If you’re planning for a road trip this summer, be sure to stop in these cities on your way.
Nothing says summer quite like a road trip. Whether you’re traveling down the coast, through the plains, or over the mountains, there is a bounty of remarkable sights to see across the United States.
Taking a stop to refill the gas tank, grabbing a bite to eat at a local restaurant, and seeing the unique local sights are all part of the quintessential summer road trip experience. And in each state, there are some cities with particularly novel and exciting opportunities to soak up some of the local history and culture without breaking the bank.
From underrated smaller communities to large metropolises, these are the cities you want to hit on your road trip this summer in 2021.
Selection Process for Insurify’s 2021 Best Cities for Road Trips Awards
To determine the best city in each state to visit on a road trip, the research team at Insurify, a site to compare auto insurance quotes, referred to proprietary and publicly available data. They rated cities on hospitality and tourism industry size, historic landmark presence, travel affordability, and driving safety.
Insurify’s data scientists referred to data from the U.S. Census Bureau to identify the number of employees in the hospitality and tourism industry across metropolitan areas. The number of designated historic landmarks by city was derived from the National Park Service’s National Register of Historic Places, an official list of preserved historic landmarks in America. Cities with a higher proportion of employees in the hospitality and tourism industry and a higher number of historic landmarks received a higher score.
Insurify’s research team determined travel affordability by city based on regional gas prices and meal costs. Regional gas prices were derived from GasBuddy, a travel app that publishes timely data on fuel costs across U.S. cities, and restaurant meal costs were derived from Numbeo. Cities with lower gas prices and meal costs received a higher score.
Insurify’s data scientists referred to their database of over 4 million car insurance applications to determine citywide rates of dangerous driving. In this study, dangerous driving behavior was determined using the proportion of drivers in each city with one or more of the following violations on their record: at-fault accidents, DUIs, and speeding tickets. Cities with a lower share of drivers with these violations received a higher score.
States with insufficient municipal data (Maine, New Hampshire, North Dakota, and Vermont) were excluded from the analysis.
Best Road Trips Cities
In 2021, these are the best cities in each state to go to on a road trip. These cities have lower rates of dangerous driving, highly prevalent hospitality and tourism industries, affordable gas and restaurant prices, and a higher number of historic landmarks.
Winners of Insurify’s 2021 Best Cities for Road Trips Awards
Alabama: Mobile
Alaska: Anchorage
Arizona: Tucson
Arkansas: Paragould
California: Redding
Colorado: Pueblo
Connecticut: Stamford
Delaware: Wilmington
Florida: Jacksonville
Georgia: La Grange
Hawaii: Honolulu
Idaho: Pocatello
Illinois: Rockford
Indiana: Bloomington
Iowa: Davenport
Kansas: Topeka
Kentucky: Somerset
Louisiana: Lafayette
Maryland: Frederick
Massachusetts: Cambridge
Michigan: Muskegon
Minnesota: Minneapolis
Mississippi: Jackson
Missouri: Florissant
Montana: Billings
Nebraska: Lincoln
Nevada: Reno
New Jersey: Trenton
New Mexico: Albuquerque
New York: The Bronx
North Carolina: Raleigh
Ohio: Columbus
Oklahoma: Tulsa
Oregon: Portland
Pennsylvania: Pittsburgh
Rhode Island: Pawtucket
South Carolina: Orangeburg
South Dakota: Sioux Falls
Tennessee: Knoxville
Texas: Lufkin
Utah: Sandy
Virginia: Arlington
Washington: Kent
West Virginia: Charleston
Wisconsin: Madison
Wyoming: Cheyenne
The information, statistics, and data visualizations on this page are free to use, we just ask that you attribute any full or partial use to Insurify with a link to this page. Thank you!
If you have any questions or comments about this article, please contact insights@insurify.com.
TRENDING CONTENT ON INSURIFY
Find quotes for cheap auto insurance Florida by comparing with Insurify.
Peach State drivers can save money on car insurance by comparing rates in real time. Getting cheap auto insurance Georgia, made easy with Insurify.
Finding rates for cheap auto insurance Texas is simpler than you think when you compare with Insurify.
Drivers in the Keystone State can get quotes for cheap car insurance Pennsylvania by comparing personalized rates in real time.
Getting cheap car insurance South Carolina is easier than you think when you compare quotes with Insurify. Start saving on your auto insurance premium ASAP!
Insurify’s experts wrote the guide to finding cheap car insurance Missouri to show Show-Me State drivers how to start spending less on insurance.
Centennial State drivers can compare car insurance quotes Colorado with Insurify and start paying less for their auto insurance ASAP.
Where can I find the best car insurance quotes Ohio? Ohioan drivers can compare with Insurify to get cheap auto insurance quotes in just a few clicks.
Insurify Insights
Insurify’s team of data scientists and content specialists presents Insurify Insights, a series of automotive, home, and health studies focusing on the topics that impact us all. Through expert analysis of over 4 million car insurance applications and an array of top data sources, the Insurify Insights team produces new data-driven articles, trend analyses, regional superlatives, and national rankings every week. See Insurify Insights as featured in Forbes, Fox News, USA Today, NPR, and more.