Picture this: you’re winding through mountain curves with your favorite playlist on, or maybe you’re cruising past endless ocean views with the windows down. Getting to a music festival doesn’t have to mean boring highway miles. Some of the most incredible festival destinations in America sit at the end of drives so spectacular, they might just steal the show from the headliners themselves.
From California’s legendary coastline to Appalachia’s misty mountain ridges, these routes transform travel time into part of the experience. Let’s be real, nobody talks about sitting in airport security lines, but people absolutely reminisce about that moment when Big Sur’s cliffs came into view or when fall colors exploded across the Blue Ridge. These three drives do exactly that.
Pacific Coast Highway to Coachella Valley Festivals (California)
California State Route 1 stretches for 656 miles along the Pacific coastline, making it the longest state route in California and the second-longest in the US after Montana Highway 200. The Coachella Valley is home to the Empire Polo Club, which hosts the famous Coachella and Stagecoach music festivals, with Coachella spanning two weekends in April and featuring all genres of music. The journey from Los Angeles down through Highway 1 eventually connects to Interstate 10, leading straight into the desert festival grounds.
The route provides access to beaches, parks, and other attractions along the coast, making it a popular route for tourists, and annually helps bring several billion dollars to the state’s tourism industry. September stands out as the ideal time to explore this coastal route, as the fog clears up, crowds decrease, and temperatures stay pleasant. When you’re heading to Coachella in April, honestly, spring offers wildflowers and moderate weather too. Highway One passes through Monterey, home to one of the world’s longest-running Jazz festivals in September, the Monterey Jazz Fest, and travelers can plan their trip to coincide with this event or continue south to spend the night in Pacific Ocean towns such as Morro Bay, San Simeon or Cambria.
Blue Ridge Parkway to Appalachian Music Festivals (Virginia and North Carolina)
The Blue Ridge Parkway is a National Parkway and All-American Road in the United States noted for its scenic beauty, running for 469 miles through 29 counties in Virginia and North Carolina, linking Shenandoah National Park to Great Smoky Mountains National Park. Travelers can stop at the Blue Ridge Music Center and round out the evening with a bluegrass performance, as performances take place several times a week from May through October. This isn’t your typical interstate slog.
Throughout the year, the Blue Ridge Parkway in Virginia hosts a variety of local events and festivals that celebrate the region’s culture, history, and natural beauty, including music festivals and craft fairs. The Monticello Wine region, near the parkway entrance, plays host to many music festivals, concerts, and wine festivals. Summer brings cooler mountain temps, lush greenery, and festivals, while fall offers peak foliage season with brilliant reds, oranges, and golds from late September to early November. Here’s the thing: fall color season gets crazy crowded, so if you want elbow room at festivals like those in Asheville’s vibrant music scene, consider early summer instead.
Colorado Scenic Byways to Mountain Music Festivals
There are 13 of Colorado’s 26 byways designated by the U.S. Secretary of Transportation as America’s Byways, which gives Colorado more national designations than any other state. At festivals like Telluride Blues and Brews, held from September 13 to 15, it’s hard to find a more scenic backdrop for a music festival than Telluride, featuring world-class lineups including Gary Clark Jr., Ben Harper & the Innocent Criminals, and Joe Bonamassa. The routes through these high-altitude passes deliver something California’s coastal curves can’t: alpine meadows, jagged peaks, and air so crisp it almost hurts.
The Renewal festival in Buena Vista, held September 27 to 28, blends top artists with a beautiful backdrop at The Meadows, which has been the annual site of multi-day celebrations of music, community and nature with A-list artists. The first winter music festival coming to Colorado in 2024 is the MusicFest at Steamboat Springs, taking place from January 6th to January 11th. Colorado has more national scenic byway designations than any other state, according to the state program’s webpage. I think what makes Colorado special is how the byways connect tiny mountain towns where authentic bluegrass echoes from roadhouses, not just massive festival stages.
What do you think? Would the ocean breeze or mountain air make your drive more memorable?
