Road trips by city

Road trips from Knoxville

26 back-roads routes start within a 4.5-hour drive of Knoxville, including 3 day trips and 19 weekend drives; 1 ready-made itinerary begins nearby.

Drive times are estimates to the nearer end of each route (straight-line miles plus a quarter, at 50 mph); the atlas itself never routes you onto an interstate once the drive begins.

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Day trips from Knoxville

• US 11E: The Great Valley Road
  Starts in Knoxville
  Knoxville → Bristol · ~110 mi · 1–2 days · skips I-81 / I-26
• North Georgia Gold & Apples
  About 1 h 55 min to Brasstown Bald
  Dahlonega → Brasstown Bald · ~130 mi · 1–2 days · skips GA 400 / I-575
• SC 11: The Cherokee Foothills
  About 2 h 25 min to Walhalla
  Gaffney → Walhalla · ~115 mi · 1–2 days · skips I-85

Weekend road trips from Knoxville

• The Dragon & the Skyway
  About 45 min to Loop from Gatlinburg
  Loop from Gatlinburg · ~280 mi · 2–3 days · skips I-40 (by 200 miles)
• The Overhill Country
  About 45 min to Gatlinburg
  Chattanooga → Gatlinburg · ~175 mi · 2 days · skips I-75
• US 64: The Waterfall Byway
  About 1 h 30 min to Murphy
  Brevard → Murphy · ~120 mi · 2 days · skips I-40 (by 50 miles)
• Moonbows & the Gorge
  About 1 h 40 min to Cumberland Falls
  Slade → Cumberland Falls · ~150 mi · 2 days · skips I-75 (mostly)
• US 127: The Plateau & the Sale
  About 2 h 5 min to Albany, KY
  Chattanooga → Albany, KY · ~160 mi · 2 days · skips I-40
• Highway 64: Shiloh to Lookout Mountain
  About 2 h 30 min to Chattanooga
  Memphis → Chattanooga · ~340 mi · 2–3 days · skips I-40 / I-24
• US 41: Dixie Highway & the Atlanta Campaign
  About 2 h 30 min to Chattanooga
  Chattanooga → Atlanta · ~120 mi · 1–2 days · skips I-75
• US 41: Dixie Highway, Nashville to Chattanooga
  About 2 h 30 min to Chattanooga
  Nashville → Chattanooga · ~220 mi · 2 days · skips I-24
• The Crooked Road
  About 2 h 40 min to Bristol
  Bristol → Floyd · ~210 mi · 2–3 days · skips I-81
• The Wilderness Road
  About 2 h 40 min to Bristol
  Bristol → Berea · ~220 mi · 2–3 days · skips I-75 / I-81
• US 11: The Valley Road South
  About 2 h 40 min to Bristol
  Roanoke → Bristol · ~150 mi · 1–2 days · skips I-81
• The Trail of Tears: Georgia to Kentucky
  About 2 h 50 min to New Echota
  New Echota → Hopkinsville · ~350 mi · 3 days · skips I-75 / I-24
• US 23: The Country Music Highway
  About 3 h 15 min to Pikeville
  Ashland → Pikeville · ~140 mi · 1–2 days · skips I-64
• Bourbon, Bluegrass & Shakers
  About 3 h 40 min to Mammoth Cave
  Lexington → Mammoth Cave · ~180 mi · 2–3 days · skips I-64 / I-65
• US 52: The Mine Wars Road
  About 3 h 45 min to Williamson
  Bluefield → Williamson · ~100 mi · 1–2 days · skips I-77 (by a county)
• The Old Ninety Six District
  About 3 h 45 min to Abbeville
  Augusta → Abbeville · ~100 mi · 1 days · skips I-20
• The Middle Tennessee Pike
  About 4 h to Nashville
  Nashville → Muscle Shoals · ~140 mi · 2 days · skips I-65
• US 70: Broadway of America
  About 4 h to Nashville
  Memphis → Nashville · ~210 mi · 2 days · skips I-40
• The Shoals
  About 4 h 20 min to Huntsville
  Corinth → Huntsville · ~150 mi · 2 days · skips I-22 / I-65

Named parkways and scenic byways within reach

• Blue Ridge Parkway & the Smokies
  About 1 h 10 min to Cherokee (+ Smokies spurs)
  Roanoke → Cherokee (+ Smokies spurs) · ~400 mi · 3–5 days · skips I-81 / I-40 / I-26
• US 64: The Waterfall Byway
  About 1 h 30 min to Murphy
  Brevard → Murphy · ~120 mi · 2 days · skips I-40 (by 50 miles)
• Natchez Trace Parkway
  About 4 h to Nashville
  Natchez → Nashville · ~444 mi · 3–4 days · skips I-55 / I-65 corridor

Longer itineraries starting near Knoxville

• The Smokies, Every Road That Matters
  3 days · ~280 mi · from Gatlinburg
  The whole park and its two famous roads in one long weekend: over Newfound Gap, out to the Cherohala Skyway, back by the Dragon and Cades Cove.

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