Best Road Trip Routes in Oklahoma

Oklahoma holds one of the longest drivable stretches of historic Route 66 of any state, and that legacy shapes much of the state's road-trip identity, alongside mountain byways and lake-country loops in the east.

Route 66 Across Oklahoma

Oklahoma contains more original miles of Route 66 than any other state, running from the Kansas border through Tulsa and Oklahoma City to the Texas panhandle, passing vintage motels, neon signage, and small towns that built their entire identity around the highway's mid-20th-century heyday.

The Talimena Scenic Byway

Running along the ridgeline of the Ouachita Mountains between Talihina, Oklahoma, and Mena, Arkansas, the Talimena Byway is one of the most scenic mountain drives in the region, with overlooks along Rich Mountain and Winding Stair Mountain that rival much better-known mountain roads elsewhere in the country.

Southeastern Lake Country Loop

A loop connecting Broken Bow Lake, Beavers Bend State Park, and Robbers Cave State Park shows off Oklahoma's greenest, most forested corner, mixing reservoir recreation with genuine Ouachita and Sans Bois mountain scenery.

Oklahoma City to the Wichita Mountains

Driving west from Oklahoma City to the Wichita Mountains Wildlife Refuge takes travelers from the state's urban core into open plains and then abruptly into ancient granite mountains, one of the more dramatic landscape transitions available on a single Oklahoma day trip.

The Panhandle to Black Mesa

A drive into the Oklahoma Panhandle toward Black Mesa reveals a version of the state that looks almost nothing like the rest of Oklahoma — high, dry, and geologically tied to the Colorado and New Mexico high plains rather than to the Cross Timbers or Ozark country farther east.

Why Oklahoma Road Trips Work

Between Route 66 nostalgia, mountain ridgelines, and lake country, Oklahoma's best drives consistently prove that the state's highway reputation undersells the actual variety of what's visible from the road.