Road trips

Blue Ridge Parkway, NC-VA

North Carolina / Virginia · Appalachians

Entry Free to drive

Scale 469 miles

Est. 1936

Season May-Jun, Sep-Oct

469 miles of ridge line with no billboards, no trucks, and a pullout every two miles.

Getting there

Join at Asheville or Roanoke; there is no fee and no entrance station. Fog and ice close sections without much warning.

Don't miss

Linn Cove Viaduct - the parkway's curved signature bridge
Mabry Mill - the historic mill on the Virginia plateau
Linville Falls and Gorge - hiking just off the parkway

Best time to go

May to June for rhododendrons, late September to October for colour. The road passes through 26 tunnels, 25 of them in North Carolina.

Nearby

Asheville Boone Roanoke

Costs and seasons change

Fees and visitor figures are taken from the National Park Service pages for this park; re-check nps.gov before you book. The planning copy is ours.

More like this

$35 / vehicle

Yosemite Valley, CA

Sierra Nevada

$35 / vehicle

Zion National Park, UT

Colorado Plateau

$35 / vehicle

Grand Canyon South Rim, AZ

Colorado Plateau

Before you go

Do I need a reservation to visit the big parks?

Not at the time of writing. Yosemite dropped its timed-entry system, Grand Canyon states there is no timed entry, and Yellowstone does not require a vehicle reservation. Acadia is the exception: Cadillac Summit Road needs a $6 vehicle reservation between 20 May and 25 October 2026.

What does the $35 entrance fee actually cover?

One private vehicle and everyone inside it, for the park's stated period: seven days at Yosemite, Grand Canyon, Yellowstone and Acadia, one to seven days at Zion. Motorcycles pay $30 and walkers or cyclists pay $20 per person.

Is there a surcharge for international visitors?

Yes. Each park page states that non-US residents aged 16 and over pay an additional $100 each, unless they hold an America the Beautiful annual pass or an annual park pass. It is per person, not per vehicle.