Overview

RoadTripUSA celebrates the quintessentially American travel experience - driving across vast landscapes, national parks, small towns, and iconic highways. The hashtag surged during COVID-19 as domestic road trips replaced international travel.

Iconic Routes

Most hashtagged road trip routes:

• Pacific Coast Highway (California SR 1)
• Route 66 (Chicago to Los Angeles)
• Blue Ridge Parkway (Appalachian Mountains)
• Utah’s Mighty Five national parks circuit
• Alaska Highway
• Florida Keys Overseas Highway
• Great River Road (Mississippi River)

National Parks Boom

The hashtag overlapped heavily with #NationalParks and #FindYourPark. Instagram drove unprecedented visitation to parks, creating both increased awareness and overtourism challenges at popular sites (Zion, Yosemite, Glacier, Yellowstone).

Vehicle Culture

Content featured:

• Vintage VW camper vans
• Converted Sprinter vans (#VanLife overlap)
• RV/motorhome travel
• Classic cars on historic routes
• Motorcycles (particularly Harley-Davidson Route 66 trips)

COVID-19 Impact

Summer 2020-2021: Domestic road trips surged as international travel halted. RV rentals sold out months in advance. National parks implemented reservation systems due to overwhelming demand.

Instagram Moments

Popular photo opportunities included:

• Horseshoe Bend, Arizona
• Monument Valley
• Antelope Canyon
• White Sands, New Mexico
• Arches National Park
• Glacier National Park’s Going-to-the-Sun Road

Sources

• National Park Service Visitation Statistics: https://www.nps.gov/
• AAA Road Trip Report 2022: https://www.aaa.com/