusion, alone and afraid, having misjudged just how cruel nature could truly be.

The films’ finish is depressing and confounding, but it succeeds in playing sickly with our expectations of how road trips and retreats are supposed to work – the protagonist in this story may have found himself, but part of that discovery was just how unequipped he was to deal with his surroundings in the end.

12. Little Miss Sunshine

Little Miss Sunshine is the indie film that other indie films use as a success marker, after grossing $100 million at the box office against an $8-million-dollar budget and was nominated for four academy awards. Its easy to see how the film was so successful; it nimbly presents a funny and heartfelt story that could have easily been cloyingly sweet in the wrong hands.

The film follows a family, dysfunctional in their own way, that travels across the country to enter their youngest girl in a beauty pageant. The family consists of personalities that defy convenient descriptors. A teenage son, in the middle of a vow of silence until he becomes a test pilot. A scholarly brother, who also happens to be homosexual and is recovering from a suicide attempt. A grandfather, booted from his retirement home for snorting heroin.

The trip in Little Miss Sunshine brings the family together, moves them past the petty conflicts of the film’s early going. Instead of changing for one another, though, the family becomes galvanized around Abigail Breslin’s character, happy to be with each other even though they are all screwed up In one way or another.

11. Rain Man

It’s shocking now – with the tent pole culture that pervades our theaters – that Rain Man was the highest grossing film of 1988. But it was, with $354 million against a budget of twenty-five and four Oscar wins (including Best Picture and Best Actor) to boot. The film follows Tom Cruise as Charlie, a slick salesman with debts to pay. Charlie’s father passes away and leaves the family’s considerable wealth to Raymond (Dustin Hoffman), a brother Charlie never knew existed. Raymond is an autistic savant who is living at a mental institution at the film’s start.

The road trip in Rain Man is predictably transformative for Charlie, who starts the film as a slave to his own self-interest and finishes with a newfound perspective on what relationships can mean.  As the two brothers travel from Cincinnati to Los Angeles, hampered by the restrictions of Raymond’s condition, Charlie discovers his brother to be more than just a roadblock in front of the family fortune.

10. The Motorcycle Diaries

The Motorcycle Diaries is as much an ode to the road movie genre as it is a biopic of a young Che Guevara as he traverses the South American continent by, you guessed it, motorcycle. The film could have been a by-the-numbers historical recounting of a revolutionary in the making, but it instead takes a romantic stance toward the road trip as a transformation event. It’s poetic, while still historically accurate.

The film adapts the real life memoirs of Che Guevara, the story of his journey across South America during his last year of medical school. Ostensibly traveling to volunteer at a leper colony, Guevara and his riding partner are confronted with the disparity between the upper class that they belong to and the abject poverty that they discover along the way. The Motorcycle Diaries makes the road trip multifunctional – it is a tool of personal discovery, of chronicling a continent, and of forming a revolutionary.

9. Almost Famous

At the intersection of road movie and coming-of-age movie, you can find Cameron Crowe’s semi-autobiographical   Almost Famous , a story about a teenage rock and roll journalist and the band he is following.

At his best, Crowe is adept at toeing the line between oversweet sentimentality and sharp emotional resonance. Almost Famous is Crowe at his best. The film follows William Miller, a budding music critic with only fifteen years of life under his belt. He follows Stillwater - a band on the rise - across the country, discovering on the way what it feels like to fall in love, be accepted, make friends, be let down, be rejected, and be embarrassed. If the hallmark of road trip films is travel as a conduit for change, Almost Famous is that idea distilled down to its core.

A young Patrick Fugit gave depth and life to the main character of William, alongside a star studded cast including Kate Hudson in the role of Penny Lane, veteran groupie. All the characters in the tour bus are tainted, broken in one way or another, and yet they are all likeable. It makes for an intoxicating mixture of joy and sadness, and a trip that we would love to take.

8. Y Tu Mama Tambien

Y Tu Mama Tambien is a 2001 film directed by Alfonso Cuaron that follows two teenagers and a woman in her twenties as they traverse Mexico in search of a particular secluded beach. Cuaron would go on to direct giant, visionary films like Gravity and Children of Men , but Y Tu Mama Tambien is a small, ruthlessly intimate tale.

Some road trip films, specifically about young men discovering themselves, presents sexuality as an end goal, something worth traveling to discover. Not even sex, the act; just a character’s own sexuality, the threshold between boyhood and manhood. Y Tu Mama Tambien presents sexuality as a nuclear bomb. The two protagonists cling to their illicit history with women, and strive to sexualize themselves in the eyes of the world. That quest eventually destroys the foundation of their relationship, as they divulge corrosive truths about themselves and cross lines that cannot be uncrossed.

That summary may feel vague, because it is. The film itself is starkly explicit and frank in ways that we really can’t be here. Its presentation of sexuality is aggressively subversive, and it’s use of the road trip as a tool for that subversion is startling. It is a singular entry into the road movie genre, and one that will stay with you for a while after the trip has ended.

7. Harold and Kumar Go to White Castle

Harold and Kumar  Go to White Castle is road-trip-as-farce, with two titular characters that - after engaging in some recreational drug activity - decide to make the quest to White Castle for hamburgers. On its surface, the film is indistinct from other stoner comedies like Half Baked , How High, et al. What sets it apart is the film’s characters, which are fully realized and relatable, and the lead actors, who breathe life into a film that is otherwise constricted by the well-tread genre that defines it.

Harold and Kumar, played by John Cho and Kal Penn, are markedly different from the other slackers and underachievers that often populate comedies like this one. They are both second generation immigrants, and both relatively high achievers. The impetus for their drug-addled escapade isn’t arrested development. Instead, it’s the reality that maybe they don’t have agency over their lives at a crucial age. Kumar (Penn) must decide whether he wants to be a doctor, or whether he is fulfilling a destiny that he didn’t choose, a destiny that he also feels is completely ethnically unoriginal. Harold is a lonely investment banker, stagnating and in unrequited love with his neighbor.

The characters are easily relatable, have tangible feelings and goals, and are as such sympathetic figures to their audience. Like any good road movie, they change along the way, discovering their true desires and regaining power over their choices.

6. The Straight Story

The Straight Story is based on the true events surrounding Alvin Straight’s journey across Iowa and Wisconsin. The fact that Alvin’s journey takes place on a lawn mower is just the first in a series of distinctions between The Straight Story and other road trip films.

Richard Farnsworth stars as Alvin, an elderly man who lives with his daughter. He is visited with the news that his estranged brother has suffered a stroke, prompting Alvin to visit him before he dies and make amends. Alvin, saddled with the physical impairments that come with advanced age, can’t procure a driver’s license. So, determined, he makes the journey on his extremely slow lawn tractor.

David Lynch directed the film, shooting the entire movie along the actual route Alvin took to find his brother. The Straight Story was nominated for the palm d’or at Cannes film festival in 1999, and was released to nearly unanimous critical acclaim.  It stands apart from Lynch’s normally byzantine works , as an accessible and touching film – one that uses the road trip as a way for Alvin to meet numerous characters along the way and have heartfelt, meaningful interactions with each of them before eventually achieving his goal.

5. Vacation (1983)

Vacation is both outrageously funny and truly poignant in a way that few other films are. By now, the story is well known – Clark Griswald ( Chevy Chase ) is a harried and overmatched husband and father of two who wants only to provide a quality vacation for his family, one devoid of complications.

That Griswold is not a taskmaster, but rather a loving and caring dad and husband, only heightens the comic tragedy of the whole endeavor. Vacation ’s lesson is simple, and instantly relatable: no family is perfect, and nothing ever goes as planned. The canned experiences, the plastic amusement parks and hokey tourist traps aren’t what make family vacations memorable. It’s the diversions, the incidents that could only happen to your family, that make otherwise unremarkable experiences memorable.

Now, Vacation takes that idea to extreme heights, as any good comedy would.  Everything that can go wrong does go wrong, from the vehicle itself, to lost currency, car accidents, crazy relatives, and at least one dead dog. Clark drives himself to the brink of insanity trying to overcome this series of unfortunate events, only to find out that the family’s destination is not even open for business.

It was a blueprint that served for four more sequels, of varying quality. Vacation kept returning to the well, ultimately because we are all Griswalds to one degree or another.

4. Dumb and Dumber

Road trips rarely come funnier than Dumb and Dumber , a comedy of errors about two friends – Harry and Lloyd - driving across the country to return a briefcase of money to its rightful owner. Harry and Lloyd are painfully unaware that a crime syndicate is also after that money, and that their safety is very much in question from the moment they embark.

Unlike other films on this list, Dumb and Dumber doesn’t have much to say about the inherent power of road trips, besides as a plot device. That the film isn’t exactly lyrical about the  forces of travel doesn’t detract from its humor, though, and that is ultimately the point of the entire exercise. What makes the characters of Dumb and Dumber so hilarious is precisely that they don’t change, that they refuse to change, that they don’t even acknowledge change as an option.  They can’t be transformed by the road trip, because their very essence makes that impossible.

The film, despite being pretty blue in its humor, is actually thoughtful in that regard. Where most road trip films zig, Dumb and Dumber zags. If the movie concluded with its idiot protagonists having learned something, it would feel cheap, unearned. Instead, when Harry and Lloyd unthinkingly pass up the opportunity to be oil boys for a busload of models at the film’s end, only to continue walking on foot, it feels hilariously perfect .

3. Thelma and Louise

Thelma and Louise is a road trip film with something to say, something prescient and relevant today that was remarkably ahead of its time in 1991. The film follows two friends , Thelma (Geena Davis) and Louise (Susan Sarandon) who take to the road for a two-day vacation. What begins as a regular retreat ends in disaster, marked by murder, robbery, and suicide.

The film’s attitude toward male oppression - and the appropriate female response - is complicated, and difficult to unpack in this space. The titular characters have both been affected by male violence in one way or another, and their decision to deliver  retribution in kind ultimately leads to their untimely death.

The above description might make an uninitiated reader expect Thelma and Louise to be dark, disturbing, and tragic - and it is that. But remarkably, the film is also vibrant and funny, populated with characters that jump off the screen. Whether it is a truly feminist statement, or an armed and violent perversion of feminist ideology, or anti-male, or none of the above is really is an argument for a different space entirely. We are concerned with Thelma and Louise as a road trip movie, and it succeeds in being a completely unique and rewarding entry in that category.

2. The Blues Brothers

In road trip films, by definition, the travel serves a purpose; it isn’t just a matter of circumstance. T he Blues Brothers might just be the exception that proves the rule in that regard. The trip in question isn’t one of self-discovery, or transformation. The miles logged don’t have inherent power or value. Instead, the road trip in The Blues Brother  gives the film itself shape. As characters move from one place to the next, the film gains momentum and the stakes grow exponentially higher.

Jake and Elwood Blues are a pair of seedy musicians, seeking to save the boys home where they grew up from closure, if only to give themselves some form of redemption. To do so, they must reassemble their old group and play music for money. To a certain extent, that is the gist of the entire film. What actually appears on screen, though, is a demolition opera, complete with car chases, crashes, shootouts, and fantastic musical numbers. The road trip doesn’t contribute to the film’s function, but it certainly defines the film’s form.

1. Easy Rider

This list began with Road Trip , a time capsule distinctly from the year 2000. We will finish it with Easy Rider , the best road movie of all time and a film unmistakably from 1969.

Easy Rider is all about the trip. The film presents two protagonists, latched onto a reality that is quickly disappearing around them. The two are free spirits, counter-cultural travelers at the end of the sixties - a time when ideas of renegade spirit and true freedom were slowly corroding. Wyatt (Peter Fonda) and Billy ( Dennis Hopper ), travel from Los Angeles to New Orleans by motorcycle, hoping to make it in time for Mardi Gras. They are flush with cash from a recent drug deal and open to whatever the road has in store for them.

What they find is unexpected – it seems the country, at least where they are, isn’t as welcoming to free spirited weirdos as it once was. Wyatt and Billy, two bikers who just want a taste of true freedom and the road, stand out in the small towns and rural communities along their trail. They are marked as outsiders, vagrants, and tragedy ultimately befalls them.

It’s a tale that couldn’t possibly have been told in one place. The road trip was vital in unearthing the truth about America, at least the truth that the filmmakers and the protagonists were living. Easy Rider is the quintessential road movie, and the best the category has to offer.

The 25 Best Road Trip Movies Ever

More than just an excuse to get from point A to point B, a road trip — in real life or in fiction — has the potential to be a uniquely rewarding undertaking. It’s an experience that stresses the process, whether that process is a few hours with a destination in mind or weeks and months spent wandering. Road trip movies literalize the journey that characters are on, often serving as an allegory for the entire narrative that reminds us the destination is rarely as important as the experience of getting there.

Road trip movies encompass a wide range of genres, from slapstick comedies to prestige dramas and everything in between. Whether you’re after a slice of life representation of a road trip or a thrilling adventure, there’s a film for you. Without further ado, here are 25 road trip movies that capture the spirit of the journey and that will inspire you to hit the open road — or at least hit play on another film on the list.

Almost Famous (2000)

Destination:  The concert tour stops for Stillwater, the band that 15-year old William Miller (Patrick Fugit) has finagled his way into profiling for Rolling Stone.

Journey:  Self-discovery and the usual markings of a coming of age tale, with an added emphasis on the healing power of music, the destructive force of fame, and, as Kate Hudson’s Penny Lane articulates, the hope of finding a home, and the feelings of security and love that comes with it, no matter where you are.

Death Proof (2007)

Destination:  For Abernathy (Rosario Dawson), Kim (Tracie Thoms), and Lee (Mary Elizabeth Winstead), the plan is to reunite with their friend Zoe Bell, playing herself.

Journey:  What starts as test driving a 1970 Dodge Challenger then turns into trying to survive an attack from the homicidal Stuntman Mike (Kurt Russell) in this modern exploitation thriller that, as any Tarantino fan with taste will tell you, is one of his best .

Duel (1971)

Destination:  Salesman David Mann (Dennis Weaver) is driving through the Mojave desert for work.

Journey:  In Steven Spielberg’s directorial feature debut, his everyman(n) protagonist is a mild-mannered husband and father who must unleash his survival instincts when he is targeted seemingly at random by a maniacal truck driver who tries to kill him. Come for the thrills, stay for the lesson that from the very beginning Spielberg had an incredible eye for tension and suspense.

Dumb and Dumber (1994)

Destination:  Aspen, Colorado, so that Lloyd (Jim Carrey) and Harry (Jeff Daniels) can return a suitcase of money they didn’t realize was left at an airport not on accident, but on purpose as ransom money.

Journey:  The expected hijinks and humor that, as dumb and childish as it might be, is still funnier than it has any right to be.

Easy Rider (1969)

Destination:  Mardi Gras in New Orleans.

Journey:  An exploration of a changing American landscape as bikers Wyatt (Peter Fonda) and Billy (Dennis Hopper) make their way cross-country with money earned smuggling cocaine. This iconic counterculture film addresses social tension, the generational divide, and all things associated with the hippie lifestyle.

Inside Llewyn Davis (2013)

Destination:  From New York to Chicago and back again.

Journey:  For folk singer Llewyn Davis (Oscar Isaac), life is more of a series of events that happen to him rather than events that he takes an active role in. Llewyn is grieving after the suicide of his musical partner and his travels to Chicago and back to New York are part of his search for meaning and a way out of his mundane cyclical existence.

It Happened One Night (1934)

Destination:  New York City, where heiress Ellie Andrews (Claudette Colbert) plans to reunite with a fiance her father disapproves of.

Journey:  Ellie is joined by recently fired reporter Peter Warne (Clarke Gable) who seeks to win his way back into his newspaper by getting the scoop on her story, but as one would expect from this pre-code romantic comedy , their business deal relationship quickly blossoms into something not quite platonic.

Joy Ride (2001)

Destination:  College student Lewis (Paul Walker) is driving home for the summer break when he has to bail his brother, Fuller (Steve Zahn), out of jail in Utah, and then carry on to Colorado to pick up childhood friend and fellow student Venna (Leelee Sobieski).

Journey:  In this horror movie from director John Dahl from a script by J.J. Abrams and Clay Tarver that is an homage to Spielberg’s Duel , Lewis and Fuller pull a prank on a truck driver over a CB radio in Lewis’ car. It turns out they messed with the wrong truck driver as their road trip home quickly turns into a quest for survival when their prank target repeatedly tries to kill them for revenge.

Little Miss Sunshine (2006)

Destination: The Little Miss Sunshine child beauty pageant in Redondo Beach, California.

Journey:  While on the way to a beauty pageant that Olive Hoover (Abigail Breslin) hopes to compete in, the idiosyncratic Hoover family must learn to put aside their differences and support each other as they each deal with personal struggles on their road trip from New Mexico to California.

Logan (2017)

Destination:  A refuge for mutants in North Dakota named Eden.

Journey:  An aging Wolverine/Logan (Hugh Jackman) sees the end in sight as mutants have become a dying breed in the year 2029. When he meets a young girl, Laura (Dafne Keen) who possesses similar powers, he feels compelled to protect her and this revitalizes Logan’s ability to care for those around him in a way that he hasn’t experienced in a long time.

Mad Max: Fury Road (2015)

Destination:  “The green place,” a utopia amidst the desert wasteland that has taken over the rest of the world.

Journey: In this action-packed adventure , loner Max Rockatansky (Tom Hardy) is captured by Immortan Joe (Hugh Keays-Byrne) and when he escapes his instinct is to leave and make his way through the desert on his own. He is convinced by Furiosa (Charlize Theron) to accompany her and help protect the women she helped escape from Immortan Joe as they journey through the barren landscape trying to survive and eventually find somewhere livable.

Magic Mike XXL (2015)

Destination:  A Fourth of July stripping convention in Myrtle Beach, South Carolina, where Mike Lane (Channing Tatum) will join his former co-workers for one last hurrah after getting out of the stripping business several years ago.

Journey:  Free from the overly serious constraints of the first film, this sequel revels in positive representations of masculinity , the beauty of friendships, and the joy that comes from simply caring for one another. Told through a series of vignettes, Magic Mike XXL embodies the road trip spirit of camaraderie, rolling with the punches, and the power of the right song playing on the radio at the right time.

My Own Private Idaho (1991)

Destination:  Through the Pacific Northwest, to Idaho, and beyond in search of Mike’s (River Phoenix) mother.

Journey:  In this reimagining of Shakespeare’s “Henry IV” and “Henry V” , Mike is joined by best friend Scott (Keanu Reeves), a fellow homeless young man who gets by as a sex worker. As they try to track down Mike’s mom by visiting his other family members, the two men grow closer, but their relationship is complicated by Scott’s affluent family and their other relationships.

Paris, Texas (1984)

Destination:  A reunion with the family that Travis (Harry Dean Stanton), an amnesiac who mysteriously wanders out of the desert, had forgotten.

Journey: Wim Wenders’ most acclaimed film addresses the modern family, masculinity, and the desire for connection and a shared sense of humanity in the face of loss and decay.

Stagecoach (1939)

Destination:  The titular stagecoach is carrying passengers from Arizona territory to Lordsburg, New Mexico in 1880.

Journey:   Stagecoach follows nine strangers who begin the film on separate paths and become united during their shared experiences on the road. Despite having some heinous depictions of Native Americans, this western from director John Ford starring John Wayne in his breakout role is a masterclass in filmmaking.

Sullivan’s Travels (1941)

Destination: Whatever point John L. Sullivan (Joel McCrae), a director who seeks to represent the real world on screen, feels he has properly connected with middle America.

Journey:  Going from a successful comedic filmmaker to a hobo with an aspiring actress (Veronica Lake) at his side, Sullivan believes the best thing he can do as a filmmaker is to capture the harsh reality that so many endure in order to make his masterpiece, but when he experiences trouble firsthand, he has to reconsider his aims.

The Cannonball Run (1981)

Destination:  California, the location of the finish line for an anything goes, illegal, cross country race that begins in Connecticut.

Journey:  The contestants in this race are determined to win by any means necessary in this action-comedy based on a real event that occurred several times in the 1970s, the Cannonball Baker Sea-To-Shining-Sea Memorial Trophy Dash. The plot tends to fall by the wayside, but there’s plenty of fun to be had in watching a cast that includes Burt Reynolds, Roger Moore, Dom DeLuise, Farrah Fawcett, Dean Martin, Sammy Davis Jr., and Jackie Chan duke it out.

The Hitch-Hiker (1953)

Destination:  A trip through Mexico for Roy (Edmond O’Brien) and Gilbert (Frank Lovejoy) where they intend to go fishing.

Journey:  Things are complicated with the two men pick up a hitchhiker who turns out to be a murderer and escaped convict. The fishing trip then turns into a journey of survival as the two men try to escape together.

Thelma & Louise (1991)

Destination:  Mexico, to get away from the cops after Louise (Susan Sarandon) shoots a man who attempted to rape Thelma (Geena Davis).

Journey:  This landmark feminist film explores the roles of women in society, female friendships, and self-reliance as the two women make their way through America while being chased by the police.

To Wong Foo, Thanks For Everything! Julie Newmar  (1995)

Destination:  Los Angeles, so that Noxeema Jackson (Wesley Snipes), Vida Boheme (Patrick Swayze), and Chi-Chi Rodriguez (John Leguizamo) can all attend a drag queen pageant.

Journey:  Along the way, their car breaks down in a small town and while the drag queens do have to contend with homophobic and racist locals, they also begin to bond with many of the townsfolk, particularly Carol Ann (Stockard Channing), a housewife who befriends them.

True Romance (1993)

Destination:  Los Angeles, where Clarence and Alabama Worley (Christian Slater and Patricia Arquette) flee to from Detroit after Clarence kills Alabama’s pimp.

Journey:  Clarence and Alabama’s whirlwind romance and quick marriage would typically raise some red flags, but here it seems that these two were meant to find each other. Quentin Tarantino’s screenplay was famously darker than the final product from director Tony Scott, but this change works as the earnest commitment of their relationship balances the madness of the film. True Romance is certainly over the top, and it’s violent, but above all else, it’s so cool.

Y Tu Mamá También (2001)

Destination:  Through Mexico to a secluded beach on the coast.

Journey:  Teenagers Julio (Gael García Bernal) and Tenoch (Diego Luna) are on a journey of self-discovery one summer when they are joined on a beach trip by Tenoch’s cousin’s wife Luisa (Maribel Verdú). As the three grow closer, they contend with jealousy and desire against a complex social and economic landscape in Mexico.

Vagabond (1985)

Destination:  This reverse mystery begins with the death of a young woman (Sandrine Bonnaire) who had wandered the French countryside. The film then follows the story of how she ended up there.

Journey:  Agnès Varda’s acclaimed drama is a rumination on modern existence and the misery of isolation. As one would expect from Varda’s humanistic approach to storytelling, it’s also a mindful consideration of those with no place to call home in the societies that surround them.

Wild Strawberries (1957)

Destination:  To Lund from Stockholm so that an aging and irritable professor, Isak Borg (Victor Sjöström), can receive a doctorate from a university there.

Journey:  Along the way, Isak reevaluates his life when a series of encounters with other people on the road trigger memories from his past. By interrogating his own life and his actions, Isak begins to open up to the world around him in an effort to find peace.

Zombieland (2009)

Destination:  The Pacific Playland amusement park in Los Angeles, a place rumored to be free of zombies.

Journey:  When the apocalypse hits and every day is a matter of life and death to the point that people have stopped referring to each other by name and instead go by the cities they’re from to prevent becoming attached to people, Columbus (Jesse Eisenberg) must learn that without human connection, he might survive, but he won’t really live.

If those 25 aren’t enough, here are 15 more that would have been on this list if it was longer:  Badlands, Flirting with Disaster, The Adventures of Priscilla, Queen of the Desert, Bring Me the Head of Alfredo Garcia, Bonnie and Clyde, Crossroads, Midnight Special, Harold & Kumar go to White Castle, Seeking a Friend for the End of the World, Into The Wild, Alice Doesn’t Live Here Anymore, Planes, Trains and Automobiles, Interstate 60, The Blues Brothers, and Sideways. 

Related Topics: Death Proof , George Miller , Inside Llewyn Davis , Logan , Mad Max Fury Road , magic mike xxl , Quentin Tarantino , Steven Spielberg , Update The Lists

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15 All-Time-Best Road Trip Movies

Best road trip movies.

For nearly as long as there have been cars and film, there have been road trip movies.  From the serious ("Easy Rider," "Thelma and Louise") to the delightfully silly ("Dumb and Dumber," "National Lampoon's Vacation"), these films have been a staple of worldwide cinema for nearly a century. But while some, like those on this list, are enduring classics, others (we’re looking at you, “Alvin and the Chipmunks: The Road Chip”) are best left in the archives.

Using data from Rotten Tomatoes’ Audience Scores, we’ve compiled a list of the top 15 road trip movies and discovered that, just like the best adventures, the most memorable films about hitting the road are about more than the destination — they’re about the people and places we find along the way, and the experiences that change us forever.

15. "Sideways" (2004) - 78% on Rotten Tomatoes

One of many Academy Award winners on the list, this dramatic comedy put California’s Santa Ynez Valley on the wine tourism map, and had a significant negative impact on merlot sales, thanks to the main character’s disdain for the varietal.

The story follows divorced, depressed, wine-obsessed Miles (Paul Giamatti) and his friend Jack (Thomas Haden Church), an aging, former soap opera actor who is soon to be married and plans to have a last fling before marriage. Against the beautiful backdrop of vine-covered hills, the two both begin to hit rock bottom in their lives.

Pour a glass of wine — preferably pinot noir — for this one.

14. "Thelma and Louise" (1991) - 82% on Rotten Tomatoes

Ridley Scott's dark comedy follows the story of friends Thelma (Geena Davis) and Louise (Susan Sarandon) as they leave their boring lives in Arkansas for more adventure than they bargained for. Sure, there are some dark themes, but the film also explores the close bonds of friendship, the lengths we’ll go to for the ones we love and the importance of living on your own terms. Plus, there’s an iconic appearance by a young Brad Pitt.

It’s all but guaranteed to make you want to grab your bestie and hit the road for your own adventure in a 1966 Ford Thunderbird convertible — just without the crime spree, ensuing police chase or iconic but bleak finale.

Along the way, the group has plenty of laughs, while reexamining their friendships, the reasons they’ve drifted apart and the bonds that keep them together.

13. "Easy Rider" (1969) - 82% on Rotten Tomatoes

Directed by Dennis Hopper and made on a small budget, "Easy Rider" follows two hippie bikers, Wyatt (Peter Fonda) and Billy (Dennis Hopper), as they travel from L.A. to New Orleans after a successful drug deal.

As they ride their Harleys across the country, the film explores the counterculture of the late '60s and early '70s — LSD, marijuana, communal living — and the changes that were happening in the U.S. as a younger generation rebelled against the established norms of their parents and grandparents.  

12. "The Motorcycle Diaries" (2004) - 83% on Rotten Tomatoes

Set in 1952, this film shares the experiences of Ernesto “Che” Guevara (Gael García Bernal) long before he became a Marxist revolutionary. In the movie, young Guevara takes a trip across South America with his friend Alberto Granado.

Their 8,000-mile road journey by motorcycle and other transport takes them from Argentina to Peru, and exposes Che to the world’s suffering, injustice and oppression, ultimately informing some of his ideas about freedom and equality.

11. "Dumb and Dumber" (1994) - 84% on Rotten Tomatoes

“We got no food, we got no jobs, our pets' heads are falling off!” This Farrelly brothers comedy offered up a half-dozen catchphrases that dominated the latter half of the '90s, and that can still be heard today.

The story is a classic buddy road trip tale — except that these two buddies, Lloyd (Jim Carrey) and Harry (Jeff Daniels), happen to be complete idiots. Convinced that “the gas man” is coming to kill them, they decide to travel from Providence, Rhode Island, to Aspen, Colorado, to return the briefcase beautiful Mary (Lauren Holly) left at the airport after Lloyd chauffeured her there. Hilarity, of course, ensues.

10. "National Lampoon’s Vacation" (1983) - 85% on Rotten Tomatoes

This Harold Ramis classic stars Chevy Chase in his first turn as Clark W. Griswold, a well meaning, fumbling father who takes his family on a cross-country trip to Walley World.

Anyone who has experienced an everything-goes-wrong road trip with family will relate as the Griswolds make their way through Death Valley and the Grand Canyon and, eventually, to the fictional amusement park, with plenty of trials and tribulations along the way.

9. "Planes, Trains and Automobiles" (1987) - 87% on Rotten Tomatoes

Set around Thanksgiving, this John Hughes comedy uses the chaos of holiday travel as a plot device, bringing together two strangers — Type-A Neal (Steve Martin) and overly chatty salesman Del (John Candy) — who become travel partners and have to work together to get home to their respective families.

The odd couple finds themselves in one hilarious situation after another and along the way — spoiler alert — the unlikely duo actually forms a friendship as their journey comes to an end.

8. "Bonnie and Clyde" (1967) - 88% on Rotten Tomatoes

If you’ve heard the story of Bonnie and Clyde, two real-life criminals who traveled the central U.S. in the 1930s, leaving a trail of death in their wake, then you know how this movie ends (hint: with a scene that’s regarded as one of the bloodiest death scenes in film history).

But that doesn’t make the story any less fascinating, as Clyde Barrow (Warren Beatty) and Bonnie Parker (Faye Dunaway) transition from small-time amateur thieves to the leaders of a small gang of murderous bank robbers terrorizing the midwest from Texas to Minnesota.

7. "Into the Wild" (2007) - 89% on Rotten Tomatoes

Based on the 1996 novel, this film tells the story of Christopher McCandless (Emile Hirsch) as he travels across North America and Alaska on a quest to be self-sufficient, reject conventional life and live off the land. Eventually, he ends up near Denali National Park in Alaska, where he finds an abandoned bus that he makes his home.

Alas, it turns out life in the Alaskan wilderness isn’t easy, and while the movie may make you yearn for a simpler life closer to nature — or at least a visit to Alaska — you won’t envy what happens to McCandless in the end.

6. "Tommy Boy" (1995) - 90% on Rotten Tomatoes

Comedians Chris Farley and David Spade team up in this hit comedy that gave the world Farley’s famous “fat guy in a little coat” moment.

After Tommy’s (Farley) father dies, the family business is in jeopardy and underachiever Tommy has to travel around the country with the antagonistic Richard (Spade), trying to sell 500,000 brake pads to save the company. Of course, mishaps follow, including a hilarious run-in with a deer, as the two try to make deals and keep the company out of the hands of rival businessman Ray Zalinsky (Dan Aykroyd).

5. "Rain Man" (1988) - 90% on Rotten Tomatoes

Winner of four Academy Awards, this critically acclaimed film pairs Tom Cruise as self-centered Charlie Babbitt and Dustin Hoffman as Raymond, the autistic savant brother Charlie never knew existed.

When Charlie’s father dies and leaves his fortune to Raymond, Charlie attempts to gain custody of Raymond — and his fortune — and insists on taking Raymond back to his home in L.A. from Ohio. When Raymond refuses to board the plane, the two embark on a cross-country trip that changes both of their lives.

4. "Little Miss Sunshine" (2006) - 91% on Rotten Tomatoes

Winner of two Academy Awards, this dark comedy follows an all-star cast, including Steve Carell, Toni Collette, Greg Kinnear, Paul Dano and Alan Arkin, as they drive across the country in a VW bus so 7-year-old daughter Olive (Abigail Breslin) can compete in the Little Miss Sunshine beauty pageant.

The quirky, troubled family — overworked mom, suicidal brother, Type-A dad, silent stepbrother, foul-mouthed grandfather — aren’t immediately likable, but in the end, this is a heartwarming tale about road trips gone wrong, loving your weirdo family members as they are, and being there for them no matter what.

3. "Blues Brothers" (1980) - 92% on Rotten Tomatoes

A cult classic, this musical comedy stars comedic giants John Belushi (as ex-con Jake Blues) and Dan Aykroyd (as his brother Elwood) playing brothers on a mission to help raise money for the Catholic orphanage they grew up in. Their idea: reunite their former blues band, which broke up while Jake was in prison.

The pair head off on a road trip to recruit their reluctant former bandmates, evading police, Nazis and a murderous mystery woman as they careen around Chicago and much of Illinois in their Bluesmobile.

2. "Almost Famous" (2000) - 92% on Rotten Tomatoes

Cameron Crowe's semi-autobiographical story about his time as a writer for “Rolling Stone” in the 1970s, this Golden Globe winner tells the story of William Miller (Patrick Fugit), a 15-year-old aspiring rock journalist who gets the assignment of a lifetime: tour with the up-and-coming band, Stillwater.

The film follows William, the band and their many hangers-on, including groupie Penny Lane (Kate Hudson), as they travel by bus (and one harrowing plane ride) touring the U.S. and trying to make it big.

1. "It Happened One Night" (1934) - 93% on Rotten Tomatoes

Directed by Frank Capra, this black-and-white film from Hollywood’s golden age tells the tale of a spoiled heiress (Claudette Colbert) running away from home and the reporter (Clark Gable) who follows her to New York trying to get the scoop.

Winner of five Academy Awards, it’s most known for the famous hitchhiking scene in which Colbert's character finally waves down a ride by pulling up her skirt to show off her legs on the side of the road.

The Best Road Trip Movies

By CNT Editors

Road trips are filled with unexpected twists and turns, be they roadside attractions or backseat squabbles. So is it any wonder that this beloved (or stressful, depending on where in the car you sit) travel style has inspired so many filmmakers? Whether they're funny, sad, whimsical, or violent (we're looking at you, Bonnie and Clyde ), movies inspired by cars, buses, and motorcycles have one thing in common: They all share an appreciation for self-discovery on the open road. With editor picks ranging from the 1930s to present day, here are 28 of the best road trip movies of all time.

This gallery was originally published in 2015. It has been updated with new information.

It Happened One Night (1939)

It Happened One Night is one of the first great road trip movies. The Frank Capra-directed film stars Clark Cable and Claudette Colbert as a sarcastic newspaper reporter and spoiled socialite, respectively, who end up on a cross-country trip full of flirtatious banter and screwball antics. The movie was the first in history to win the “Big 5” at the Academy Awards (Best Picture, Best Director, Best Actor, Best Actress, and Best Screenplay)—an honor that wouldn't happen again until One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest in 1975—but perhaps its biggest legacy is that scene in which Colbert flashes her leg while hitchhiking . —Caitlin Morton

Bonnie and Clyde (1967)

The tagline of Bonnie and Clyde sums up the film pretty perfectly: "They're young…they're in love…and they kill people". Faye Dunaway and Warren Beatty star as the titular duo in Arthur Penn's 1967 classic, which is not only one of the coolest road trip movies ever made, but an important breakthrough in American filmmaking. Never before had there been a mainstream Hollywood movie with the same amount of bloody violence (that final showdown !), and few other movies have been able to replicate its sexy style. —C.M.

Easy Rider (1969)

One of the films that sparked the New Hollywood era of filmmaking (along with Bonnie and Clyde ), Easy Rider is full of artistic cinematography and tons of social commentary—not to mention Jack Nicholson in one of his first-ever roles. The film stars Peter Fonda and Dennis Hopper (who also directed) as two bikers who head east through the American Southwest to New Orleans, searching for the “real America.” The film's soundtrack remains one of the coolest in film history, but the opening credits backed by “Born to Be Wild” might just be the best cut. —C.M.

Five Easy Pieces (1970)

After his breakout performance in 1969's Easy Rider, Jack Nicholson took his first leading role in another road trip movie, Five Easy Pieces. Nicholson plays Bobby Dupea, an oil rigger and former piano prodigy living in California with his waitress girlfriend, Rayette. After receiving news of his father's failing health, Bobby and Rayette drive up to Washington state, encountering oddball hitchhikers, sleazy motels, and a poor diner waitress who gets one of the most famous verbal lashings of all time —and who can forget when Nicholson jumps onto the back of a truck and starts playing the piano in an impromptu freeway performance ?  Ultimately, the film is a poignant and subtle portrayal of the alienation and loneliness of a man who can't accept his blue-collar existence. —C.M.

Jessica Puckett

María Casbas

CNT Editors

Smokey and the Bandit (1977)

There has never been a more charming driver than Bo "Bandit" Darville, as portrayed by Burt Reynolds in his 1970s mustachioed prime. Smokey and the Bandit follows two bootleggers (including Bandit) as they attempt to illegally transport 400 cases of beer in the American South. Bandit follows the tractor trailer in his iconic Pontiac Trans Am, wooing a runaway bride (Sally Field) and evading a relentless county sheriff (Jackie Gleason) in the process. It's not the most politically correct film by today's standards, but Burt Reynold's indelible level of cool in this movie is absolutely timeless. —C.M.

The Muppet Movie (1979)

Music, mayhem, and Muppets: the ingredients of a perfect road trip movie. The Muppet Movie chronicles Kermit the Frog's cross-country drive to Hollywood to pursue a career in show business, a trip dotted with original songs, tons of Muppet tagalongs, and an evil restauranteur with a burgeoning frog leg business. If you love punny, visual humor (remember the fork in the road) and celebrity cameos, this is the perfect film for you. —C.M.

National Lampoon's Vacation (1983)

Vacation was the world’s introduction to the Griswold family, led by accident-prone dad-in-chief Clark (Chevy Chase). The film spoofs the tried-and-true American tradition of the family road trip, taking the Griswold car through at least two real-life national parks—Death Valley and Grand Canyon —on their way to the fictional amusement park, Walley World. Add in an unforgettable cameo from Christie Brinkley and a hit theme song in “Holiday Road,” and you have a movie every vacationer should watch once in her lifetime. —Will Levith

Pee-Wee's Big Adventure (1985)

Tim Burton's directorial debut introduced most of the world to Pee-Wee Herman, the exuberant man-child portrayed by Paul Reubens. Big Adventure follows the titular character during his wild trip across the U.S. to find his beloved red bicycle, visiting the Alamo and encountering quite the cast of characters (most memorably Large Marge) along the way. —C.M.

The Sure Thing (1985)

John Cusack in any 1980s movie? Yes, please. This Rob Reiner-directed teen comedy follows Cusack's unlucky-in-love Walter Gibson as he drives from the East to West Coast in the hopes of hooking up with a beautiful woman—whom his friend assures him is a “sure thing.” The road trip features ride share boards (remember those?), hitchhiking, and plenty of awkward situations in very close quarters. Just goes to show how the confines of a car can sometimes be a hilarious breeding ground for romance. —C.M.

Planes, Trains, and Automobiles (1987)

Set around Thanksgiving , Planes uses the travel rush in the days leading up to the holiday as a more-than-worthy comedic vehicle. Steve Martin goofs as Neal Page, who faces a series of travel nightmares on his trip from New York City to Chicago in advance of Turkey Day. After his flight is cancelled due to inclement weather, Page ends up sharing his trip home with salesman Del Griffith, played by the late, great John Candy. The actors' chemistry is hard to deny…especially when they’re sleeping in the same bed together on the road. —W.L.

Thelma & Louise (1991)

In this film, best friends Thelma (Geena Davis) and Louise (Susan Sarandon) are looking to escape their drab lives in Arkansas, and at the end of its 129 minutes, have done just that. After a stop at a roadhouse bar takes a dark turn, the pair take off for Mexico in a 1966 Ford Thunderbird convertible ; try and evade the cops as they wind through California, Colorado, and Utah; and pick up a young Brad Pitt, for a spell, along the way. In 2016, the film was selected for preservation in the U.S. Library of Congress's National Film Registry for its cultural, historical, and aesthetic significance, which means that it must have gotten something right. –Katherine LaGrave

Dumb and Dumber (1994)

In this Farrelly brothers comedy, friends Lloyd (Jim Carrey) and Harry (Jeff Daniels) abandon their dreams of opening a worm pet store in their hometown, Providence, Rhode Island to return a lost briefcase to its owner in Colorado. Driving Harry’s sheepdog-styled truck, the daft duo finally make it to Aspen —but not before driving almost a third of the way across the country in the wrong direction. Ensuing hijinks include kidnapping, accidental murder, games of tag on the highway, and one very awkward encounter with a traffic cop. —C.M.

The Adventures of Priscilla, Queen of the Desert (1994)

Guy Pearce, Terence Stamp, and Hugo Weaving star as two drag queens and a trans woman crossing the Outback in a tour bus (she’s the titular Priscilla). The stark, remote Aussie landscape was the perfect complement to the gang’s outrageous style—and, more importantly, for their conversations about life, love, and identity. Priscilla was more than just a fun movie: It positively depicted LGBT characters onscreen and helped bring Australian cinema to the rest of the world. —Lilit Marcus

Tommy Boy (1995)

Chris Farley and David Spade comprised one of the best comedic duos of the 1990s, and no film exemplified that better than Tommy Boy. Farley plays the titular Tommy, a bumbling but likeable college grad who is forced to save the family auto-parts business after his father passes away. He hits the road with his father's prissy and antagonistic assistant, Richard (Spade), in an effort to sell half a million brake pads. They inevitably hit some hilarious snags along the way, involving deer, chicken wings, the slow destruction of Richard's car, and a beautifully wicked Rob Lowe. —C.M.

The Daytrippers (1996)

Although the road trip itself doesn’t cover too much ground (Long Island to New York City ), this still belongs on the list, mainly because it features Hope Davis, Parker Posey, and Liev Schreiber all at their mid-90s, quirky-indie-film best. Davis discovers evidence that her husband is cheating, and sets out to confront him, literally bringing her family along for the ride. It’s hilarious, and does a great job of capturing the complexities of family. —Jayna Maleri

Smoke Signals (1998)

Some road trip movies are about friends traveling together, but the protagonists of Smoke Signals, based on a short story by Sherman Alexie, might be more accurately described as "frenemies." Thomas and Victor are two young men growing up on a Native American reservation in Idaho who set off to retrieve Victor’s father’s ashes. The long, lonely stretches of road give them time to talk, spar, watch Dances With Wolves for the thousandth time (that one’s just Thomas), and unravel what it means to be Native in America. By the end, they may not necessarily be friends, but they understand each other in a way few others could. —L.M.

Almost Famous (2000)

Arguably the last good movie by Cameron Crowe, Almost Famous is equal parts rock n' roll and sugary sweet. The film tells the story of a high school journalist (Patrick Fugit) who is given the chance to write a story about an up-and-coming rock band for Rolling Stone , and leaves his overprotective mother to follow the musicians on the road. The baby-faced teenager learns some valuable lessons during his weeks on the band's tour bus, like the importance of honesty, the unimportance of “coolness”, and the thrills and pains of a first love. And if there was ever a case to be made about choosing cars over airplanes, Almost Famous definitely makes it. —C.M.

O Brother, Where Art Thou? (2000)

The Coen brothers's take on Homer's Odyssey —perhaps the ultimate road trip— O Brother, Where Art Thou? substitutes 1930s rural Mississippi for ancient Greece and features George Clooney, John Goodman, and Holly Hunter, all of whom have become repertory players in the filmmakers' universe. Also worth noting: The film has one of the best soundtracks ever recorded. —J.M.

Y Tu Mamá También (2002)

On one level, Y Tu Mamá También is a story of two recent high school graduates, friends Tenoch (Diego Luna) and Julio (Gael García Bernal) who, driven by both boredom and masculine bravado, embark on a road trip through Mexico with the disillusioned (and very sexy) wife of one of Tenoch’s distant relatives in tow. They compete for her attention, with mixed results—no spoilers, here—and return home with their boyish self-assuredness thoroughly destroyed. But there’s another narrative at play: That of modern-day Mexico, whose indigenous cultures and sweeping class distinctions provide the dusty, beautiful backdrop against which the film plays out. It doesn’t don the rose-colored lenses of other road trip movies, where things seem to just work themselves out—there’s pain here, but humor, too. — Betsy Blumenthal

Crossroads (2002)

Crossroads tells the story of three childhood friends (Britney Spears, Zoe Saldana, and Taryn Manning) who decide to take a road trip to Los Angeles after graduating high school, each in search of their own paths in life. It's honestly hard to pick the best scene from Spears's big-screen debut, which currently has a rating of 14% on Rotten Tomatoes: Is it when the dulcet tones of her “I Love Rock n' Roll” cover change the lives of everyone in a roadside karaoke bar? Is it watching every turn of events go on to inspire the lyrics of “I'm Not a Girl, Not Yet a Woman”? Is it the mere fact that Britney's parents are portrayed by Dan Aykroyd and Kim Cattrall? Like I said: impossible to pick. —C.M.

The Motorcycle Diaries (2004)

This is where it all began for Ernesto "Che" Guevara (Gael García Bernal), whose road trip across Latin America with his pal Alberto Granado (Rodrigo de la Serna) opened Che's eyes to political injustice. Director Walter Salles filmed their travels through major landmarks in South America, as they were in Che's memoir, from the Andes mountain range to Machu Picchu and even a leper colony in San Pablo. – J.M.

Little Miss Sunshine (2006)

A suicidal brother, silent son, self-help obsessed husband, druggie father, and a seven-year-old daughter with dreams of becoming  Little Miss Sunshine all join an overwhelmed mother in a beat up VW bus on one of the most dysfunctional road trips I've ever seen. That said, the car problems, family fights, and detours aren't that different from the average interstate adventure. This award-winning movie has got quirks for days and a whole lot of heart, plus the cast—which includes Steve Carell, Toni Collette, Abigail Breslin, and Alan Arkin—handles the insanity here in stride. — Meredith Carey

Borat (2006)

Don't let the naked wrestling fool you: Borat: Cultural Learnings of America for Make Benefit Glorious Nation of Kazakhstan (or, as most people call it, Borat ) might just be one of the most culturally aware movies of the 2000s. The semi-documentary stars Sacha Baron Cohen's character of Borat Sagdiyev, a reporter from Kazakhstan who leaves his village to learn everything there is to learn about America. During his trip from New York to California , Borat encounters rodeo attendees in Virginia, etiquette coaches in Alabama, drunk frat bros in South Carolina, and pentecostal Christians in Arizona. The on-camera interviews continue to be as hilarious and cringe-worthy today as they were in 2006. —C.M.

Into the Wild (2007)

An adaptation of Jon Krakauer's non-fiction book of the same name, this Sean Penn-directed film follows the real-life travels of Christopher McCandless (Emile Hirsch) across North America and Alaska in the 1990s. If you've survived thus far in life without finding out how this story ends, kudos to you. Regardless of how it plays out, watching McCandless's travels, first in a Datsun Sunny and later in an abandoned bus, makes you want to get out on the trail in one of America's national parks —just maybe take a few wilderness survival classes first. – M.C.

Zombieland (2009)

Not so much a journey of discovery as a frantic attempt to avoid the walking dead, Zombieland is a road trip movie nonetheless. The post-apocalyptic comedy follows a cast of survivalists (played by Woody Harrelson, Jesse Eisenberg, Emma Stone, and Abigail Breslin) across the country as they search for a zombie-free sanctuary city. Crammed into a yellow Hummer, the gang learns all about the rules of survival (double-knot those shoelaces, folks), opening up to other people, and how not to treat Bill Murray. —C.M.

Nebraska (2013)

Alexander Payne’s Nebraska is no road trip noir—even though it appears that way initially. Filmed in black and white (with shades of melancholy), the 2013 indie follows the slow decline of elderly Woody Grant (Bruce Dern), whom we first see walking a busy stretch of highway in Billings, Montana, desperate to get to Lincoln, Nebraska to pick up his $1 million sweepstakes winnings. His son, David (Will Forte), and wife, Kate (June Squibb), try to convince him the sweeps are a scam. But cantankerous Woody—a lifelong alcoholic with borderline dementia— wants his million bucks. So David agrees to drive him to Lincoln, leading us on a heartbreaking trip past the corn fields of middle America with a detour through the Grant family’s past. —Laura Dannen Redman

Mad Max: Fury Road (2015)

Quirky character studies and tales of self-discovery are great, but sometimes you just want non-stop, adrenaline-pumping action. That's certainly what you get with Mad Max: Fury Road, the latest installment in George Miller's apocalyptic franchise. This time around, Max (Tom Hardy) gets captured by the tyrannical Immortan Joe, ruler of a desert fortress; he eventually escapes and teams with Imperator Furiosa (Charlize Theron), a warrior at the wheel of a big rig on a freedom mission. It's one giant chase scene through the red deserts of Namibia's Skeleton Coast , meant to stand in for post-apocalyptic Australia. —C.M

Queen & Slim (2019)

Most blind dates end the minute they begin, but right away something is different about the one that kicks off Queen & Slim . This romantic crime drama shows the social injustices that run through many African American communities with New Orleans , Mississippi, and Florida as a backdrop. It's a true love story that has ties to slavery, feminism, masculinity, and religion. And it lays bare the ebbs and flows of a relationship and how the challenges in our lives can either push us away or bring us closer together. —Shauna Beni

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The best road trip movies to stream right now

By Xuanlin Tham

The road trip movie scratches a very particular itch. There’s something entirely irresistible about its blend of comfort and escapism, adventure and self-discovery , and a good dose of ‘maybe the real journey was the friends we made along the way’.

As much about embarking on a trip across an internal, emotional landscape as traversing a physical one that sprawls across desert highways or old country roads, the road movie is a promise of transportation: perhaps the second-best thing to hitting the road on a journey to nowhere yourself. Here are 10 of the very best road trip movies the genre has to offer, available to stream now. It’s up to you to choose your own adventure.

Y tu mamá también (2001)

Love, sex, friendship, self-discovery, and cinema’s most memorable bro-code: Alfonso Cuarón’s timeless  Y tu mamá también has got it all. Shot with a charmingly rustic documentary-realist style, and with the delightfully irreverent humour of the ‘your mom’ joke in its title, this winsome three-hander features a very young Diego Luna, and his IRL bestie Gael García Bernal (also very young). Two teenage boys embark on a road trip across Mexico with a beautiful older woman grappling with her husband’s infidelity, and the life lessons find them. The final few minutes of this gorgeous film transpose it into an utterly heart-rending emotional gutpunch. The very best the genre has to offer. Amazon.co.uk

Little Miss Sunshine (2006)

Is there any other vehicle in a movie more instantly recognisable or iconic than that yellow Volkswagen camper van? This list would be heinously incomplete without  Little Miss Sunshine , a film that lands us in the backseat with a dysfunctional family driving their youngest daughter, Olive, 800 miles across the country to compete in the eponymous  Little Miss Sunshine beauty pageant. As sunny and charming as that signature lemon yellow, it’s probably  the classic American road movie – one that interrogates just what the American dream tries to sell. Disneyplus.com

Paris, Texas (1984)

Shot on warm, textured 35mm that filters its every frame through a magical sense of nostalgia, Wim Wenders’  Paris, Texas is a beautifully lyrical journey across the Texan desert. Starring Harry Dean Stanton as Travis Henderson, an estranged father and brother reunited with his family after being discovered mysteriously mute in West Texas, it is a wonderfully affecting rumination on human connection, memory, and coming to terms with the past as the past. Quietly devastating, and unforgettably gorgeous to witness. Amazon.co.uk

Hit The Road (2021)

By Daisy Jones

By Lucy Ford

People were keen to describe Panah Panahi’s feature debut  Hit The Road as an ‘Iranian  Little Miss Sunshine ’, but while that may have been useful shorthand for ‘family road movie in Iran’, that’s where the comparison stops. In the vein of the best Iranian cinema (of which Panahi’s father, Jafar Panahi, is a giant),  Hit The Road cloaks an immensely heartbreaking story about a family attempting to smuggle their son out of the country within a riotously funny, endlessly charming tragicomic road trip film, where you’re bound to fall in love with every member of the family strapped into this too-small, too-hot car with one Very Noisy, very lovable kid. A film about smuggling that feels like an act of smuggling itself, amongst ever-tightening censorship in Iran, Panahi’s  Hit The Road is a miraculous journey that deserves our rapturous attention. Amazon.co.uk

The Doom Generation (1995)

Celebrated queer auteur Gregg Araki has several films that could’ve made it onto this list – but  The Doom Generation is one of his most iconic. Part of his Teenage Apocalypse trilogy, this sexed-up, luridly-coloured subculture joyride follows three horny, violent, and pretty deranged teenagers on the run from the police. It’s a nihilistic love letter to the liminal spaces of seedy motels and too-bright convenience stores – which, if anything, must be some of the most important iconography of the American road movie. Amazon.co.uk

My Own Private Idaho (1991)

My Own Private Idaho begins on a highway, and ends on a highway. Starring River Phoenix as a narcoleptic street hustler and Keanu Reeves as the son of a mayor, Gus Van Sant’s road movie is a queer cinema classic: a soft yet estranging journey to seek love, belonging, and self-discovery even in places you know you won’t find it. Tender and heartbreaking, with perhaps one of the most devastating scenes of a character confessing their love ever put to screen, this is a film unparalleled in mood and yearning. Amazon.co.uk

Pierrot le Fou (1965)

One of cinema’s finest and most irresistibly charming leading men, Jean-Paul Belmondo, stole and will continue to steal hearts for decades to come with his iconic turn in Godard’s French New Wave classic,  Pierrot le Fou . An unhappily married man recently fired from his job decides to leave his wife and kids, and run away with an old flame – who, by the way, is being hunted down by Algerian hitmen. Talk about spicing it up! The two hitch a ride on a dead man’s car, embarking on a crime spree from Paris to the Mediterranean, and mad chemistry – amongst other explosive things – ensues. Amazon.co.uk

Almost Famous (2000)

If we had to pick one road trip on this list that we’d actually go on, it’d probably be to kick back with Stillwater , Penny Lane, and the rest of the impeccably-dressed crew of  Almost Famous . Nothing sounds more fun than going on tour with a shit-hot band whose frontman is a swoonworthy Billy Crudup. The kind of coming-of-age story that applies no matter what age you revisit it at,  Almost Famous is a feel-good ride into the world of rock-n-roll: stardom, adoration, community. Incidentally, one of the most fun movies about a journalist ever made. Amazon.co.uk

Bones and All (2022)

Luca Guadagnino’s cannibalistic love story – starring Gen-Z heartthrobs Timothée Chalamet and Taylor Russell as teen cannibals on a road trip into the guts of sun-bleached, summer Americana – is already an unforgettable addition to the road movie canon. Guadagnino’s inimitable knack for full-blooded romance and nostalgic atmosphere will devour you whole in this violent yet desperately romantic film: one that comes to rest deep in your bones. Amazon.co.uk

Mad Max: Fury Road (2015)

Listen, we’ve all probably been on a family road trip that’s felt somewhat apocalyptic. George Miller gets it: this is the best movie ever made about being stuck in a car and fighting for your life. So in all aspects but physical, isn’t  Fury Road incredibly relatable? Jokes aside, because we take  Fury Road incredibly seriously, if road trip movies were scored based on the criteria of gnarliness, head-spinning momentum, and Sick Monster Truck deco, this one speeds right to the top of the list. Amazon.co.uk

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12 Great Road Trip Movies to Satisfy Your Wanderlust

Not quite ready to travel see america from the comfort of your couch.

Tim Appelo,

Don't feel quite safe just yet to take a big road trip this summer? Take a virtual voyage with the greatest stars on earth in the best road movies ever made, from the flick that cheered America in the Great Depression ( It Happened One Night ) to 2019's Oscar (and AARP Movies for Grownups ) best picture winner Green Book . See America from the comfort of your couch all summer long — no turn signals required!

It Happened One Night  (1934)

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Originally titled  Night Bus , Frank Capra's snappy comedy about an unemployed reporter (Clark Gable) and a spoiled runaway heiress (Claudette Colbert) on the road to New York swept the five top Oscars and influenced every romantic comedy ever since. Nobody could top Clark's hitchhiking lesson — except Colbert, who summons an instant ride by flashing her gams.

Watch it now:  Amazon , YouTube , iTunes , Google Play , Vudu

Sullivan's Travels (1941)

In this Preston Sturges satire, a Hollywood director (Joel McCrea, who shares top billing with Veronica Lake) sick of making silly comedies like  Hey-Hey in the Hayloft , decides to make a  Grapes of Wrath -like serious picture called  O Brother, Where Art Thou?  (which inspired the Coen brothers film title). To experience the downtrodden life, he travels the U.S. disguised as an indigent soul.

Watch it now:   Amazon , iTunes , YouTube , Google Play , Vudu

Easy Rider (1969)

In the role that made him a star, Jack Nicholson hops on a chopped-out motorbike with hippies Peter Fonda and Dennis Hopper on their epic, doomed trip from L.A. to New Orleans for Mardi Gras (filmed during the real Mardi Gras). A total mess of a film, but its open-road counterculture spirit hit it big. When it made a zillion dollars, Fonda said the movie execs who doubted it “went from shaking their heads in incomprehension to nodding their heads in incomprehension.” But viewers understood, and remember.

Watch it now:   Amazon , YouTube , iTunes , Google Play , Vudu

RELATED:  Want to keep the Sixties vibe rolling? Check out our Best Movies of the 1960s .

National Lampoon's Vacation (1983)

The movie that launched the career of John Hughes ( Home Alone ) started as a classic National Lampoon story that began, “If Dad hadn't shot Walt Disney in the leg, it would have been our best vacation ever.” In his greatest deadpan performance, Chevy Chase is Chicago's Mr. Griswold, who takes his clan to California's Walley World in an unlucky car trip every survivor of the 1950s or ‘60s can relate to.

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Watch it now:  Amazon , iTunes , YouTube , Google Play , Vudu , Sling

Planes, Trains and Automobiles (1987)

All the aloof urban executive (Steve Martin) wants is to get home to Chicago for Thanksgiving, but malevolent fate forces him to get there via many forms of thwarted transportation, alongside a sweet, infuriatingly annoying traveling shower-curtain ring salesman (John Candy). They're as funny as Walter Matthau and Jack Lemmon in  The Odd Couple .

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Rain Man (1988)

A crooked Lamborghini salesman (Tom Cruise) and his long-lost brother, an autistic savant genius (Dustin Hoffman), see the nation in a 1949 Buick Roadmaster convertible. At first con man Cruise wants to screw Hoffman out of their father's $3 million inheritance, but instead of a mark, he discovers a brother whose uncanny skills come in handy gambling in Vegas.

Watch it now : Vudu , YouTube , Google Play , iTunes

RELATED:  Love a Tom Cruise flick? Don't miss our critics’ ranking of the 10 best Tom Cruise movies, here .

Midnight Run (1988)

In Robert De Niro's first comedy, and first mainstream commercial hit, he's an irritable bounty hunter who has five days to take a passive-aggressive Mafia accountant (Charles Grodin) from New York to Los Angeles for a big payoff. Pursued by the mob, the FBI and another bounty hunter, they steal cars, take planes, hop freight trains, dive into rapids, and deceive and insult each other to hilarious effect.

Watch it now:   Amazon , iTunes , YouTube , Vudu , Hulu

Thelma & Louise (1991)

When shy Thelma ( Geena Davis ) and brassy Louise ( Susan Sarandon ) take a weekend road trip from Arkansas and Louise shoots a would-be rapist assaulting Thelma, what's a girl to do but put pedal to the metal in their ‘66 T-Bird and flee with Thelma to — and right into — the Grand Canyon, pursued by kindly cop Harvey Keitel? Butch Cassidy and Sundance got nothing on these two iconic gals.

Watch it now:   Vudu , YouTube , iTunes , Google Play

True Romance (1993)

In the most romantically satisfying Quentin Tarantino movie (sweetened by director Tony Scott), a gold-hearted floozy ( Patricia Arquette ) and a comic-book store clerk (Christian Slater) light out cross-country for Hollywood, hunted by gangsters and cops. Brad Pitt is hilarious as a Soundgarden-loving stoner, and the acting duel between Dennis Hopper and Christopher Walken alone is worth the trip.

Watch it now:  Vudu , YouTube , Google Play , Hulu , Sling , Starz

Flirting With Disaster (1996)

Mary Tyler Moore brilliantly plays against type as the control-freak adoptive mother of a neurotic scientist (Ben Stiller) who hits the road to find his birth parents — who may or may not be an appalling Grateful Dead-loving couple (Lily Tomlin and Alan Alda ) in New Mexico. Fresh, original and more fun than a real road trip.

Watch it now:   Amazon , YouTube , Google Play , Vudu , Hulu , iTunes

Almost Famous (2000)

Cameron Crowe was a 15-year-old journalism genius who traveled with Led Zeppelin and others and turned his memories into a road-trip masterpiece about his coming of age. “It's as if Huckleberry Finn came back to life in the 1970s, and instead of taking a raft down the Mississippi, got on the bus with the band,” said Roger Ebert. And you're invited along — to sing “Tiny Dancer” along with everyone on the bus.

Watch it now:  Amazon , YouTube , Vudu , Google Play , iTunes , Hulu

Green Book (2018)

In a feel-good take on a complex time, an Italian-American bouncer ( Viggo Mortensen ,  The Lord of the Rings ) chauffeurs an upper-crust black pianist (Mahershala Ali,  True Detective ) on a tour of the picturesque but perilous 1960s South. The odd couple squabble and become pals, while these two fine actors perform an exquisite duet.

Watch it now:   Amazon , Vudu , Google Play , YouTube , Hulu , Showtime

Tim Appelo covers entertainment and is the film and TV critic for AARP. Previously, he was the entertainment editor at Amazon, video critic at  Entertainment Weekly , and a critic and writer for  The Hollywood Reporter, People , MTV,  The Village Voice  and  LA Weekly .

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30 Best Movies About Road Trips To Inspire Your Next Adventure

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Take the opportunity to soul search, reconnect, meet kindred spirits, or heal old wounds with the best movies about road trips.

Nothing beats a hilarious and cult-classic road trip film, including the Road Trip film series itself, National Lampoon’s Family Vacation , and Planes, Trains & Automobiles .

However, “classic” doesn’t always equate to the most appropriate, and many of the best road trip movies have been releasing across the past decade.

Below, explore movies on road trips about families, reconnection, and finding yourself.

Some of these films will showcase one last chance to say goodbye or make amends before it is too late. Have those tissues ready .

But, many of the top movies about road trips are also hilariously ridiculous and filled with wild and nearly implausible adventures.

So, which films about road trips do we recommend for daring world travelers and those looking to think more deeply about the connections we make?

Which will inspire you to live life to the fullest? Let’s get started, and don’t forget to let us know your favorite road trip movies in the comments.

If you are enjoying these road trip movies, you may wish to read these road trip books .

Grab the best books and movies on road trips here:

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• Audible Plus : From Amazon, listen to Amazon Originals, podcasts, and audiobooks. They add new titles every week.

Table of Contents

30 Top Movies About Road Trips

By Tori Curran

National Lampoon’s Vacation (1983)

What better place to start than one of the most well-loved family road trip movies: National Lampoon’s Vacation ?

America’s favorite comedic family, The Griswolds, embarks on a cross-country road trip from Chicago to the Wally’s World amusement park in California.

Despite their best intentions to spend more quality time together as a family, anything and everything that can go wrong does.

Vandals, dirty campgrounds, a crash that leaves them stranded, and feisty Aunt Edna plague their trip; yet, they press on.

When the family finally arrives at Wally’s World, they are in for another mishap. Can the Griswold’s family vacation be salvaged?

Kodachrome (2017)

Matt – on the verge of losing his record company job – learns that his estranged father, Ben, is terminally ill.

Ben is a famous photographer and wants his son to drive him to Dwayne’s Photo in Parsons, Kansas, the last shop that develops Kodachrome film.

His final wish is to develop his film roles before he dies.

Matt agrees, and they begin their trip along with Ben’s nurse, Zooey. They take backroads so that Ben can film the scenery.

While a tad predictable, the father-son dynamic is solid. As an ailing Ben grows sicker, Matt’s fondness for his father starts to grow, and he does all that he can to see his father’s dying wish fulfilled.

For heart-rendering movies on road trips, have the tissues ready.

Nomadland (2020)

One of the most poignant movies about road trips and the American nomad, Nomadland won Academy Awards for Best Picture, Best Director, and Best Actress.

Frances McDormand stars as Fern, who loses her job at the US Gypsum plant.

After also losing her husband, she sells the majority of her belongings to buy a van and drive across the US looking for work.

Fern works seasonally at an Amazon fulfillment center and finds side gigs at campgrounds and roadside attractions.

At the heart of the film, though, are the other lost souls that Fern meets along her journey, embodying the collective feelings of both loneliness and freedom of those who choose a nomadic lifestyle.

Green Book (2018)

Green Book is inspired by the true story of a tour of the South by an African American pianist and his chauffeur.

Don Shirley hires Frank Vallelonga, an Italian American bouncer known as Tony Lip, as a chauffeur and bodyguard during an eight-week concert tour of the Midwest and Deep South in 1962.

Initially, Don finds Tony unrefined, and Tony considers Don pretentious. Despite differences, they develop a friendship while facing the realities of the Jim Crow South.

Green Book joined the ranks of Academy Award-winning films about road trips with Best Picture, Best Screenplay, and Best Supporting Actor.

We’re the Millers (2013)

When David, a small-time pot dealer, is robbed of his stash, he is forced into clearing his debt by smuggling drugs across the Mexican border.

In an effort to evade customs, he creates a fake, unsuspecting family by hiring a stripper, a 19-year-old runaway, and his awkward 18-year-old neighbor.

When “The Millers” reach the drug compound in their RV, they discover the small stash is actually two tons worth.

The extra weight causes the RV to break down, and a risky law enforcement encounter almost gets them caught.

What else can possibly go wrong in one of the best comedy and crime road trip movies on this list?

Bob Munro is looking forward to some quality time with his dysfunctional family in Hawaii.

But when his boss forces him to attend a meeting in Colorado, he disguises the change of plans as a family RV road trip. 

Of course, dozens of comedic mishaps ensue: Bob damages the parking brake, crashes the RV into various objects, and eradicates a couple of raccoons.

The Munros also encounter another traveling family who they begin to think is stalking them,

Eventually, the family begins to enjoy their trip, but the secret meeting in Colorado is still looming on the horizon.

Disasters in road trip movies like this are a pretty common and popular theme that you can’t help but eat up.

Diary of a Wimpy Kid: The Long Haul (2017)

For more wholesome and family-friendly movies about road trips, watch Diary of a Wimpy Kid: The Long Haul .

This road trip film is based on the ninth book in the Wimpy Kid children’s book series and is surprisingly enjoyable, even for adults.

The Heffley children – wimpy kid Greg and his older brother Rodrick – are less than thrilled about a family road trip to a relative’s 90th birthday.

When the boys realize that an expo featuring their favorite internet star is taking place not too far from their destination, they take matters into their own hands.

Winning a pig at a carnival and a rival family stealing the Heffley’s belongings round out the hijinks.

While the trip is far from perfect, at the heart of it lies a family who just needs time to reconnect.

Watch even more movies based on fantastic books .

Little Miss Sunshine (2006)

One of the best road trip movies of all time, you’ll fall in love with Little Miss Sunshine and the quirky Hoover family.

Olive is an aspiring beauty queen being coached by her grandfather, who was recently kicked out of his retirement home for doing drugs.

Learning Olive qualifies for the “Little Miss Sunshine” pageant, the family – including her parents, a struggling uncle, and half brother who has taken a vow of silence – road trips from New Mexico to California to support Olive.

Both personal and road trip setbacks plague the family, but they press on to the pageant, only to realize that Olive, a pretty regular girl, doesn’t stand a chance.

Sideways (2004)

Featured on our list of movies about wine , Sideways follows two friends on a pre-wedding road trip through California’s Santa Ynez Valley wine country.

Miles, a struggling writer and wine enthusiast, and Jack, soon to be wed, embark on a single-guy’s last hoorah.

Miles has a weekend of fine wine and dining planned, but Jack is looking for a fling.

He finds it in Stephanie while her friend Maya seems to take an interest in Miles. Things get complicated when Miles lets it slip that Jack is engaged.

We especially love the idea of taking their picturesque wine country road trip ourselves!

Sideways also makes for a great wine book read before or after the movie.

Road Trip (2000)

Follow a band of college buddies as they road trip from Ithaca, New York to Austin, Texas to intercept an illicit video accidentally mailed to one of their girlfriends.

Josh slips up and cheats on his long-distance girlfriend, Tiffany, recording the act on his camcorder.

When his buddy accidentally mails the evidence instead of a recorded love letter, the pals hit the road to catch the tape in the mail before it’s delivered.

Then, they must make it back to Ithaca for a midterm to avoid flunking their class.

This is, of course, one of the most famous movies on road trips ever made – and you either love it or despise it.

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Road Trip: Beer Pong (2009)

Also known as Road Trip 2, this sequel to the first Road Trip film follows three college buddies en route to a beer pong tournament.

Andy is convinced by his friends to stop worrying about his long-distance girlfriend, Katy, and have some fun.

He and his friends decide to hit the road and follow Jenna – Andy’s ex-girlfriend who is now a beer pong model – and enter the tournament.

What can go wrong when a bus full of gorgeous Christina girls drops you off in your girlfriend’s hometown, while you’re on the road chasing an ex?

Reminiscent of other college comedies, like American Pie, know that the road trip film series is hilarious but quite inappropriate.

Road to Paloma (2014)

TW: sexual assault

An alternative to the many vacation-style movies on road trips, The Road to Paloma has a much darker plot.

After murdering his mother’s rapist, a Native American named Wolf flees on his motorcycle across the American West.

He plans to head to his sister’s property and spread his mother’s ashes peacefully. However, the FBI threatens his plans.

Wolf soon meets up with a drifter named Cash and learns that vigilante justice most often comes at a price. Will Wolf ever find redemption?

The Leisure Seeker (2017)

For years, John and Ella Spencer have enjoyed family road trips in their RV, nicknamed the Leisure Seeker.

Now, John, a retired teacher, is suffering from dementia, and Ella is ill herself.

Against their doctors’ advice, they embark on one final road trip in their beloved RV from their home in Massachusetts to the Hemingway House in the Florida Keys.

As is true with many couples, close quarters and ailments bring out both the best and the worst of John and Ella.

For drama-comedy road trip movies, The Leisure Seeker will stay with you for quite some time.

Unpregnant (2020)

TW: abortion

A poignant road trip movie, seventeen-year-old Veronica learns that she is pregnant but cannot get an abortion in her home state of Missouri without her parents’ permission.

She convinces her former best friend Bailey to take a road trip with her to New Mexico for the procedure.

Amidst a series of unfortunate and often hilarious circumstances, including getting picked up by a pair of pro-lifers, Veronica and Bailey begin to open up to each other again and repair their fractured friendship.

Everybody’s Fine (2009)

Eight months after losing his wife, Frank Goode is looking forward to a visit from his children.

When each cancels last minute, he sets out on a cross-country road trip to visit each of them individually.

Frank learns quickly that his children’s lives aren’t as fine as they appear to be.

More lies and deceit surface when Frank begins to piece together a secret that three of the siblings have been keeping regarding the fourth.

For the best road trip movies about redemption and connection, Frank’s experience won’t let you down.

Tommy Boy (1995)

Tommy works as an executive for his father’s auto-parts conglomerate; a position he didn’t earn and doesn’t work hard at.

When his father suddenly passes on his own wedding day and the bank reneges on a loan, the company’s future is in jeopardy.

Tommy devises a plan and sets out with the company’s accountant on a cross-country sales trip.

But, when they catch his late father’s wife entangled with the man she called her son, they realize they’ve been roped into a con artist’s game plan.

Chris Farley, David Spade, and Dan Aykroyd deliver in one of our favorite comedy movies about road trips.

Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas (1998)

Based on Hunter S. Thompson’s novel of the same name, Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas is a cult classic, dark comedy film following Raoul Duke and Dr. Gonzo’s drug-fueled road trip to Las Vegas.

In a rented red convertible, the two men hit the road with a suitcase full of narcotics in order so that Dr. Gonzo can cover a motorcycle race for a magazine.

Going through their stash at an alarming rate, they behave abhorrently, trash their hotel room, and run up an alarming room service tab.

This road trip film fantastically portrays not only an excessive drug binge but the shortcomings of the 1960s and the American Dream.

Rain Man (1988)

Rain Man isn’t just one of the best road trip movies, it’s one of the best films of all time.

Car dealer Charlie Babbit returns home to Cincinnati following the death of his father.

There, he learns that he has an older, autistic brother named Raymond and that their father has left almost all of his fortune for Raymond’s care.

Motivated by money, Charlie checks Raymond out of his institution to head back to Los Angeles. The cross-country road trip will change both of their lives forever.

The slow progression of the road trip due to Raymond’s strict routines gives Charlie time to understand and appreciate his brother’s complexities.

Wristcutters (2006)

TW: suicide

After breaking up with his girlfriend, Zia kills himself and wakes up in a purgatory filled with other suicide victims.

He befriends Eugene, a Russian rocker. After learning that his ex-girlfriend, Desiree, also took her own life after Zia’s death, the two friends embark on a road trip to find her in the afterlife.

Along the way, they also encounter a hitchhiker and a commune leader looking for his dog who’s been abducted by a cult leader.

Eccentric and funny, Wristcutters is one of the most unique movies about road trips and the meaning of life.

Two for the Road (1967)

Mark, a wealthy architect, and Joanna Wallace road trip through France in their convertible to celebrate the completion of a building project.

Tensions between the two are clear, though, and as they drive towards Saint Trope; Mark and Joanna reminisce about past memories and indiscretions.

Scenes from the past are juxtaposed with the couple’s discussions of previous events that have occurred along the same road.

Both have been unfaithful and unhappy, but what does the future hold for them?

If you’re looking for an old-time road trip film, you know Audrey Hepburn delivers.

Planes, Trains & Automobiles (1987)

Neal Page is a control freak and advertising executive on a business trip in New York City, trying to get home to Chicago for Thanksgiving.

When his flight is delayed, he meets an annoying shower curtain ring salesman also traveling to Chicago.

A diverted flight and broken down train further complicate their journey home.

Del and Neal are reunited at a rental car facility, and despite their frustrations, commit to the trek to Chicago together. A surprise ending will bring the film full circle.

Planes Trains & Automobiles is another one of those cult-classic road trip movies on this list.

She’s in Portland (2020)

Wes, a thirty-something-year-old family man, is hoping to reconnect with his college friend Luke. While feeling envious of each other’s lives, they each feel trapped in their own.

Wes convinces Luke to join him on a business road trip up the coast of California to find Luke’s “one that got away.”

At the heart of this road trip film, though, is a genuine perspective of work, marriage, and life’s commitments in your thirties.

The backdrop of Highway 1 isn’t bad to look at either!

The Fundamentals of Caring (2016)

Ben is a writer from Seattle avoiding his wife’s attempts to serve him with divorce papers. Following another tragedy, he becomes the caregiver for Trevor, a disabled teen.

Trevor is enamored with roadside attractions. Ben convinces Trevor’s mother to allow them to take a road trip to see the world’s deepest pit. Trevor also wants to see his estranged father.

Along the way, they pick up a hitchhiker named Dot and a pregnant woman named Peaches.

The most unlikely connections make this one of our favorite road trip movies that make you think about friendships and caring for others.

Watch even more great friendship movies .

Braking for Whales (2019)

The death of their mother brings an estranged brother and sister together.

To gain their inheritance, the siblings must honor their mother’s final request: to have her remains placed into the body of a whale.

En route to a Texas aquarium to follow through on their mother’s absurd wish, Star and Brandon encounter more than just adventure.

They are forced to face one another and their own demons, including Brandon’s sexuality and Star’s child that she’s all but abandoned.

This is one of many road trip movies about healing and self-discovery, but the unique angle and potential to be relatable make it stand out.

Bad Trip (2021)

Part buddy comedy, part hidden camera prank show, Bad Trip sets the stage for a hilarious and outrageous cross country road trip.

Two friends, Chris and Bud, embark on a trip from Florida to New York City to catch Chris’s long-time crush.

They’ve all but stolen Bud’s sister’s car while she’s in jail to make the trip, but she manages to escape from jail to run after them.

All the while, real people are pulled into their raunchy and hilarious pranks. At the end of the movie, don’t miss their reactions when they find out they’ve been part of a prank movie.

Johnson Family Vacation (2004)

Nate Johnson longs to make amends with his gorgeous wife from whom he’s separated and spend more time with his children.

Miraculously, he manages to convince them all to join him on a cross-country drive to a family reunion.

On their way from California to Missouri, they encounter a myriad of hiccups, including an eccentric hitch-hiker, a semi-truck trying to run them off the road, and getting arrested for littering.

Johnson Family Vacation is where family adventure road trip movies meet stories of healing relationships and family ties.

Supernova (2020)

Sam and Tusker have been partners for 20 years.

After Tusker is diagnosed with early-onset dementia, the couple travels across England in their RV visiting family, friends, and memorable places from their past together.

One of the most poignant and beautiful movies about road trips, Supernova reminds us that all we truly have of someone else is time.

With talks of suicide and mourning the loss of a loved one, it’s sure to tug at the heartstrings of anyone in a loving relationship.

The Guilt Trip (2012)

Andy is about to set out on the adventure road trip of a lifetime.

Before he does, he makes a visit to his overbearing mother, Joyce, and learns about Andrew, a man she was previously in love with and whom Andy was named after.

Against his better judgment, Andy invites his mother on the road trip, concealing his intentions to bring her out to California to see Andrew.

Along their journey – which includes Joyce calling Andy’s ex-girlfriend and a steak-eating contest – Andy realizes that he has more in common with his aggravating mother than he thought.

They begin to enjoy their time together until Joyce learns why Andy actually invited her.

Deceit is a common theme for familial movies on road trips – and the outcome can go one of two ways.

Come as You Are (2019)

Three disabled men, Scotty, Matt, and Mo, take a road trip from Colorado to Montreal to lose their virginities at a brothel servicing special needs clients.

They are accompanied by a jaded travel nurse who drives and assists them.

This isn’t another comical, sex-motivated road trip, though. The film delicately presents the needs of the disabled community and offers us an opportunity to be empathetic and compassionate.

The one caveat of this inclusive road trip film is that all three main actors are able-bodied themselves.

Come As You Are is a remake of the acclaimed Belgian film, Hasta la Vista , which is based on the real-life of Asta Philpot.

The Trip to Spain (2017)

For more movies about road trips abroad, catch Steve Coogan and Rob Brydon – English and Welch actor comedians – who star as fictionalized versions of themselves on a culinary road trip through Spain.

Nostalgic of a trip he took as a young man, Steve convinces Rob to accompany him on a road trip from the Northern to Southern coast of Spain. 

In addition to sampling epic Spanish fare, the men will talk about their respective lives, relationships, fatherhood, and midlife crises, all with an heir of witty British satire.

The Trip to Spain is part of Coogan and Brydon’s satirical culinary film series including The Trip and The Trip to Italy .

Where To Read More About & Watch These Movies On Road Trips:

Amazon Prime Video  |  Netflix  |  IMDb | Hulu | Max

Save The Best Road Trip Movies For Later:

Watch the best movies on road trips here :

Thank you to TUL contributor, Tori Curran from Explore With Tori

Tori (pronouns: she/her) is a children’s librarian and mom to two boys living in New York. She’s an avid traveler, nature enthusiast, and writer, encouraging families to get outside and start exploring the world. When she’s not hiking or traveling, you can find her lost in a historical fiction book, watching Bravo reruns, or obsessively decluttering her home.

What are your favorite films about road trips?

Which movies about road trips do you love and re-watch over and over again? Let us know in the comments!

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13 Best Road Trip Movies on Netflix (March 2024)

Road trip movies often send out a deeper message than just going from point A to B. They depict transformations of those who embark on them and also stress immensely the value of the journey a lot more than the final destination. We understand the value of road trips for you. We also understand that, at times, a little push is needed to get the courage to leave behind everything for a while and go on one. However, there are also road trip movies that incorporate a different genre, like thriller or action or action thriller. In such movies, the plot is underscored by the trip, but that doesn’t dampen the theme and the emotions of the story, which is what the following movies capture.

13. Bad Trip (2021)

‘Bad Trip’ is a hilarious comedy road movie that will surely have you falling out of your chair in laughter. Chris Carey (Eric André) and Bud Malone (Lil Rel Howery) are two friends who are completely dissatisfied with the direction their lives have taken. Stuck at dead-end jobs with no progress or promotion, the two yearn for even the slightest bit of excitement. However, when Chris unexpectedly comes across his high-school crush, Maria Li, the friends decide to set out on a road trip from Florida to New York City so that Chris can win her over. Thus, the friends then steal a car and set out on a trip that ensues one hilarious incident after the other, while unbeknownst to them, Bud’s sister, the actual owner of the car, appears hot on their trail. You can check out the film here .

12. End of the Road (2022)

Directed by Millicent Shelton, ‘ End of the Road ’ is a sinister take on a road trip movie. Starring Queen Latifah and Ludacris, it tells the story of Brenda, her two kids, and her brother Reggie, whose cross-country road trip across the New Mexico desert to a new place for a new job (after losing her old one) and a new life, goes haywire. A halt on the way makes them witnesses to a murder, following which the killer puts them in his crosshair. Moreover, Reggie takes something from the crime scene that belongs to the killer, something that is a huge mistake, and Brenda knows it. How she and her family get rid of this maniac is what follows in this high-octane road trip thriller. You can stream the movie here .

11. Dirty Grandpa (2016)

‘Dirty Grandpa’ reveals the fun/casual side of Robert De Niro, who stars as Dick, the grandfather to Zac Efron’s Jason Kelly, who is a lawyer and is about to be married. Dick has just lost his wife and wants to have all the fun he couldn’t in the last 15 years or so. So when Jason takes him on a Spring Break road trip to Florida, he unlocks the raunchy side of himself that Jason had no idea existed. Directed by Dan Mazer, the ‘Dirty Grandpa’ cast also includes Zoey Deutch as Jason’s classmate Shadia, Aubrey Plaza as Shadia’s friend Lenore, and Julianne Hough as Jason’s fiancée Meredith. The exploits of the grandpa-grandson duo are what ‘Dirty Grandpa’ is made up of, and it’s a fun riot. You can be a part of it right here .

10. Kodachrome (2017)

Matt, played by Jason Sudeikis, is often overshadowed by his father’s reputation as a famous photojournalist. Upon finding that he has cancer, Matt’s father’s last wish is to go on a road trip with his son from New York to Kansas to get his last few Kodachromes developed before it’s too late and the memories get lost in unprocessed films. The movie will bring back some pleasant memories to those who once used Kodachromes for taking pictures with Kodak cameras before the company went bankrupt and shut down completely. The film is very predictable overall, but that’s how most road-trip feel-good kind of movies are, right? We do not watch them for a predictable storyline. We watch them for the whole positive vibe that the movie gives out to touch us and, at times, even inspire us deeply. You may watch the film here .

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9. The Fundamentals of Caring (2016)

Put the Antman star, Paul Rudd , in any film, and he’ll surely give you a great performance and some hilarious jokes to remember. ‘The Fundamentals of Caring’ is one such film where Paul Rudd plays the role of a writer who has recently experienced the loss of a loved one. To recover from that, he decides to become a caregiver. This is when he meets an angry and frustrated teenager who has never left his home because of his disability. During the journey, the two get close and get a deeper understanding of friendship and aspiration. This movie is a pure entertainer when you’re in a feel-good kind of mood and will make you laugh and cry at the same time. You can watch it here .

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8. Seventeen (2019)

‘Seventeen,’ also known as ‘Diecisiete’ in Spanish , follows Hector, a spirited and lively 17-year-old who has been confined to a juvenile detention center for two years. While most believe that Hector is a spoilt teen with no regard for rules, he does have a kind heart and even befriends a dog named Oveja while on a visit to an animal rescue center. Hector appears intent on working towards his freedom and becoming a better person. However, things go haywire once Oveja goes missing, and Hector, fraught with concern, breaks out of prison to search for the missing dog. Surprisingly, the 17-year-old’s loved ones support such a venture, and Hector, along with his brother, Isamel, and their grandmother, soon embarks on a road trip through the Spanish region of Cantabria. You can stream ‘Seventeen’ here .

7. The Trader (2018)

As the title suggests, ‘The Trader’ (Georgian: ‘Sovdagari’) is a documentary that follows a poor traveling trader living in poverty and selling his wares in the rural Republic of Georgia. His travels take him to remote corners of the country and provide an authentic sneak peek into the daily lives of the people from that part of the region. The documentary even portrays previously unheard practices like using potatoes as the only unit of currency. For fans who are curious to know more about different cultures and people from around the globe, ‘The Trader’ will surely be an eye-opening experience. You can stream the film here .

6. Expedition Happiness (2017)

Travel documentaries are a joy to sit through, and ‘Expedition Happiness’ satisfies every craving in that regard as it follows filmmaker Felix Starck and his then-girlfriend Selima Taibi on a road trip across North America. Felix and Selima originally hail from Berlin, Germany , but soon grew tired of the big city with its highrises, noisy traffic, and congestion. Thus, longing for fresh air, a change in scenery, and new experiences, the pair obtain and refurbish a school bus before setting out on an epic road trip across North America along with their dog. Filmed by the pair themselves, ‘Expedition Happiness’ provides a fresh take on North America and can easily be considered a must-watch. You may watch it here .

5. Dhak Dhak (2023)

A Bollywood drama directed by Tarun Dudeja, ‘Dhak Dhak’ brings together four women from different social lifestyles and age groups. Together, they set off on a bike trip to Ladakh, India, a place that is considered the highest mountain pass in the world and can be reached by vehicle. The journey also becomes a spiritual one as each experience brings about new realizations, thereby adding to the meaning of life and what it means to be free. The film stars Dia Mirza, Ratna Pathak Shah, Fatima Sana Shaikh, and Sanjana Sanghi. You can watch it here .

4. 4L (2019)

‘4L,’ known popularly as ‘4 latas’ in Spanish, revolves around Tocho, an alcoholic with bad manners, and Jean Pierre, a past womanizer who still reminisces about his glory days. The film opens with Tocho reading a letter that informs him about his old friend, Joseba, who is seemingly on his deathbed in Timbuktu. The letter makes Tocho realize what he has lost, and soon, he makes up his mind to meet his friend before his death. On top of it, the two also plan on taking Joseba’s estranged daughter, Ely, to her father. Interestingly, apart from agreeing to the trip at a moment’s notice, Ely even provides the men with an old 1982 Renault, the same car the three friends had once used to cross the desert. Thus, they embark on a massive road trip from Paris to Timbuktu while being surrounded by fond memories. Moreover, even though the experiences they have on the road change their outlook on life, the film ultimately teaches us the value of friendship, family, and love. You can watch ‘4L’ here .

3. Qarib Qarib Single (2017)

A Hindi-language Bollywood feel-good rom-com directed by Tanuja Chandra, ‘Qarib Qarib Single’ stars Irrfan Khan and Parvathy Thiruvothu. When two strangers meet via an online dating platform, it’s usually a date that decides whether they will agree to go on further dates with each other. For Jaya (a 35-year-old widow) and Yogi (a not-that-famous poet), it is an adventure that decides it. After some humorous experiences, the two decide to go and visit Yogi’s three ex-girlfriends. Thus begins a memorable trip for our duo as well as for us. From Dehradun to Jaipur to Gangtok, the journey is full of humor, confusion, and humor-filled confusion and ends in a perfect manner. Stop guessing, as you can stream the film right here .

2. Paddleton (2019)

A road trip meets the trip of life in this comedy-drama directed by Alexandre Lehmann. It tells the story of two misfits/neighbors/best friends, Michael and Andy, between whom Michael is diagnosed with terminal cancer . With six months to live, Michael, accompanied by a reluctant Andy, set off on a 6-hour drive to the nearest pharmacy that has the required meds. Their experiences during the journey, which throw light on their friendship and the reality of life in general, make ‘Paddleton’ an enriching road trip movie. The cast includes Mark Duplass as Michael, Ray Romano as Andy, Kadeem Hardison, Christine Woods, Stephen Oyoung, Marguerite Moreau, and Alana Carithers. Feel free to check out the movie here .

1. Zindagi Na Milegi Dobara (2011)

Directed by Zoya Akhtar, ‘ Zindagi Na Milegi Dobara ’ is an Indian Hindi-language movie that tells the story of three friends who come together after a long time when one of them gets engaged. The bachelor trip that follows folds out into a buffet of experiences, both physically and emotionally, as the lives of all three begin to reveal themselves. Pain, regret, fear, mistakes, love, happiness, and insecurities take center stage and address the title of the movie, which translates to ‘Life never happens twice.’ The cast includes Farhan Akhtar , Hrithik Roshan , and Abhay Deol as the three friends, along with Katrina Kaif , Kalki Koechlin , Naseeruddin Shah , and Deepti Naval. You may watch the film here .

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50+ Best Road Trip Movies to Watch Tonight

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Who doesn’t love a good road trip movie? Movies that capture the thrill, the fun, and, yes, sometimes the dangers of hitting the open road. Here are some of the best road trip movies to watch tonight, films that epitomize car travel. You’ll find something for everyone: comedies, dramas, family-friendly, horror, classics, and more.

Ready to watch? I’ll make the popcorn!

Can’t get enough road trip movies? Check out our lists of The Best Road Trip Horror Movies and The Best Road Trip Movies on Netflix .

The 50+ Best Road Trip Movies

National lampoon’s vacation (1983), rain man (1988), pee-wee’s big adventure (1985), planes, trains & automobiles (1987), thelma & louise (1991), little miss sunshine (2006), the muppet movie (1979).

• Y Tu Mamá También (2001)

Tommy Boy (1995)

Kodachrome (2017), road trip (2000), road trip: beer pong (2009), sideways (2004), to wong foo, thanks for everything julie newmar (1995), almost famous (2000), johnson family vacation (2004), the fundamentals of caring (2016), crossroads (2002), on the road (2012), the wizard (1989), zombieland (2009), into the wild (2007), mr. pig (2016), zindagi na milegi dobara (2011), it happened one night (1934), college road trip (2008), lost in america (1985), boys on the side (1995), easy rider (1969), it’s a mad, mad, mad, mad world (1963), a goofy movie (1995), 4l (4 latas) (2019), motorcycle diaries (2004), nebraska (2013), cars (2006), dumb and dumber (1994), letters to juliet (2010), interstate 60 (2002), the straight story (1999), joy ride (2001), the adventures of priscilla, queen of the desert (1994), seeking a friend for the end of the world (2012), alice doesn’t live here anymore (1974), we’re the millers (2013), the long, long trailer (1953), tammy (2014), follow that bird (1985), the guilt trip (2012), kalifornia (1993), nomadland (2021), pin this list of the best road trip movies:.

In National Lampoon’s Vacation , Clark Griswold takes his family on a 2,460-mile quest for fun. The destination: Walley World (think, knock off Disney meets Six Flags). The family of four hits the road in a metallic pea Wagon Queen Family Truckster station wagon stopping to at fun roadside attractions like the Dodge City old west town and the “House of Mud”, visiting family, and hitting every roadblock imaginable along the way.

Hot shot Charlie Babbitt (Tom Cruise) travels back home for his estranged father’s funeral only to discover that he has an autistic savant brother (who is getting his entire inheritance). With an ulterior motive, they pack up in their late father’s 1949 Buick Roadmaster to drive to Los Angeles.

After Pee-wee Herman’s beloved bicycle gets stolen, a psychic tells him where he will find it: the basement of the Alamo. Pee-wee heads off on the adventure of a lifetime to find it, encountering convicts, bikers, ghosts, and the California roadside attraction Cabazon Dinosaurs along the way. Watch this road trip movie and be sure and tell’em, Large Marge sent ya!

Neal Page (Steve Martin) just wants to get home to his family for Thanksgiving. It’s a plan that’s easier said then done when his flight gets cancelled and he encounters Del Griffith (John Candy), a traveling shower curtain ring salesman. What starts as an innocent offer to help with a hotel room turns into a road trip nobody bargained for.

Best friends Thelma and Louise take off on a weekend road trip to escape their problems with the men in their lives. Their problems only worsen when a detour goes awry and they become fugitives on the run from the law.

When seven-year-old Olive Hoover gets the chance to compete in the Little Miss Sunshine pageant in Redondo Beach, California, the whole family (including mom, dad, a brother who has taken a vow of silence, a suicidal uncle, and a heroin-addicted grandfather) pack in a VW bus for a cross-country road trip from Albuquerque. After numerous setbacks, they make it to the pageant and Olive has a chance to show the audience her signature moves.

With a dream of stardom, Kermit the Frog leaves his small-town pond and takes off for Hollywood. Along the way he picks up some new friends (including Fozzie Bear, Miss Piggy, and Gonzoa) and dodges the advances of the evil Doc Hopper, who wants Kermit as the mascot for his Frog Legs food chain.

Y Tu Mamá Tambié n (2001)

Two teenage boys, Tenoch Iturbide and Julio Zapata, try to convince Tenoch’s cousin’s wife, Luisa Cortés, to join them on a road trip to made-up fantasy beach (Boca del Cielo, Heaven’s Mouth). After confirming that her husband has been cheating on her, she agrees to go. Their road trip, set against the backdrop of Mexico, challenges the boys, their friendship, and their sexuality.

After seven years of school, dim-witted Tommy Callahan Jr. is finally a college graduate. He returns home to work for his father, Big Tom Callahan, at the family’s auto parts factory in Ohio. When Big Tom suddenly dies, Tommy Boy hits the road with his late father’s right-hand man Richard, to try to sell brake pads and save the company.

A struggling music executive (Jason Sudeikis) ends up on a road trip with his estranged father (Ed Harris), a dying photojournalist on a journey from New York to Kansas to have his last lost rolls of Kodachrome film developed before the discontinued ink is no longer available at the lab. While the relationship plot line itself isn’t based on a true story, the premise is, with inspiration stemming from the real-life end of the road of Kodachrome as documented in “ For Kodachrome Fans, Road Ends at Photo Lab in Kansas ” by A.G. Sulzberger.

College student Josh (Breckin Meyer) accidentally sends his long-distance girlfriend a sex tape that he made with another girl. Him and his friends embark on a cross-country road trip to get to her college to intercept the tape before she sees it.

A semi-sequel to Road Trip , this movie follows a college beer pong team that hits the road to join a bus full of models on their way to compete in the National Beer Pong Championship. The team faces many roadblocks along the way, leaving their future in the championships (and relationships) up in the air.

A week before Jack’s (Thomas Haden Church) wedding day, his best friend, the struggling writer Miles (Paul Giamatti), plans a road trip around California wine country to relax before the big day. Oenophile Miles wants to sit back and savor the vino, but Jack has other plans for them both. The friends spend the week dealing with divorce, love, heartbreak, and merlot.

New York drag queens Vida Boheme (Patrick Swayze) and Noxeema Jackson (Wesley Snipes) win a local pageant and the chance to compete in the Drag Queen of America pageant in Hollywood, California. After meeting the green Chi-Chi Rodriguez (John Leguizamo) and taking her under their wing, they cash in their plane tickets, buy an old Cadillac, and set off on a cross-country adventure. Along the way the three face adversity and forge unexpected friendships.

High-school student and aspiring rock journalist William (Patrick Fugit) is given the chance to write a story for Rolling Stone Magazine about up-and-coming rock band Stillwater. He travels around the country with them on their tour bus as he tries to get the story.

Nate Johnson (Cedric the Entertainer) and his family take a cross-country road trip to attend a family reunion to face off against his brother for “Family of the Year.”

Retired writer Ben (Paul Rudd) tries to escape his past by becoming a caregiver for a disabled teen. Trevor (Craig Roberts), who has muscular dystrophy spends his days stuck to routine, eating nothing but waffles and watching a news program about roadside attractions day after day. Together, they break out to take a road trip to see the world’s biggest pit: picking up stragglers, confronting their emotions, and testing their limits along the way.

Three estranged childhood friends, Lucy (Britney Spears), Kit (Zoe Saldana) and Mimi (Taryn Manning) take off on a cross-country road trip where they face their past, prepare for the future, and rediscover their friendship.

Though purists for the iconic novel might be disappointed, there is still no more iconic road trip story than On The Road . The movie version chooses to focus on the relationship between writer Sal Paradise (Sam Riley) and his friend Dean Moriarty (Garrett Hedlund) as they traverse the country, cuts out the solo adventures of Sal, and pulls inspiration from many sources.

Jimmy (Luke Edwards) is always running away from home. after his parents put him in a mental institution his brother Corey (Fred Savage) breaks him out and, together, they set off towards California. Along the way they meet a girl named Haley (Jenny Lewis), discover that Jimmy is a video-game prodigy, and dodge the bounty hunter the parents hired to track them down.

After a virus outbreak turns most of America’s population into zombies, an unlikely foursome of survivors takes a post-apocalyptic road trip across the country, in search of sanctuary (and Pacific Playland) in California.

Based on a true story and a book of the same name, Into the Wild follows recluse Christopher McCandless (Emile Hirsch), AKA Alexander Supertramp, as he hitchhikes around the country, eventually making his way to Alaska , where he intends to live off of nothing but the land.

An aging pig farmer (Danny Glover) crosses the border from Southern California into Mexico to sell his prized pig to an old friend’s son. When the deal doesn’t go as planned, he keeps driving, eventually joined by his reluctant daughter (Maya Rudolph), in a last-ditch effort to find a home for the cherished hog.

In order to save his job, Bob Munro (Robin Williams) cancels his family’s Hawaii vacation and convinces them to take an RV trip to Colorado . Along the way they run into road problems, bizarre campers, and familial tension.

Three friends take a bachelor party road trip through Spain. Along the way they hit some roadblocks, confront their past and future, and have an adventure of a lifetime.

Heiress Ellie (Claudette Colbert) runs away from her father and fiancee. While escaping by bus she meets a man (Clark Gable) who helps her on her way, in exchange for her story.

High school overachiever Melanie (Raven-Symoné) really wants to go to Georgetown. But, her overbearing father (Martin Lawrence) is hoping to keep her close to home. When the opportunity to interview for her dream college comes up, her dad reluctantly agrees to take her, with the idea that he can change her mind along the way.

When David (Albert Brooks) loses his job he convinces his wife Linda (Julie Hagerty) to quit hers, get a Winnebago, and leave conventional society behind. But when plans quickly get derailed, the couple has to change course.

Musician Jane (Whoopi Goldberg) accepts a rideshare from Robin (Mary-Louise Parker) to go from New York to Los Angeles. Along the way, they stop to see Jane’s friend Holly (Drew Barrymore), run into trouble, and settle down far from their original destination.

After gaining a large profit from a drug deal in Mexico, hippies Wyatt (Peter Fonda) and Billy (Dennis Hopper) outfit themselves with motorcycles and set off to discover “the real America.”

A convict on the run crashes and uses his dying words to tell the group of motorists who witness the crash about his buried treasure sparking a cross-country race to see who will find it first.

Goofy just wants some father-son bonding time. His son Max just wants to impress his crush Roxanne. When the two go on a road trip, destination Lake Destiny, Max schemes to change course and get his way.

Two old friends, Tocho (Hovik Keuchkerian) and Jean Pierre (Jean Reno), travel to visit their old friend Joseba (Enrique San Francisco) one last time before he dies, taking his estranged daughter (Ely, Susana Abaitua) along for the ride. Their journey takes them across the Sahara, crossing Africa to get to Mali, recreating and recalling the adventures the three men shared in their youth.

Based on a true story, Motorcycle Diaries depicts a road trip across South America taken by medical student Ernesto “Che” Guevara (Gael García Bernal), who later went on to be recognized as a Marxist guerrilla leader and revolutionary.

After aging Woody Grant (Bruce Dern) gets a letter claiming he’s won a million-dollar Mega Sweepstakes Marketing prize, his son David (Will Forte) agrees to drive him from Montana to Nebraska to claim the alleged prize. (Look for a cameo by the L.P. Anderson Tire Co. Muffler Man in Billings, Montana .)

After getting turned around on the road, anthropomorphic race car Lightning McQueen ends up in trouble in Radiator Springs, a rundown Route 66 town that pays homage to all the famous sites on the Mother Road.

After watching the woman he drove to the airport leave a briefcase behind, limo driver Lloyd (Jim Carrey) and his friend Harry (Jeff Daniels) take off after her in a dog-shaped vehicle while facing one dumb situation after another.

While visiting Verona, Italy, on a pre-honeymoon with her busy chef fiancé Victor (Gael García Bernal), Sophie (Amanda Seyfried) stumbles upon the “Secretaries of Juliet,” a group of women who answer lovelorn letters left at Juliet Capulet’s balcony. She ends up answering a letter herself, sparking an overdo road trip looking for a long-lost love.

Aspiring artist Neal Oliver (James Marsden) learns to be careful what you wish for when he encounters the mysterious O.W. Grant. His overheard birthday wish catapults him onto an off-the-map road trip to find the girl of his dreams and figure out what he wants in life.

Retired Iowa farmer, Alvin Straight (Richard Farnsworth), learns that his estranged brother Lyle (Harry Dean Stanton) has suffered a stroke in Wisconsin. Determined to see him again, he sets off on a journey using the only vehicle he can drive: an old lawn mower.

College freshman Lewis Thomas (Paul Walker) buys a car to pick up his friend and crush Venna (Leelee Sobieski) on their way home for summer break. But plans go awry when his brother, Fuller (Steve Zahn), convinces him to pull a prank over a car’s CB radio with deadly consequences.

A trio of drag queens and transsexuals hop in a colorful bus to travel across the Australian desert to get to a new gig. Along the way they run into both trouble and compassion, and learn the real reason they are taking the trip.

As an asteroid heading towards Earth threatens humanity, insurance salesman Dodge (Steve Carell) and his neighbor Penny (Keira Knightley) set off together to revisit the past in their last days.

After her husband dies, aspiring singer Alice (Ellen Burstyn) hits the road with her son in search of a new life.

After getting robbed, small-time pot dealer David (Jason Sudeikis) needs to repay his supplier. He’s sent on a big-time mission to Mexico disguised as a family man on vacation, complete with an RV and a fake family.

Newlyweds Nicholas Collini (Desi Arnaz) and Tacy (Lucille Ball) buy a motor home so they can see the country. They quickly learn the ins and outs of living on the road.

After being fired from her job Tammy (Melissa McCarthy) comes home early to find her husband having an affair. Desperate to get away, she takes a road trip with her grandmother, Pearl (Susan Sarandon) towards Niagara Falls.

At the suggestion of a social worker, Big Bird leaves Sesame Street to live with a family of Dodos in Illinois. When he realizes he had already found a home, he leaves to walk back. But the journey is a little farther than he accounted for and trouble is around every corner.

Andy Brewster (Seth Rogen) is traveling across the country to try to sell his environmentally-friendly cleaning product to big-box stores. When he learns about his mother ‘s (Barbara Streisand) long lost love, he invites her along with the secret mission of reuniting them at the end.

Brian Kessler (David Duchovny) and his girlfriend Carrie Laughlin (Michelle Forbes) are working on a book about serial killers. To cut costs on their road trip to explore murder sites, they set up a ride share with strangers, Early Grayce (Brad Pitt) and his girlfriend, Adele Corners (Juliette Lewis). But they soon learn that they didn’t have to travel far to find a killer.

Fern (Frances McDormand) packs her van and explores an unconventional life s a nomad in the vast landscape of the American West. Along the way, she forms unbreakable bonds with others in locations like Wall Drug and beyond.

More movies that feature road trips:

• Duel ( watch )
• Romy And Michele’s High School Reunion ( watch )
• Getting There: Sweet Sixteen & Licensed to Drive ( watch )
• Wristcutters: A Love Story ( watch )
• True Romance ( watch )
• Flirting With Disaster ( watch )
• Bonnie and Clyde ( watch )
• Mad Max: Fury Road ( watch )
• Inside Llewyn Davis ( watch )
• Magic Mike XXL ( watch )
• Paris, Texas ( watch )
• Sullivan’s Travels ( watch )
• Wild Strawberries ( watch )
• Midnight Special ( watch )
• The End of the Tour ( watch )
• Over the Top ( watch )
• Stranger Than Paradise ( watch )
• Grandma ( watch )
• Pierrot le Fou ( watch )
• The Daytrippers ( watch )
• Smoke Signals ( watch )
• Last Day Of Summer ( watch )
• American Honey ( watch )
• Two for the Road ( watch )
• Smokey and The Bandit ( watch )
• Bad Trip ( watch )
• The Road Ahead ( watch )
• Hit the Road ( watch )
• Unpregnant ( watch )
• Hooking Up ( watch )
• Uncle Frank ( watch )
• Supernova ( watch )
• The Unknown Country ( watch )
• Bones and All ( watch )
• The Long Dumb Road ( watch )
• She’s in Portland ( watch )
• Green Book ( watch )
• I’m Thinking of Ending Things ( watch )
• The In-Between ( watch )
• Mags and Julie Go on a Road Trip ( watch )

Photo by RV Talk on Unsplash

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Valerie Bromann

Founder & road trip expert.

Valerie Bromann is a a website manager, content creator, and writer from Chicago, Illinois (currently living in Dallas, Texas). As an avid road tripper who has visited hundreds of roadside attractions, Val always pull over for a world’s largest thing. Founder of Silly America and author of The Road Trip Journal & Activity Book , she visits, photographs, and writes about all the weird tourist destinations she visits and offers road trip planning advice and inspiration based on her own travels so you can hit the road for yourself.

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Last modified: December 28, 2023 Category: Road Trip Movies & Books

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The Road Trip Journal & Activity Book

Everything you need to have and record an epic road trip, by valerie bromann.

Enjoy fun games and challenges to pass the time on your next road trip and have a keepsake to look back on for years to come with this entertaining must-have for your next vacation.

The road trip you’ve been dreaming of starts here! Journal about your stops and get to know your fellow passengers with activities and exercises designed to pass the time and bring you closer together. Instead of “Are we there yet?” you’ll find yourself asking, “We’re there already?”. Complete with prompts you can turn to while driving between locations, this journal will one day be a memento of your life-changing trip.

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Best Road Trip Comedies

• Movies or TV
• IMDb Rating
• In Theaters
• Release Year

1. Dumb and Dumber (1994)

PG-13 | 107 min | Comedy

After a woman leaves a briefcase at the airport terminal, a dumb limo driver and his dumber friend set out on a hilarious cross-country road trip to Aspen to return it.

Directors: Peter Farrelly , Bobby Farrelly | Stars: Jim Carrey , Jeff Daniels , Lauren Holly , Mike Starr

Votes: 412,087 | Gross: $127.18M

2. Borat (2006)

R | 84 min | Comedy

Kazakh TV talking head Borat is dispatched to the United States to report on the greatest country in the world.

Director: Larry Charles | Stars: Sacha Baron Cohen , Ken Davitian , Luenell , Chester

Votes: 441,881 | Gross: $128.51M

3. We're the Millers (2013)

R | 110 min | Comedy, Crime

A veteran pot dealer creates a fake family as part of his plan to move a huge shipment of weed into the U.S. from Mexico.

Director: Rawson Marshall Thurber | Stars: Jason Sudeikis , Jennifer Aniston , Emma Roberts , Ed Helms

Votes: 485,959 | Gross: $150.39M

4. Planes, Trains & Automobiles (1987)

R | 93 min | Comedy, Drama

A Chicago advertising man must struggle to travel home from New York for Thanksgiving, with a lovable oaf of a shower-curtain-ring salesman as his only companion.

Director: John Hughes | Stars: Steve Martin , John Candy , Laila Robins , Michael McKean

Votes: 160,188 | Gross: $49.53M

5. Harold & Kumar Go to White Castle (2004)

R | 88 min | Adventure, Comedy

A Korean-American office worker and his Indian-American stoner friend embark on a quest to satisfy their desire for White Castle burgers.

Director: Danny Leiner | Stars: John Cho , Kal Penn , Ethan Embry , Rob Tinkler

Votes: 206,033 | Gross: $18.23M

6. Midnight Run (1988)

R | 126 min | Action, Comedy, Crime

A bounty hunter pursues a former Mafia accountant who is also being chased by a rival bounty hunter, the F.B.I., and his old mob boss after jumping bail.

Director: Martin Brest | Stars: Robert De Niro , Charles Grodin , Yaphet Kotto , John Ashton

Votes: 94,206 | Gross: $38.41M

7. Vacation (1983)

R | 98 min | Adventure, Comedy

The Griswold family's cross-country drive to the Walley World theme park proves to be much more arduous than they ever anticipated.

Director: Harold Ramis | Stars: Chevy Chase , Beverly D'Angelo , Imogene Coca , Randy Quaid

Votes: 120,084 | Gross: $61.40M

8. Due Date (2010)

R | 95 min | Comedy, Drama

High-strung father-to-be Peter Highman is forced to hitch a ride with aspiring actor Ethan Tremblay on a road trip in order to make it to his child's birth on time.

Director: Todd Phillips | Stars: Robert Downey Jr. , Zach Galifianakis , Michelle Monaghan , Jamie Foxx

Votes: 357,896 | Gross: $100.54M

9. Tommy Boy (1995)

PG-13 | 97 min | Adventure, Comedy

After his auto-parts tycoon father dies, the overweight, underachieving son teams up with a snide accountant to try and save the family business.

Director: Peter Segal | Stars: Chris Farley , David Spade , Brian Dennehy , Bo Derek

Votes: 97,239 | Gross: $32.70M

10. Jay and Silent Bob Strike Back (2001)

R | 104 min | Comedy

The comic "Bluntman and Chronic" is based on real-life stoners Jay and Silent Bob, so when they get no profit from a big-screen adaptation, they set out to wreck the movie.

Director: Kevin Smith | Stars: Jason Mewes , Kevin Smith , Amy Noble , Harley Quinn Smith

Votes: 161,026 | Gross: $30.09M

11. Harold & Kumar Escape from Guantanamo Bay (2008)

R | 114 min | Adventure, Comedy

After being mistaken for terrorists and thrown into Guantánamo Bay, stoners Harold and Kumar escape and return to the U.S., where they proceed to flee across the country with federal agents in hot pursuit.

Directors: Jon Hurwitz , Hayden Schlossberg | Stars: John Cho , Kal Penn , Neil Patrick Harris , Rob Corddry

Votes: 141,993 | Gross: $38.09M

12. Kingpin (1996)

PG-13 | 114 min | Comedy, Sport

A star bowler whose career was prematurely "cut off" hopes to ride a new prodigy to success and riches.

Directors: Bobby Farrelly , Peter Farrelly | Stars: Woody Harrelson , Randy Quaid , Bill Murray , Vanessa Angel

Votes: 91,042 | Gross: $24.94M

13. The Blues Brothers (1980)

R | 133 min | Action, Adventure, Comedy

Jake Blues rejoins with his brother Elwood after being released from prison, but the duo has just days to reunite their old R&B band and save the Catholic home where the two were raised, outrunning the police as they tear through Chicago.

Director: John Landis | Stars: John Belushi , Dan Aykroyd , Cab Calloway , John Candy

Votes: 214,418 | Gross: $57.23M

14. Road Trip (2000)

R | 93 min | Comedy

Four college buddies embark on a road trip to retrieve an illicit tape mistakenly mailed to a female friend.

Director: Todd Phillips | Stars: Breckin Meyer , Seann William Scott , Amy Smart , Paulo Costanzo

Votes: 178,234 | Gross: $68.54M

15. Bad Trip (2021)

Unrated | 86 min | Comedy

This mix of a scripted buddy comedy road movie and a real hidden camera prank show follows the outrageous misadventures of two buds stuck in a rut who embark on a cross-country road trip to NYC. The storyline sets up shocking real pranks.

Director: Kitao Sakurai | Stars: Eric André , Michaela Conlin , Lil Rel Howery , Tiffany Haddish

Votes: 27,440

16. Identity Thief (2013)

R | 111 min | Comedy, Crime, Drama

Mild mannered businessman Sandy Patterson travels from Denver to Florida to confront the deceptively harmless looking woman who has been living it up after stealing Sandy's identity.

Director: Seth Gordon | Stars: Jason Bateman , Melissa McCarthy , John Cho , Amanda Peet

Votes: 140,875 | Gross: $134.51M

17. Wild Hogs (2007)

PG-13 | 100 min | Action, Adventure, Comedy

A group of suburban biker wannabes looking for adventure hit the open road, but get more than they bargained for when they encounter a New Mexico gang called the Del Fuegos.

Director: Walt Becker | Stars: Tim Allen , Martin Lawrence , John Travolta , William H. Macy

Votes: 123,372 | Gross: $168.27M

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The best road trip movies of all time

Posted: May 26, 2023 | Last updated: August 3, 2023

The open road, a sense of adventure, and a cinematic backdrop: the best road trip movies capture them all. Of course, real-life road trips rarely go totally smoothly, and classic road trip movies don't shy away from showing all the dramatic bumps along the way. From drug-fueled misadventures to disastrous family trips and bust-ups behind the wheel, these movies range from cringe-making comedies to tense thrillers and joy-filled adventures.

Got your interest? Then buckle up to discover the best road trip movies of all time.

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'Easy Rider' (1969)

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'Magic Mike XXL' (2015)

The fun follow-up to 2012's comedy-drama 'Magic Mike' sees male stripper Mike Lane (Channing Tatum) return from retirement to join his Kings of Tampa dance colleagues for a road trip to attend a stripper convention.

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'Little Miss Sunshine' (2006)

A dysfunctional Albuquerque family hit the road in their Volkswagen van in a bitter-sweet indie movie. The offbeat family are headed to California, where seven-year-old daughter Olive is keen to showcase her somewhat unique dance moves in the finals of a beauty pageant.

'It Happened One Night' (1934)

An early rom-com, 'It Happened One Night' was the first of only three movies ever to pick up the five top awards at the Oscars. It sees an out-of-work reporter and a headstrong heiress thrown together when their bus leaves them stranded.

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'Borat Subsequent Moviefilm' (2020)

Having failed in his attempts to marry Pamela Anderson in 2006, Borat is back in his van and in the United States, this time navigating a pandemic as he attempts to offer his daughter as a present to a prominent politician. What could go wrong? Everything!

'The Blues Brothers' (1980)

John Belushi and Dan Aykroyd are the blues-loving protagonists of this memorable movie. Fresh out of jail and trying to stick to the straight-and-narrow, they embark on a wild ride around Illinois trying to raise money for a Catholic orphanage threatened with closure.

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'Almost Famous' (2000)

Kate Hudson plays a 1970s groupie in a beautifully-shot film about rock and roll life on the road. A semi-autobiographical work from director Cameron Crowe, it follows an impressionable young male journalist on a tour assignment for Rolling Stone magazine.

'Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas' (1998)

Johnny Depp is on hilariously good form in Terry Gilliam's trippy adaptation of the Hunter S. Thomson novel. He plays a hard-partying journalist getting into all manner of drug-induced nightmare scenarios as he navigates Nevada with his no-good lawyer.

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'Thelma & Louise' (1991)

Perhaps the ultimate female empowerment road trip movie, it features Geena Davies and Susan Sarandon on the run from the law. Watch out also for a young Brad Pitt playing a charming-but-untrustworthy cowboy.

'Stranger Than Paradise' (1984)

Deadpan comedy unfurls in artsy black and white, as a hip-but-bored New Yorker sets off to retrieve his young Hungarian cousin from her aunt's place in Cleveland.

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'The Straight Story' (1999)

Truth really can be stranger than fiction! David Lynch's moving 1999 movie tells the true story of Alvin Straight, a World War II veteran who rode right across Iowa and Wisconsin–on a lawn mower!

'Bonnie and Clyde' (1967)

Another road movie based on real-life events, but rather darker in theme. 'Bonnie and Clyde' is a glamorized version of the crimes committed by the Great Depression-era robbery duo, and their attempts to evade capture.

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'Smokey and the Bandit' (1977)

High-speed thrills and spills abound in this fun comedy about a pair of southern truckers attempting to ship a hefty amount of beer across state lines. A hitchhiking bride-to-be throws a spanner in the works.

'Road Trip' (2000)

Not a highbrow watch, but this raunchy road trip movie is good fun. A group of college buddies hit the road in a race against time to try and retrieve an explicit tape accidentally mailed to one of their girlfriends.

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'Rain Man' (1988)

This 1988 classic earned Dustin Hoffman an Oscar for Best Actor. He plays Raymond, the autistic older brother of Tom Cruise's self-centered yuppie Charlie Babbitt.

Babbitt takes his estranged brother away from his mental institution for a financially-motivated road trip, but learns a series of life lessons along the way.

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'Pee-wee's Big Adventure' (1985)

Tim Burton's directorial debut is a quirkily funny road trip adventure. When childlike Pee-wee Herman's beloved bike is stolen, he sets off across the country on an action-packed attempt to get it back.

'On the Road' (2012)

Based on Jack Kerouac's classic novel of the same name, this cinema adaptation sees three friends embark on a cross-country voyage of discovery.

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'National Lampoon's Vacation' (1983)

With National Lampoon in the title, you know this road trip is going to go hilariously wrong. Sure enough, Clark Griswold's impeccably-planned family trip from Chicago to a California theme park is a string of painfully-funny disasters.

'National Lampoon's European Vacation' (1985)

Having learned absolutely no lessons from their epic American road trip fail, the Griswolds head to Europe on a freebie vacation. They fall foul of the Italian police, British driving laws, and a whole lot more.

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'The Muppet Movie' (1979)

Muppets can make road movies too! On their first big-screen outing, Miss Piggy, Kermit, and the gang embark on a cross country trip to try and make it big in Hollywood.

'The Motorcycle Diaries' (2004)

This Spanish-language movie is based on the real-life diaries of Argentine revolutionary Ernesto "Che" Guevara. The film captures the often-funny motorbike trip across South America that inspired his political awakening.

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'Midnight Run' (1988)

Robert De Niro is a foul-mouthed bounty hunter hitting the road on the trail of an unscrupulous accountant. It's a fast-paced comedy drama in which nothing goes to plan.

'And Your Mother Too' (2001)

A somewhat raunchy coming-of-age Mexican road movie, this critically-acclaimed flick sees two young male friends set off on a long-distance beach trip with a seductive older woman.

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'Wild at Heart' (1990)

David Lynch's 1990 road movie is less cryptic than many of his works as a director. Nicolas Cage and Laura Dern star as a couple on the run from probation officers and a mother who violently opposes their relationship.

'The Fundamentals of Caring' (2016)

Paul Rudd is a world-weary soul charged with caring for a disabled teenager. When the pair embark on a road trip, they find themselves faced with–and ultimately overcoming–a whole host of emotional challenges.

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'Sideways' (2004)

Pour yourself a large glass and enjoy this offbeat comedy-drama about a hapless writer and his soon-to-be-married friend as they explore California's wine country. 

'Due Date' (2010)

Nothing like a string of travel disasters to pile on the pressure when your expectant wife is about to give birth! Robert Downey Jr. plays a highly-strung father-to-be trying to overcome the comedic odds to get to the hospital in time.

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'The Darjeeling Limited' (2007)

As colorful and character-packed as moviegoers have come to expect from director Wes Anderson, this witty movie sees three brothers embark on a bonding trip across India.

Sources: (Insider)

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7 best movies and shows to watch on your long road trip

By diana nosa | mar 30, 2021.

A road trip is a fun and adventurous activity to do with your friends and loved ones.

Singing songs at the top of your lungs, eating ridiculous amounts of junk food, telling funny jokes and recalling fond memories—all those things sound great in the beginning, but when the sun starts to set and the hype dies down, it’s the perfect time to pull out your headphones and watch a new movie or start a new show.

Best movies and shows to watch on your road trip

1. Boyhood 

Boyhood  is a coming-of-age film about how Mason discovers what it means to be a boy who is eventually going to be a man someday. He is charismatic, loving, and curious—characteristics that every road-tripper definitely has.

What makes this film unique is that it was filmed across twelve years , which means you actually get to watch the characters grow throughout the movie. It’s truly a remarkable film and even went on to be nominated for multiple Academy Awards including Best Picture in 2015.

Boyhood  is a two-hour, 45-minute emotional rollercoaster that is sure to leave you in tears.

2.  Little Miss Sunshine

This dysfunctional family made it cool to take long road trips!

Little Miss Sunshine  is a beautiful, heart-filling story about how a family goes the extra mile to take their daughter to a beauty pageant. Their beat-up yellow van brings this crazy bunch together and reminds them of what truly matters.

If that wasn’t enough of a selling point,  The Office   actor Steve Carell stars in the movie, making the movie that much more iconic.

This film will leave you warm as you cozy up against the cold glass of your van’s window.

This is another film about a journey—only this time a man embarks on the journey to reunite with his long-lost brother and mother that he hasn’t seen since he was a child.

After Saroo, played by Dev Patel, has spent an unimaginable twenty-five years separated from his home in Calcutta, India, he is dedicated to finding his way back to everything that he lost.

Based on a true story , Lion  pulls at the heartstrings and forces you to realize that the most important step of going on any road trip is the first step.

4.  The Good Place 

To switch gears from crying your heart out,  The Good Place is a hilarious series that tackles the topic of death and what happens after we die.

How do we know who goes to the good place or who goes to the bad place? What can we do to avoid going to the bad place? This TV series starring Kristen Bell discusses what it actually means to be “good” and if being good is worth achieving.

Though it’s a comedy,  The Good Place  is also dedicated to answering questions that we all may have about life and is guaranteed to make you philosophical on your road trip.

5.  Stranger Things

The thrilling, supernatural Stranger Things   is a good way to pass the time on your long road trip.

Four childhood friends find themselves in a flipped world as one of their other acquaintances, Will Byers, goes missing. Determined to find their friend, these imaginative children search through the woods and instead find a girl, Eleven, with crazy powers who may be the key to unlocking the whereabouts of Will Byers.

Stranger Things is a series that is certainly going to have you feeling nostalgic and with the show releasing its fourth season very soon, you’ll have even more to look forward to after you take your road trip.

6.  Queer Eye

Maybe on your road trip you want to remember that fuzzy feeling of wanting to find something greater than yourself, within yourself. The Netflix series Queer Eye does just that as Johnathan, Karamo, Tan, Bobby, and Antoni leave you with advice that will absolutely change your life.

The fabulous quintet meet strangers who deserve to have another shot at falling in love with life and revamp that person’s food, home, fashion, beauty, and culture. Share the advice you learned with your road buddies once they wake up.

7.  The Pursuit of Happyness

As you go on your pursuit, we leave you with this pursuit.

Last but certainly not least on our list is Will Smith’s  The Pursuit of Happyness,  a film about a father doing everything he can to provide for his son (played by Will Smith’s son, Jaden Smith) and give him a life that he can smile about.

Based on another true story, this film talks about how the journey is just as important as the destination.

As you arrive to your destination, we hope that these films leave you feeling refreshed and ready to take on your next road trip with your loved ones. Remember to drive safe, relax, and enjoy the road.

dark. Next. 50 best Netflix movies to watch right now

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The Funniest Road Trip Comedy Movies

There's something about the open road that continues to inspire hilarious comedies year after year. The best road trip movies are about the mishap-filled journey as much as the funny destination. This is a list of the top movies about road trips including everything from The Blues Brothers to Little Miss Sunshine to Borat . If you're planning on going on your own adventure, you might be interested in the best 2018 songs perfect for your road trip playlist .

What films will you find on this list of the best road trip movies? Dumb and Dumber  continues to make audiences laugh. Whether Harry Dunne (Jeff Daniels) and Lloyd Christmas (Jim Carrey) are traveling by dog-car, scooter or Hawaiian Tropic bus, the result is pure hilarity. Vacation – starring Chevy Chase – is another classic road trip comedy.  Tommy Boy finds the dynamic duo of Chris Farley and David Spade traveling across the country on a mission to save the family business. Other good films featured on this best road trip movies list include Planes, Trains and Automobiles , Road Trip , and Harold & Kumar Go to White Castle .

Which road trip movie do you think is the funniest? Give your favorites a thumbs up and please add any good films that are missing.

Tommy Boy presents Chris Farley in his prime as Thomas "Tommy" Callahan III, an incompetent heir to his late father's auto parts business, who embarks on a wild sales trip with straight-laced colleague Richard Hayden (David Spade). The unlikely duo's misadventures and epic mishaps make for a riotous road trip full of quotable lines and uproarious scenes that have solidified this film as a beloved comedy classic.

• # 216 of 772 on The Most Rewatchable Movies
• # 32 of 702 on The All-Time Greatest Comedy Films
• # 138 of 379 on The Best Movies Of The 1990s

Planes, Trains and Automobiles

Planes, Trains and Automobiles delivers side-splitting humor with Steve Martin as Neal Page, an uptight advertising executive desperate to get home for Thanksgiving, and John Candy as Del Griffith, a chatty shower curtain ring salesman. The duo finds themselves stuck together on an outrageously chaotic journey filled with canceled flights, rental car disasters, and unlikely sleeping arrangements—a must-watch for fans of laugh-out-loud road trip comedies.

• # 50 of 399 on The Best Movies Of The 1980s, Ranked
• # 228 of 772 on The Most Rewatchable Movies
• # 12 of 702 on The All-Time Greatest Comedy Films

Dumb and Dumber

Dumb and Dumber showcases the hysterical journey of two dimwitted pals, Lloyd Christmas (Jim Carrey) and Harry Dunne (Jeff Daniels), who embark on an epic cross-country trek to return a briefcase full of money to its rightful owner. With endless slapstick comedy and unforgettable one-liners, this classic film is sure to leave viewers in stitches as they witness these lovable fools face one ludicrous obstacle after another.

• Dig Deeper... Behind-The-Scenes Stories From 'Dumb And Dumber'
• And Deeper... 'Dumb And Dumber' Is Far Darker And Creepier Than You Remember
• # 197 of 772 on The Most Rewatchable Movies

Vacation follows the Griswold family—led by bumbling patriarch Clark Griswold (Chevy Chase)—as they embark on a disastrous yet hysterical drive from Chicago to California's Walley World theme park. Featuring memorable comedic moments like Aunt Edna's untimely demise and Christie Brinkley's flirtatious Ferrari Girl character, this 1983 comedy remains an iconic piece of Americana that guarantees laughter from start to finish.

• # 31 of 399 on The Best Movies Of The 1980s, Ranked
• # 162 of 772 on The Most Rewatchable Movies
• # 9 of 702 on The All-Time Greatest Comedy Films

We're the Millers

In We're the Millers , a small-time drug dealer (Jason Sudeikis) recruits a stripper (Jennifer Aniston), a runaway teen (Emma Roberts), and their naive neighbor (Will Poulter) to pose as his wholesome family in order to smuggle drugs across the Mexican border. Hilarity ensues as this ragtag bunch of misfits navigates their way through a series of hilarious road trip mishaps, all while trying to maintain their fake-family façade.

• # 317 of 702 on The All-Time Greatest Comedy Films
• # 29 of 93 on The 85+ Best Stoner Comedies Ever
• # 37 of 89 on The Most Rewatchable Comedy Movies

The Blues Brothers

The Blues Brothers features John Belushi and Dan Aykroyd as Jake and Elwood Blues, two brothers who reunite their blues band in order to save the orphanage they grew up in. This 1980 musical comedy is packed with high-speed car chases, legendary cameos by artists such as Aretha Franklin and James Brown, and unforgettable tunes that will leave you singing "Everybody Needs Somebody to Love" long after the credits roll.

• # 47 of 399 on The Best Movies Of The 1980s, Ranked
• # 174 of 772 on The Most Rewatchable Movies
• # 32 of 204 on Musical Movies With The Best Songs

Kingpin introduces us to Roy Munson (Woody Harrelson), a washed-up former pro bowler with a prosthetic hand who teams up with Amish bowling prodigy Ishmael Boorg (Randy Quaid) in hopes of winning a million-dollar tournament. This Farrelly brothers' comedy strikes the perfect balance between slapstick humor and heartwarming moments as Roy and Ishmael navigate their way through an absurd series of events, all while trying to avoid the vengeful wrath of pro bowler Ernie McCracken (Bill Murray).

• # 200 of 702 on The All-Time Greatest Comedy Films
• # 57 of 168 on The Best '90s Comedy Movies, Ranked
• # 51 of 206 on The Best Sports Movies Ever Made

In Road Trip , college student Josh Parker (Breckin Meyer) accidentally mails his long-distance girlfriend Tiffany Henderson (Rachel Blanchard) a videotape meant for another girl. With his motley crew of friends in tow—including Seann William Scott as the raucous E.L.—Josh embarks on a madcap journey to retrieve the tape before it's too late, encountering zany situations and uproarious mishaps that make for a hilarious cinematic ride.

• # 528 of 702 on The All-Time Greatest Comedy Films
• # 323 of 630 on The 600+ Funniest Movies Of All Time
• # 9 of 71 on The 70 Best College Movies

David Spade's lovable loser embarks on a quest to find his long-lost parents, encountering a slew of eccentric characters along the way. This offbeat road comedy celebrates the power of resilience and self-discovery in the face of adversity.

• # 506 of 702 on The All-Time Greatest Comedy Films
• # 34 of 113 on The Best Movies Of 2001
• # 223 of 630 on The 600+ Funniest Movies Of All Time

Harold & Kumar Go to White Castle

Harold & Kumar Go to White Castle follows best friends Harold Lee (John Cho) and Kumar Patel (Kal Penn) on their quest for late-night munchies—specifically those delicious sliders from White Castle. Along the way, they encounter eccentric characters like Neil Patrick Harris playing a drug-addled version of himself, resulting in gut-busting hilarity that has made this stoner comedy a cult favorite.

• # 341 of 702 on The All-Time Greatest Comedy Films
• # 5 of 93 on The 85+ Best Stoner Comedies Ever
• # 34 of 99 on The Best Movies Of 2004, Ranked

Midnight Run

Midnight Run stars Robert De Niro as Jack Walsh, a bounty hunter tasked with bringing accountant Jonathan "The Duke" Mardukas (Charles Grodin) back to Los Angeles after he embezzled millions from the mob. As they traverse the country avoiding mobsters and the FBI alike, their comedic banter makes for an entertaining ride rife with unexpected twists and turns, elevating this action-comedy into an absolute must-watch.

• # 239 of 399 on The Best Movies Of The 1980s, Ranked
• # 390 of 702 on The All-Time Greatest Comedy Films
• # 117 of 233 on The Best '80s Comedy Movies, Ranked

A modern-day twist on the classic madcap chase film, this comedy features an ensemble cast, including John Cleese and Rowan Atkinson, competing in a wild race to find a hidden fortune. Hilarity ensues as each character encounters outrageous obstacles and colorful opponents along their frantic journey.

• # 567 of 702 on The All-Time Greatest Comedy Films
• # 35 of 113 on The Best Movies Of 2001
• # 364 of 630 on The 600+ Funniest Movies Of All Time

Pee-wee's Big Adventure

Paul Reubens brings his iconic character to life in this whimsical adventure across America in search of his stolen bicycle. Pee-wee's innocent charm and imaginative spirit make this road trip comedy a timeless classic.

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• # 153 of 399 on The Best Movies Of The 1980s, Ranked
• # 309 of 702 on The All-Time Greatest Comedy Films

Mr. Bean's Holiday

Rowan Atkinson's beloved character embarks on a trip to the French Riviera, where he inadvertently creates chaos at every turn. The film combines slapstick humor with picturesque European settings, making for a light-hearted, visually appealing road trip adventure.

• # 431 of 702 on The All-Time Greatest Comedy Films
• # 31 of 102 on The Best British Comedy Movies
• # 309 of 630 on The 600+ Funniest Movies Of All Time

Robert Downey Jr .'s uptight architect and Zach Galifianakis' eccentric aspiring actor form an unlikely duo in this raucous journey across America. The film keeps viewers laughing while showcasing the transformative power of friendship and personal growth during unexpected detours.

• # 61 of 93 on The 85+ Best Stoner Comedies Ever
• # 538 of 630 on The 600+ Funniest Movies Of All Time
• # 5 of 32 on Blockbusters With No Cultural Impact Whatsoever, Ranked

Robin Williams stars as a well-intentioned father who takes his family on a disastrous RV trip, leading to a series of comedic mishaps and unexpected encounters. The film showcases Williams's comedic genius while reminding us of the importance of family connection amidst the chaos.

• # 25 of 50 on The Best Movies About Men Raising Kids
• # 10 of 26 on The Funniest Movies About Parenting
• # 25 of 77 on The Best Father's Day Movies

It's a Mad, Mad, Mad, Mad World

This classic 1963 comedy is undoubtedly a memorable road trip comedy, featuring a star-studded cast racing to find buried treasure. From roadside mishaps to comedic misunderstandings, this film set the standard for the chaos and hilarity that characterize the best road trip comedies.

• # 666 of 772 on The Most Rewatchable Movies
• # 70 of 702 on The All-Time Greatest Comedy Films
• # 29 of 167 on The Greatest '60s Movies, Ranked

Four middle-aged friends, played by Tim Allen, John Travolta, Martin Lawrence, and William H. Macy, hit the open road on motorcycles, seeking adventure and escape from their mundane lives. The film's blend of slapstick comedy and heartfelt moments make it a fun and relatable portrayal of friendship and rediscovering one's passion.

• # 148 of 190 on The Best Movies For Men
• # 47 of 139 on The Best Movies Of 2007
• # 267 of 630 on The 600+ Funniest Movies Of All Time

Little Miss Sunshine

This heartwarming and quirky indie film follows a dysfunctional family as they travel together in a rickety VW bus to support their young daughter in a beauty pageant. With complex characters and emotional depth, this comedy proves that even the most unconventional journeys can lead to profound personal growth and familial bonds.

• # 678 of 772 on The Most Rewatchable Movies
• # 391 of 702 on The All-Time Greatest Comedy Films
• # 45 of 66 on Movies You Wish You Could Still Watch for the First Time

When a family attempts to recreate a memorable road trip from their childhood, hilarity ensues in this reboot of the classic comedy. Ed Helms and Christina Applegate's pitch-perfect performances keep audiences laughing through every twist and turn.

• # 10 of 13 on 13 Times Movies Used CGI For Absolutely No Good Reason
• # 94 of 130 on The Best R-Rated Comedies
• # 57 of 66 on The 65 Best Slapstick Comedies

Borat: Cultural Learnings of America for Make Benefit Glorious Nation of Kazakhstan

Sacha Baron Cohen's mockumentary-style comedy follows the unforgettable character Borat as he travels across America to learn about its culture. The film is both shocking and hilarious, as Cohen's outrageous antics expose cultural divides and challenge societal norms.

• Dig Deeper... Behind-The-Scenes Stories From The Set Of 'Borat'
• And Deeper... The 31 Best Movies Like 'Borat', Ranked By Fans
• # 177 of 702 on The All-Time Greatest Comedy Films

This raunchy comedy follows a group of friends on a cross-country journey to lose their virginity, resulting in outrageous escapades and hilarious misadventures. The film masterfully combines crude humor with genuine heart, making it a memorable addition to the road trip genre.

• # 124 of 158 on The Best Movies of 2008
• # 21 of 22 on The Most Important 'Firsts' In Film History
• # 23 of 25 on The Greatest Band Cameos In Movie History

The Bucket List

Despite its somber premise, this film starring Jack Nicholson and Morgan Freeman is surprisingly uplifting, as two terminally ill men embark on a road trip to complete their bucket list. Through laughter and shared experiences, the film reminds us of the importance of living life to the fullest and cherishing the connections we make along the way.

• # 25 of 30 on 30 Words And Phrases You Might Not Realize Originated From A Movie Or TV Show
• # 49 of 90 on The 85+ Most Inspirational Movies Of All Time
• # 41 of 139 on The Best Movies Of 2007

Jay and Silent Bob Strike Back

Kevin Smith's iconic slacker characters hit the road in this irreverent comedy, on a mission to sabotage the Hollywood adaptation of their comic book alter egos. The film delivers non-stop laughs and clever pop culture references, making it a must-see for fans of Smith's unique brand of humor.

• # 604 of 772 on The Most Rewatchable Movies
• # 412 of 702 on The All-Time Greatest Comedy Films
• # 30 of 113 on The Best Movies Of 2001

Identity Thief

Melissa McCarthy shines as a brazen con artist, leading Jason Bateman's character on a wild chase to clear his name. The film cleverly balances slapstick humor with heartfelt moments, illustrating the unlikely relationships that can develop on the road.

• # 40 of 57 on The 50+ Best Movies About Con Artists
• # 47 of 64 on The Funniest Crime Parodies and Spoof Movies, Ranked
• # 46 of 66 on Great Movies About Male-Female Friendships

Wine connoisseurs and comedy lovers alike will appreciate this critically acclaimed film about two friends on a wine-tasting road trip through California. The film's sharp wit, engaging characters, and beautiful scenery create a humorous yet introspective journey of self-discovery.

• # 469 of 702 on The All-Time Greatest Comedy Films
• # 199 of 675 on The Best Movies Roger Ebert Gave Four Stars

College Road Trip

Martin Lawrence and Raven-Symoné star in this family-friendly comedy about a father-daughter duo road-tripping to visit colleges. The film is a lighthearted reminder of the challenges and joys of letting go and embracing life's transitions.

• # 265 of 468 on The Best Black Movies Ever Made, Ranked
• # 97 of 117 on The Funniest Black Movies Ever Made
• # 17 of 23 on The Funniest Movies About College

This classic road trip comedy set during the Great Depression pairs a charming con man with a precocious young girl, played by real-life father and daughter Ryan and Tatum O'Neal. Their adventures and evolving bond create a touching and timeless story filled with humor and heart.

• # 185 of 675 on The Best Movies Roger Ebert Gave Four Stars
• # 87 of 199 on The Best Movies Of The '70s, Ranked
• # 22 of 57 on The 50+ Best Movies About Con Artists

Bad Grandpa

Johnny Knoxville brings his signature outrageous stunts and pranks to this hidden camera comedy, playing an elderly man on a road trip with his young grandson. The film pushes the boundaries of taste while showcasing the undeniable bond between the two characters.

Are We There Yet

Ice Cube stars in this family comedy as a man attempting to win over his girlfriend's children by driving them across the country to visit their mother. The film offers a humorous take on the challenges of blended families and the unexpected bonds that can form on the road.

• # 509 of 702 on The All-Time Greatest Comedy Films
• # 162 of 468 on The Best Black Movies Ever Made, Ranked
• # 54 of 117 on The Funniest Black Movies Ever Made
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Best Movies to Watch on a Road Trip

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Road trips are a great way to make travel memories. 

They can be pretty epic, if planned well. Especially if it’s a family road trip. Simply because that means you’ll have passengers to keep entertained. My daughter and I are film buffs so naturally, we plan out all the movies we’ll be watching on the road – in the car, at a roadside hotel and on those occasional rainy nights that keep you inside.

Pack a movie night kit , or better, order it ahead and have it delivered to your rental house or hotel. That way, you’re well prepared to settle in for a fun evening of movies with your crew. And consider bringing along a mini projector that works with a smart phone , indoors or out. These are a great way to ensure everyone gets a good seat.

Here are some of the best road trip movies we’ve loved over and over again, along with where to stream them; if you don’t have a subscription to the streaming service where a movie is available, most can be purchased or rented on the go from Amazon .

Related: Our Favorite Packable Clothing for a Road Trip

For a good belly laugh….

The best movies to watch on a road trip have to be comedies. They’re entertaining and just enjoyable. Plus, they make the time pass more quickly. Here are a few favorites.

Mr. Bean’s Holiday 

This comedy film stars comedian/actor, Mr. Bean who wins a trip to Cannes. He accidentally separates a young boy from his dad and and has to help the boy find him again. On the way he has many comical adventures, visits France, goes cycling, sight seeing and much more. It’s a vacation to remember!

Catch it on Netflix

College Road Trip

Martin Lawerence and Raven-Symone star in this comedy film. Raven plays an intelligent high school student who is set to find her dream college. In the process, she decides to travel around the country to visit and her overprotective dad comes along. He pretends to give her space and freedom but end up spying and getting caught each time (in the most comical ways).

Catch College Road Trip on Disney+

Freaky Friday 

All moms and daughters must watch this film at least once. Jamie Lee Curtis and Lindsay Lohan star in this switch up adventure. Playing a mom and daughter, the two bump heads often and end up in each other’s bodies. Along the way, they learn a lot about each other. There are lots of good laughs and a little tug at the heart strings in this one.

Watch it on Disney+

For a good cry…

Depending on the mood of your road trip, nice emotional, sappy movies may do it for you. Let’s say you’re on a girls trip after a break up or maybe you just need a good cry. Whatever the reason, these are sure to make you shed a tear or two.

A little girl (Anna Chlumsky) navigates life in a funeral home with her father who is raising her on his own. She’s troubled but gets by with the help of her best friend (Maccaulay Culkin). This one is sure to make you both laugh and cry.

Watch My Girl on Hulu

A Walk to Remember

Any novel written by Nicholas Sparks is likely to tug at your emotions. This novel turned film does just that. It’s a story about two teenagers (played by Mandy Moore and Shayne West) who meet after Landon (West) gets into trouble and has to perform community service. The two grow close but something serious eventually breaks them apart. Tip: Have the Kleenex handy! 

Watch it on Netflix

We love rom-coms and we cannot lie. 

What better way to pass time than with romantic comedy movies? My daughter and I love these cheesy movies on the road, on a rainy day or just for kicks. Here are some favorites.

You’ve Got Mail

Tom Hanks and Meg Ryan star in this adorable romantic comedy. Kathleen Kelly (played by Meg Ryan), a small bookstore owner is being bought out by Fox books. Little does she know that the man she chats with online (and is falling for) is Joe Fox (played by Tom Hanks). If you’re familiar with the city, love to read (and write), you’ll appreciate the setting of the movie. It’s just perfect.

Watch it on Hulu

Crazy Rich Asians

You will fall in love with this film. Not only is it sort of like a Cinderella story but it’s shot so beautifully. It’s based on a best selling novel that tells the story of  Rachel Chu (played by Constance Wu), a native New Yorker who travels to Singapore to meet her boyfriend’s family. She has no idea what his family is like and learns a lot along the way. It’s a humorous, heartfelt story about friendship, love, marriage, and you guessed it- money.

While You Were Sleeping

Sandra Bullock is a queen of rom-coms and we love all of her movies. But While You Were Sleeping is a favorite. This is a story about a Chicago Transit Authority token collector who saves a man from an accident at the train station. She’s then mistaken for his fiancée and stays by his side while he is in a coma. But when he wakes up, then fun begins.

Stream it on Hulu

If we’re in the mood for action and adventure…

Here are a few titles to add to your movie que. If you haven’t seen them yet, these are a must!

Back to the Future

Who doesn’t love these movies? If you have the time to, watch them all! They are so much fun to watch. Marty McFly (Michael J. Fox), a teenager, travels 30 years into the past in a time-traveling DeLorean invented by his mad scientist friend, Doc Brown (Christopher Lloyd).

Stream it on Netflix

Around the World in 80 Days

The one with Jackie Chan. This is an adventure, action comedy film that tells the story of a British inventor, along with his Chinese valet and French artist friend who take a daring a trip around the world in eighty days. This very humorous film will have you giggling all the way to your destination.

Stream it on Disney+

Our favorite funny princess movies must get an honorable mention.

The princess diaries .

A normal teen (Anne Hathaway) discovers she’s part royalty and has to learn to be a princess. It’s a comical ugly duckling turns swan type of story. Never gets old.

Ella Enchanted

Ella Enchanted is another Anne Hathaway goodie! This time she plays a princess who gets an awful gift from a godmother: obedience. Once she turns into a teen, she has the chance to break the spell. It’s a fun story about being yourself, friendship and love.

Princess Giselle (Amy Adams) has to be Disney’s goofiest princess. In this film, we get a bit of animation that turns into real life once Giselle crosses into the mean streets of Manhattan. Luckily, she’s rescued by a dreamy real life prince (well, not technically-he’s a single dad played by Patrick Dempsey) and able to find her way. Enchanted is filled with comedy, adventure, and true love.

If you’ve got hours to spare, Star Wars and Marvel have plenty of movies to watch.

And they’re all on Disney+ and most are available for rent or purchase on Amazon , so be sure to download them before you hit the road. Happy road tripping!

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The 10 Best Road Trip Thriller Movies

There is a natural tension to the open road, with its isolation broken only by a complete stranger piloting their own ton or two of steel, glass and rubber where only suckers heed the speed limits. Most of the world might be carved up by roads, but that doesn’t mean that civilization grew up alongside them. It’s still a frontier, with plenty unknown on either side of the asphalt. Here are ten terrific pictures about why that cancelled road trip might be a blessing in disguise.

1. The Hitcher (1986)

When The Hitcher was first released, it proved a modest commercial success, largely ignored or reviled by critics. It grew in stature as HBO played it incessantly, and now it routinely shows up on the lists like this one. The premise couldn’t be more basic, as a young man (C. Thomas Howell) drives cross country to deliver a car from Chicago to San Diego and on one dark and stormy night, picks up a hitchhiker (Rutger Hauer). The script operates like those great seventy-minute B-movies of the thirties and forties, wasting no time with back stories or set-ups. Howell picks up Hauer in the opening moments and minutes later, Hauer calmly explains he’s going to kill this good Samaritan.

The script manages to keep its foot on the gas for the rest of the movie, finding clever ways to leap to where other movies like this might end, and pressing on to more unexpected, and depraved terrain. Jennifer Jason Leigh does her best to elevate her roadside waitress into someone more interesting and nearly pulls this off. But this is Hauer’s movie, and rarely has an actor seemed to delight as much in playing an apex predator. The movie wisely subscribes to the Michael Myers school of character development for its antagonist, understanding that childhood trauma and rationales only make monsters in such movies less intimidating.

Howell makes for a fine everyman here, though stumbles when the movie needs him to process his trauma is more disturbing ways. Richard Harmon directs this with competence and care, benefiting from an era where he got to blow up real cars, so the chases and crashes have a weight missing from contemporary movies that aren’t Fury Road. It’s a satisfying little thriller, but its screenwriter Eric Red would go on to produce far more intriguing genre experiments, writing both Near Dark and Blue Steel for Kathryn Bigelow. And unfortunately, Hauer would never get the chance to bare his teeth like this again.

2. Joyride (2002)

Before JJ Abrams became the anointed remixer of juggernaut franchises, he co-wrote this nifty B movie with Clay Tarver about a trio of young folks who play a nasty prank on a truck driver using an old CB radio. It earned some respectable reviews and its money back, but like a few others on this list, its reputation only grew over time.

Here Paul Walker offers to drive his college crush (Leelee Sobieski) home, with his clownish pal (Steve Zahn) along for the ride. By this movie, Zahn perfected his persona as a destructive, if well-meaning, moron. Zahn’s prank fuels the story and builds organically, never lurching into outright cruelty, but hurtful enough that the wrong person would take it very, very personally, which a truck driver with the CB handle of Rusty Nail (sumptuously voiced by Ted Levine) most certainly does. The twists are small but satisfying, refusing to take the big plot swings that made JJ’s company Bad Robot so famous for intriguing premises, jaw-dropping second acts, and deeply flawed endings.

The movie’s secret weapon is oddly enough the director, who quietly built his name on a string of accomplished neo-noirs in the nineties like Red Rock West and The Last Seduction. John Dahl balances the tone well, keeping this a high-grade thriller with nasty streak, as opposed to a more overt horror play, that might strip the plot down to a grocery list of kills. Rusty Nail and this trio are well-matched the whole way through, with an ending that can still produce shivers after repeat viewings. It’s exactly the type of thriller that people shrug off as simple, when in fact it’s a high-wire walk few pull off.

3. Breakdown (1997)

The generic title didn’t do this movie any favors, but it still became a small bore hit on its release, reminding everyone why its lead, Kurt Russell, has been a star for decades. The movie opens with Russell in a near collision with a truck driver, followed by a brief argument at a gas station, only to find his car breaking down in the middle of nowhere. He lets his wife hitch a ride with another trucker to get help, and naturally, she disappears into thin air. What follows is hardly groundbreaking, but the tension swells with rock solid story logic that too few of these movies ever bother to employ.

This was the directorial debut for Jonathan Mostow, who has the reliable chops that would have made him the second coming of Don Siegel or Robert Aldrich given enough time cranking out movies like this. Hardly a revelatory stylist, Mostow knows what he has in Russell and his script, and isn’t afraid to let those things shine here. But he shows a gift for sharing narrative information visually and letting the audience add two and two for themselves, as at one point, he unveils the time and scope of the conspiracy at work in a single image.

Still, this movie relies on Russell to deliver the goods, and he does, as he’s a delight to watch get frustrated, lose his cool, regain it, all with his average Joe aplomb. Few actors can play exasperated without ever falling into self-pity as Russel does so naturally. He’s just doing the best he can and looking for a break that is long overdue. This is stellar middlebrow entertainment, of the kind that shouldn’t make that an insult.

4. Detour (1946)

Long heralded as one of great no-budget noirs of the 1940s, Detour is a miracle for more than its financial constraints. Its director Edward G. Ulmer managed to stitch together his movies with used sets, hungry actors and a few, very few, well-placed lights. In this one, a down on his luck piano player (Tom Neal) hitches a ride with a bookie (Edmund MacDonald) to California to meet up with his girlfriend in Hollywood. Along the way the bookie ends up dying in an accident no one would believe happened. Too nervous to trust the police, Neal assumes the bookie’s identity and if his luck wasn’t already circling the drain, it’s flushed away upon picking up the one hitchhiker (Ann Savage) that knows that bookie.

Savage swiftly blackmails Neal, assuming exactly the kind of foul play the cops would. She’s not a garish femme fatale though, looking to gobble him up whole. She’s a fragile, broken soul that believes the only way to get what she needs is to harass, cajole and snatch it from the world around her. And Neal, desperate to put the detour behind him tries to escape her any way he can.

Now an established classic, Detour has the strange luxury of looking better now than it did in 1945. A recent 4K restoration has turned its glaring whites into a hypnotic glow, and its blacks into velvet shadows. Its longevity can’t be credited only to its place as an early noir, but rather, what kind of noir it is. Yes, the genre is built around bad, mostly criminal decisions, but the best have an aura of inevitability. It’s not simply a matter of falling for the wrong girl or aiming for the quick fix, but of trying to do the best with bad circumstances only to sink even deeper into trouble. Neal didn’t want anything but to reunite with the love of his life and yet, the open road had other plans.

5. The Vanishing (1988)

Stanley Kubrick once called this French-Dutch thriller the scariest movie he’d ever seen, and reached out to its director George Sluizer, to discuss how he edited it. This makes sense given that the suspense is built on the need to know, which had to resonate with Kubrick, a man who clearly had a ravenous curiosity.

It begins with a haunting rehearsal of the crime to come, as a pair of lovers, played by Gene Bervoets and Johanna ter Steege are separated when their car breaks down, only to be swiftly reunited. But then at a crowded rest stop, she goes to the bathroom and never returns. Bervoets waits and waits, but there is simply no sign of her, though some workers saw her with another man, implying that she might have simply left her boyfriend behind. This is a movie, so that’s clearly not the case, and soon The Vanishing splits its POV, following the killer (Bernard-Pierre Donnadieu) as he plots the kidnapping, and Bervoets as he devotes his life to finding out what happened.

As it turns out, Donnadieu is a sweet family man and chemistry professor whose sociopathic tendencies are bundled up as tight as those in a 19th century Russian novel, intellectualized until it’s a bloodless act within an indifferent universe, until it’s not. As Bervoets unravels from his grief, Donnadieu only grows in calm and power, sending him post cards inviting him to meet, only to stand him up over and over again. Truly great horror filmmakers require an expansive understanding of the human condition to avoid relying on crude sadism and genre clichés alone. And here, the shocking finale arrives when the lead can’t resist the urge to know, and credibly becomes a willing ally in the killer’s larger design.

8 Replies to “The 10 Best Road Trip Thriller Movies”

Thanks for a good solid list (road films are a weakness of mine), I appreciate your knowledge and insights.

…….Vanishing Point….YES! Looking for Kalifornia but alas, no.

It should be noted that Charlotte Rampling’s appearance in Vanishing Point is in the U.K. version of the film.

Damn, some excellent stuff here.

Solid collection, and I only clicked the link to make sure Hitcher was #1 – one of the most underrated thrillers

And never mentioned that shoddy remake.

Where is Stranger than paradise?

What about indy Thomas Jane’s Dark Country (2009)?

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11 Best Road Trips Movies of All Time

Nov 9, 2020

See recent posts by Katja Gaskell

If your next family vacation in the car , requires some in-seat entertainment, watch one of these road trip movies  on a tablet or portable DVD player (yes, they still exist!). Or go on the adventure of a lifetime without ever leaving your couch! Sometimes we like to travel from the comfort of our own homes, and  road trip movies make that both possible and enjoyable. Plus, you don’t have the kids asking “ are we nearly there yet? ”! From old-school movies that you probably watched as a kid to modern-day animations, these 11 road trip movies will make you laugh, cry, and inspire you to book your next family vacation!

1. National Lampoon’s Vacation

The king of road trip movies has to be National Lampoon’s Vacation . This cross-country caper starring Chevy Chase might look a little dated, but it’s as funny today as it was when it first came out in 1983. In this movie, the Griswold family, led by an ever-optimistic Clark and his long-suffering wife, Ellen, decided to drive from Chicago to California to visit Walley World. No sooner do they hit the road in their station wagon when disaster strikes. They get lost, they pick up an extra passenger (Aunt Edna and her dog), there’s a robbery and, when they finally arrive at the fabled theme park, it’s closed.

Related: This Way to Walley World: 3 Ways to Recreate a Griswold Vacation

2. Finding Nemo

The best road trip movie that has nothing to do with cars has to be Finding Nemo . This Disney Pixar movie about the young clownfish Nemo and his sidekick, Dory, is a heart-warming and funny adventure movie underwater. Nemo escapes from the dentist’s aquarium, battles the open ocean, encounters many a dangerous sea creature—and plenty of friendly ones, too—and is eventually reunited with his dad. It’s a wonderful tale of friendship and believing in yourself.

3. Little Miss Sunshine

Undoubtedly one of the best road trip movies on Amazon Prime is Little Miss Sunshine . The story focuses on seven-year-old Olive and her dream of winning the Little Miss Sunshine beauty pageant. In order to make this dream come true, her dysfunctional family sets off in an old VW van on a road trip from Albuquerque to California. Misadventures and mishaps take place along the way, largely owing to the families’ own quirks and neuroses. It’s sad, it’s funny, and will ultimately make you realize the importance of family—even if they drive you crazy sometimes.

Related: U.S. Road Trips Kids Should Experience Before They Grow Up  

4. Planes, Trains & Automobiles

Another oldie but goodie road trip movie is the 1987 Planes, Trains and Automobiles . Led by Steve Martin and John Candy, this movie follows the trials and tribulations of advertising executive Neal Page, who’s trying to fly home to Chicago to spend Thanksgiving with his family. Unfortunately, a sudden snowstorm forces his plane to land in Wichita. This results in a three-day road trip with Del Griffith, a shower curtain ring salesman who appears, initially, to be the worst kind of travel companion.

5. The Muppet Movie

When Kermit is approached by a talent scout, he dreams of making it big in Hollywood and sets off to seek fame, fortune and the chance to make “millions of people happy.” No sooner does our froggy friend leave his Florida swamp, however, when he is pursued by Doc Hopper, who wants him to be a spokesperson for the fried frog legs at his restaurant chain. Along the way, Kermit meets Fozzie, Gonzo and Miss Piggy, who help him escape Doc Hopper’s clutches and eventually make it to Hollywood. The Muppet Movie is a fun, family-friendly road trip movie that will have everyone laughing out loud.

6. Chitty Chitty Bang Bang

If only every real-life road trip could be in a car like Chitty Chitty Bang Bang . This wonderful tale of the eccentric inventor Caractacus Potts and his incredible flying car is still a popular road trip movie today, even more than half a century after it was first released. At a seaside picnic one day, Potts tells his two children a fanciful tale of a far-off land, ruled by the evil Baron Bomburst. Off the family go in their magical flying—and self-driving—car to save their grandfather from the tyrannical leader of the fictional land, Vulgaria.

Some people might argue that Cars 2 is not as good as the first movie, but we say this cartoon adventure is excellent, and one of the best road trip movies around. In this escapade, Lightning McQueen and his tow-truck buddy, Mater, head overseas for the first-ever World Grand Prix. While McQueen gets serious about the race, Mater gets caught up in an international spy conspiracy that takes him—and the story—to Tokyo, London , Paris , and the newly invented Italian town of Porto Corsa. The animation is stunning, the jokes and one-liners are funny, and there’s a good moral about looking out for your friends, too.

8. Homeward Bound: The Incredible Journey

Prepare to have your heartstrings pulled in this lovely tale of three pets searching for their masters. Homeward Bound: The Incredible Journey is one of the best road trip movies on Amazon Prime and tells the tale of Shadow, a wise golden retriever; Chance, a lively American bulldog puppy, and Sassy, a weight-conscious Himalayan Cat. The trio is placed in a Californian ranch when their owners are transferred for work to San Francisco . No one is happy about the arrangement, however, and they soon set off in search of their family. It’s an adventure that’s filled with excitement, surprises, and more than one nail-biting encounter.

9. College Road Trip

This is the perfect road trip movie for any parent who’s struggling with the idea of their children growing up. Independent Melanie Porter can’t wait to go on her girls-only road trip to check out colleges. The only trouble is, her overprotective father, James. When he decides to tag along, mishaps and misadventures ensue. Her brother—and his pet pig—stow away in the trunk, James borrows and totals a police car, and later crashes a hotel wedding. College Road Trip  is a fun story about growing up and letting go.

10. Madagascar: Escape 2 Africa

The funniest castaways on-screen are back in this madcap adventure to Africa. In Madagascar: Escape 2 Africa , Alex, Marty, Melman, and Gloria attempt to return to New York , but their plane crash lands in Africa, where more zany shenanigans follow. Alex is reunited with his parents, Marty finds a herd of Zebra who look and sound like him, Melman becomes the local witch doctor and Gloria falls (temporarily) head-over-heals with the smooth-talking hippo, Moto Moto. The penguins provide the biggest belly laughs in this cartoon caper that parents will love just as much as kids.

11. Mr. Bean’s Holiday

Hilarious hijinks prevail when the bumbling Mr. Bean attempts to go on holiday in the south of France in Mr. Bean’s Holiday . Having won a trip to Cannes, he sets off only to find that nothing goes according to plan. He unwittingly separates a young boy from his father and spends the rest of the movie trying to reunite them. Along the way, there are cultural misunderstandings, unfortunate coincidences, language problems, and much more. It’s very silly but guaranteed to make you laugh.

Related: Road Trip Hacks Every Family Needs

Katja Gaskell is a travel writer and family travel blogger based in London, U.K. after 12 years on the road in Australia, India and Mexico. She has written guidebooks for Lonely Planet, reviewed hotels for the British boutique hotel site Mr & Mrs Smith and has contributed articles to publications including BBC Food, Angels & Urchins, Lonely Planet online and more. She is also the European Editor of Twist Travel Magazine. Katja is a firm believer that you can – and should! – travel with your kids everywhere. Find Katja on her own site globetotting.com  and on Instagram @globetotting . 

What to Pack for Your Next Trip

Mom’s/women’s camping outfit, shop the look.

Organic Donegal Sweater

Rambler 20 oz Tumbler

Long-Sleeve Waffle Tee

Aberdeen Jogger

GEL-Contend® Walker

Girl’s camping outfit.

Mini Sleepy-Eyes Backpack

Big Long Sleeve Solid Cardigan

Glitter Best Dad Graphic Tee

Warrior Knee Joggers

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Dad’s/men’s camping outfit.

Super Deluxe Book Pack

Streamlight 88052 ProTac HL USB 850 Lumen Professional Tactical Flashlight

Flannel Shirt

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Can using VPN save you money on hotels, car rentals? I tested it out.

As I planned a trip to Mexico for this summer, my search for a bargain took me over the border without ever leaving my desk.

A recent study commissioned by cybersecurity company NordVPN found that U.S. travelers were being charged significantly more than those overseas for accommodations and rental cars.

"There's no need to overpay for a holiday abroad," the company said in a blog post about the research. "Using a VPN can save you a lot of money – and it's easy to get started."

Perennially drawn to finding a deal with minimal effort, I used that approach to plan three hypothetical trips and put the strategy to the test. Here's what I learned by using two different VPN services.

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Can you find travel deals by using a VPN?

NordVPN researchers found some major price differences when booking travel in the U.S. versus using a VPN, a virtual private network  that hides your IP address and physical location.

A two-week stay for a family of four at Zoetry Casa del Mar Los Cabos in Mexico, for instance, was priced at $84,929 on Hotels.com when booking in the U.S., but just $27,514 when using a VPN set in Mexico, according to the blog post.

In another case, renting a Peugeot 5008 from Budget – via Expedia – at London's Gatwick Airport for a little over a week costs $2,157.32 in the U.S. compared to $1,166.33 using a VPN set to the United Kingdom.

But the searches didn't strictly yield deals. "When conducting the research, there were cases when prices offered to consumers in different countries were similar," the company said in a news release.

In my own hunt for bargains using NordVPN, I came up mostly empty-handed. I compared hotel and rental car bookings in Mexico, the U.K. and Italy to U.S.-based prices and most were almost identical regardless of my virtual country of origin.

A June weekend stay at Fairfield Inn Los Cabos ran $334 via Hotels.com in the U.S. for one room, for example, and just a few cents more with my location set to Mexico, while renting a Chevrolet Aveo or similar car from Hertz in Mexico City cost about $49.50 per day in both cases.

Story continues below.

My luck didn't turn around across the pond, either: The Westin London City cost me $948 in the U.S. and about $949.50 with my location set to the U.K. In one case, the U.S. price was noticeably cheaper: when I priced out a rental car from Budget at London's Heathrow Airport, I stood to pay $278.82 in the U.S. and $364.65 with the help of a VPN set to the United Kingdom.

I did find one deal on a Fiat Panda 1.2 – or similar-sized vehicle – at Leonardo da Vinci-Fiumicino Airport in Rome from Sicily by Car via Expedia. The U.S. price was $146 compared to $101.98 when I set my location to Italy.

I tried the same approach the next day using another VPN service, ExpressVPN, but got similar results.

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"Typically, you can find great deals by looking at local sites (in the place) you are traveling to, but it's not always consistent and other locations can sometimes present a cheaper price, so it does take trial and error to hunt down the best price," Lauren Hendry Parsons, ExpressVPN privacy advocate and global head of communications, told USA TODAY in an email.

A spokesperson for Expedia Group – which operates Expedia and Hotels.com, among others – said the company did not have any information to add. Hertz and Avis Budget Group did not respond to USA TODAY's request for comment.

Can you get cheaper flights by using VPN?

While NordVPN's study didn't include flights, I went ahead and checked fares from New York to each country, too.

The lowest fares were about the same in most cases, but I found a slight price difference on round-trip flights from John F. Kennedy International Airport to Mexico City, which would have cost me $602 booking in the U.S., but the same itinerary was around $586 with the VPN set to Mexico (the same was true with both NordVPN and ExpressVPN).

Does using a VPN to book travel work?

It depends. Different rate structures can be applied to different distribution channels and geography, according to Robert Cole, Senior Research Analyst, Lodging and Leisure Travel at Phocuswright.

A hotel might give a third-party booking site a cheaper rate but request that the site only list that price in a specific place, for example.

"They go, 'That's great, but do not sell that in the U.S.,'" Cole said. "You know, 'We are Miami Beach resort or we're a resort in Cancun (or) the Dominican Republic, we want German business.'"

Prices can vary on a host of other factors, too, including timing and availability, he said, and the best deal for a given booking may be on a U.S. site. A website might also require travelers to provide a home address or, in the case of rental cars, a driver's license from that country in order to access a given rate, Cole added.

He recommended proceeding with caution, particularly if you are booking with a foreign site you aren't familiar with, where help may be hard to track down if a problem occurs.

"My words of warning are, yes, you can do it, but that you have to be very careful knowing who you're dealing with," Cole added. "So, it's very much traveler beware."

Is using a VPN to book travel worth it?

My largely fruitless bargain hunt may have been due to bad luck, or perhaps travelers looking to find the kinds of deals NordVPN researchers did have to exercise more patience.

And while I may not have saved much on the hypothetical trips, the experiment did cost me money. I paid just over $14 for a one-month NordVPN subscription and nearly $13 for a monthly subscription to ExpressVPN.

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Along the way, I ran into roadblocks, too.

After checking prices on hotels and rental cars in Mexico, I clicked my way to the U.K., but Hotels.com repeatedly asked me to prove I was not a robot by choosing the penguin in a series of graphics. Several attempts later, the site would not let me out of penguin jail and I switched over to Expedia.

Marijus Briedis, Chief Technology Officer at NordVPN, said in an email that its researchers ran into the bot identification issue and fixed it "by effectively disconnecting from the VPN, clearing the browsing data/cache/cookies etc and then going into the site again."

Parsons also said banks and credit card companies have varying policies regarding international transaction fees. "So if a person were to make a purchase in a currency outside their home market it would depend on the terms and conditions of the bank or credit card company they use whether they would be charged a transaction fee for this purchase or not," she said.

As he put it, when it comes to using a VPN to book travel, there are "inherent risks that may not be worth the potential reward."

Nathan Diller is a consumer travel reporter for USA TODAY based in Nashville. You can reach him at [email protected].